“That’s it. Come here.” He opened his arms. I nestled into his chest, worn out as he lifted me, cradling my body and carrying me to a tiny cot. “You’ve been through a lot today. Rest.” He stroked my face, kissing me softly. “I got this.”
I nodded, grabbing his hand. “Stay with me.”
Reef squeezed my hand. “You’re stuck with me, Barracuda.” I closed my eyes and quickly drifted away, the sound of the engine lulling me to sleep.
The immediate silenceof the engine woke me as I shot up, remembering where I was. “Reef!” I called out.
“I’m here.” He approached me. “I’m here.” I leaned into his chest, hugging him tightly. “I had to kill the engine as we approached the beach.”
“Finally,” I wheezed.
A light beam strobed through the front windows of the boat, Reef and myself both peering out through the glass to see my dad standing on the pier, waving us down.
“Shit. That’s my dad.”
Reef shot me a look. “Your dad is the Chief?”
I turned to look at him. “Surprise.”
“You do realize he has been hunting me every day, right alongside those fishermen, right?”
“Yeah, well, if it helps, he’s been hunting me too.” Reef fell silent, realizing the severity of the situation.
“What are you going to tell him?” he asked as we slowly drifted closer to the pier.
“I can’t tell him the truth; he’ll never believe me. He thinks Dale is a fucking saint, always has.” I pondered for a moment. “When we get closer, you need to disappear quietly. He can’t know you were here.” Reef nodded.
“What about Dale?”
“I’ll handle Dale. Now, show me what to do.” I pointed to the boat. Reef nodded, doing as I asked.
My father’sflashlight burned my face as I jumped from Dale’s boat onto the pier. “Delilah?” he called, turning off his flashlight. I walked towards him, my cheek burning, my roller skates slung over my shoulder. “Where’s Dale? Why are you on his boat? And what the hell happened to you?” he asked, noticing my blood-stained shorts and legs.
I continued walking past him as I spoke over my shoulder. “Dale’s passed out on the boat. He got shit drunk and fell off the boat. As for me.” I sighed. “Mother nature called. I’m going home.”
TEN
DELILAH
Cherri knockedon my door before opening it. “Good morning, Delilah,” she sang, glancing over me. “Good morning, Reef.”
He raised his head lightly, resting on my chest as we both smiled, speaking in unison. “Good morning, Cherri.”
“Oh, Delilah, I wanted to give you a heads up—I overheard your dad talking to someone yesterday on his way out. Apparently, the fishermen are going out today to hunt that shark. Something about setting up a blockade? I don’t know. But that means he’s probably not going to be joining us at the music festival today.”
I dropped my head, relieved. “Thank God.”
“Wait.” Reef sat up. “The fishermen are all going out, today?” She nodded, closing the door.
“I know that look.” I watched as he shot from the bed and began to dress. “Reef, don’t do this.”
“You know I hate those fishermen. I have to stop them.” He zipped his shorts as I groaned, turning my radio on, tuning into the local music station.
Static played as I rotated the knob to catch what the radio hosts were saying. “I mean it, Cindy. With today’s music festival, the Angel of Death would be an idiot to even think about targeting someone. Golden Coast police will be scattered throughout the crowds, watching the entire day. The only way this murderer could even think of killing someone was if something crazy happened that forced the entire police department away from the festival. I’m telling you, there’s no way anything is going to happen—” Reef twisted the nob, turning the volume down.
“You okay?” he asked, watching me.
I scoffed, looking up at him. “I have an idea.”I’ll give them crazy alright.
