Balancing Act (27 page)

“Seth?” She was crying. He heard it in her voice as she got into the SUV. He started the engine once again. The drizzle had turned into freezing rain. Seth stared out at the weather.

“Any other ideas? What does he like to do?”

“Besides video games, the only thing he’s ever shown an interest in was sailing…”

They stared at one another.

“Do you think?” Seth ventured.

Tessa shook her head. “I don’t see how. That’s all the way over at the bay.”

Seth stared at her tear-streaked face. He had a gut feeling, but he knew she was reluctant to go that far.

“I have to check, Tessa. You know that. Do you want me to take you home?”

She huddled in the overlarge parka and shook her head. “No. If he were going to come to my apartment, he would be there already.” Hurt pushed through her words. Was it the pain of knowing that Zach had apparently run from her as well?

Seth drummed his fingers on the steering wheel as he looked out at the weather. The wind was beginning to come up now, almost as if what they were getting were developing into a Nor’easter. “Let me call the marina and have them check the
Wistful
.”

Tessa nodded. “I’m petrified, Seth. Where is he? He called me from his new school to tell me how unhappy he was, but all I did was urge him to hang in there. I didn’t take to heart how desperate he was to get away from Aunt Kathleen and Uncle Edwin. This is all my fault.”

“Don’t start trying to assign blame…” Seth broke off as his phone was answered. He explained what was going on, then waited impatiently while they checked
Wistful
’s berth. “What do you mean the
Wistful
’s not in her moorings?” Seth’s gut clenched and he ordered, “Alert the Coast Guard. I have reason to believe she’s been taken out by an eleven-year-old boy. I’m on my way, and I want someone ready with a boat to take me out.”

He shoved his phone back in his pocket and looked at Tessa’s eyes, wide pools of ice blue in a face so pale it looked like milk glass in the gray, wintry light.

“Seth?” she questioned. He heard the fear in her voice. It was a living thing about to consume her. He reached for her and cradled her face, his thumbs brushing at the tears that welled and ran down her cheeks.

“I will find him, Tessa. Do you hear me? I will find him and bring him back to you.”

They headed for the marina, but the going was slow as the temperature continued to fall and the wind continued to rise. As the wiper blades swished back and forth, Seth watched the moisture sliding like syrup in front of them. At the edges of the window, it bunched up into a row of half-melted slush even the defroster couldn’t quite destroy. Zach was out in this somewhere. Trying to sail. God, let him have enough sense to seek shelter.

Chapter 16

Zach dropped anchor in the cove they’d fished over the summer. It had been easy enough to get
Wistful
and head out into the bay. Everyone thought he was an idiot. It was happening all over again at this school Aunt Kathleen and Uncle Edwin made him go to, but he wasn’t an idiot. Even Tessa didn’t know how well he’d learned to sail at camp, but he would show all of them they needed to quit treating him like some dumb little kid. Maybe he’d sail around the world so he never had to go back to that stupid school. At least, it had seemed like a good idea when he started.

Now, he wasn’t so sure. When he had gotten up this morning, the wind had begun to pick up and a light drizzle was falling. Zack found Seth’s weather radio in the cockpit and fiddled with the dial until he found the marine forecast. When he heard the warnings, he swallowed. He’d never sailed in bad weather. He’d never even been on a boat in bad weather.

He ate one of the cans of Beanee Weenees he’d brought along and drank some instant coffee he’d heated up in the small microwave. Maybe if he left now he could get Seth’s boat back before he got in even bigger trouble…maybe before anyone figured out he’d taken it.

Zach pulled anchor and set sail, but the wind direction had changed. He swallowed as he realized he would have to sail against it most of the way back. He chewed on his lower lip while he tried to remember what he’d learned in camp. It was slow going, tacking back and forth and always adjusting sails to keep the boat from heeling too much.

He had to stop several times to warm up. Zach had never been so wet and cold. He tried putting on the rain suit he found below, but it was Seth-sized, hanging miles past his hands, and way too big to do anything with even when he tried rolling up the sleeves.

The rain turned to ice, and Zach nearly skidded off the side of the boat when he tried to close the door to the cabin so it wouldn’t get wet inside. He grabbed the railing while he sat on his butt on deck, his stomach doing so many somersaults he thought he might barf.

What did he know about sailing in this kind of weather? And all those gadgets Seth had to make sailing
Wistful
a snap in good weather weren’t helping him now. In the dim afternoon light, he saw a small cove. Maybe the boat would be okay there. At least it would be out of some of the wind. As the light faded, he pulled in the sails and dropped anchor. The wind-whipped water rocked the boat from side to side, but Zach didn’t think it was hard enough to make it capsize. If he could wait out the storm…

He swallowed as he sat below deck listening to the tick-tick of sleet against the cabin roof. Tessa would be so worried. He hadn’t thought of that to begin with because he’d been so mad, but he did now. Maybe they were right. Maybe he was just a dumb kid. Somebody smart would have realized that worrying about him was the last thing she needed. If he got home okay, he would tell her how sorry he was. If he got home.

* * * *

When they pulled into the marina, Seth left the car running and looked at Tessa. “I’m going after him.”

“I’m coming with you.”

“No. You couldn’t stand being locked up in a cabin, and it’s too extreme out there for you to stay above deck. If you won’t think of yourself, think of the baby you’re carrying, Tessa.”

“It’s your child too,” she whispered. “But Zach’s like my son. I know you can understand that. I watched the way you were with him. Please. I can do this. I can.”

He saw the determination in the set of her jaw. Seth touched her cheek. “Okay. We’ll find him, Tessa. Together.”

He sheltered her from the wind as they stopped at the marina office. The owner handed him the keys to a boat.

“I got nobody to go with you, but I got you a helluva boat. The
Merry Ann
’s not much to look at, Mr. Barrett, but she’s stout and dependable. I’ve gassed her up and she’s ready to go. God speed.”

Seth took the keys and turned to Tessa. “We’ll retrace our route from our trip this summer. It seems like the most logical place to start.” He looked at the owner. “If you hear anything from the Coast Guard, let us know. We’ll have the radio on as well.”

Seth half carried her aboard, putting her with him on the bridge. While she tried to adjust to the close quarters and the rhythmic clicking of the freezing rain hitting the glass, Seth dug around for foul weather gear. He smiled when he unearthed a full set of Gore Tex raingear and high rubber boots. Once he was suited up, he was a far cry from the man whose office Tessa had first walked into last summer. It was that man she had loved, but he wasn’t sure how much of that office-bound Seth still existed. The last few months had changed him. Hell, it had changed them both.

“I’ll be right back.”

Through the windows, she watched him untie the last mooring line before he jumped back onto the boat and all but skidded across the deck. The footing was treacherous at best. God help Zach if he hadn’t already found some shelter and dropped anchor. He returned to the bridge and started the old boat’s engines. They rumbled to life with a reassuring growl. Seth turned to Tessa, his hood thrown back but a thick knit cap pulled over his short hair to protect him from the elements.

“Ready?”

She tried to smile, but Seth saw the faint quiver at the corners of her mouth. She lifted her chin. “Let’s do this.”

Good girl.
She was still the tough little fighter he remembered. His Tessa.

He checked his charts as he set the boat on a south-southwesterly course. The light was fading and he didn’t have much time. Darkness would make a search next to impossible in this weather. He pressed the throttle forward, relieved when the boat responded, and gripped the wheel as the craft leaped and bumped over each swell on the bay.

Tessa stared out the windows, adding her eyes to his as they searched for any sign of
Wistful
. Her white knuckles grasping the ledge were all that betrayed her nerves.

Seth berated himself. What the fuck had he been thinking, bringing her out in this? The way this weather was, they would be damn lucky to not end up needing rescuing themselves. By the time they reached the cove where they’d stopped to fish, he knew they would have to go back.

He turned to Tessa, hating to break it to her, knowing how he would crush her.

“We have to quit, don’t we?” Her eyes were huge in her pale face.

Seth nodded. He wasn’t going to try to sugarcoat it at this point. “There’s no sign of her, sweetheart. We don’t have the resources to search in the dark. We’ll have to rely on the Coast Guard at least until morning.”

Her chin quivered, but she nodded. He’d give almost anything to be able to take her in his arms and comfort her, but timing was everything and he feared their time had come and gone.

He turned the boat around and headed back north. The going was slower, even with the
Merry Ann
’s powerful engines. Seth kept one eye on the navigational buoys as his gaze still swept the shore on his left. The freezing rain had stopped for the time being, but the wind continued to howl, whipping salt spray into the air. He slowed his pace so he could search what little he could see.

“Keep looking, Tess. We can at least do that as we go home.”

A moment later, he felt her behind him. Slender arms wrapped around him, and she pressed against his back. “Thank you, Seth.”

If he’d wondered whether she could care for the man minus the suit and the power, he had his answer. Seth swallowed and had to clear his throat before he could speak. “I’d do anything for you, Tessa. You and Zach.”

“I think I already knew that, even if I couldn’t admit it. That’s why I came to your door, praying you would be there. And you were.”

“And I always will be, Tessa, but we can talk about that later, after we have Zach back with us safe and sound.” He pulled her close against his side and squeezed her shoulders. When she leaned her head into him, something that had hardened around his heart began to loosen once more.

* * * *

Zach huddled in the cockpit of the
Wistful
. He had turned on the lights, but didn’t dare run the small heater for any length of time ‘cause he was scared the battery that powered everything would run down. He’d a whole lot rather be cold than sit in the dark. After pulling off his wet clothes, he dug around until he found one of Seth’s thick hooded sweatshirts. Like the rain jacket, it fell to below his knees. He also uncovered a pair of heavy wool socks that came up to his knees. He looked down at himself, making a face. He looked sooo stupid, but at least he was dry. After heating up another cup of instant coffee, Zach wrapped a blanket around himself and crawled with his mug up on one of the berths in the cabin.

He worried his lower lip and stared out the small window. The rain seemed to have stopped, but choppy waves still tossed the
Wistful
from side to side. No matter how much he wanted to go home, he was too scared to try sailing again until it was clear. Sliding up against that railing had been enough for him. He had wanted to prove to everyone how grown-up he was, but he knew now he’d made a dumb mistake. Uncle Edwin and Aunt Kathleen might be mad, but Tessa would be worried. Would she get in trouble because he ran away? He hadn’t thought about that. His uncle and aunt would blame her, even if it wasn’t true. They didn’t care about that…or him.

He swallowed the rest of his coffee and thought about turning out the lights inside the small cabin, but he couldn’t bring himself to do that. It was one thing to sit inside the tossing
Wistful
when he could see; it was another to roll around in the dark.

* * * *

Seth squinted at the small cove ahead on his left. A few isolated lights outlined the shore, but for the most part it was deserted. He was about to look away when he thought he spotted a light, a bobbing light. He pulled the throttle back and the
Merry Ann
settled on the uneven surface of the bay.

“What is it?” Tessa asked shifting from her perch back to his side.

Seth grabbed the binoculars hanging around his neck and put them up to his eyes. There it was again.

“A light, sweetheart. One that’s moving. That means it’s on the water. Let me bring us about. In this weather, any indication of another boat is worth checking out.”

Adrenaline pumped through him, raising his flagging energy levels. He brought the
Merry Ann
around and headed toward the light.

“Help me keep an eye on it.”

“I will.”

When they drew closer, he turned on the boat’s powerful floodlight mounted on top and shined it ahead of them.