Page 97 of Forged in Secrets

Grace continued to stare at the various screens and instruments, not offering so much as a glance in Ben’s direction. From what he could discern on the sonar screen, they seemed to be approaching deeper open water once again.

He released a breath. They hadn’t hit anything–that was good–but the beach already felt very far away.

Grace’s calm voice broke the silence.

“Jade?”

She rolled her eyes, and Ben could see her grip tightening slightly on the pistol.

“What?”

“I’m about to hit the throttle,” Grace said. “But I can’t really see very well with the sun in my eyes. Can we fix it?”

“Whatever,” Jade repeated.

“Ben,” Grace said. “Please close the curtains on the window to your left.”

Something about the deliberate, almost robotic way that she made her request made Ben hesitate.

Her blue eyes caught his own, and time slowed even as she gave him the most imperceptible of nods.

A second passed, one millisecond at a time.

She was trying to tell him something, but he had no idea what. Was he supposed to tackle Jade and go for the gun? Was she going to do something with the controls and cause some sort of distraction?

His mind hurt as he tried to sort through the possibilities using time they did not have.

At last, he yanked his gaze away from Grace and moved toward the curtain.

And as soon as he saw the window, the unspoken message became clear.

“You gonna do it or what?” Jade snapped, using her free hand to shield her eyes from the glare of the sun. “I can’t see, either.”

“Sorry,” Ben said quickly.

He allowed himself one long breath. There wasn’t enough time to say a prayer, but he hoped that the Lord would be with him now just the same.

He lunged for the window.

For a moment, the bridge was flooded with even more light, momentarily blinding Jade.

Before she could figure out what he was doing, Ben gripped the curtain rod he’d yanked free, and swung it as hard as he could.

GRACE

The sudden rush of sunlight forced Grace to shut her eyes.

Barely a second passed before chaos broke out.

The two other women screamed and she turned around, blinking away the remnants of the blinding light from behind her eyelids. She heard the sound of metal clattering against the smooth wood of the bridge’s floor.

She moved to reach for the gun, but Ben was faster.

He held the weapon with both hands, taking a couple of steps until he was standing over Jade. She was sprawled out on the ground, clutching her knee and howling in pain.

“Do me a favor and stay where you are. I don’t want to hurt you for real, but I will if I have to,” he said, kicking the curtain rod out of her reach. Grace listened as it rolled across the floor, finally coming to a stop at Katie’s feet.

She stepped back quickly, as though the long piece of hollow metal was a snake or a large insect. Her eyes were damp with tears, but before Grace could go to comfort her, she heard an annoying beep from one of the boat’s control panels.

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