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He steps around the kitchen counter and towers above me. My insides swirl with anticipation. He runs the back of his index finger down the side of my face, then down to my neck, gently pressing against the sunburn. I might spontaneously combust. “You sunscreen this pretty skin of yours.”
I nod once. “Already done.”
Leaning down, he hovers just between the crook of my neck and shoulder. I swear he’s going to kiss me. Time stretches endlessly and that sinful mouth drifts to my ear, whispering against the shell. “Good girl.”
Two short words that do more to me than I ever thought possible.
After stacking everything we might need into the back of the SUV, we climb inside.
“The cell phone towers must be down,” Ethan explains. “I don’t know when they’ll be back up, so I can’t call ahead to see what’s going on. I don’t know what we’re getting ourselves into.”
I didn’t know the towers were down because I haven’t used my phone in weeks. There’s not much you can do with a phone that only texts and calls when you have nobody to text or call. The plastic brick has been sitting plugged in and untouched in my bedroom. I’ll admit that his news has me reconsidering our plan. For just a second my selfish side wants to hide in the house but that wouldn’t be right. “We need to help.”
He nods and pulls out of the drive.
As a whole, Nantucket is wealthy all over and we’re staying in one of the most elite areas on the island, but even wealth can’t always protect against mother nature. That becomes evident about a quarter mile from the house. The road is a mess. There’s nothing to do but clear the debris and press on. It seems like every fifty feet there’s another fallen tree we’ve got to move. It takes hours to make it over the main hill where we can see down into the worst flood zone. My heart sinks. Even from this vantage point, it doesn’t look good.
I thought the roads were bad, but this is ten times worse.
The flood waters have mostly retreated, leaving behind thick mud and debris in their wake. I don’t know how safe it is to go down there. Maybe Ethan was right, maybe we should’ve stayed back, but there might be people stranded in that mess who need our help.
“We’ve got a few hours left before sunset,” Ethan says. “Where to first?”
It’s overwhelming. I don’t even know where to start.
We drive the Range Rover as close as we can get before it’s obvious our chainsaw isn’t going to be enough and climb out.
Luckily, that’s when the Coast Guard pulls up next to us. One of the guys flags for us to get out and we meet him in between the vehicles.
“Can we help with anything?” I ask.
The three men exchanged weary glances and one addresses us. “Normally we’d tell you to go back home. You shouldn’t be on the island at all.”
“Well, we’re here to help,” Ethan cuts in. “What can we do that won’t get in your way?”
“Okay, you can stick around, but only because we’re going to need the help.” The guy relents, hand raking down his jaw in worry. “The damage is worse than we anticipated. Some of the structures in the flood zones got completely wiped off the map.”
My heart drops.
I try to imagine it and can’t. It’s too sad. I really hope nobody tried to stick it out in those places, because if they did, they probably didn’t survive the night. I remember how scared I was and know that my fear must’ve paled in comparison to what others faced only a few miles from where we were. Many locals stayed on the island, and I think of Camilla.
What if she lives in the flood zone?
“Where does Camilla live?” I turn on Ethan.
He pales. “I don’t know.”
My stomach hardens and I really think I’m going to be sick. We need to check on her but if we don’t know where she lives and we don’t have information on her, there’s nothing we can do right now. We’ll have to check on her as soon as cell phones work and we can get her address. I want to kick myself for not thinking of her yesterday.
“What can we do?” I turn on the leader, my voice wavering. “Give us a job and we’ll do it.”
“Just come with us,” he instructs, and we follow him and his crew.
We’re on foot, so there’s only so far we can go, but other rescue workers are here, some in boats down in the still-flooded areas. A couple of helicopters circle above.
The remaining daylight fades to darkness as we go from house to house, checking to see if anyone’s home and could need our help. Luckily most of the houses are empty.
But not all.
