Page 18 of Hidden Depths

"Bring them all home."

I met her eyes.

Then gave a single nod.

"I will."

The engines rumbled to life beneath our feet.

The lines slipped free.

Sea Whisper eased away from the dock with the grace of a swan leaving shore.

No matter how many times it happened...

It always felt magical.

I stood at the helm as the marina slowly drifted behind us.

Ahead...

The Golden Gate Bridge stretched across the entrance to the Pacific.

Beyond it...

Thousands of miles of open ocean.

Behind me...

A family waving from the dock.

Beside me...

Six strangers whose lives were about to change.

And somewhere beyond the horizon...

A current had already begun moving toward us.

None of us knew it yet.

But the sea...

Already remembered.

4

Ward

The Golden Gate Bridge disappeared behind us one slow mile at a time.

I stood at the rail watching San Francisco grow smaller.

Storm joined me.

"You've never sailed the Pacific before."

It wasn't a question.