She of the Sea

29 of 53 - A New Alliance

The strange man from the restaurant stood between her and the door. Cassie knew she would never be able to get away from him. If she screamed, it might wake Rafe who remained in a deep sleep upstairs. He would come running if he woke. If he didn't, would the old harbormaster help her?

The man took a step back. "Don't be frightened. I'm not a hunter."

How could he not be? He knew so much about her. How did he get away from Nico? How did he even find her? 

"I'm not one of them," the man repeated, "but I used to be. I know how they operate. They're coming for you, Cassandra. They might already be here. I'm your best chance of evading them."

"I'm not going anywhere with you." Fear made her voice tremble.

The harbormaster picked up the desk phone. "Leave her be, mister. I'm dialing the cops."

The man looked at the harbormaster. "Wait!" He looked at Cassie. "Let me show you something." From his wallet, he pulled what looked like a coin and set it on the counter, slid it toward her.

She picked up the coin. "My mother gave me this token. How did you get it?"

"You gave it to me five years ago. Do you remember?"

For the longest time when Cassie tried to remember where she had kept her token, it had been like a fog settled into her brain. There existed a hazy outline of a memory, a frustration of a remembrance just beyond her reach. Eventually, she had given up trying to find the thing. Now, the fog lifted. "The vending machine ate your money."

The man smiled. "I knew exactly where you were all this time and never betrayed you. That's how you know you can trust me."

Cassie recalled her mother's words. The person who held the token would be her custodian. She started breathing easier and slid the old coin along the counter toward him. "I believe you need to hold onto this while you and I remain bound."

He returned it to a slot in his wallet and faced the harbormaster. "How about that waverunner?"

A few minutes later, after all the paperwork had been processed, Cassie went to the door. She was anxious to get going and face whatever awaited her among the sponges.

Her custodian stopped her. "Pull your hoodie over your head. Those long braids are too easy to spot."

She did as he asked and let him go first. He opened the door and looked all around before motioning her forward. "Right now, we're at our most vulnerable. Once we get into open water, we should be relatively safe."

Cassie's heart beat all the way up in her throat while he led the way. Her senses remained hyperaware for anything unusual, and she figured this was what it felt like to be a prey animal being pursued by predators.

They found the dock where the waverunner was moored. Both slipped into life jackets. Cassie climbed on behind her custodian and wrapped her arms around his waist. Moments later they were underway.

After clearing the harbor, he took a direct course toward Anclote Key, but halfway there he veered off and joined in with a group of others on waverunners racing up the coast.

"You're going the wrong way," she shouted to be heard above the screaming motors.

"I don't like the sudden appearance of that helicopter. We need cover."

What helicopter? She scanned the sky and spotted it. The aircraft circled their group as if searching. Eventually, it broke away and headed inland toward where they had come. After it had flown out of sight, he changed course to their original heading.