Until Then (Cape Harbor #2) - Heidi McLaughlin Page 0,3
with Grady or even when his brother was elated. It was the weird twin thing between them, which often confused outsiders.
“He’s in the hospital. He’s being checked for hypothermia, a concussion, and is very agitated. But it’s Austin; we can’t find him. And we can’t find Bowie.” Graham knew if Austin was out on the boat, Bowie was likely with him. He also knew his family needed him. His brother would definitely need him if Austin wasn’t found. “I need to go back down to the docks. We’re going back out to search.”
“It’s not safe if it’s raining, Dad. You should stay with Grady,” Graham pointed out, knowing full well his plea would fall on deaf ears.
“I won’t leave Austin out there alone. I can’t do that to Carly. Not to Skip. Your mom will stay with Grady, son. Your brother . . . he’s going to be okay, but I have to help find Skip’s boy.” George Chamberlain was a family man and had taken Austin under his wing after Austin’s father passed away. Just as Gary Holmes had.
“I’ll book a flight right now.” His father hung up, with no other information. Graham was angry and confused. He went to his computer and booted it up. Over the past year, websites had become more popular, and he knew Southwest Airlines had a fairly active site. Plus, their flights were cheap, and there were plenty of them. He could get one by the morning and be home in five hours. While his internet loaded, he went around his bedroom, packing clothes. He dug into his closet and pulled out his wet suit—he would need it if he planned to dive, which he did, unless Austin surfaced beforehand.
With AOL open, he typed in the airline’s URL and hit enter. The internet was slow this time of night because everyone was on. He clicked, typed, and pressed enter more times than he could count as he searched for a flight. Nothing for hours, and the earliest was tomorrow night. He could drive home by then. He logged off and remembered his father said they couldn’t find Bowie. He couldn’t fathom any of this. None of it made sense. Why would Austin take the trawler out in a storm? Why would Grady go with him? And where was Bowie?
He picked up the phone and dialed Bowie’s cell phone. He was one of the few people Graham knew who had one. The phone rang, and by the fourth tone, Graham’s frustration started turning into fear.
“Hello?” Bowie answered gruffly into the receiver.
“Where are you, man?”
Bowie paused. “Home, why? What’s up?”
Graham knew he wasn’t but chose not to dig deeper. “There’s been an accident,” Graham said hurriedly and with panic. “He’s so fucking stupid. The fucker took the trawler out, and it fucking capsized. Fucking rogue wave tipped the boat over. My dad, he’s heading out now, and my mom’s freaking out. I can’t get a flight until tomorrow.” The more Graham recalled the conversation with his father, the more worried and distraught he became. The boys were smart, raised better than to play with nature this way. Austin, of all people, knew better.
“Who?”
“Austin, man. Fucking Austin, and he’s gone!” Graham screamed.
“What do you mean?”
Graham paused. The word gone played over in his mind. Had he spoken too soon? What if Austin was perched on a buoy? Or clinging to a rock? He could be on one of the islands, waiting to be rescued.
“What do you mean, Graham?”
The line went dead before he could answer his friend. He had no time to call him back. He wanted to get on the road and get home to his family. He had one last call to make before he left, and that was to Rennie. Brooklyn would need her.
When Rennie’s roommate answered, Graham said, “Is Rennie there? This is Graham. It’s important.”
“Ren, for you.”
Graham counted the seconds until she picked up. “What’s up?”
“Austin’s been in an accident. I’m heading home.”
“Is Brooklyn okay?”
“I don’t know,” he said. “You and I both know, wherever Brooklyn is, Bowie isn’t far behind. Now that he knows about Austin, he’ll be by Brooklyn’s side.” He let the words hang in the air. He and Rennie both suspected something was going on between their friends but never asked either of them. Graham recounted everything his father told him and heard Rennie start to cry. “I’ll call you when I get to town to let you know what’s going on.”