Page 218 of Hidden Tide
“And now I’m inside what remains after one.”
“You’re bleeding.”
“It looks worse than it is.”
“It’s running down your face.”
“I noticed.”
“Ben.”
He pauses.
For one second, the SEAL disappears, and I see the man who kissed me before walking into danger.
“I’m all right, Calle.”
“You don’t know that.”
“Piers checked me.”
Piers appears behind him. “His head remains unusually hard.”
“Thank you,” Ben says.
“I’m providing medical reassurance.”
Despite the fear closing around my chest, I almost smile.
Almost.
Ben’s team reaches the remains of the hidden dry dock.
The Argent Star’s berth is empty. Flames burn near the water gate while an overhead fire system sends sheets of water across the concrete.
Federal agents search storage cabinets and offices along the wall.
“Simon knew we would find this place,” Ben says. “He had time to destroy it before he reached Hazel’s apartment.”
“Then why return?” Marquez asks.
“He needed the ship.”
“Or something aboard it,” Mark adds.
Ben’s camera turns toward a steel worktable bolted to the floor.
Blackened papers cover its surface.
Most have burned beyond recognition.
One corner of a map remains beneath a metal tool.
Ben carefully lifts it.
Faded lines show part of Blackwater Island.
A red circle marks the northern cliffs.
