❖

“Hold on.” A dark form plummeted into the water next to Austin. A man said, “Give him to me.”

Her, Austin thought blearily. She held on, afraid if she let go Linda Kane would be washed away. Linda had gone silent again, the only sign of life a weak flicker of a limb when a wave lifted them into the air before dropping them.

“I’ve got her, trust me,” the man beside her shouted.

“Other ones,” Austin gasped, her voice so weak she feared he couldn’t hear over the screaming wind. “Two more.”

“Already aboard.” A strap slid around her chest and cinched beneath her arms. Momentarily confused, she struggled, clutching Linda tighter.

“Austin, Austin, it’s okay!” Another voice. A woman.

Gem’s face appeared, wavering in her unsteady vision. “Gem?”

“It’s Alexis Martin. You’re okay. We’ve got you both.”

Not Gem. “Where’s Gem?” A spurt of panic. “Is she here?” Austin thrashed against the strap on her chest. A hand gripped her shoulder.

“She’s ashore,” Alexis said. “She’s okay. Relax. Let us get you up.”

The man pulled Linda away, and Alexis tugged Austin closer, rapidly clipping another strap between her legs.

“You’re going to be fine. Hold on to me,” Alexis said, attaching a cable to Austin’s harness. “We’re going up. I’m right here.”

Too exhausted to do anything else, Austin closed her eyes. Gem’s face appeared, smiling, welcoming, warm. “Gem…call…her.”

“Not long now,” Alexis shouted, unable to hear Austin’s faint mumbling.

Austin’s feet broke free of the water and her body swung and spun in midair. The harness dug into her chest, a comforting, securing presence. Beside her, Alexis rose in tandem, one hand gripping Austin’s safety harness. With every foot that grew between her and the ocean’s surface, her head cleared. Still cold, she could at least feel her fingers and toes again. Her face, frozen in the icy blow, was stiff and wooden, and words came slowly.

“Alive?”

“Got them all,” Alexis yelled. “All three. You saved the woman.”

“Lucky.”

A basket dropped from the belly of the helicopter. The roar of the rotors replaced the wind, just as loud, but providing a barrier against the freezing air currents below. Austin flexed her arms and legs, working to heat up her core. Now that she was clear of the water, her strength started to return. She could think again.

“We’re going to get you strapped in here for transport,” Alexis said as they pulled even with the sled.

“No. I’m okay, I’m good,” Austin said. “Just cold. Let me ride inside.”

“You sure?”

“Hell, yeah. Get me in there.”

“Okay, hold on,” Alexis said, and said something into her headset.

In another minute, they’d been winched aboard, the cabin doors slid closed, and the helicopter angled off away from the smoldering oil. Alexis knelt, opened a med kit, and pulled out a thermal blanket. She wrapped it around Austin’s shoulders, and Austin pulled it tight, shivering violently.

“You sure you don’t want to lie down?” Alexis asked.

“Just need heat.”

Alexis cracked a pack of instant hot against her thigh and held it out. “Drink this.”

“Thanks.” Austin swallowed the instant brew, the best damn coffee she’d ever tasted. She finished it off while Alexis checked her over, taking her pulse, recording her blood pressure, checking her temperature.

“Your core temp’s 95. You ought to feel like crap.”

“I do.” Austin laughed shakily. “Reminds me a lot of Alaska. Hate the cold. Got any more coffee?”

“You must be cold if you want more of that.” Alexis grinned, snapped another pack open, and held it out. “You’ll live, looks like.”

“Thanks—for down there.”

“No problem.”

“I need to reach Gem.”

“Don’t worry. She’s great at her job.”

“Not about that.” She had to text her, let her know she was okay. Gem would have heard, would wonder, would worry. All hell was about to break loose, and she needed to get to Gem before the storm cut her off. She just needed her.

Alexis studied her intently and must have seen it all in her eyes. “That way, is it?”

“Very much that way.”

“Stick close to me when we land.”

The helicopter began its descent and Austin peered through the sheets of rain streaming across the small window behind her. A Coast Guard vessel pitched on the rough seas just below them. “I need to get to shore before Norma hits.”

Alexis’s grin was feral. “Norma’s here, babe. This show’s already started.”

Chapter Twenty-eight

“I’ll wait,” Alexis said, turning in to the nearly empty parking lot adjacent to the Gulls Inn.

“You don’t have to,” Austin said. “You’ve done plenty already. I appreciate you pulling strings to get me here.”

Alexis drummed her fingers lightly on the wheel and grinned. “It helps, you being the big-shot oil rep and all that. The brass were happy to accommodate, especially seeing as how you’ve been all over the TV after that crazy-ass stunt out there when that helicopter nose-dived.”

“Yeah,” Austin said wearily. “I’m feeling like a pretty big deal right now.”

“You’re going to be the golden girl as far as network news is concerned after saving their star.”

Austin snorted. “For twenty-four hours, maybe.”

“Probably.” Alexis laughed. “But hey, take what you can get.”

“Let me see if Claudia is still here,” Austin said. “She’ll probably know where Gem is.”

“You know they’ll have evacuated the sanctuary by now.”

“I know, but I’ll find her.” Wherever she was, she’d find her.

“Don’t doubt it,” Alexis said. “But I can at least drive you around until you do.”

“You must have better things to do.”

“I’m officially detailed to your first-response team, remember, and I’m technically off duty for the next eight hours anyhow. Plus, I want to find my shore team, get an update on the storm preparedness, and brief them on what’s going on out there at 86.”

“That’s what we all want to know,” Austin said darkly, “but there’s no telling until Norma gets done with us and we can get back out there.”

At one p.m. the sky was dark as midnight. Five-foot waves crashed on the shore, their foamy aftermath climbing ever closer to the underpilings of the buildings closest to the beach. Debris had begun to swirl through the empty streets, scattered and tossed by the rising winds. And still, the full force of the hurricane had yet to make landfall.

“By tomorrow morning,” Alexis said, “she’ll have blown over us, and we can all get down to the business of tidying things up.”

“As soon as we can get back out to the rig, we’ll brief on the status of the leak and the projected interval to shut it down.”

“Go see about Claudia, and if you can stay awake,” Alexis said, “we’ll go find Gem.”

Too short on energy to argue and figuring it wouldn’t do her any good anyhow, Austin relented. “Okay. Give me five.”

“I’ll text my sister again. Maybe I’ll hit a pocket of reception.”

“Thanks.” Austin had been texting Gem since the search-and-rescue team had rendezvoused with the Coast Guard vessel. She hadn’t really expected to get through to her from out at sea, and she hadn’t, nor at the airport, nor during the car ride back into town. She’d find her, though. One way or the other.

Hoping Claudia was still around so she wouldn’t have to hunt down the manager for a key, she knocked on the door to her room. Fatigue sat so heavily on her shoulders, she leaned against the doorjamb just to keep upright. Not much longer. When she found Gem, she could rest.

The door swung open. Austin blinked. “Gem?”

Gem smiled softly, grabbed Austin’s hand, and tugged her inside. “Stand right there for a minute.”

“You’re here?” Austin asked, just the slightest bit fuzzy. The door closed behind her and the sound of Norma’s arrival faded.

“Shh.” Gem gently ran her hands through Austin’s hair, over the sides of her face, along the curve of her neck, and down her shoulders. She pressed the tips of her fingers to Austin’s lips, stroked her palms down her chest, over her abdomen, and settled onto her hips. “You’re all in one piece. You’re safe.”

“You’re really here.” Austin gripped Gem’s shoulders and yanked her close, taking her mouth like a drowning man taking air. She groaned, warm again for the first time in forever. She cupped the back of Gem’s head, held her in place, and drank her down, her exhaustion burning away on the crest of desire.

Gem threaded her arms around Austin’s neck, molded herself to Austin’s frame, banishing the smallest space between them. She opened for her, welcomed her in. When Austin drew way, breathing heavily, Gem murmured, “That was you, wasn’t it. Out there in the water.”

“Yeah,” Austin whispered, cupping Gem’s face, kissing her again. “God, I need you.”

“Don’t ever scare me like that again,” Gem whispered, kissing her back just as urgently. “I don’t want to lose you.”

“You won’t, I promise.” Austin cradled Gem’s hips, kept her tight against her. “I’m fine, I swear. Alexis too.” Austin jerked. “Fuck. Alexis is waiting outside.”

“No, she isn’t. I texted her back just a few seconds ago. Told her I was here. We’re alone for the next twelve hours or so, except for Norma.”

“To hell with Norma,” Austin said, walking Gem backward toward the bed.

“You can barely stand up. You need to get some sleep.”

“You’re not leaving,” Austin said quickly, desperation spreading through her. “Please, I—”

“Hey, no. No! I’m not going anywhere. I’m staying right here.”

Austin leaned her forehead against Gem’s and closed her eyes. “All I could think about was getting back here to you.”

“I’ve been dying, waiting for you to come back.” Gem caressed her. “You need to get a shower, get warmed up, and get into bed.”