Page 14 of Night Watch
She shone her light ahead and swept her hand through the silt while barely kicking forward into the darkness and gliding her other hand along the rope until she reached the end. She didn’t know the exact time it took, but she guessed about thirty minutes.
“Man, it’s dark,” Erik said. “I can’t see a thing on the camera.”
“Yeah, totally going by feel here.” She swam to the second rope. “You’re good to go on one, Charlie.”
“Roger that.”
She started down the second rope, and they passed the midway mark, but she didn’t look up as she didn’t want to move her light. Her gloved fingers crept through the silt. Something sharp clamped onto her fingers.
She yelped in pain.
“What is it?” Erik asked.
She tried to free herself from the radiating pain that had her gritting her teeth. “Something on my… Charlie, help!”
He swam over to her.
“Snapping turtle,” she said, finally making out the shape in the cloudy waters. “Won’t release.”
“Let me get behind him and grab the shell,” Charlie said.
Pain shot through Kennedy’s hand, radiating up her arm. The turtle continued to hold its grip. This wasn’t her first bite, and at least it was a common snapping turtle. Not like the alligator turtles in the south. They rarely sought a person out, but accidental strikes happened when they surprised a diver from where they hid in the sandy bottoms of fresh water.
Charlie grabbed the shell behind the turtle’s head. His movement was enough to surprise the turtle, and its mouth relaxed. She jerked her hand free.
“Let me move him well out of our way.” Charlie swam away, holding the turtle at his side.
“Come on up, and I’ll bandage your hand,” Erik said.
“No need. I can finish.”
“You’ll need to have it looked at.”
“Yeah,” she said, thinking Erik was sounding like his mother, who would insist on the same thing. Her mother would too, if she were alive. Kennedy suddenly missed being part of such a big warm family. Missed having parents.
She’d been so sentimental since her mother died. But now wasn’t the time for that. She needed to let it go and get back to work. Pain radiated through her hand, and she felt a bit lightheaded but swallowed hard and drew in some deep breaths to keep moving forward.
Nearing the end of the second rope, her hand connected with something metal. She lifted it up to her light, her hand throbbing with the exertion.
“Got it. It’s a crowbar.” Excitement of the find burned in her gut, maybe not as brightly as when she searched for a murder weapon that the killer warned that she’d never find. She might only be searching out a crowbar here, but this search was personal. This was for her mother.
4
Erik paced the dock, rain beating down on him. No point in looking at the video Kennedy and Charlie were sending up. Sure, it would be good documentation for court, but otherwise, he couldn’t see a thing. He didn’t know why having her cruising the bottom of the river bothered him, but it did. Not that she was in danger, other than from a turtle, and a bite on the hand was hardly life-threatening.
In the past, he’d never been super protective of her. Sure, when they were together, he felt responsible for keeping her safe, as most men did with the women in their lives, but he never let it get in his way or stop her from doing anything.
So what was going on tonight? Why the angst?
She surfaced, and he let out a long breath, then watched her swim toward him, the rain slicing into the river. The evidence bag was clutched in her uninjured hand. The minute she shed her dive suit and handed the crowbar over to Sierra, Erik would take her to the ER to get her hand assessed. Bites could easily become infected. He wouldn’t let that happen.
“You still have a thing for her,” Sierra said coming up behind him and resting a hand on his shoulder.
He thought to claim his lack of feelings for Kennedy but thought better as he turned to look at his sister, who now wore rain gear. Unlike him, she wasn’t getting soaking wet. “No point in denying it, but I don’t want Kennedy to know about it, so keep it between us.”
“Oh, honey, sorry. You’re transmitting your interest loud and clear, and she couldn’t possibly miss it.”
“Then I’ll have to figure out a way to hide it.”
