Drake Sisters 07 - Hidden Currents

tremendous and it’s al positive.â€
    She drew in a breath and looked out to sea again. Lightning flashed in the sky, far out, tearing through the dark fog. Thunder rumbled, and beneath them, the ground vibrated. No one noticed as they danced and sang. El e stepped away from Jackson and joined her sisters as they turned and faced the roiling water.
    â€œSend the animals away, tel them to swim along the coast up toward Point Arena,†Damon suggested to Abbey, “just to be safe.â€
    Abigail did so, and the dolphins and seals dove deep and were gone, leaving the water churning and restless.
    â€œHe’s here,†El e whispered. “Look at the kelp.â€
    To either side of a fifty foot strip, the kelp stood up in the water, bobbing and floating as it should, but along that fifty foot stretch in the middle, the kelp stretched flat, as the water on the surface ran in a current, a river racing through the sea. A wave burst over the sand, riding up toward El e, stopping inches from her bare feet when Hannah stepped forward and waved her hand. In the water was a mass of reaching kelp, moving as if alive, seeking prey.
    Jackson contemptuously kicked driftwood onto the greedy vines and the current receded fast, heading back toward the ship anchored somewhere beyond the dancing lights. The fog deepened to a darker hue, spinning now. Lightning blazed along the edges of the darker clouds and thunder cracked.
    Again the ground beneath their feet shivered.
    El e’s body tensed. “He’s coming at us,†she warned.
    Her sisters stood with her, shoulder to shoulder, El e in the middle. She could barely breathe with fear. Far out now she could see the wal of water forming, building into a massive tower. Her throat closed. The rogue wave was coming in fast, a monster, driven by rage and hatred and a savage need to control. Stavros was bent on destroying everyone she loved.
    The air thickened around them, pressure building, the force sucking at them as if trying to draw them into a maelstrom of violence. Libby took a step forward, along with the water receding. Sarah and Abigail both caught at Libby, holding her stil while the sand was drawn from under their feet. Yards of water rushed back to join with the oncoming wave. El e glanced over her shoulder, realizing there was an eerie silence. No one ran. No one tried to save himself. The townspeople stood there, watching the wave gather in strength and speed. They had to know, had to realize that the wave would kil everyone, smash houses and cars and destroy everything in its path.
    El e couldn’t believe that no one moved and then she realized they were looking at her with faith, with complete confidence. They believed in her.
    They believed in her sisters.
    Stavros! I won’t let you. She flung the words at him and raised her arms, stepping deliberately into the surge. She opened her mind to connect with her sisters, melding with them, throwing her fears away because it was now or never. She had to stop Stavros. She had no choice. Everyone was counting on her and he would not destroy her family. He wouldn’t take the love of her life from her. And he wouldn’t take her friends or her beloved town.
    She felt the power swamp her as she tapped in to the vast supply of energy al around her. The force hit her hard, slamming into her with such vigor she nearly went off her feet, but she stood her ground and faced that wal of water as it gathered more speed and towered a hundred feet in the air. As the wave approached them, it split in two, coming at the beach from either side of that fast-moving current. There was so much vile hatred and rage mixed into the tower of water that she was afraid to meet it with any violence of her own. She didn’t know what might happen. She needed something else . .
    .
    She took a moment to glance at Ilya for help, but he was turned away from her, facing some other threat she didn’t see, expecting—believing—that with her sister’s help she would keep al of them safe. She saw her mother step up beside Sarah and her aunt Carol beside Abigail and she felt them waiting for her direction. She turned her head one last time to look at the people behind her. She caught sight of a child, blowing bubbles from a miniature container and she quickly turned her head to look at Jackson. His eyes were on her. His mind in hers. He caught her idea and a slow smile softened