Jack Beale 00 - Dangerous Shoals

with soap, hands, and fingers saying volumes, while they looked deep within each other’s eyes. The rush of the water over their bodies, accented by occasional soft, guttural moans, were the only sounds to be heard. Then, those sounds became grunts. He was wet and cold and his breath short from effort. It was dark out, and he was on the bow of a boat, his boat. It was raining and he was struggling to pull something up into the boat. Max was nowhere to be seen and he was beginning to panic. A face appeared in the water―Daniel’s. Jack froze and before he could react, Daniel’s face was gone and another face stared at him. It was just below the surface, in the shadows and ripples of the dark water. He couldn’t see the face clearly except for the eyes: dark, piercing, malevolent, lifeless. Eyes he would never forget. He dropped the rope that was in his hand and turned. As panic and fear overcame him, he began to run and tripped and fell, landing flat.
    “Jack. Jack. Are you all right?” It was Max. She was kneeling next to him, looking like she was torn between concern and laughter. On the floor next to her was a bag of groceries. He sat up quickly and his disorientation turned to embarrassment as his face reddened.
    “I’m fine. That was weird,” he said as he climbed back onto the couch and looked at Max. He was still shaking a bit and he felt a chill despite the warmth of the sun that was filling the room.
    Max sat next to him. She looked deeply into his eyes and searched for … she didn’t know exactly what she was looking for. “Just as I came in, I could hear voices upstairs. At least, I thought I heard more than one voice. Yours was the loudest. I couldn’t make out the words, but you sounded panicked, and then there was this loud thump just as I reached the top of the stairs and I found you on the floor next to the couch.”
    “I must have been dreaming,” said Jack slowly as he tried to recall what had happened. “After you left, I lay down on the couch and dozed off. You and I were in the shower together, things were pretty hot …” he grinned as he remembered that part of the dream and he blushed again.
    Max blushed also, remembering back to a few hours earlier.
    Then his voice got low and heavy, “I was holding you and then you weren’t there and it was dark and I was on the boat, cold and wet, trying to pull something up out of the water. You were gone. I began to panic. Whatever I was pulling up startled me. I let it go and turned to run away, tripped, and fell. That’s when I must have fallen off the couch.”
    “What were you pulling up? What scared you?”
    “I don’t know.” He did know, but he couldn’t bring himself to tell her. And besides, it was more a feeling than anything concrete save for those eyes.
    “Well, if I’m going to have that kind of effect on you, I guess that there will be no more showers together,” she said with a teasing lilt in her voice.
    “Max …” Before he could offer any more protestations she leaned forward and gave him a kiss. Then she stood and said, “Come on, we’re going on a picnic.”
    She picked up the groceries and Jack watched her walk toward the kitchen. He was still bothered by that dream. “What was that all about?” he thought to himself before getting up and joining her.

CHAPTER 4
    THE DAY WAS living up to its early morning promise and it was past noon by the time they spread a blanket on the grass in Prescott Park. It seemed as if the whole world had the same idea. Lovers strolled along the river hand in hand, pausing every now and then to stop and look out over the water or to steal a kiss. Children raced around, chasing each other, laughing and giggling in a celebration of their freedom after the long confinement of winter, while their parents watched with looks of relief. Shorts and t-shirts revealed rapidly pinking skin, as the sun worked its magic to bring color back into the world.
    A blanket was spread and Max opened her picnic basket. Jack could see the joy in her face as she unpacked the basket. As she brought out bright-colored plastic plates, flowered cloth napkins, and carefully wrapped sandwiches, chips, and a bowl of potato salad, Courtney said with some jealousy in her voice, “Max, you are crazy. You didn’t have to get this carried away.”
    “This is our first picnic of the summer and I wanted it to be special.”
    As Court reached into her backpack she said, “Well, now I feel bad, I only