Sea Haven 01 - Water Bound

couldn’t get the buckles loosened with the rain pouring down on him.
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    He fell again, tumbled over, the pack pulling him down. He was wearing boots and the water had filled them. His heavy jacket and clothing added to his weight. The current swept him straight over the bank into the irrigation pond. He went under, surfaced with a thin, terrified scream and went under again.
    Rikki collapsed at the top of the hill and Lev’s heart nearly stopped. He clawed his way through the slippery mud to get to her, even as he tried to keep an eye on Pratt. The body came up once, rolled like a heavy log and disappeared again, this time in the center of the pond. Lev reached Rikki.
    She was lying faceup, her eyes open, staring at the rain as it came down.
    Without her orchestration, the rain slowed considerably.
    “Are you hit?” His hands ran over her body.
    “My calf feels like it’s on fire.”
    She was remarkably calm while he felt insanity taking hold. He ripped her jeans with the tip of his knife, frantic to see the damage. The bullet had barely clipped her, taking more denim than skin, and he hung his head, his stomach heaving. He didn’t have time to vomit, he heard a noise above them and whirled, gun rising. Jonas appeared, flanked by several others. Lev simply laid the gun on the ground and lifted Rikki into his arms. By the time he reached the porch, the rain had stopped altogether.
    Several hours later, a team had recovered the body and collected evidence, and Jonas came to join them on the back porch to take their statement. “Are you all right, Rikki?” Jonas asked gently. “Did a paramedic look at that wound?”
    “Yes, Blythe got here a couple of hours ago and insisted. She sent coffee to your crew.”
    “Bad luck, Pratt falling into the pond like that with his pack on. He didn’t have a prayer,” Jonas commented.
    “I wouldn’t call it bad luck. And I want my gun back when you’re finished with your investigation.”
    Rikki remained silent, head down, hands covering her face. Lev and Jonas exchanged a long look above her head.
    “They’re almost gone, sweetheart,” Lev murmured.
    She rocked back and forth silently, and he dropped to the porch beside her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her into him, sheltering her with his chest and arms.
    “Rikki,” Jonas said softly. “Gerald Pratt and his family were in the same accident as you and your parents, just before your thirteenth birthday, the huge pileup on the freeway. Do you remember that accident?”
    Lev felt her take a deep breath. She nodded, but didn’t lift her head.
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    “The Sitmore car hit the Pratt car from behind, launching the Pratt car into the air. It hit a fuel tanker and ignited from the sparks another vehicle that was sliding along a guard rail, metal to metal, was throwing into the air.”
    “There was fire everywhere,” she murmured, her voice that of a child.
    “All around us. My mother was hurt. People were screaming. A car hit ours very hard from behind and pushed us into the car in front of us. The noise was terrible.”
    “The accident wasn’t your parents’ fault and it certainly wasn’t yours.
    Anyone reading the report could clearly see the problem started with two trucks colliding, causing a chain reaction behind them. Visibility was poor, the roads slick, and disaster struck.” Jonas pushed a tired hand through his hair. “He’s gone now, Rikki, and he can’t hurt anyone you love.” When she remained silent, he sighed and started to turn away.
    Rikki sat up, squaring her shoulders. “Why did he want me and my family dead?”
    Jonas shrugged. “Who knows what happened to his mind. He was in a burning car with his parents, someone pulled him out, but he watched them die in the fire. He became obsessed with fire after that. He took classes, became a volunteer at a young age, continued his schooling and then joined the CDF.”
    Blythe came out of the house, and dropped her hand on Rikki’s shoulder. “I’m going home, honey. Get some sleep.”
    “Thanks for the coffee,” Jonas said. “We all appreciated it.”
    They watched her drive away, too tired to get up. Rikki leaned her head against Lev’s shoulder and looked at Jonas, actually meeting his eyes. “He blamed my family and wanted us to die the same way, didn’t he?”
    Jonas nodded. “I think so. He wasted his life on trying to get revenge for an accident. It was just bad luck that your car was behind theirs. You