Free Landfall: Islands in the Aftermath (The Pulse Series Book 4) by Scott B. Williams Page A

soon as she got to know him, she would see the difference between a man like him and a boy like Grant. She was obviously going to defend his actions because he was her friend. He may even be her boyfriend for all Russell knew, but if so, it was because he was the only one among them close to her age. That and he was a college prick that probably had money and a nice car before the collapse. None of that mattered now though, and Russell didn’t see what use he could be to anyone out here. What an idiot, to run a boat right into an island!
    The catamaran inched along as Artie and Grant took their turns at the winch. By the time they had four fenders under each hull, the keels were barely touching the water from amidships forward, and the sterns were only halfway submerged. When the tide went out again, they would be completely dry until the next high cycle. Russell heard Larry tell Grant to stop winching and then he jumped down from the deck to have a look.
    “We could go a good bit farther,” Russell said. “She’s still going to get wet at every high tide.”
    Larry ignored him and walked into the water between the hulls, going back and forth to feel along the keels and get a better look at the damaged areas. Russell was right behind him, step for step.
    “If you try to do the repair like this, your epoxy is going to get wet before it cures. I think we ought to pull her up another eight or ten feet.”
    “I’ve got fast-drying hardener for the epoxy,” Larry said. “We’ll have plenty of working time between the tides. It’ll take several cycles to get it all done, but I don’t want to be any farther out of the water than absolutely necessary. The way things are, you never know when you’re going to have to make a quick escape.”
    “You’re being paranoid man. Nobody’s coming here. Like I said, I’ve been on this island for weeks and there hasn’t been a boat in sight until you guys came. It would be safe to stay here from now on, but not the way I did it, with nothing to my name and all alone.”

Ten

    N O MATTER HOW MANY times Larry and the others assured him that any of them could have made the same mistake, Grant still felt all this inconvenience was his fault and his alone. He had been the one at the helm, after all, even though he and Artie had worked together to plot their course. He was the one who failed to recognize the sound of surf in the dark in time to do something about it, so how could it be anyone’s fault but his? Now they were days away at best from getting the repairs done and leaving again. It would not have mattered so much if all of them were accounted for, but Scully was missing. Every day that went by could be crucial for him and might determine whether or not they ever found him. Larry would never be satisfied until he could sail back to Florida to look for him, but he wouldn’t do it until the damage to the boat was taken care of.  
    Like Casey, Grant had offered to go with him when he sailed, arguing that he was the best choice despite his error in nearly wrecking the boat. But Larry wouldn’t hear it, saying he didn’t want to keep dividing their group. Besides, they now had this Russell guy to deal with and since he wanted off the island, Larry said he would take him to Florida. Russell could help him with the steering and watch keeping on the way over, and if things went as planned, Scully would do so on the way back. It didn’t take any of them long to discover how obnoxious Russell was, and even though he didn’t think he was dangerous, Larry thought it best if they got rid of him as soon as possible. He didn’t want to leave him there for everyone else to deal with, so taking him to Florida seemed like the best solution. He would be a pain in the ass to deal with on the boat, even for that short trip, but Larry said he would have to do as he was told or he would drop him off somewhere along the way. Russell might not like it, but that was going to be his only