Free Water Lily in July by Clare Revell Page A

called to say he was in port and asked where the storm was. He teased Angus something chronic about being a scaremonger and said he’d be leaving on the morning tide if nothing happened.
    As Angus started to plead with him to stay ashore, Kaylie headed to the lantern room.
    Lucas looked at her. “It’s taken all day but I replaced the switch. I couldn’t find anything wrong with the old one, other than it just not wanting to work. Not that this one does either.” He sighed. “It must be a circuit breaker somewhere, but I don’t know. I’ll radio the mainland, and ask them to send out the original electrical specs, see if it’s something generic rather than obvious.”
    “Thanks anyway. I’ll just do it manually for now.”
    “Already taken care off. I’ll see you in the morning, bright and early.”
    ~*~
    Kaylie stood hunched over the radio, concern growing with every passing minute. Above her the sun shone from a cloudless blue sky for the second day. Around her the sea was a sheet of glass.
    There had been no sign of Angus’s storm over night and there still wasn’t a breath of wind. Now it was 7:30 AM and the radar was telling her something disconcerting.
    She adjusted the screen and frowned, checking it against the barometer and other readings she had. She went over the figures again, always coming to the same conclusion.
    “If the wind changes, your face will stay like that.” Lucas’s voice startled her. A cup clunked down in front of her. “Coffee.”
    “Thank you. And that’s what my mother always said,” she replied.
    “What’s up? Are you letting Angus get to you with his doom and gloom and storm theory?”
    “It’s not a theory any longer.” She pointed to the screen.
    Lucas whistled low and long. “Whoa…that’s one monster storm system.”
    “Winds close to hurricane strength, according to this.” Kaylie flipped up another screen to show him.
    “How come no one saw it coming?”
    “Oh, they did. Just didn’t think it’d come this way, so didn’t bother to warn anyone.” She paused. “We’ve got twenty-four hours at the most, probably far less than that if my calculations are right. My concern is the leading edge of the system.” She ran a fingertip across the screen. “If that collides with high tide, then we have problems. I need to call this in.”
    Lucas perched a hip on the desk. “Hold up. Problems such as what?”
    “A storm surge. If the incoming storm driven waves hit the reef at the right angle it could top more than thirty feet by the time it makes landfall.”
    “ If it hits…it could cause. That’s a lot of if’s and but’s. They won’t believe you, not without Met Office back up, and they won’t commit this early, you know that. Give it another twelve hours.”
    “Angus would…”
    “Angus isn’t in charge this morning. I am. Now go get some sleep.”
    “Fine,” she said reluctantly. She downed the coffee. “Just promise me you’ll keep an eye on it.”
    “Go. Bed. Now.”
    Kaylie sighed and put the cup on the desk more firmly than she needed to before heading down the stairs.

10
    Rob sat at the bar, egg and chips in front of him and an empty juice glass to the side. Only ten o’clock, he’d called in for a decent breakfast before heading out. He covered the plate with salt, vinegar and ketchup, and paused to say grace. As he looked up, Frank refilled his mug with more coffee. Rob smiled. “Thanks. The weather is lovely out there again. No sign of this storm, which was the only reason I came back last night.”
    “Maybe Kaylie got it wrong.” Frank wiped down the bar with a damp cloth.
    “She said Angus never is.”
    “Angus? There you are then.” Frank laughed. “He’s never happy unless he’s doomsaying about something or other. Especially this time of year. It’s the anniversary of the vanishings today.”
    “Anyway, I was going to head back out after this. I’ll be home again at the weekend.”
    “Any chance of first pick