Copyright © 2013 by Larry M. Edwards. All rights reserved. No part of this work excerpt may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author.
Excerpt . . .
2
(continued)
I rose at first light and went to the beach. There I walked along the narrow strip of sand bordering the Coronado golf course, where duffers were already chasing their little white balls. I picked up a bit of riprap and rainbowed it over the water, toward the spot where the Spellbound had lain at anchor while the final preparations for the trip were made. A splash, and ripples circled outward across the still water as tears coursed my cheeks.
I returned to my boat and made coffee, then heard a voice hailing me. I peered out and spotted Melissa Garrett* on the beach, waving an arm in a wide arc. Her father and mine had become lifelong friends as boys growing up in Seattle.
I rowed ashore and Melissa squeezed me in a tight hug. I stepped back, my eyes questioning. "It's Kerry, isn't it?" I said.
Melissa swallowed before answering. "My dad just said to come and get you."
As she drove north to Rancho Bernardo, I tried making small talk, but we drifted into silence. Morgan Garrett* met me at the door and led me to the family room. His wife, Nan, sat on the couch, red-eyed, a wad of tissue in her hands.
"Is it Kerry?" I asked.
Morgan hesitated and his face contorted. "Larry, you'd better take a seat."
"Just tell me, damn it! What the hell's going on?"
|
Jody Edwards at the helm
of the Spellbound, 1977
|
He pulled me to him, gripping me so tightly I could hardly breathe. "It's your mom . . . she's dead, too."
I pushed away and walked to the patio door, where I stared into the sunlit backyard. Buds had formed on the shrubs, signs of life returning as winter waned.
First Dad, now Mom.
I felt Morgan's hand on my shoulder. "We're all in shock," he said.
"Maybe they were caught in that typhoon after all," I said, still gazing into the yard.
"We were told that she died during the night."
A silent movie flickered through my mind: Gary and Lori standing at the lifeline, grinning in anticipation of the adventure ahead . . . Mom and Kerry waving from the phone booth . . . Dad's torqued face the night we parted.
Morgan and I made a big dent in a half-case of Lucky Lager while taking phone calls from family and friends in the Seattle area. Gary had said Mom died of shock. But we got no update on the Spellbound until that evening, when we were told the boat had been found adrift north of the island of Rangiroa.
I booked a flight to Tahiti.
Read other excerpts from the book:
●
Author's Note
●
Chapter 1 excerpt
●
Chapter 2 excerpt
●
Chapter 2 excerpt (continued)
●
Chapter 3 excerpt
●
Chapter 4 excerpt
●
Chapter 16 excerpt
●
Chapter 28 excerpt
●
Chapter 32 excerpt
Release date
July 9, 2013
Marking the 35th anniversary year
of the deaths of Loren and Jody Edwards
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