Missing In Action
0545 Zulu
The Kahala Hotel
Honolulu, Hawaii
Jay woke up to the blaring klaxon of the alarm. "Just a couple more minutes Ava" he murmured in his Australian accent. He opened his eyes expecting to see his beautiful wife beside him, but only seeing the walls of his hotel room. He got up out of the uncomfortable bed and started towards the bathroom. Feeling the warm water of the shower hitting his body he suddenly awakened him fully from his slumber. Drying himself off he went out into his hotel room and glanced at the clock 5:45 A.M. "Defiantly too early" he thought wondering about the previous occupant that set the alarm. He picked up the remote and turned on the TV.
"This is KHNL Hawaii your NBC affiliate." said the news anchor. "For today's news we go live to Marvin Buenconsejo at the U.S. National Surfing Competition." "Hello Angela" said Marvin as you see here the beach is already starting to fill with surfers and spectators as the last day begins. We expect to see the best surfers from around the world here today and here's a recap of what we saw yesterday and a list of the final competitors for today's championship." Jay looked at the screen as Bradin's name flashed somewhere near the middle of the list. "And now back the weather with Sharie Shima." "Thanks Marv today we should expect great waves form a tropical depression that is currently at Midway Island." "We expect that the storm should hit after the competition so you surfers looks like surfs up and stay tuned for the six o' clock news."
Jay reached for the remote and turned off the tv. He walked to the dresser and got his clothes out. He looked at himself in the mirrior as he put on a pair of faded blue jeans and a shirt. Putting on his watch his attention suddenly focused to the wedding ring on his finger. He adored Ava and wished that she was here with him. Unfortunately she had to go to San Francisco to meet a major potential partner. He grabbed his wallet and went to the phone and dialed Bradin's room. No one there I guess he must be one of the surfers at the beachhe thought. Leaving his room he slid the key card into Bradin's room. He quickly looked in and saw his surfboard and wetsuit gone. Definitely at the beach he thought. He walked through the hall ways and got in the elevator. Stepping into the lobby of The Kahala Hotel he saw it was bustling with surfers and tourists ready for another day. He went out onto the beach after grabbing a small breakfast and walked down the beach. He smelled the refreshing Hawaiian morning air and started walking enjoying the beach and the sound of the surf.
0851 Zulu
Beaches of Honolulu
Hawaii
Jay walked around exploring the beach. He finally made his way back to spectator stands hours later and wondered where Bradin was. "Bradin Westerly" announced the loud speakers. Jay turned around and looked for Bradin. The call came again "Bradin Westerly Please report to the registration booth." Jay wondered were the hell that kid was. "Bradin Westerly please register this is the final call" blared the speakers. Jay was got up out of the seat and started looking for Bradin.
Jay scoured the beach for Bradin. "Damn where was that kid he cursed". I can't believe he's not here yet. He quickly dialed Bradins cell number no answer. Then he remembered something strange he saw in Bradin's room. He quickly made his way back to the hotel and stuck the keycard into Bradin's door and opened it. There sitting on top of the TV was Bradin's wallet and competition ID. "That's bloody strange" replied Jay picking up Bradin's wallet and saw all his clothes were still there. He left the room and went back to the front desk. "My stepson was in room 231 could you tell me when his card was last used" said Jay "Just give me a second sir here we go it looks like it was used today and at 7:19 p.m. yesterday" replied the concierge. "Can you tell me when the door was last opened" replied Jay with increased worry. "It looks like 9:35 last night" replied the concierge. Jay started to panic
0453 Zulu
Off the coasts of Hawaii
Pacific Ocean
Bradin looked at himself in the water. Blood stained the torn patterns of his wetsuit; thankfully most of the bleeding had stopped. He slouched down on his broken surfboard freezing in the increasing winds. He was barley conscious. He was so tired of being in the water for so long. He started to doze off again but struggled to stay awake each time finding it harder keep from falling asleep. He couldn't keep this up much longer he thought. He was so exhausted from trying to stay awake. He was so tired and could feel himself running out of energy. Feeling the urge for sleep the eighth time he realized that he needed to be alert and energetic if he wanted to stay alive. He then let his legs hang off the board into the water and rested the back on his broken board. Slowly he tried to get some sleep. His eyelids surrendered to the overwhelming forces of the urge to sleep and he fell into a deep slumber.