The salty sea water lapped against the bow, sending splashes up and over the side of the boat. It was a clear day, the California sun beaming down on the small ferry that carried the seven passengers away from Sunset Beach. Yet despite the sun, and the clear blue skies up above, the sea told its own story.
The waves clawed and grabbed at the boat. It almost looked like they were trying to rise over the side to wrap someone in their clutches and pull them down into the ocean.
I'm being stupid, Ben thought to himself. It's a clear day, nothing is going to happen.
Ben used to love the sea. In fact it was part of the reason he moved to Sunset Beach in the first place. Coming from a small rural village in England, the idea of moving to a place where he could swim in the sea every day was a dream. And he lived that dream - embarrassing himself by trying to surf, bodyboarding, windsurfing, and then eventually sailing his very own yacht. But he hadn't sailed in a long time. Five years to be exact.
Where once the smell of the sea could relax him, it now only brought back memories he'd tried to suppress. Where once the feel of the water on his skin made him feel free, it now sent a shiver down his spine.
He had tried over the years to overcome it, picking up the water sports he'd once loved. But it wasn't the same. It would never be the same. As for the yacht, that stayed tied to the harbour, preserved like a relic. The community knew all too well that he'd never sail it again, and so after a year the offers had started to come in.
"The Mariah's a beautiful boat", they would start, before subtly and sensitively trying to get Ben to part with it.
But he wouldn't. And he couldn't. It was the last place she'd stood.
"You look a million miles away", said a voice by his side, breaking him from his memories.
He turned around. She was a much better view than the sea. "I was just thinking about the house" he lied, "I hope it's ready when we get there".
She curled her arms around his torso, "I'm sure it'll be amazing" Meg said "and even if it's not, we'll be with all our friends, that's all we need".
Ben had booked the house on the secluded Nighthorn Island for his and Meg's joint bachelor and bachelorette party on a recommendation from an assistant at work. He had been looking for weeks for a perfect location where he could take their closest friends to get away from it all. A recent earthquake and tsunami had shaken the residents of the town in more ways than one and everyone was keen to escape.
The brochure had looked promising. An hour's boat ride away from Sunset Beach, the eight bedroom house set on the coast of the island offered stunning views and luxurious interiors. The closest shop or other human life was a three miles away where the locals made their living from fishing.
It was perfect on paper. But as Ben stood there, his arms around his fiance, he couldn't help but feel uneasy. Maybe it was the sea becoming rougher by the minute, he reasoned. But that nagging feeling wouldn't go away. That day five years ago started off bright and clear too, until the storm came that night.
As they pulled into shore, Ben shook those thoughts from his head. He was soon to marry the woman he loved, and he was looking forward to starting a new life with her. This trip was a chance to celebrate that, despite the clouds that had started to come in ominously overhead.