Twenty minutes into open water, the adrenaline finally began to drain from my system, leaving me hollow and shaking. The cold hit me then, really hit me and I realized it was much colder than I thought.
Elias noticed immediately. He always did.
"Come here." He guided me down to the bench seat in the cockpit, wrapping an emergency blanket around my shoulders. His hands were gentle as he tucked it around my legs, but I could see the tension in his jaw, the way his eyes kept scanning the horizon behind us.
"I'm okay," I said, though my teeth were chattering.
"You're in shock." He crouched in front of me, his hands rubbing warmth into my arms through the blanket. "It's normal. Just breathe."
At the helm, Ennis kept the throttle steady, the boat cutting through the dark water at a speed th
