Tides

Chapter 26 - One Bottle of ...

DYLAN

I'm exhausted. It's five forty-five in the morning, and I'm driving towards the beach. Jax is gentler than Ash in his training tactics but is stricter with the times. Most teams for the competition arrived already in the village, and the water is crowded. Today we will train at The Reef, and Skye and Anthony will join us.

Anthony is irritated by his teammates. Since their arrival in Sea Glass, they haven't set foot in the water. They are so sure of their skills they believe training isn't necessary. All they do is party and drink. Anthony is different. He is the number one surfer in the world, but when Jax asks him to do something, he accepts it humbly and does it. He is graceful and skilled in the water, unlike me.

On Saturday, the Kalanis shared with us the shocking news about the family. Dax came to the afternoon training after he spent time with River at the hospital. He looked relaxed and confident. I don't know how I would have reacted if it happened to me. I look so much like my mother, I've never doubted we are related.

Ross is already reporting for Rip Curl. I felt hesitant when I realized what it meant. It isn't like writing about a beautiful place to hold a wedding. He will go to parties and be in the middle of it all... the people, the alcohol, drugs... I said nothing to him out of respect for him and his profession. He went to the first party last night, came home around midnight, took a shower and came into bed.

"Hello handsome," he kissed me.

"I thought you would be back later than this. How was it?"

"Busy. I don't need to stay until the party finishes. Only until I have enough information. I met people from the other teams. You know I enjoy a beer or two with my meals, but those people drank until they were carried out. I wonder how they will train tomorrow."

"Did you drink?" I caressed his hair.

"No, I didn't. I'm working, and if I do, I won't be able to remember who was who and who did what," Ross gave me a wicked smile.

"And who did what?" I asked and sat on the bed.

"The blonde guy from Oceancrush, Max, got slapped by a lady. He shouldn't grope women."

"That's bad," I laughed.

"It was worse. The woman was the wife of Puka's owner. Crush will be mad."

Ross frowned and seemed to think deeply about something.

"What is it, baby?" I caressed his cheek.

"I went to the bathroom, and a dude offered me to do a line," he eyed my reaction.

"You didn't use, right?"

"No, of course not. I don't even miss it. Do you have one of your surfing magazines around?"

I bent down next to my side of the bed, picked one magazine off the floor and handed it to him. He opened it and looked through the pages. He stopped at the advertisement from Oceancrush.

"What are you looking for?" I looked at the page.

"The guy who offered me to share a line looked like this guy," he pointed at the picture.

It was Ryan. I felt shocked. If the news comes out, it will be the end of his career.

"Will you report it tomorrow in your blog entry?" I said, still looking at the picture.

"I'm not a hundred percent sure it was him. I can't make a mistake. The party was in a tent close to the radio station, and the bathrooms were dim. I will let Derek and Valentina know my suspicions, so they are alert as well."