PREDATOR ISLAND (Sea Lab Book 2)

CHAPTER 5

Jake started to help Sarah stand, but she pushed his hand away. "I can manage," she said, slipping off the edge of the examination bench. "It's done. You happy?"

Jake cocked his head sideways. "Yes. I am. What are you so afraid of?"

"Nothing. I'm fine."

"Really?"

Sarah grew silent, a vacant look in her eyes. She glanced at the bandaid in the crook of her elbow as they left the room. Jake could imagine how she felt. She was scared to learn what the blood test might reveal, that she may have been altered by Zanderthal's serum in some unchangeable way. And she understood the reality that once the doctors knew, once they found out what was wrong with her, then her father would know. As the director of Sea Lab, he might restrict her activities in an effort to keep her close to him, to shield her from harm. And Jake knew Sarah didn't want to be protected. That was the last thing she wanted.

He started to put his arm around her but stopped short. Not because anyone was around to see, but because she needed room to breathe. He'd learned when to give her space to work things out for herself. He knew when to give her encouraging words, when to listen, and when to keep his distance. He also had a good sense of when to be there for her and show support. Regardless of how it affected him, he understood that she suffered through a traumatic experience, and so he had the intention of walking through the process of recovery with her every step of the way.

As they headed toward the lobby, the conference room door swung open and Cat O'Donnell stuck her head out into the hall. Her private meeting with the two mystery guests had come to a stopping point.

"Hey, you two," she said, "in here, now."

"What's this about?" Jake replied, but he suspected Cat's meeting was about them the entire time. Earlier, she just wasn't ready to involve them yet.

"We're about to find out." Sarah gestured toward the doorway.

When they entered the room, Cat had already returned to her seat. She ordered Jake to shut the door behind him, and then told both of them to have a seat. Jake took the chair at the head of the table and Sarah sat on the other side of Cat, across from the woman with the dark hair. To Jake's right, the guy with the dirty blonde hair tipped his head.

"We have a change of plans." Cat began and then backtracked. "Actually, you have a change in plans. And by you, I mean you...Jake, you...Sarah, Tony, and Rachel, the whole team. I know we were scheduled to depart for San Diego this evening, and the Atlantis still is, but the four of you are going on a boat ride a little further south. I'm afraid that something's come up."

Sarah said, "Wait. What are you talking about?"

Cat help up a hand. "Hold up. Let me finish."

"The floor is yours." Jake tightened his jaw, the temptation to gnaw on his bottom lip looming in the back of his mind.

"As you two know, we had a problem come up in Monterey Bay—"

"Scripps Institute needed our assistance."

"They needed the Alvin for a deep sea project because their sub is up for repairs. That's still happening. We'll go on without you, but Jake, your team is going with...well...let me introduce you to," Cat opened the palm of her hand toward the woman and then the man, "Ms. Savannah Lockhart, and Mr. Dylan Cross."

Sarah shook the woman's hand, who couldn't have been a day over twenty-five. Jake followed suite by shaking hands with the man, who appeared a little older. When the first round of shakes ended, Jake nodded to the woman, and Sarah did likewise with the man.

With the pleasantries over, Cat pressed on. "Ms. Lockhart is a writer for Adventure Magazine."

"And I'm the lowly photographer who gets to tag along with Savannah," Dylan Cross said with a toothy grin and a Texas drawl.

"Anyway, they have a yacht bound for Cocos Island off the coast of Costa Rica."

"I know where it is," Jake said, feeling his mood brighten. "I've been wanting to go diving with hammerheads for a while now, especially off Cocos Island."

"That's what I was getting around to. Director Hardy is all for this opportunity."

"I take it you're not?"

"I'll be okay. It's just an inconvenience." She pursed her lips and then exhaled. "Savannah and Dylan want to cover a Sea Lab team at work, on a dive for an exclusive article in their magazine."

"Well, that sounds interesting," Sarah said.

"The director thinks it'll be great publicity. He sees it as a chance of exposure, the good kind for Sea Lab. Positive press."

Jake nodded in acceptance of the idea. "It could be fun. Hey, your last name is Lockhart? Are you kin to Kate Lockhart and Tom Logan, the famous treasure hunters?"

"You don't miss anything." Savannah smiled confidently. "I'm their daughter."

"Wow. What's it like to have grown up under the same roof and hearing about their tales of treasure?"

Sarah cleared her throat, interrupting Jake's elation. Obviously, she wanted to bring this meeting back down to earth and not get caught up in who these people were.

"So, it's just a shark dive?" she asked. "This has nothing to do with the Ocean Blue Corporation, does it?"

"No," Cat replied. "This is strictly a great opportunity for Sea Lab to be featured in Adventure Magazine."

"Because if it does, I'm out."

"You can relax, Sarah. This is all about a feature article. We've already discussed the topic of Ocean Blue with the director and he made it clear that their story can not and will not go there. This is about covering a Sea Lab team in action. And...the feeding grounds of Cocos Island makes for a much better dive locale than Monterrey Bay."

"That's debatable," Jake said. "When do we leave?"

Cat gave Savannah and Dylan the go ahead to answer the question.

Dylan glanced at his watch. "2 p.m."

Sarah crooked her neck. "That barely gives us time for lunch, much less anything else."

Cat grimaced. "Make it a quick bite so you can drag Tony and Rachel back from the beach."

Jake caught a glimpse of Savannah and Dylan making a celebratory eye contact. "So we're going to Shark Island. This could be interesting."