Burnt Sea: A Seabound Prequel (Seabound Chronicles Book 0) by Jordan Rivet

help him. I like engines. I can fix cars. I’m helping my
daddy.” Esther took a huge bite of a sandwich.
    “Can you?” Frank said. He leaned closer to Esther, his mustache
twitching. “I used to make engines. I was an engineer.”
    “What kind of engines?”
    “Ones for moving water. For purification systems, that sort of thing.”
    “What’s purication ?” Esther asked.
    “Purification,” Frank said patiently. “It means taking dirty water and
making it clean enough to use again.”
    “That sounds cool,” Esther said, her mouth
still half-full of sandwich. “It’s not as cool as train engines, though. Those
take people places.”
    “You’re right. Trains are cool.”
    The dining hall buzzed with earnest conversations. Everyone was calmer
with a bit of food in them. They were already settling in for the journey,
sharing where they were from and exchanging theories about what had happened.
The two couples at the nearest table debated how far the volcanic ash could
spread, raising their voices over the issue of wind speed.
    Simon looked around for the captain, but he was nowhere to be seen.
Simon still wasn’t sure they should have told everyone about the volcano until
they had more information. If the captain was wrong, everyone could be worrying
and debating unnecessarily. As it was, it didn’t feel like reality had set in
yet. They could almost be on a regular cruise.
    Judith walked over from the buffet table. She now wore a Catalina sweatshirt too. The pink-haired
young woman who’d offered to help with the reception computers followed.
    “Is it okay if we sit with you, Simon?” Judith asked.
    Her question was tentative, but Simon got the impression that Judith
was generally quite confident. It was something in the way she set down her
tray and pulled back her chair. Her movements were swift and straight.
    Simon introduced Frank and Esther. Judith introduced Nora.
    “Your hair is pink,” Esther said.
    “Be polite, button,” Simon whispered.
    “It’s okay,” Nora said, grinning at Esther. “My hair is pink as a pony.
That’s what my mom says.”
    “Ponies aren’t pink.” Esther wrinkled her nose.
    “You’re absolutely right. My mom’s a little crazy.” Nora laughed, but
her voice was raw.
    “Where does your family live?” Simon asked.
    “Texas,” Nora said. “I don’t know how they are yet.” She thumbed at the
row of earrings glinting in her ear.
    “Nora got onto the Internet for a few minutes,” Judith said. “The news
confirmed what Captain Martinelli said . . . about
Yellowstone.”
    “Was your source—?”
    “Saw it on the BBC.”
    It felt like all the air had drained from the room. Simon had been
hoping the captain was delusional. But it was true. This could be the end.
    “The map might be wrong,” Nora said, fiddling with her earring again.
    “Did you see any pictures?” Simon asked.
    “A simulation of the ash fall.”
    “Did you get in contact with anyone?” Frank asked. “I need to find my
son.”
    “My webmail wasn’t working,” Nora said. “The social networks are
overloaded. I couldn’t get through to any of them.” She paused for a heartbeat.
“Half of Texas is covered, but they have a chance.” She looked down at the
sandwich that sat untouched on her plate.
    “Where’s your family, Judith?” Simon asked.
      “San Francisco.” She too
studied her sandwich intently.
    “I’m so sorry. My wife and other daughter were in San Diego.”
    He thought about Nina, her rich brown eyes, her smile, the warmth of her skin. He remembered sneaking glances at
her in the university library, inviting her to study with him beside the
greenhouses, taking their newborn baby, Naomi, from her exhausted arms. Stop. This won’t help anyone.
    Judith met his eyes, utterly vulnerable for a split second. Then it was
as if a cloud of ash covered her eyes, cloaking the light. Judith cleared her
throat and straightened her back.
    “Nora got the room plans for the