Ocean Blue (Sea Lab Book 1)

CHAPTER 24

ORLANDO, FLORIDA

First thing Monday morning, Sarah called Jake and Tony to her office at Sea Lab Headquarters, and with their help, put together a detailed report summarizing the attacks that took place off the coast of Paradise Island.

Afterwards, she met with Director Hardy and Cat O'Donnell, along with everyone who had been assigned to The Bahamas and Tahiti. They discussed the events that transpired from Ben's death to the mysterious sailor who tried to kill Kevin and Rachel. Jake agreed with Kevin that there was a link between the monster fish at both locations. By late evening, after recapping last night's dive, everyone filed out of her father's office and took the elevator to the seventh floor laboratory where their resident computer guru had been analyzing the fragment Jake discovered.

Sarah tried to ignore the awkwardness she felt from being around Rachel—like being in the same room with the person who stabbed you in the soul—even if that person didn't realize how much it hurt. Rachel stood to one side talking with Kevin and Tony while, magically, fate seemed to pair Sarah with Jake in his crisp charcoal slacks and black button-up.

She pried her lingering eyes away from her ex and focused on the lab chief.

Vincent "Vinny" Patistilli was a wiry man in a white lab jacket. He motioned them over to a thirty-inch computer screen that displayed a scanned image of the plate-like object in the upper left-hand corner. A long list of sources and images filled the right half of the picture, changing by the second as the high-powered system tackled the daunting task of identifying the fragment.

"As you can see," Vinny said, "using databases from around the world, we've had no luck in putting a label on your find, yet. It would've been nice if that fish hadn't taken such a big bite out of it."

"Do you have a time-line on when we'll know something?" Director Hardy asked. The crinkles on his face revealed a simmering impatience.

"Theres no such thing with an exhaustive search like this. It could take hours, days, even weeks, we just don't know. But then again, it could lock onto something in a few minutes too."

"That doesn't sound promising."

Hardy's cell phone chirped, and he excused himself from the group, allowing Vinny to go about his daily routine while he took the call. Cat followed him off to the side, her sandy hair falling to her shoulders, contrasting with a white blouse and navy colored skirt. Her heels clicked on the lab's tile floor as she walked away.

"I know this is sudden," Jake said to Sarah. "But what do you think about dinner tonight... as friends?" He grinned a nervous mouthful of teeth. "There, I said it."

"Wow, you're not wasting any time."

"Just to talk. Tony can come too."

"I guess it wouldn't hurt. But..."

"But what?"

"What would we talk about? The past?"

"The future."

Sarah's response clung to the tip of her tongue. She'd given up all hope of a relationship with Jake. "Oh, I, I don't know."

"I know... I know a future without you is no future at all."

Warmth crept into her heart, something she hadn't felt in a long time. Her lips parted, but a reply couldn't escape, the words unable to form.