Goliath: The Dreadful Deep by Crawford Jeff

Author:Crawford, Jeff
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Raven Tale
Published: 2022-02-24T00:00:00+00:00

13

With each new wave, men were spewed from the sea onto blessed sand. Men were already safe and sitting dazed when Weatherall finally washed up onto the beach. After catching his breath and convincing himself that he truly was alive and once again on dry land, he heaved himself to his feet and began looking to see how many of his men could be accounted for in the moonlight. Before the counting even began he already knew he was down nine men. Nine good and cherished souls were at the bottom of the ocean because he had not turned when he had been given the chance. Nine men at least would never again hear the laughter of their children or words of endearment from wives because he allowed his pride to out-voice the better angels of his common sense.

Some masters of ships could have stood and said that there was no helping those that were lost and crying about them now would do no good. He did not think he would ever be the man that could act so callously and he prayed he would never realize the day when he could. All of this had been by his hand and his arrogance, for that he should suffer for the rest of his days. He had not created that dreadful demon that lived out beyond the breakers, but he had known, or at least suspected, that something horrendous could be there and yet he had pushed forward. Those lost souls and the lives of those who remained would be tied to him forever all because he would not turn.

In the ever growing moonlight he saw Anderson and Wheeler dragging an exhausted man from the water onto dry sand. Their animosity toward each other abandoned at least for the time being. Facing death together tends to bury hatchets and heal old wounds. It would probably resume at some point, And God help the day if Wheeler ever discovered that Anderson and his captain knew there was such a peril lurking beneath the water. Wheeler was not the type person you wanted owning such a piece of information.

Men who were able to stand, and thankfully that was most of them, were ordered by Weatherall to create a picket line some fifty or so feet from the man to either side of him so that a watch for more men could take place. They had lost too much this night to lose even one more single man because he was too spent to make it to the beach under his own power. If another of the crew, even just one was out there, he was going to be hauled in and placed safe and secure upon the dry sand.

“When we make it back to Nantucket, I will take with me a new and abiding respect for the monsters in fairy tails that I have so often read to my young ones.” Anderson said after he had taken his place by his captain’s side.

“So

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