Okay. He did. Sort of. But while executing his rescue of Tabitha, he hadn’t consciously invoked it. It was just that he’d felt completely in his element the whole time he’d been up to his eyeballs in danger-ridden logistics. Even the angst of the operation had resonated with him, along with a deep-seated belief that he wouldn’t fail.
And he hadn’t.
Now, how could he convey all those oddly positive vibes to Buck without sounding like a raving lunatic?
“I had an aha moment earlier today.”
Yeah.That was an auspicious start.
“You mean when you thought you might die?” Buck attempted to joke, but Spencer could hear the edge to his tone. Buck was probably imagining how he would have had to explain Spencer’s demise to the family. That would have sucked.
“That’s just the thing, Buck,” Spencer muddled, trying to find the right words. “The whole time I was down there, I never thought I was going to be anything other than successful. I believe that being certain of a positive outcome made me executeeverything as perfectly as I possibly could. Considering all the cluster-fucks that were thrown my way, I’d say it worked.”
“I agree,” Buck huffed out, while still looking a little green around the gills. “When I heard the debriefs from Tabitha, your Captain, and the crewmembers, I couldn’t quite believe what the two of you went through down there. I give you mad credit, dude. You must have ice in your veins to accomplish what you did in such a short period of time.”
“I haveSothardblood in my veins,” Spencer reminded Buck. “The same as you. Am I wrong in thinking that if you’d been in my position, you would have acted the same way? Not losing confidence?”
“Well,” Buck pondered thoughtfully for a moment, “Ihavebeen diving for the Coast Guard for ten years, and without going into detail, I’ve been in my share of hairy situations. So… You’re right. Even though there have been plenty of times I’ve been deep in Charlie-Foxtrot ops, I’ve never once lost focus.”
“See? I think it’s the way we were raised. You remember how many mill contracts Dad handed over to us when we were just high school kids? How he’d give us full authority while still letting us know that we had to get the job done on time, no matter what?” He snorted. “Whether knowingly or not, Dad was preparing us for life; giving us the confidence to believe in our ability to see things through.
“Looking back, it seems cold, but that’s not a word I’d ever use for our softie of a father. It was more like he was giving us our solid foundation in life.”
“Yeah,” Buck agreed. “We all felt the same way. That if he saw us screwing up, he’d wait it out, but if it something looked untenable, he’d be the first one to come to the rescue.”
“And speaking of rescue,” Spencer chuckled wryly. “Don’t think I wasn’t ecstatic to see back-up arrive in the form of the Coast Guard as things were pretty much down to the wire. Still,is it crazy to say that I knew I’d find a way to get myself and Tabitha out of that mess, even if your guys hadn’t shown up?”
“Not at all.” Buck shook his head. “With the number of miracles you’d already pulled off before they got there? My money would have been on you to finish the job.” His face grew puzzled. “But what does any of that have to do with where your career path is headed? Or mine, for that matter?”
Spencer drew in a deep breath, more nervous now than he’d been during his entire dive.
Had Spencer thought this whole thing out? Not even a little bit. Was it still firing him up? Absolutely. And was he happy to have his brother here, with whom he could share his initial ideas for the future?Hell, yes.
It was time to spit things out.
Here’s where the rubber would—or wouldn’t—meet the road.
Spencer cleared his throat, which was finally feeling almost a hundred-percent. “What would you say about starting a commercial diving company. In Maine. Near home.”
Home, of course, meaning the family compound and lumber mill, which still operated in a small town just north of Orono.
When Buck didn’t respond, Spencer felt compelled to fill the silence.
“I’m imagining we could hire out to perform various underwater jobs, like what we’ve both been doing for the past few years.” Dare he add the next thing? The part that made his heart beat just a little faster?
Spencer dug in.
“We could also collaborate with the local PDs, and be on call for any rescue situations that might arise.”
Spencer’s excitement grew as he imagined it.
Buck didn’t exactly jump at the idea. But he looked pretty damned contemplative.
“Uh, aren’t there already a bunch of companies in and around Bangor that do that stuff?” he asked. “Interfacing with the small town, area police departments? If I recall, the Maine State Police also have an underwater rescue division, as well as does the Maine Marine Patrol.”
“Yeah. I know all that,” Spencer said, undeterred. He grew more and more enthusiastic as he spoke. “But most of those outfits and teams are based south of Bangor. In Augusta, Boothbay Harbor, Lamoine…” Spencer trailed off because those were the only ones he knew of off the top of his head.
He regrouped his thoughts.
