River Storm

Jake turned his collar up against the winter chill as he headed the boat through the next curve in the river. Kristal slept soundly below as she often did these days, blissfully unaware of the crease in Jakes brow or the approaching storm. Theirs was a small boat in comparison to some, but they had built it together, with love and passion. It once had been powerful, thrilling and fun, but with the passing of the years and the extensions they had made, it had lost a lot of its power, and thrills were now few and far between. He had often tried to convince Kristal they should rebuild the motor. Her response had always been; “If it ain’t broke, don’t try and fix it”, so he resigned himself to caring for the old girl, as was his duty. Truth be known, he cared more these days for the old boat than he did for the woman who skippered it. There had been a few times over the years when he had convinced her to take a different fork in the river, but overall, it was always Kristal who decided where this boat went.

As he rounded the bend, Jake noticed another river entering on his port side. There was a boat there, seemingly drifting with the current. No sound came from its motors. It seemed strangely familiar. He pulled along side to see if all was well, and then it hit him like a thunderbolt. This was Brandy!

Brandy had been a childhood friend of his for many years, Jake had even sailed with her for a time, but that was long ago. Looking over the boat now, he could pick a few designs that, although altered slightly, he knew had come from him. The same as he knew there were parts of Brandy in his boat, long hidden, but there still.

Out of nowhere came those eyes. Kristal’s eyes could control him. She could make him or break him with nothing more than a look. But Brandy, those eyes saw right through to his soul. 30 years disappeared in a heartbeat.

“Jake. It’s been a while…”

The voice betrayed the calm exterior. That voice had seen some dark parts of this river, yet the face would have you believe it had lived forever under fair skies.

“Brandy, you look wonderful.”

His heart pounded in his chest fit to drown out the approaching thunder, as it recalled the time shared building their own boat, and the night she had given him the helm for his first time. The scars from her burning that boat were still there, but his years on the river had put that, too, in perspective.

“You OK Brandy?”

She was not. Her boat was larger and more powerful than Jake’s, but it had always been prone to misfiring and breaking down. She had seen two partners on this boat, neither had cared for it as it deserved, the last had abused them both. This time when the engine had failed, her partner had jumped ship, leaving Brandy to the mercy of the river. She was struggling. Jake took Brandy in tow, hoping to at least get her to a safe haven where she could find someone to repair the old girl, or maybe even fix it himself.

As they cruised gently downstream, Jake and Brandy relived the good times; chatting, laughing, flirting. They both secretly yearned for Jake to join Brandy on her boat, but also knew it could never be. He had helped build his boat, and with or without Kristal, it was his duty and his love to tend her. It occurred to Jake how these two women had become one with their names. Kristal was beautiful, light, fragile, but also cold, and hard as glass. Brandy on the other hand, was dark, rich and warm, with quite often a fruity flavour. She was good for what ailed him. 

The storm was closing in.          

Awakened by their voices and the approaching storm, Kristal appeared on deck. A sweeping glance took in everything.

“What do you think you’re doing?” She wasn’t happy. She knew the strain of towing another boat through the storm was going to be tough on theirs. Jake knew it too, but he couldn’t leave Brandy to fend for herself. He knew they could make it, she might not.

“Cut it loose Jake, we can’t take the strain.”

“We’ll be fine Kristal, this is one tough old boat, and I won’t leave another at the mercy of this storm.”

“Cut her loose or I will!” She had picked up the axe and was staring straight at Brandy. Their eyes locked, flashing.

Lightning into a black hole. Kristal’s eyes had met their match. She lunged at the tow-rope, hacking at everything in her way, not knowing or caring how much she damaged their own boat. Jake felt the blade crease his shoulder as he threw himself at her. It was too late. The storm had hit with a vengeance and Brandy began floating away on the wind as Jake and Kristal smashed into the water. Jake was the only swimmer among them, and Kristal clawed at him screaming in fear. Jake looked up to see Brandy disappearing into the storm.

“Save Kristal Jake. I’ll be ok.”

Jake was faced with a decision that would haunt him for life. Save Kristal and leave Brandy to the mercy of the storm? Get Kristal back to their boat, then go after Brandy? He wanted to save them both. He knew he couldn’t. Thunder crashed and lightning blazed. He could no longer see Brandy………..





As Brandy shouted to Jake to save Kristal, she was tossed from her boat as it lurched in the swollen river.  The chill of the water as it filled her lungs spurred her to action.  She was not going to drown now.  She had never given up before, and she wasn’t giving up now.  Fighting hard, she reached the surface and felt her hand brush against the tow rope Kristal had severed.  Grabbing it, she gasped with relief as she felt the coarseness of it in her hand. She was safe now. 

As Brandy hauled herself back on board, the shock hit her and her hot tears blended with the biting rain.  She could see no sign of Jake or Kristal, and had no way of knowing where they were.  Grabbing the helm, she battled to steer her powerless boat through the churning waters.  There was no time to think about what had happened, but just to try and control her boat so as not to be shipwrecked on the river.  Her arms ached as she held tight to the helm, eyes straining into the darkness in search of any haven.  There was none. 

Alone, and without navigation, Brandy knew her years of travelling on the river would have to be her guide. Releasing her desire to fight the river, she let her instincts take over. Her grip on the helm lessened, her body stopped shaking, and calmness settled on her soul, a strength renewing her aching arms, and a lightness of spirit imbuing her as she remembered the joy of meeting Jake again.  It had been like coming home.  She had never forgotten him, or the boat she’d burned.  She’d had her reasons then, a wanderlust that had beckoned her to distant streams, but those streams had never held the promised warmth of home for her, had never let her sail as she had dreamed.  They had been rocky, and rough, and she’d never made much headway.  Eventually she had returned to the wider river.  She was alone again now, but with the warmth of Jakes memory in her heart, she lifted her shoulders, brushed the tears from her cheeks, smiled bravely and stood firm at the helm as the night wore on.  Only she could save herself tonight.



Towards dawn the storm abated and the soft gray light of early morning saw Brandy sitting on the deck, resting her head on her arms as her grateful tears fell warm and gentle on her bended knees.  She had made it through the storm alone, just one more storm of life.  She always had.  She always would.  She knew that Kristal had been right to cut her free.  Brandy’s boat would have dragged them all down.  Lifting her head to the sky, Brandy gave thanks she had been spared the sorrow of causing Jake to lose his boat.  She had no way of knowing where Jake and Kristal were now, but she knew her friend would never have perished in the storm.  Jake was far too good for that.  His years of experience, sailing on far rougher waters than those of the preceding night, would have seen him safe this morning, lying at anchor in some quiet backwater, surveying the damage and starting to repair his boat. 

Brandy felt sure they would meet up again, somewhere on the river.  Rivers were like that, everyone went in the same direction eventually, towards the sea.  Perhaps they would meet there.  And if Brandy was going to go anywhere, she had to fix her motor.  With no partner to help it would take a little longer, but only a little, for in truth they’d never been much help anyway.  Landlubbers! All of them.  Perhaps it was time to get a smaller boat, or a new one, or maybe learn to swim.  Perhaps it was time to leave the river.  “Steady girl”, she said out loud, “It was only a little old river storm.  Just wait till you reach the sea!”