It was a cargo ship. A massive, towering wall of iron, moving with terrifying momentum through the calm water. It didn’t blow a horn. No alarms rang out. The large wave of water pushed by the front of the ship was already rushing toward Leo’s small boat, foaming with white rage. If that massive steel wall hit him, his wooden boat would be crushed into splinters in a second. “No, no, no,” Leo muttered, his hands flying to the pull-cord of his outboard motor.
He yanked the cord hard. The motor gave a pathetic, high-pitched cough, then died. Panic exploded in his chest. The ship was less than fifty yards away now, its shadow completely engulfing him. He could see the jagged lines of rust on its metal plates. He yanked the cord again. Sputter… whine… Nothing.
“Come on, start!” Leo screamed, pulling the cord with all his strength as the towering steel wall closed the final distance.