Where: Rowena's Boat on the Ocean Whom: Rhett Cromwell @illustratemyillusions
The storm hit the harbor gently at first and then all at once. Snow whipped sideways, stinging, blinding, the wind howling low and furious as it slammed into the boat. The mast screamed. The water beneath her turned ugly and confused, waves slamming against the hull with enough force to completely throw her off balance. She had been asleep at first, but now she was staggering across the deck. She slipped on ice slick wood, one hand clamped around a railing as the boat lurched hard. For one second, the angle felt all wrong. Too steep. Too long. Her stomach dropped and she was sure that she was going overboard.
"Don't you dare..." she muttered through clenched teeth, fighting the wind to grab for the line and secure it. The wind hit again and the boat jerked. She lost her footing. The deck surged beneath her and she went down hard, slamming her shoulder first and then sliding her straight into the edge of the cabin door. Her head cracked against it with a dull, sickening thud. Stars exploded behind her eyes. She let out a gasp.
She laid there for a long moment before lights began to brighten everything. The boat was still rocking violently side to side and what she hadn't realized was now... she was further from the dock then she had started. She frowned deeply, looking around. There was a rescue boat though... coming toward her. She heard the horn. She tried to pull herself up, looking around. The light burned her eyes and she had to close them tight.