Baysafe ((install)) -

The sign that says:

And somewhere beneath the breakwater, in the cold, dark cradle of the channel, something large and patient waits for the next one. baysafe

Clara keeps a photo of Paul’s smiling face on the corkboard behind the register. She doesn’t know why. Maybe as a reminder. Maybe as a warning. The sign that says: And somewhere beneath the

The second thing you notice about Baysafe is the smell. Low tide. Not just salt and mud, but something deeper. Something old and sweet and wrong, like roses left to rot in a locked parlor. Maybe as a reminder

Instead, she writes a note for the morning shift: New shipment of rope and anchor chain coming in on Tuesday. Check the ties on Slip 12. And repaint the sign at the pier. It’s fading.

The ripple fades. The water goes flat. The smell of roses recedes.

She touches the wooden railing of the pier, worn smooth by a hundred years of hands. “Not tonight,” she whispers. “Not yet.”