Mitchell and Peter sail through the Pearl Channel aboard Surly Mermaid. It’s Mitchell’s world now—confident, calm, in control. He wasn’t always a sailor, but fear taught him quickly. Now, he navigates currents, winds, and the subtle shifts in people with practised ease.
Over drinks, Mitchell shares how solitude at sea makes people vulnerable—and how women especially change once the shore disappears. They smile more, listen better. The skipper holds power. Out there, he’s God.
Peter laughs off the bravado, but Mitchell’s stories grow darker. He recounts a weekend sail with a sun-worshipping woman. At first, it’s lighthearted—nudity, wine, shared glances. But beneath the waves, a deeper current flows.
The woman misread the trip’s duration. As night fell on a remote beach, her realisation surfaced: Mitchell wasn’t taking her home. With no reception, no boats nearby, and the wild island closing in, her options vanished. Mitchell watched her wrestle the situation—and winced at how easily the roles reversed.
It was a test.
Not of seduction, but of power.
Back aboard, the woman expected intimacy. Instead, he gave her nothing but a cold saloon bed and a shut cabin door.
And she was disappointed.
Mitchell smiles, not from kindness — but from control.
Out here, he decides everything.
[excerpt from SEETHINGS 2 – available for download now!]
Ch3
Discover more from Michael Forman – Author of Dark Fiction & Drama
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