Excerpt from the Book
“Captain’s ordered abandon ship!” The call echoed down the passageway.
Kellan churned his legs through the rising water, pulling Miss Dawning faster behind him. He might be certain he’d be fish bait before sunrise, but with his last breath, he would make sure she lived. Turning a corner too fast, he slammed into the wall as the ship listed farther…to port, he’d heard one of the old-timers say.
Miss Dawning crashed into his chest, stealing his breath. Up the ladder they climbed. Finally free of the claustrophobic fear of below deck, he landed face first as a wave took his feet.
A cold hand grabbed him as he snagged netting, rope, anything to keep from sweeping overboard and Miss Dawning with him. The deck didn’t level out as Kellan pulled Miss Dawning toward the netting, straining the muscles in his chest with the awkward angle.
Lightning showed her scrambling with her feet, helping him save her as best she could.
A wave washed over them, and Kellan tightened his hold, shouting into the thunder as he hauled her to himself, until she could finally grab onto the same lines Kellan clutched. Exhausted, he dropped his head only to come up spluttering as another wave washed over the deck. In the next lightning strike, he spotted a mass of men near the railing where he’d watched the Chicago skyline disappear.
“We need to reach the lifeboats.” Kellan pointed toward where his fellow sailors nearly crawled over one another as they piled into several, smaller wooden boats.
“Why not those?” Miss Dawning jutted her chin to the other side of the deck where identical boats waved in the wind. Lightning flashed, illuminated the fear—and determination—in her eyes.
“Won’t do us any good with how the ship’s leanin.’”
And if half of the lifeboats were useless, there wouldn’t be enough to go around.
Holy Father. The prayer came unbidden, an echo of his ma’s prayers beside his bed as a child when fear would keep him from sleep.
His heart hammered as if competed with the thunder. Oh yes, he was afraid now. He didn’t want to die. He wasn’t ready to meet God face-to-face. He had too much on his conscience. He’d done too little to stop the evil he witnessed.
Forgive me, Father.
Peace, My son.
Kellan raised his eyes to the cutting rain. Something in his chest unknotted, as if his chest could expand for the first time since the last shipwreck. The sense of home that was his ma’s arms, the sense of security that was his da’s hands on his shoulders… If he died tonight, he would see them.. The two people who loved him most in this entire world.
They would tell him God loved him more than they could, his da declaring his favorite Irish blessing on him: May all God’s blessings descend upon you, May peace be within you.
Go raibh maith agat. Thank you.
From the recesses of memory, his ma’s voice seemed to fall from the swirling clouds, singing lyrics from a folk song he’d thought long forgotten.
I’m just a-going over Jordan.
I’m just a-going over home.
Then a wave, larger than all the others, washed over the deck, jerking his grip from the rigging.
Want to know more about the book?
Chicago, October 1929—Kellan O’Roark is running on borrowed time. After handing over his cousin’s incriminating bootlegging ledger to the police, he intends to vanish before the mobster exacts revenge. His destination: the SS Wisconsin, a steamer headed for Milwaukee, upon which he’s secured work despite his fear of the water.
But despite his pressing need for escape, Kellan faces obstacles while leaving Chicago—including one who may break open his heart. Sadie Dawning, desperate to return to her family’s Wisconsin farm and ailing father, escapes a kidnapping attempt at Chicago Union Station when Kellan steps in and offers to smuggle her aboard the Wisconsin. His decision turns nearly fatal when an autumn storm capsizes the ship.
Washed ashore, the pair arrive at Sadie’s family farm to find new storms brewing on land. While Kellan hides his past to continue evading his cousin, Sadie fights for her place among her sisters while the farm battles the beginnings of the Great Depression. Caught between duty, a dangerous past, and a budding love, Kellan and Sadie must rely on their newfound faith in each other and renewed faith in God to weather the growing storm.
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About the Author
Danielle Grandinetti writes award-winning 1930s historical romance filled with mystery, suspense, and hope. She is a second-generation Italian-American rooted in Midwest traditions. Fueled by tea, books, and the creative beauty of nature, her stories explore love and belonging in hard times. Find her online at daniellegrandinetti.com.
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