The officers treated them with a quiet respect, offering food and hot drinks while promising to secure the stolen equipment. Liam asked after the crates more than once, and each time was told the same thing: they were safe, lashed down on Aurora’s Wake, which the Coast Guard would tow behind.
By the time they reached port, the docks were alive with movement—Coast Guard officials waiting, local authorities taking custody of the pirates, and a cluster of onlookers drawn by the flashing lights. Liam stepped off the cutter first, shaky but upright, clutching his notebook like a lifeline.