The Steady Claw was tied at the south dock when the call came in. Captain Reed listened to the harbor radio, then closed the channel.

“Red barrel, floating loose. Sector seven. Moving with the ebb.”

Mira was already checking her lines on the diving platform while Gravel tested the winch clutch twice, then tapped the housing with two knuckles and listened. Reed cast off, and the Steady Claw met the outgoing tide. A container barge crossed ahead of them, its wake rolling under the hull. A wrench slid loose across the deck, but Gravel caught it against his leg without looking up.

Skree circled once, then dropped lower. “South gap’s narrowing. Barrel’s turning into it.”

Reed adjusted toward the outer pilings before anyone answered.

They reached sector seven as the barrel rolled against a submerged timber. Barnacles covered one side. Gravel brought the Steady Claw alongside, and the barrel struck the hull with a hollow thud as Mira slipped into the water. When she surfaced, she pointed toward the lower seam.

“Bottom-heavy. Silt inside.”

Gravel lowered the grappling hook, but the current swung the barrel away before the hook could settle. He reset the line. The second catch held for a moment, then twisted sideways.

“Side pull.”

The cable jumped against the rail, and Gravel caught it before it snapped harder across the deck. Reed held the boat against the ebb while Gravel shortened the angle.

“Again,” Reed said.

Gravel did not move the winch yet. He tapped the housing once more. The winch sounded wrong. Gravel looked at Reed. Reed looked at the pilings.

“Now,” Reed said.

This time the hook settled cleanly.

The winch strained in short pulls as the barrel came up. Water streamed from the lower seam, and a thin oil sheen spread across the surface. Mira climbed aboard, then stopped beside the cradle instead of moving back to the platform. She looked once at the seam before stepping away.

Gravel watched the cable while the barrel rolled against the deck cradle.

“Thirty, maybe thirty-five.”

The barrel came fully aboard.

Harbor maintenance was already waiting at the south dock with a pallet jack positioned near the pier edge. Reed logged the recovery time and tide conditions while Gravel checked the winch cable where it had jumped the rail.

“Needs replacing before winter.”

Mira coiled her lines on the stern platform while Reed looked back toward sector seven.

“South gap closes first on the next ebb.”