Kerry looked ahead to where she could see a rocky escarpment that rose almost to the surface. The waves were breaking over it, churning up the water and sending bits of debris tinkling down to the ocean floor. As they swam closer, Kerry could feel a current of cooler water and see the faintest hint of a shimmer. She unstrapped her camera and took a few shots of the approaching wall.

Dar swam ahead of her to the wall and caught hold of it, reaching out to grab Kerry as she came closer. She grinned around her mouthpiece and mimed snapping a shutter near her mask, indicating that there was about to be a good photo op. Kerry lifted her camera, but Dar held her hand over her eyes.

Oh, c’mon Dar. But Kerry humored her, covering her eyes as she trustingly allowed her partner to maneuver her over the escarpment. She sensed the rocks moving under her, felt her fins brush against them, and heard the sound of the waves close over her head. Then Dar pulled her hand away, and she could see.

For a moment, Kerry simply stared. Beyond the escarpment was a vast chasm in the sea, filled with the deepest blue water that was yet clear enough for the sunlight to penetrate down for what seemed to be hundreds of feet. It was gorgeous. She could see divers far off down the rocks, exploring the sides of the underwater canyon. Swarms of fish darted past them, reflecting the sun.

Quickly, she lifted the camera and snapped off a few shots, then looked at Dar and simply pointed imperiously downward.

Dar smiled and pushed off the wall, letting the air out of her BC and sailing downward. Kerry shoved off after her, feeling a wash of cooler water ease past her as she descended. It was like 248 Melissa Good floating into a fantasy world. The rocks on either side were crawling with life—schools of small fish and crustaceans hanging within the crevices. A swordfish whisked past her and she barely focused in time to catch it, only to have Dar tug her arm.

She turned to see a dark, gray figure lazily moving through the water and her eyes widened. She didn’t need the up-thrust fin to identify the newcomer as a shark, and she quickly looked at Dar to gauge the danger.

Dar seemed quite relaxed. She pointed to her right. Kerry looked and saw a grouper bigger than she was nibbling at the wall; then they both jumped as two clown fish chased each other between them, brushing their legs as they sped toward the rocks.

They were still drifting down. At the bottom of the abyss, Kerry could now see a cave with a ripple above it. The water also seemed to mist. She pointed at it and looked at Dar in question.

Dar tapped the water bag Kerry had strapped under her tank, and mimed a gush of something welling up.

Oh. A freshwater spring. As they drifted closer, Kerry saw a crab making its way along the rocks. She turned and set the lens for a tight focus, then got a good shot of its blue-black shell against the tan rock. Looking down, she saw the bottom coming up. She turned and looked across the space, watching it fill with swarms of fish. As they swam in and out of the sunbeams, she could barely take one shot before another presented itself.

Lowering her camera for a brief moment, she checked her dive computer. At 120 feet, it was the deepest she’d ever been, but with the clarity of the water, it hardly seemed like more than a regular reef dive. She looked at Dar, who was watching her with a visible grin. Kerry held up three fingers, then made an O with her thumb and forefinger, then three fingers again. Wow.

Knowing that she only had about ten minutes at that depth, Kerry was determined to make the most of it. She moved off toward the underwater spring, and swam over the gap in the rock through which fresh water gushed. She put a hand into its path, feeling the pressure, and then she took a picture of it.

Turning, she saw Dar relaxing nearby, idly playing with a blowfish. The creature had blown itself up into a spiky ball, and Dar was bouncing it gently from hand to hand as she floated. Kerry quickly snapped a picture of them.

A flounder wafted past. It watched Kerry out of one eye as she turned in the water and photographed it. A sand shark squiggled below her, and she jumped a little, getting out of its way. Then she flipped over onto her back and took several shots looking straight up, through the clouds of fish to the surface.

Gorgeous.

Kerry felt lines of poetry erupt into her mind, and she just Terrors of the High Seas 249

floated there for a moment, exulting in the sheer wonder around her.

At last, with an almost apologetic look, Dar swam over and tapped her wrist. Kerry nodded reluctantly, and they started drifting upward. She shot the rest of her roll of film on the way up, and wished she had a second.

DAR’S HEAD BROKE the surface, and she grabbed the boat’s ladder. With a grunt, she pulled herself on board and dumped her fins and mask, then turned to help Kerry up out of the water as she felt her weight on the ladder.

Kerry barely waited to get her body clear of the sea before she pulled her regulator out of her mouth and squealed like a pig.

“Eeeeeeeeeeehyhoooo!” She jumped onto the deck and hopped a few times, despite the fact that she still had her gear on. “Dar, that was by far the most awesome thing I’ve ever seen!”

Dar dumped her tank and dropped her mask and snorkel into the water well. “Guess I picked a good one, huh?” she asked with a grin. “Gimme your stuff.”

Kerry unbuckled her vest and turned, shrugging out of it as the weight of the tank lifted. “Oh my freaking God!” She set her camera down and went to the cabinet to grab a towel to dry her face. As she opened the door, she heard a chirp. “Your cell’s squeaking,” she told Dar. “Bet Bud called back.”

Dar turned from where she was putting up the gear. “Good. I’ll get it in a minute.”

“That place is great.” Kerry walked over and dried Dar’s face for her. “Did you see the caves that kind of went on from the bottom?”

Dar nodded. “I did. But you really don’t want to go in there unless you’ve had cave training. It’s dangerous.”

“No problem.” Kerry reached into the cooler and pulled out a bottle of water, uncapping it and drinking deeply. “I loved looking up and seeing the sun all that way up. Jesus!” She still felt exhilarated. “Dar, that was worth the entire damn trip.”

Dar turned and walked over, wearing a very pleased grin.

“Glad you liked it.”

“Liked it?” Kerry put down the water and threw her arms around Dar instead, hugging her fiercely. “Errrooof. I loved it,” she told her partner. “I got some fantastic pictures. I think I’m going to do a series of underwaters from this trip for the cabin.”

“Mm.” Dar exhaled in satisfaction. She liked underwater shots.

She liked the cabin. She loved Kerry. So far as she was concerned, it all seemed to be falling together perfectly.

Kerry gave her one last squeeze and then released her. “How 250 Melissa Good about I make you a special surprise for dinner?”

“Surprise?” Dar inquired. “Like what?”

“Hardly be a surprise if I told you, sweetie.” Kerry winked.

“Trust me. You’ll like it.”

“Okay,” Dar agreed amiably. “But as hungry as I am right now, you could serve me pureed asparagus on wheat toast and I’d like it.”

Kerry chuckled. “I’m going to go shower and change.” She gave Dar a pat on the side and disappeared into the cabin.

Dar wiped off her hands and picked up the still-chirping cell phone. She opened it and dialed her voice mail, listening to the phone as she dried herself. Her brow creased at the voice. Instead of the expected Bud, it was Charlie.

“Hey, Dar? This is Charlie. Listen, they let me loose from this joint, and I’m trying to get hold of Bud to come pick me up. Gimme a call here if you’ve seen him. Cell’s not answering, and I’m figuring he got stuck in some damn poker game or something.

Thanks.”

“Huh.” Dar studied the phone. “Now what the hell is going on?” She dialed the number Charlie had left and waited. “Charlie?”

“Hey, Dar?” Charlie’s voice sounded relieved. “Glad to hear ya. You know where Buddy is?”

Dar took a breath. “Charlie, we thought he was with you,” she said reluctantly. “He left our room this morning, and he was just going to check on the boat. Haven’t heard from him since. I left him a couple of messages, but no answer.”

Hearing voices, Kerry stuck her head out of the door. “What’s up?”

‘Bud’s missing,’ Dar mouthed.

“Well, damn,” Charlie said. “Where the hell can he be?”

Good question. Dar ran her hand through her damp hair. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “Listen, we can…” Her eyes shifted to Kerry.

“Um…”

“Go back, pick up Charlie, and find Bud.” Kerry completed the statement with a wry smile. “Lift the anchor, Cap’n Dar.” She patted Dar’s arm and disappeared again.

“Charlie, stay put. We’ll swing back by and get you,” Dar relayed. “We’re out off the western side of St. Thomas, so it’ll take a little while.” She acknowledged the grateful response and then closed the phone. She made her way to the ladder and climbed up, her mind turning thoughtfully to the new problem. Bud was a loner, no question about it. The fact that he’d disappeared someplace didn’t really surprise her, but he hadn’t told Charlie where he was, and that did.

He could just be in a bar somewhere, but Dar didn’t think so.

Too many things had been going south on her lately for it to be Terrors of the High Seas 251

something as simple as that. In fact, she was beginning to think their vacation was cursed.