Into the Blue

by Robin Huber

  “Anywhere Marc Spencer isn’t. Dubai. Vienna. Prague. Halfway across the globe sounds nice.”

  “I hear Kauai is pretty amazing. Nearly five thousand miles away from New York and still in the states. They say it looks a lot like Costa Rica.”

  I close my eyes and snuggle up against him as he sways me back and forth to the music again. “Kauai sounds perfect.”

  “I could do my job from there. And you could start over with your new career as a doctor.”

  I smile. “It’s settled then.”

  Mia grabs my arm. “Come on, it’s time!”

  I flash apologetic eyes at Kellan, because I know there’s no way of stopping her from pulling me away from him.

  We follow everyone down to the beach where several flaming torches are sticking up out of the sand. Gus hands us each a large loosely woven basket and exclaims, “Everybody grab a torch and get in the water!”

  I take a basket, but leave the burning balls of fire for Kellan. “I’ll just help you, okay?”

  He picks up one of the torches and holds it out in front of us as we make our way down to the water. Mia and Adam and Callie and Derek wade in on either side of us. We watch the villagers lower their torches to the surface of the water, looking for lobsters and crabs, carefully coaxing them into their baskets when they find them. We all begin scanning the ocean floor through the shallow water.

  “Ooo, I see one!” I shout, pointing to a large crab under the surface in front of me.

  “Hold the torch,” Kellan says, exchanging it for the basket.

  I hold the burning stick away from me, trying my best not to burn him while keeping it close enough so that he can see the creature through the clear water. He scoops the basket into the water and comes up with...sand. The crab is gone. I frown and Kellan curses under his breath.

  “It was a good try,” I tell him.

  Several failed attempts later, he says, “I need a spear.”

  “Are you sure?” Only the village fisherman are using spears.

  “I want a spear,” he says, determined.

  “Okay.” I run to the shore and grab one of the metal-tipped spears that are sticking up out of the sand, and hurry back into the water with it, careful not to splash around too much. I hand it to Kellan, taking the torch from him again.

  We scan the water for a few seconds.

  “There,” he says, crouching over the water with the spear angled toward the surface. He shoves it down hard, making me jump, and when he lifts it up there’s a crab skewered on the end of it.

  “Oh my God, you got it!” I say excitedly, amazed that he actually speared a crab on his first try. They’re fast and I’ve watched the fisherman come up empty again and again.

  He grins at his accomplishment and slides the crab off the end of his spear, dropping it into the basket. He immediately searches for more and within seconds he’s successfully speared another.

  “Good job!” I say proudly.

  Six lobsters and fifteen crabs later, our basket is full. Fire fishing has proven to be a strong suit for Kellan, and a lot of fun for me. Mia, Callie, and I haven’t stopped laughing the whole time, especially because the boys are so serious about it. They’ve turned it into a competition, and so far, Kellan’s in the lead.

  I grab Mia’s hand. “Hey, come sit with me for a minute.”

  “Okay.” She hands Adam their basket.

  We sit on the sand and watch everyone moving around in the shallow water, the orange glow from their torches reflecting on the dark surface of the ocean under the stars.

  Mia falls back on her hands and sighs. “It’s really beautiful, isn’t it?”

  “Yes, it is.” I smile halfheartedly. “I’m really going to miss it.”

  “I know. Me too.”

  I nudge her shoulder with mine. “So, why didn’t you tell me about Adam?”

  “I don’t know. I guess I wasn’t really sure what it was. Then Kellan left and you weren’t in a good place. I didn’t mean to keep it from you.”

  I sit up, folding my arms over my legs, and smile at her. “Well, can you fill me in now?”

  She hugs her knees to her chest and nods. “I’ve liked Adam for a while, but–”

  “You never told me that.”

  “Because it was harmless. He’s always kind of flirted with me, but he knew I was with Jason.” She draws shapes in the sand. “I felt the attraction to him, but I just thought it was infatuation. He was a marine, a combat medic—that’s sort of my thing—he’s smart, good-looking, funny.” She smiles and I laugh softly. “But then I started to notice how he would look at me a little longer than normal or linger when no one else was around. I started to feel something more for him, so I broke things off with Jason.”

  “When?”

  “Weeks ago,” she admits.

  “Mia, I can’t believe you didn’t tell me.”

  “Well, I know how you feel about Jason and I didn’t want you to think less of me.”

  “Mia. I love Jason, but I love you too. I’m sad for him, yes, but you two were a little bit like oil and water together, so I’m not entirely surprised.”

  She laughs. “Neither was he.”

  “So, he wasn’t upset?”

  “No, he was upset, just not surprised. I guess he could sense that I didn’t feel the same way about him anymore.”

  I nod with understanding. “And Adam?”

  She smiles. “One morning he stopped me in the hallway and he kissed me, just out of the blue.” She touches her mouth and smiles. “We were alone in the house, so it turned into more than a kiss and well...”

  I stare at her with wide eyes, waiting for her to go on.

  “It was incredible. It wasn’t like anything I’ve ever...I mean, I’ve never...it was just, incredible,” she breathes.

  “You already said that.” I grin at her.

  “I wanted to tell you, Makayla, but you were so upset when Kellan was gone.”

  I shake my head. “I just wish I could have been there for you.”

  She reaches for my hand and gives it a small squeeze. “You are now.”

  “Mia, I never thanked you for everything you’ve done for me.”

  “You don’t have to.”

  Tears sting my eyes when I think of how kind she was to me when I arrived. “Thank you.”

  She squeezes my hand and looks out at the ocean. “You’re welcome.”

  Chapter 18

  Makayla

  I finish packing my belongings, including fifteen white pearls and one black one that Kellan found in the lagoon, and step out onto the front porch, where I sit down on the steps and gaze out at the view, like I’ve done so many times before. It’s dark, but the moon is big and bright in the sky, hanging low over the horizon, leaving a white trail reflecting on the surface of the ocean beneath it. A gentle breeze blows that smells of the island—warm and earthy and floral. I close my eyes and feel it on my face.

  It’s been a week since Kellan returned with Derek and Callie, and tomorrow morning, we’ll all be leaving the island together. Derek arranged for us to stay in San Francisco for a couple of nights before we return to New York. Callie was thrilled that we’ll be staying at the St. Regis, her favorite hotel, and Mia was thrilled that we’ll have a little more time together, since San Francisco is just a quick drive from Stanford. But the real reason we’ll be there is to meet Michelle Locklear, the prosecutor for the DA who will be leading the case against Marc. She is going to meet us there to sort through some preliminary details of the case, before we meet with the rest of the prosecution team in New York. She’s a friend of Derek’s and I’m pretty sure she’s doing him a favor on my behalf, because the thought of walking into the New York DA’s office in just a few days—only miles from Syntec—is petrifying. I think this is their way of warming me up to the idea.

  Derek has provided her all the information on the classified Syntec accounts, which clearly show illegal transactions with members of the Salgado cartel, b
ut it will be my testimony against Marc that ties the illegal dealings directly to him. Not only did he plainly tell me that he was supplying the Salgado cartel, I have firsthand knowledge of Jessica’s kidnapping and death, as well as my own kidnapping at his hands.

  “What are you doing out here?” Kellan asks.

  I glance up at him. “Just taking it all in, one last time.”

  He reaches for my hand and pulls me to my feet. “Come on, come take a drive with me.”

  I smile and wrap my arm around his waist as we leisurely walk to the Jeep.

  Kellan takes his time driving along the winding road that follows the coast and I try to memorize the way the island glows in the bright moonlight. He pulls up to the little house and we get out and walk to the lagoon hand in hand, until we find a place to sit in the soft sand and take in the view. I sit between Kellan’s knees and lean back against his chest, resting my hands on his thighs.

  He wraps his arms around me and says, “I’m going to miss it too.”

  I nod over the tight feeling in my chest.

  “Mostly, I’ll miss seeing you running around in your bikini all the time.”

  “Kellan.”

  “On second thought, seeing you naked under the sun is probably what I’ll miss the most.”

  I laugh softly. We’ve spent a lot of time here skinny-dipping in the surf, something we’ll probably never get to do again.

  “Take your clothes off,” he says against my ear.

  “What?” I look up at him and see a mischievous smile on his face.

  “Let’s go swimming, one last time.” He stands up and starts shrugging out of his clothes.

  I stand up and wriggle out of my clothes too, laughing as I drop them on the sand and run after him into the water, squealing with uninhibited freedom. I jump on his back and he splashes through the surf, making it about waist deep before diving beneath the moonlit surface.

  We swim around each other, playing in our endless pool, until Kellan pulls me into his arms. My legs find their usual place over his hips and I rest my arms on his shoulders.

  “I retract my previous statement,” he says, holding my face and trailing his thumb over my lips. “This is what I’ll miss the most.”

  “Me too.” I turn my head and kiss his palm, and something catches my eye in the distance—an electric blue haze on the waves rolling in. “What is that?”

  Kellan turns around and I can see it more clearly. The waves are glowing the brightest neon blue, like a million glow sticks have been cracked open and poured into the ocean.

  “Oh my God,” I say with realization. “It’s the plankton. They’re glowing!” The words tumble out of my mouth excitedly. “I’ve read about this. They glow sometimes. It’s called bioluminescence.”

  Kellan stretches his arm out and waves his hand through the water, creating a blue glow beside us, and I do the same. He slowly spins around and our hands drag through the water, creating an illuminated circle of blue around us. “That’s incredible,” he says, astonished.

  “It’s so beautiful,” I say, captivated, knowing this will probably be the last enchanted moment we share in this magical place. Like the last moments of a dream, I savor every drop of it, hoping it will stay with me long after I wake up...hoping it stays with me forever.

  * * *

  “Ready?” Kellan asks, putting his hands on my shoulders.

  I’ve been standing on the front steps of the house, staring out at the ocean for the last twenty minutes. I’m not ready to say goodbye to our secret paradise yet.

  “Yeah,” I sigh, reaching for his hand.

  I follow him to the seaplane that will take us back to the mainland and we all climb aboard and get buckled in. Callie and Derek are in the row in front of us and Adam and Mia are in the back with Dr. H and Jason, who is back to his old self, laughing and talking excitedly with Dr. H about their next research expedition.

  The engine roars loudly as we get ready for takeoff and the plane bobs over small waves, knocking me against Kellan to my left and the window to my right. The motion makes me queasy.

  “All right boys and girls, seatbelts on. We’ll be taking off in just a few minutes,” the pilot says in an American accent.

  “Hopefully the flight will be a little smoother than last time, eh, Solomon,” Derek says to him.

  “Who’s Solomon?” I whisper to Kellan.

  “He flew us back here before the storm. It was a bumpy flight, to say the least.”

  “Oh.”

  Solomon navigates the plane into the open ocean and I watch the beach fade as we move further away from the shore. The engines race and I’m pushed back against the seat as the plane leaves the surface of the ocean and angles up toward the sky. I grab Kellan’s hand and squeeze it hard, until we finally level out.

  “You okay?”

  “Yeah,” I exhale. I peek over the seat at Mia, who looks relaxed and happy next to Adam. When I turn around, I catch a glimpse of the lagoon through the window. “Kellan, look.”

  He leans over me to see. The water is bright blue against the dark sandy beach that curves around it and there are huge patches of coral scattered in the deep water.

  I swallow hard and try to ignore the knot in my stomach as I say goodbye to the spot where we spent so much time. The plane follows the coast past the lagoon and the water turns the most beautiful shade of blue. Then slowly...the island is lost from view and the only thing I see is the rippling of the Caribbean Sea under patches of puffy white clouds. I sigh and close my eyes, and snuggle against Kellan’s arm for the remainder of the flight to the mainland where, thankfully, we’ll be boarding a full-size passenger plane to San Francisco.

  Chapter 19

  Makayla

  The sun is shining in the blue sky above a blanket of gray clouds that hide the San Francisco Airport below. I peek out of the window as our plane begins to land, but only see a thick wall of white as we descend through the clouds.

  Kellan runs his hands through his dark hair and rubs the sleep from his eyes.

  I lace my fingers with his and hold my breath as the plane angles down and we emerge beneath the clouds, which are completely shrouding the sun. I squeeze his hand as we race toward the runway and bump along the tarmac, until the plane eventually comes to a stop. I lift my head and look out of the window as we taxi toward the terminal.

  Back to the real world.

  I blow out a quiet breath and smile at Kellan over my reluctance to rejoin civilization.

  “Welcome to San Francisco,” the pilot says over the speakers. “The current temperature is sixty-four degrees, but it should warm up to a comfortable seventy-five by the afternoon.”

  I’m fairly certain it never dipped below the mid-eighties on the island.

  Mia gets up and kneels in the empty seat in front of me. “Okay”—she hands me a folded piece of paper—“here’s my number. Call me once you guys get to the hotel.”

  “Okay.” I take the paper from her and tuck it into my back pocket.

  She smiles and returns to her seat next to Adam.

  When the door opens, Kellan looks at me and asks, “Are you ready?”

  No.

  “Mm-hmm.” I take his hand and let him pull me to my feet. I lead him down the aisle and onto the bridge that leads to the gate. “Brrr,” I say, rubbing the goosebumps on my arms. “It’s freezing in here.” I’m beginning to think flip-flops and shorts aren’t appropriate attire for San Francisco. At least, not in late September.

  Kellan rubs his hand over my shoulder. “I’ll get you a sweatshirt when we get inside.”

  When we step through the gate the noise engulfs me, assaulting my ears. The sounds of the airport and the bustling of the people around us is overwhelming. The airport in Costa Rica was small and there weren’t a lot of people there, not like this. I look up at the high ceilings and bright lights, which seem equally offensive, and cling to Kellan’s arm as we walk through the terminal.

  He pulls me against
him. “It’ll take some time to get used to again.”

  I glance up at him, trying to ignore the hordes of people around us, and wonder if this is what it felt like when he returned from Afghanistan.

  We stop at a souvenir shop and Kellan buys me a pink sweatshirt that says San Francisco across the front in big white letters. It’s totally hokey, but I don’t care. I’m freezing.

  I immediately throw it on and smile up at him. “Thank you,” I say, taking his hand again.

  “Better?”

  “Much.” I rub my arms through the long sleeves.

  We walk to the baggage claim where Derek is already lugging Callie’s suitcases off the conveyor belt. Kellan’s large duffle bag, which contains my belongings, is the last bag on the conveyor. He grabs it with ease and slings it over his shoulder, and we follow the rest of our group outside.

  Derek and Callie are headed to the St. Regis hotel with me and Kellan, but Adam is staying with Mia until we leave for New York in a couple of days. We say our goodbyes to Jason and Dr. H, exchanging hugs and information so we can keep them abreast of any developments, and then we watch their taxi disappear into the airport traffic.

  Mia hugs me and follows Adam into another cab. “Don’t forget to call me when you get to the hotel, okay?”

  “I won’t.”

  She smiles and closes the door, giving one last wave through the window.

  The rest of us climb into the SUV that Derek rented, and I try not to think about the last time I sat in the backseat of a car like this. He buckles in behind the wheel and pulls away from the curb, weaving into traffic like a true New Yorker. I look out of the window and watch the moving cars around us. I watch the people inside them talking as they drive, passengers sliding their fingers across their phone screens, checking their email or calendars or maybe their social media accounts. I exhale a pensive breath, remembering how I too had been tethered to my phone not so long ago—my phone that I tossed out of the window onto a busy New York street as I was being abducted. I close my eyes at the memory and make a mental note to purchase a new one.

  I look up at the sky and see no sign of the sun which I hoped might provide a little warmth. I’m going to have to get some warmer clothes. I make another mental note.