Page 20 of The Sunken Truth
“I think I can manage that,” Flynn said, then helped Lily with her wetsuit when she looked helplessly at him.
Five minutes later, their four-person dive party was in the water beside the boat.
“You know what you’re doing?” Ryan asked Lily.
She nodded.
“Do you want to buddy up with me?” he asked.
“Sure,” she replied, then glanced at Kit and Seren.
“That doesn’t seem fair,” Kit huffed. “She gets the best tour guide!”
“We can stick together,” Ryan said. “But if the visibility ends up being like yesterday, we’re better off in twos.”
Kit and Seren agreed, and they all gave the okay sign before slipping below the surface. Lily caught Flynn’s eye justbefore she descended. It was a shame he couldn’t come with them. If he was staying on the island longer, he could take diving lessons and they could go out together.
Except he wasn’t staying, so there wasn’t much point. For a moment, she considered Flynn’s mission to prove himself to the superintendent, and the idea that it might lead to him being able to stay.
She didn’t even dare let herself hope.
Bringing her mind to the present, she glanced around. It was considerably clearer than the day before, and rays of sunlight shone down to illuminate the underwater world.
It only took a couple of minutes to reach the bottom, where the seabed stretched out in an undulating sandy expanse littered with the occasional large rock.
The gentle action of her flippers felt hypnotic as the four of them propelled themselves toward the wreck.
A couple of minutes later, it came into view. Just like Ryan had said, there was a quarter deck and mast emerging from the sand as clear as anything.
They all slowed, then stopped and stared before exchanging awe-inspired looks.
Sunlight shafted through the water – illuminating drifting specks of plankton and silt while making the rippling seabed sparkle. Feeling as though she was in some magical children’s film, emotions swelled in Lily’s chest. She had to remind herself to breathe evenly.
Around the wreck, a handful of scattered divers had their heads down to comb the surrounding area.
Suddenly, the idea of finding treasure didn’t feel farfetched after all. When the ship sank in the storm, itscontents would likely have scattered all over the surrounding area. If there really had been gold on board, it could be right below her.
The thought sent a rush of delight tingling through her whole body.
It was daft, really. Even if she found the gold, she couldn’t keep it, and it wasn’t the monetary reward that thrilled her. It was the idea of finding some precious treasure which had been hidden for more than a hundred years, and holding it in her hand.
The others were clearly thinking the same. Without a word, they began creeping along the seabed with their eyes firmly down.
Tempting as it was to dig around, Lily held back. Even moving a small rock sent up a waft of sand that impaired visibility. No wonder it had been so murky yesterday with so many people intent on finding treasure.
After fifteen minutes of drifting along the seabed, the four of them split up – Kit and Seren exploring a wider search area while Ryan seemed keen to stay closer to the ship.
A fish swam by, taking Lily’s attention. She followed it for a moment with a foolish notion that it might lead her to treasure. All she came to was a stone poking out of the sand, taunting her to remove it. But then she wouldn’t be able to see anything else in the vicinity.
Glancing behind her, she inwardly groaned. Someone had stirred up the seabed, and the ship was once again lost to a cloud of sediment.
She’d lost sight of Ryan.
Seconds later, he emerged from the sand cloud, heading straight for her.
Something about his movements was off. A ripple of fear crept upLily’s spine.
It wasn’t just his movements. He had his regulator in his hand, but wasn’t using it.
