Page 74 of Beach Bodies

‘It’s OK,’ I say in a neutral tone. Nothing more. Even though my heart is tugging at me, I force myself to activelywall up what she’s said. I don’t want to relate. Don’t want to see the similarities between her story and mine.

We reach the rocks.

Stay focused.

She climbs ahead of me. I reach the top just seconds behind her, panting.

‘You OK there?’ she says.

‘Fine,’ I say, wiping away a trickle of sweat at my hairline.

‘OK. Let’s get you sitting on that rock there at the end…’

We jump from rock to rock, all the way to the end of the jetty. I stand on the very last rock. The one I’m about to push Serena from. The ocean is lively, crashing up against the left side, then sucking at the rocks as it retreats, only to batter it again.That’s the side I have to push her off.

She’s positioning the camera, but I can’t let her press record. Can’t let there be any evidence we were here together.

‘Wait! I’m not ready,’ I say. ‘Could you– um, come over here? There’s something in the water.’

‘What is it?’

Still looking at the water, I twist my expression as if I’m seeing something disturbing.

‘You’d better come check it out.’

She blows out her breath in exasperation, but picks her way towards me.

This is it. This is it.

Even if she is struggling with depression, that doesn’t make her less of a monster.

She’s next to me, leaning over a little.

Blood pounds through my veins, filling my head with its rhythm.

Now. Now, I tell myself.

I step back, giving myself a little room to lunge forward. The more upfront force, the better.

Serena is fixated on the water. ‘I really don’t see what you’re talking about, Lily.’

I lunge—

A blare cuts through the soundscape, jolting me back again.

Serena straightens up and looks at her phone, totally oblivious to the fact that I was one second away from sending her over the edge on to the sharp rocks and into the vicious current.

She frowns at her phone, then lifts it to her ear. ‘Vic?’

Damn it.

I cross my arms around my body. The wind is extra icy up on the jetty. I’m close enough to hear the frantic tone of Vic’s voice. Serena’s frown deepens as he talks, and I hear Vic’s final words loud and clear. ‘Get back here right now!’

Serena disconnects and looks up at me, her face drained of colour. Stricken. ‘We have to get back to the Riovan right now. There’s been an emergency. It’s that girl.’

I don’t even have to ask what girl. She swims into my mental view, in her tie-dye shirt and her whimsical braids.

‘Skylar,’ I say.