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Thirty-Four

Huck

You’d think that being meters beneath the ocean’s surface, with the chance to find the wreckage of a centuries-old treasure ship and a priceless red diamond, would take my mind off the feel of Stella’s hands smearing sunscreen on my back.

You’d be wrong. I barely notice when my metal detector alerts at first because I’m too freaking preoccupied with the eroticism of UV protection.

The beeping grows more persistent, and I move closer to see what’s setting it off.

When we first started hunting together on this trip, I spent a lot of time on the comms calling the others over to see what each hit was, but this time I’m playing it cool.

Stella and Gus are doing their own sweeps around the zone where we found the grappling hook yesterday, and I don’t want to bring them over here if it turns out to be nothing exciting.

In the sand, I make out a dark circular shape near a rocky mound.

It almost looks like the metal hoop of a barrel.

I take out a marker and place it, documenting the find with my camera as Stella and Gus have taught me.

I let them know about what I see and then start to move on.

A shaft of sunlight appears ahead of me, near a collection of rocks and kelp, and a glint of something catches my eye.

I blink and look again. I can’t tell what it is, but there’s definitely a glimmer there.

I swim closer and wave my hand gently through the water to clear away the sand.

I stare at the ocean floor for a long moment in complete disbelief. A shadow passes in the corner of my vision, and I don’t turn away to see what it is. It could be a shark sizing me up and I wouldn’t even know. I’m completely rapt. So this is what it feels like, I think.

“You are never going to believe this.” It’s Gus’s voice in my ear. “Guys, I found a cannon! It’s unbelievable. It’s, like, twelve feet long and totally intact. You’ve got to get over here.”

Cheers fill my ears through the comms. I’m speechless, completely awestruck, staring at the gold that peeks out like liquid sunshine from the bottom of the ocean.

I’ve written things like this. In Fortune Files , Lucky and Finn discover a hidden cavern where there’s an entire trove of gemstones and ancient golden statues, but somehow my imagination failed to capture the full thrill of it.

There’s so much adrenaline coursing through my body that my heart beats recklessly and my vision sharpens.

I can hear every tiny sound, even my pulse.

“That’s amazing, Gus,” Stella says. “But I think you’re going to want to come over by me and Huck.”

I turn to my right where I’d seen a shadow passing earlier to face Stella, floating up beside me. She’s staring straight ahead at the treasure.

“Seriously?” Gus asks. “You’ve got something more exciting than a cannon? Is it the ship’s bell? Holy shit.”

Stella rolls slightly in the water and now she’s looking at me, a broad, bright smile on her face.

“It’s not a bell,” Stella says. She’s staring straight at me and the excitement of seeing her so happy while she looks at me makes my heart feel like it might sprout a motor, fly through the wall of my chest, and zip away with a wake behind it. “It’s better.”

“Gold,” I blurt.

“Wait, what’d you just say?” It’s Ted over the ship’s radio. “Zoe and I are having a hard time reading you guys.”

“Gold,” Stella yells.

Ted crackles through. “Say it again!”

“Gold,” she and I shout.

“Say it again!” he hollers in delight.

They can hear us just fine—the demand is a celebratory one.

A joyous call-and-response. My last shred of composure gives way.

There’s only one thing that would make this better and she’s floating a foot away from me.

I fling my arms around her. The hug is awkward, a tangle of tubes and bulky air tanks, my bare skin and her wetsuit and face masks that bump.

“Gold,” Stella says one last time.

“We found the fucking gold!”