Page 32 of The First Lost Boy (The Shadows of Neverland Duet #2)
Ava
Later that night…
My heart races. I pace the floor. Devin pedals his bike under the carport and the seconds seem to stretch into hours as he gathers the bags from the handlebars and climbs the stairs. He stops when he sees me, a bright smile on his face, but it sinks when he sees my tears.
“What’s the matter?” he softly asks, hurrying inside to me.
On my cell phone, I googled those coordinates. The first was for this very apartment. One end of a bridge of faith, with him on the opposite end at the second location. According to the internet, it was just a random spot in the Atlantic, but I knew in my heart it wasn’t. And he wasn’t on a ship, making himself a moving target and playing some sort of game with me.
He was on an island.
The island.
He went back.
I cling to Devin’s shirt, take in his familiar chlorine scent and laugh, because I’m happy despite the sadness of knowing I’ll be leaving him and won’t know when our paths will cross again, if they ever will. He’s my best friend, but I need to find Hook.
I can’t stop thinking about him.
“Devin, tomorrow, I have to go.”
“Go where?” he asks, pulling away to look at me.
I clasp his hands and pull him to the counter where the letter lays open.
He reads it, sets it down gingerly and looks at me, his eyes shining with unshed tears. “Then we’ll go first thing and find someone to take you there.”
My cell phone rings the next morning and on the screen is a number I don’t recognize. Probably a scam, but I hit the button to accept the call. “Hello?”
“Is this Ava?” a male asks in a deep voice. His accent is Australian, I think.
“It is.”
“Ava, this is Steve Sydney of Chartered Charleston Luxury Sailing Tours. I was given your number and told that you might be looking to book an excursion.”
I smile into the phone. “I take it you know him.”
He laughs. “Oh, yes. I certainly do.”
“And you can take me to him?”
Gulls cry in the background. “That I can. When do you want to leave?”
“When you tell me you can be ready,” I reply.
He chuckles. “I’m always ready. Best head on down to the harbor. I’ll text the address.”
I’ve been on board Steve Sydney’s luxury yacht for two days and we are finally nearing our destination, per my Aussie friend. The wind nearly takes his hat off and donates it to the sea, but he manages to catch it as he comes to sit with me near the bow. The seats are cushioned and comfortable. The fruit and food are fresh and deliciously prepared. Water and juices are always available.
“How has your trip been?” he asks, the skin at his eyes crinkling as he smiles.
“It’s been wonderful. Much better than my last experience on a ship, I can assure you.”
He chuckles. Devin explained my past sailing incident to Steve as he carried my bags aboard the ship for me. Steve assured him that he’d triple checked the weather and we would have no trouble. All would be clear for the voyage, and he was an expert sailor, having been on the sea nearly his entire life.
I hugged my friend, promised to write when I could, and waved to him as he stood on the dock and watched me sail away. Not toward something, but some one .
Anyone who heard my story would think I’m insane. To sail into the ocean to a place that even satellites don’t chart to see someone you’ve only met once. But wouldn’t it be worse not to go and always wonder what would have been if you had? Wouldn’t it be awful not to trust and follow your heart?
My memory was cleaved, and I might be missing half of it, but he’s the first thing I remember, too.
I need to see him. I can’t explain it and I barely understand it, but I know it with my whole heart.
“The sea can be a little testy in this area, but we’ll drop anchor in a calm spot, and I’ll take you to the shore in the dinghy,” Steve says.
“Sounds perfect.”
He stands and looks out at the water. “If the mermaids start singing, plug your ears.”
“Right…” I laugh as he turns and walks away, tossing a wink over his shoulder.