Wordlessly, Flynn helped Sage and Cap into the inflatable kayak. They paddled in silence, both lost in their thoughts.
Before they made it all the way to shore, Cap bounded into the shallow waves, prancing in the surf, oblivious to the significance of their excursion.
They beached the kayak, and Flynn hopped onto the wet sand. Sage followed. Together, they dragged the kayak onto the berm, safe from the rising tide.
The wind echoed ominously in the small cove, and frothy waves thrashed against the rocks surrounding the cave. An eerie feeling crept over him. Was coming here a mistake?
“Are you okay?” Sage touched his arm gently, yanking him from his thoughts.
“Are you?” He realized bringing her here conjured her own ghosts and painful memories.
“Honestly? I never expected to come back here.”
“Me, neither,” he admitted, noticing neither of them had actually answered the question. “But there’s something I need to do.” He twisted the bracelet around his wrist. “Right before graduation, Kev got this crazy idea to make a time capsule. One of his business gurus recommended it. He said to include a letter to our future selves and an item that represented something important in our lives. The plan was to open it in ten years, after we’d become roaring successes, to remind us what really matters.”
“That sounds like Kevin.” Sage smiled wistfully. “And you buried it here?”
“Kev did. In the cave.” His throat went dry.
Her eyes widened. “You’re going inside?”
“Assuming it’s still there, it’ll only take me a minute to find it.” He knew exactly where Kev hid it—in a crescent-shaped crevice near the back of the cave, to the left of a chipped stalactite.
“I’m coming with you.” Her words carried conviction, but he caught the glint of dismay in her eyes.
He appreciated her willingness, but this was something he needed to do alone. “Keep an eye on Cap. If he keeps rolling around in the wet sand like that, we’ll wind up taking half the beach back with us.”
She reached for his hand, gripping tightly as she held his gaze. How did she communicate so much love and support in a single glance?
He kissed her softly, sinking into her lips, savoring their sweetness and assurance.
The sun slid from behind the clouds, momentarily lending its comforting light.
Before he pulled away, he pressed his forehead to hers for a fraction of a second, gathering strength from her presence. He straightened, forcing a smile. “I’ll be back in a jiffy.”
“I’ll be here.”
He felt her concerned gaze on his back as he ambled across the sandy shore, up the rocky embankment, and over the rickety fence, weatherbeaten by the wind and waves. The rusty chain links clanged as he hoisted himself over the side. He landed with a splash in ankle-deep water, grateful his deck shoes could handle getting wet.
The frigid water rose to his calves, then up to his thighs as he made his way farther into the cave. Dank, gloomy walls held in the darkness, save for faint shafts of light streaming through the narrow entrance, softening the shadows.
Flynn kept his gaze fixed straight ahead, fighting a barrage of unwelcome images—images of his brother that haunted his nightmares.
His foot slipped, and he dunked waist-deep into the water. Shocked by the cold, he inhaled sharply, filling his lungs with the scent of salt and sediment. The oppressive air crowded around him, covering him like a damp cloak, forcing him deeper into the murky depths.
He squinted into the blackness up ahead, barely making out the half-moon outline. The crevice. He was almost there.You can do this.
His breaths came in shallow gasps as he pressed onward, the silty ground giving way, forcing him to swim. After what felt like two lifetimes—but probably lasted only two minutes—he reached the far end of the cave. He ran his hands along the slippery surface, searching for a place to grab hold. Locating a groove that would give him the necessary leverage, he hauled himself far enough out of the water to reach a hand into the crescent-shaped slit in the slab of earth.
One by one, he removed the stones Kevin had used as a protective barrier, scraping and scooping out sand and pebbles until his fingertips met something slick and smooth.
The trinket box! It was still there. Relief surged through him. Kev would be pleased the box had lived up to the advertising hype—and the hefty price tag.
Okay, time to go.
He tried to withdraw his hand, but it didn’t budge. The friendship bracelet snagged on something sharp, pinning his arm in place. In the span of a single ragged breath, fear and adrenaline pumped into his bloodstream. His pulse pounded in his eardrums, drowning out the cacophonous crash of ocean waves.
Suddenly, all the visions he’d kept at bay came barreling into his thoughts.
