“What’s up with all the vagueness?” Minnow said, swirling her legs to stay in place.
He moved closer and she could see the tiny water droplets on the tips of his lashes. “Was I being vague? Come on, we’re running out of daylight.”
Before she knew it, he was off again, leading her along a ledge just offshore, about twenty feet high and teaming with all forms of undersea life. He swam slower now, taking time to dive down now and then, picking up half-eaten cowrie shells or empty urchins. Being so nimble and at home in the water could only come from a lifetime spent immersed in it, and she wondered about his upbringing in the Pacific Northwest and how he ended up here.
Luke checked on her regularly, and she noticed how he also checked his surroundings continuously. Subtle but attentive, which was refreshing. Often it was Minnow having to keep an eye on those with her. Less experienced. Less aware. Being out here felt so freeingand she wanted to just keep swimming. Beyond the sunset, beyond the night. It had been a long time since she’d been out in the water like this with no agenda, no plan, just watching the fish—and Luke Greenwood.
He’d been right about the water this way. Shafts of late afternoon sun shot down, lighting up small patches of the ocean floor like lasers. When they hit another large bay, this one all black sand, Luke hugged the reef and led her in. Minnow spotted an octopus slinking along the bottom, with one leg reaching into a hole and feeling around. She watched it for a while, swimming along slowly, when she swam right into Luke’s back.
He reached around and grabbed her arm. Instinctively, Minnow spun around, but she saw nothing unusual.
She popped her head up. “What is it?”
“I saw something big and dark move just out of visibility. Over there,” he said.
They both scanned the surface in the area he’d pointed, and a moment later she saw a distinct fin. Then another. The idea of stumbling into sharks feeding made her hair stand up. Strange how she regularly, knowingly got in the water with giant white sharks, but now she felt apprehension. Maybe because she was in such unfamiliar water, but also she had to admit these attacks had rattled her some. Fear was an inherent part of the work she did.
Luke had let go of her arm, though it still hummed where he’d touched it. They were back to back now, when straight ahead, a shadow at least twelve feet long swam back into their range. Her heart started hammering in her chest. Good thing Luke had a knife. But the creature was wide, not long, and as its outline became clearer, she saw a wide gaping mouth and slow, graceful wings.
“Manta ray!” they both said at the same time.
It made sense, with tiny plankton thick in the water. The relief was palpable, and they hung there watching as the animal continued toward them, white underbelly splotched with black. Not far behind,another one sailed along, slightly smaller but no less magnificent. When it got to within an arm’s length of them, the manta banked and made a wide turn, heading back in the direction it came.Take me with you,Minnow wanted to say.This is where I belong.
“How cool was that?” Luke said, eyes wide. “They’ll loop around like this for hours.”
Gone was the aloof cool guy, the vague fisherman. He was brimming with excitement, as was Minnow.
“Are they regulars out here?” she asked.
“I’ve only seen a pair in front of the Kiawe, on the point, just swimming and swooping and doing barrel rolls against me for what felt like hours.”
Minnow wished they could stay and do the same, but the sun had dropped below the clouds, turning the horizon a burnt ochre. “We should turn around.”
“Straight shot back. You wanna race?”
“Yeah, right.”
“Just kidding. You lead this time, though,” he said, sun reflecting in his watery eyes.
Something about the way he looked at her, as though he knew what she was thinking, threw her off-balance. She swam off without another word, racing daylight and thankful to go at her own pace. The bite on her foot was beginning to throb, but swimming finless could only be good for it. One beauty of ocean swims was that they healed anything and everything. Aches and pains, worries of the day, fractured hearts.
Every now and then Luke came up alongside her, and they’d make eye contact and the okay signal. Minnow looked back out of habit too, and he was always right there, drafting off her line. With him so close, she felt overly aware of every inch of her body and the way he might view it from behind. Every curve morphed and magnified underwater. By the time they swam up to his boat, the sun had dropped onto the horizon line.
Luke seemed to know what she was thinking. “I’ll walk you back. I have a good dive light.”
“That’s okay, there’s still light. I can make it back.”
It would fade fast once the sun went down, though.
“Not a good idea,” he said.
“Why not?”
“You really have to ask?” he said, climbing into the boat and holding out a hand for her.
She didn’t take it. “Sharks?”
“Hard to believe I’m having this conversation with the premier white shark scientist in North America.”
