Desi bolted upright, heart pounding.“Portals,” she breathed.“They’re portals!”
She scrambled to her feet so quickly she nearly tripped over her shoes.The circles—gateways through time, maybe even between worlds.
One of her high school friends—a total science geek—had once ranted for hours about wormholes and Einstein-Rosen bridges.She’d laughed then.Not now.
The first time she’d appeared on theSentineland had returned so quickly, the ship must have been in the portal just south of Puerto Rico.Then, when she appeared the second time and dropped the Ring, hoping to return home, the shipwas no longer within the portal.Which is why it hadn’t worked.And of course when she’d dropped the Ring atÎle Du Crâne, she’d been transported back to her time.
The marquis knew about the portals.Which is why he’d probably established his estate on that island.
It was the only thing that made sense.
She sank onto the bed again and let out a weary, incredulous sigh.“Portals through time and space making sense,” she muttered.“My life has officially gone insane.”
Chapter 29: The Storms of Time
Desi flung her legs over the edge of her dive boat as Chad throttled back the engine.Black clouds tumbled along the horizon, thunder growling a warning to all upon the sea.A sharp gust tore through her hair, ripping it from its tie.
“I told you we shouldn’t have come out here with the storm rolling in,” Camila complained, wrestling Desi’s BCD and tank from the locker.
“You want me to get the Ring, don’t you?”
“Yeah, but I don’t want to die in the process.”
Chad dropped the anchor and raised the dive flag, muttering.“We supposed to just ride out the storm while you go play mermaid?You don’t pay me enough for that.”
Desi shot him a glare.Why she paid him at all was a mystery.He’d worked two hours yesterday, then stumbled in late this morning, reeking of rum.
“I pay you to captain this boat and do what I say,” she snapped.“Besides, I won’t be long.”
Her gaze swept to the darkening waves, swelling higher by the second.One struck theSea Starr, rocking it so hard she gripped the railing.The vessel pitched and rolled like a pendulum clock.Tick tock, tick tock.Time had become a formidable adversary, battling against her every move.
The sting of rain swirled in the shifting wind.Of course there had to be a storm today.But Desi couldn’t wait.She had to know if the Ring was still there.She longed to see theSentinelagain, even if she was but a corpse of her former glory.Just being near her might bring Caleb closer.It washisship.His cabin, his men…even his cat.She could still see him striding across the deck, black hair streaming, cutlass flashing, that easy grin breaking through the shadows.His gray-blue eyes—stormy as the sea—turning warm and admiring when they found her.
“Why are you so restless today?”she whispered to the waves.Perhaps they mirrored her soul.“Please guide me.Please help me.”
Thunder rumbled in reply.An answer, or a warning?
Forcing back tears, she turned and tugged on her dive booties.“Camila,” she said, glancing up.“I’m not sure this Briar guy is who he says he is.”
Camila planted one hand on her hip.“Oh yeah?Then who is he?”
“I don’t know.But I don’t think his intentions are good.”
Camila rolled her eyes.“What are you, my mother now?You’re just jealous.”
Desi would laugh if that wasn’t so ridiculous.“Just trying to warn you, that’s all.”
“Okay,” Camila muttered something sharp in Spanish.“Whatever.”
Desi fitted her fins and hoisted the tank onto her back.The deck pitched beneath her feet.Balancing, she cinched the straps, tested the regulator, and fastened her dive computer.All green.Mask secure.
“If the Ring’s there, I’ll be back in ten minutes.”
“You better be!”Chad called, cracking open a can of soda.
Another peal of thunder rolled across the dark water.Omen or echo, she couldn’t tell.
Grabbing tweezers and a collection bottle, Desi clipped them to her belt, then eased onto the railing, inserted her regulator, and plunged backward into the sea.Cool water wrapped her like silk.The complaints of her crew, slap of waves, and roar of thunder muffled into a tranquil hush as the world’s noise dissolved into a peaceful swish that soothed her tight nerves.
