“Morning.” Simon came out, looking crisp and ready for business in a new shirt and a pair of black slacks. “Bathroom’s free.”
She heard him talking on the phone while she freshened up, although she couldn’t make out any words. They packed up, met Chris in the lobby, and Simon headed toward the hotel’s garage.
“Aren’t we catching a shuttle to the airport?” Shanna asked. There were flights to Nelson, a city in the north of the South Island, which would put them only about an hour’s drive from the park.
“I rented us a car.” Simon looked over his shoulder. “We’re going by ferry to avoid planes.”
“Nice,” Chris said.
Shanna remained speechless, but a sunny warmth spread through her chest. Did he do it for her so she wouldn’t be afraid again?
“It’ll also be useful down there,” Simon continued. “If we’re not successful at the first spot, we can drive to the rest instead of mixing flying and driving all the time.”
Obviously.He did it for practical reasons. He probably made calculations of fuel costs versus time consumption and final profit, or something. Surely he had an entire Excel spreadsheet saved on his phone.
But regardless of why he did it, an hour later, as they boarded the ferry, Shanna was more than grateful for it. She had no idea why, but being on a boat felt safer than being on a plane, even though her curse could strike just the same. It had been pretty funny, though, seeing the car Simon had rented—the oldest model the rental had available, a Toyota that looked like it came straight from the nineties. No modern systems to break.
On the ferry, they followed the slew of passengers to the main space inside the ship: a big open room with multiple seating areas, a bar, and a restaurant.
“I’d like to go up on deck,” Shanna said. “The staircase is there. I think it shouldn’t be more than a hundred feet away.”
Simon nodded. “I’ll go get some coffee. Don’t yank me too hard.” He gave her a lopsided smile that made her insides feel as if they’d already been boosted by several cups of coffee.
One of these days, she’d have to get over her fantasies of them ever being a thing again.
“Do you want to come with me, Chris?” she asked.
“Nah. I’ll go find someone to reenactTitanic’s bow scene with.” Chris turned to Simon. “Can I have your phone?”
Wordlessly, Simon handed it over.
Considering it had to do with Chris, Shanna probably shouldn’t inquire what that was all about.
So, she made her way to the upper deck overlooking the stern of the ship. A few brave souls were out here, too, deciding that the lovely views on a sunny day overcame the cool breeze coming in from the ocean. She sat down on a bench next to the fence, closed her eyes, and let out a deep breath.
Two weeks ago, she thought she had her life figured out … at least by her standards. She knew what to do to bring Simon back, and once hewasback, they could pick up where they had left off. The tragedy that had happened in the meantime—his death and all of Shanna’s tampering to bring him back—seemed toplay perfectly into that story. Every love story needed a hurdle. And for once, Shanna had believed she was finally getting a love story.
With a thrum of the great engines engaged, the ship unglued itself from the harbor, trudging toward the small peninsula that protected the city from the open ocean. Shanna leaned her chin on the fence, letting the wind blow into her face. Even though they only spent a day in the city, it was strange saying goodbye to it. She’d expected she’d leave with a resolution, not more questions. She’d expected she’d be going home, not into the great unknown.
“Hey.” Simon’s voice made her look up. He approached, hands in the pockets of his jacket, the wind trying its best to ruffle his short hair.
“I’m sorry, did I yank you?”
“No, no.” He sat on the bench next to her. “I wanted to see the view.”
“It is pretty.” As the ship left the city behind, the white dots of the houses spread across the hills looked like sheep grazing upon those slopes.
They stayed together in companionable silence as the ferry rounded the peninsula and the land gave way to the open ocean, beautifully azure against the paler blue sky. And then, far in the distance, high mountains of blueish gray peeked out from behind the nearer coast. Shanna lifted her head, supporting herself with her hands on the railing.
Her first glimpse of the South Island.
“There it is,” Simon said, his gaze following hers.
“It’s strange being here, perhaps in the same place she once was,” Shanna said. “Maybe riding on the same ferry. Seeing the same mountains. Knowing she went out there. An entire island to get lost in.”
“Do you really remember nothing of her?”
Shanna shook her head. She didn’t even remember where they lived when she was little; Gran and she had moved after Mom left, and the memories of the specific place faded, not because of any curse, but only because of time passed.
