Page 46 of Terminal Voyage

I nodded.

"Thank God. That could have been disastrous. But you handled yourself well."

"I don’t know how well I handled it, but I'm glad you were there," I said. It sounded strange to say, given I had accused him of murder.

"What happened?" Zach asked as he swam to us.

I shrugged. "I don't know. It free-flowed. The second stage must have failed.”

He looked confused, then examined the regulator.

We swam back to the boat, and I climbed onto the swim platform. Julio helped me aboard and assisted me with the tank. I examined the regulator again, but there was nothing obvious wrong with it. Probably faulty internal components. A valve or something above my pay grade. I climbed on the main deck and took a moment to regroup. The other divers boarded one by one, then all huddled around me. I told them the story.

“I'm so glad you're okay," Sophia said. “It’s a miracle.”

Declan didn't say anything, and I got the feeling he wouldn't have been upset if I drowned. I began to wonder if that failure wasn’t an accident. But I would never be able to prove it.

Zach continued to study the regulator. Confusion twisted his face. "I don't understand. I checked all of these. They were working fine." He shrugged. "Sometimes it happens. I'm really sorry about that. Listen, there's no charge for the dive today. I know that doesn't make up for this. But I can assure you, I'm going to have all of these checked and do a thorough overhaul." He shook his head. "I feel terrible about this.”

"It happens," Declan said.

I glared at him. Declan didn’t like me, and I was pretty sure I didn't like him either.

Julio weighed anchor, and Zach took the helm, navigating us back toward the Vesper. That was the end of the adventure. Nobody trusted the equipment after that.

The engines howled, and the wind swirled around the deck as we plowed across the sapphire swells.

"I'm freaked out for you," Vanessa said. “That must have been so frightening. I can’t imagine. I mean, my God, I would have felt horrible if you died. I'm the one who invited you on this trip. It would be my fault. I don't know if I could live with something like that."

As usual, Vanessa made it all about her.

I let her ramble on. It didn't matter. I was alive, and that was all I cared about at the moment.

"We're off to a rocky start, aren’t we?"

"Little bit," I said dryly.

"I promise this is going to get better."

I gave her a doubtful look.

"There are plenty of things to do around here that don't risk death. Plus, there are some cute shops, and we can spend Declan's money on touristy stuff. He doesn't mind, do you, honey?"

"It's cheaper than what she spends at Versace every month."

Vanessa smiled at him. "You like spending money on me. It makes you feel good."

Declan finally smiled. "I must feel great, then."

She gave him a kiss.

He still didn't say much to me.

We returned to the Vesper, and Zach apologized to me once again. "If you ever come back to Puerto Maya, your next dive is on the house.”

"No offense, Zach,” I said. "But I'm never coming back to Puerto Maya, and I’m never diving the Devil’s Abyss again."

"Understandable. But when you fall off the horse, you gotta get right back on. Otherwise, that fear festers. Trust me. You gotta do the things you're afraid of.”