“Which wreck site are we going to?” she asked as they cruised along.
“Well, we aren’t quite sure,” Lance said, “but we think we might have made a new discovery.”#p#分页标题#e#
Savannah’s heart instantly began to pound.
“What ship do you think it is?” she asked, now in more of a hurry to get to the site.
“We’ve only been out here twice, and it’s not listed on the registry of known wrecks,” Austin told her.
“So which ship do you think it might be?” She really wasn’t into the suspense.
“It could be the schooner Anna C. Anderson,” Lance finally said.
“Really?” she gasped.
“Could be,” Austin told her, stressing two of his cousin’s words.
“Oh my, that ship departed from Oysterville on Shoalwater Bay with cargo and fresh oysters on its way to San Francisco in 1869. It disappeared with seven people on board.”
“How in the world do you know that off the top of your head?” Lance asked her.
“I’ve studied all the wrecks and lost ships of the West Coast. I’ve studied other regions too, but this area is the most accessible for me. If it’s truly the schooner, you’ll be named as the ones to find it,” she said with delight. “And knowing I was here early on in that discovery would be just amazing.”
“If you can identify it, then you’ll get all the credit,” Lance replied.
Tears instantly popped into Savvy’s eyes and she had to turn away from the two men. “I’m not the one who found it,” she reminded them.
Lance tried to reassure her. “It doesn’t mean nearly as much to either of us.”
After about an hour spent zooming along, the men chatting nonstop, Austin and Lance secured the boat, and soon Savvy was in the diving gear that they’d provided. She couldn’t help but feel elated as the three of them jumped into the water.
The sea was full of mysteries, some of them fascinating, some terrifying, and some downright awe-inspiring. But as they sank farther and farther below the surface of the ocean, she began to see pieces of what might be a boat.
Time and the harshness of the sea had torn it apart, but close investigation allowed her to determine that it was definitely a shipwreck. To identify which one it was, however, would take more than an afternoon. Hell, even after months of study, she still might never identify it.
But Savvy wasn’t going to let that thought keep her from trying. She would come out as often as time and her limited funds would allow. She managed to turn up a few treasures among the wreckage, but nothing of monetary value. That didn’t matter at all. She wasn’t seeking riches — she was seeking treasure.
When Austin indicated it was time to go up, she looked at her oxygen and realized how low it was. She usually kept a better eye on that, but she was so happy to float along the bottom of the sea, particularly now, when everything else in her life wasn’t going swimmingly. True, the diving site wasn’t too far off one of the small islands scattered along the West Coast, but it still felt as if she were in the middle of thousands of miles of ocean.
When her head popped above the water, she removed her mouthpiece and sent a grin in Austin’s direction. There was so much she wanted to discuss. But just at that moment she noticed another boat anchored right by the one they’d brought out.
And her smile vanished.
She knew that boat, knew exactly who it belonged to.
Swimming back over to Austin’s boat, she pulled herself up the ladder — and came face to face with Ashton. He was wearing diving gear, and it was wet, but she hadn’t seen him down in the deep water. She’d been in her own world, and maybe she had seen him but just thought it was Lance or Austin. But it didn’t matter. She wasn’t letting the sight of him ruin her wonderful day.#p#分页标题#e#
“Did you have a good time, Savvy?” he asked.
What the hell? He was acting as if there weren’t a whole lot of misery between the two of them. Or misery on her part — he’d probably felt none.
“What are you doing here, Ashton? I wasn’t under the impression that you were invited.” She was surprised by how cool she was able to sound just then.
But he seemed unaffected. “My father told me that my brother and cousin were out diving in our spot. I thought I’d join them.”
“Your spot?” she asked.
“Yes, we found it together,” he told her.
“Oh.”
She was completely deflated. Now, even if she did prove it was the Anna C Anderson, it wasn’t just Austin and Lance’s right to give her the credit. And she didn’t want to go diving in a place where Ashton could show up any time he wanted.