“Let him catch his breath, Carolyn,” Doc Kunze said, coming up behind her.
I sucked in air. If Ma was this upset about me simply going to the Peaveys’, no way was I going to mention meeting up with Shade. “Pa wouldn’t have made it in time,” I told her. “Is Gemma here?”
“She sure is.” Doc didn’t smile, but his dark eyes glinted like he was on the verge of it. “Shurl said she couldn’t have saved the animals without you two, so she’s cooking you up a feast.”
Taking a seat on the bench, I tugged off my dive boots. I couldn’t think about food. Since coming face-to-face with Shade, my stomach had stayed coiled tight. “I’m getting dressed,” I announced.
Of course, Ma didn’t take the hint. Arms crossed, she said, “Pa is still off tinkering with the Peaveys’ generators, trying to figure out what went wrong, so exactly how did you get home?”
I hesitated. If I admitted that I swam the whole way, I’d hear about it for the next fifty years. “A mantaboard.” When she frowned, I added, “I had a prod and my dive knife.”
“When you’re gripping a board, you can’t fend off a great white.”
“Come on, Carolyn,” Doc said. “No shark’s gonna get a bite off him. Your boy is faster than a torpedo. Besides”—he clapped me on the shoulder—“you’re forgetting Ty can practically see in the dark. He just maneuvers around the sharks. Don’t you?”
I didn’t dare reply, so I got busy toweling off my diveskin.
“Dinner’s almost ready,” Ma said quietly. “Come up when you’re dressed.” She headed upstairs and I nearly fell off the bench from surprise. Yeah, I’d hoped to avoid a lecture or worse, but now that I had, I was spooked. At least she should have thrown out a we’ll-discuss-this-later.
Doc’s medical case thumped onto the bench next to me, sweeping Ma from my mind. Just the sight of that metal briefcase made me choke. I sprang to my feet, ready to outrun any rising memories. “I appreciate you coming to my defense, Doc,” I said in as normal a voice as I could muster. “But I’m fine.”
“Settle down. I’m just checking your vitals.”
I dug my nails into my palms to give myself something to concentrate on. “Doesn’t Lars need you?”
“I stitched him up and gave him something to help him sleep. His pride is wounded, but he’ll live.”
When Doc cracked open his medical case, the stench of antiseptic filled my head. The gauze and steel instruments gave off a scent as well—probably too faint for most people but it sickened me.
“You haven’t had an exam since I came to the territory four years ago,” Doc said. “Your parents ought to get you checked out every year, especially since you’re living subsea.” He scooped up a health scanner. “Relax. You won’t feel a thing.”
“No!” The word lashed out, more aggressive than I’d intended. I wasn’t about to let any doctor examine me. Not even one that was a family friend.
He studied me, dark brows lifted with surprise, then tossed the scanner back into the case. “Okay …”
I snatched clothes from my locker, letting the silence between us stretch. If Doc thought he was going to get an explanation, he was sorely mistaken.
“You know you can trust me, Ty.”
His cautious tone turned up the flame under my already simmering mood. I wasn’t some skittish kid who’d just spit out my medicine.
“If there’s anything you want to tell me,” he went on, “you know I can’t repeat it to anyone without your permission.”
“Yeah, you can.” I split open my diveskin. “I’m not eighteen.”
“But I wouldn’t.”
I peeled down my diveskin as far as my hips, then paused and shot him a pointed look.
A wry smile curled over his mouth. “Yeah, I got the hint.” He snapped the medical case closed. “See you upstairs.”
I focused on taking in air, listening as he crossed the wet room. When his boots started up the stairs, I unclenched my fists, only to hear Doc stop short.
“Ty, if you’re going to tell your ma that you came home on a mantaboard,” he advised, “make sure you’ve got one with you. Next time, she might notice that you don’t.”
Only after his footsteps faded upstairs did I sink to the bench, panic still lodged in my chest.
I found the other nonadults in Zoe’s room. Their backs were to me, but I could see that all three were dripping with artifacts from my collection. Hewitt, armed with a sword and ebony crossbow, had also strapped on a golden chest plate. Gemma, who was peering into one of Zoe’s aquariums, sported armbands and the Spanish crown that she’d admired earlier. Of course Zoe was the worst. She’d taken full advantage of my absence and had swathed herself in every piece of jewelry she could find—a tiara, necklaces, and a jeweled girdle. Under the weight of all the precious metal and gemstones, it was a wonder she could stay upright. Before I could complain, Gemma turned to Zoe and said, “Your room is amazing.”
At least hers looked obsessive, too. Tanks of sea life sat on every surface and were built into the walls. Her bed had a shark’s jaw for a headrail and pieces of fifty varieties of coral hung from the ceiling. Even her window was an aquarium. She’d set up a feeding station outside of it so that fish hovered there all the time.
“How come this tank is all black?” Gemma asked.
“Those guys like living in the dark.” A mischievous gleam came into Zoe’s eyes. “Want to see them?”
In the doorway, I smiled when Gemma nodded, knowing where this was headed.
Zoe strolled over to the wall switch next to the tank. “I’ll turn on a blue light so you can see them. But you have to lean in real close.”
When Gemma bent forward, hands on her knees, Zoe flipped the switch. As the tank lit up, a ghoulish fish face popped into view. Its teeth looked like jagged shards of glass and its eyes bulged red. Only a pane of glass separated the viperfish’s gaping jaws from Gemma’s nose. Yelping, she scrambled back, making Zoe grin. In the eerie blue light, a dozen fearsome fish hovered: vampire squid, gulper eels, snaggletooths, and loosejaws.
“I caught them down on the abyssal plain.” Zoe traced a finger lovingly across the glass. “They look mean but they’re real delicate.”
A smidge of pride welled in me. My sister had amassed an incredible collection of rare specimens. Even Ma, who had a knack with living things, didn’t know how she managed to keep them all alive. “Love” was Ma’s best guess.
Zoe plucked a mackerel out of a bucket. “Want to see the viperfish eat?”
“No!”
Despite Gemma’s answer, Zoe opened a slot above the tank. She threw in the wiggling mackerel and set off a feeding frenzy. Gemma and Hewitt howled with revulsion, which made me laugh. Zoe was too busy gazing at her precious monsters to notice the rest of us. As Gemma spun away from the tank, she caught sight of me, flashing me a smile that was so bright, heat seared through me.
“Your sister doesn’t look so much like an angel anymore,” Gemma said, coming over to me.
“And you haven’t even seen her out in the shark cage, chumming up the water.”
“I hope you don’t mind.” She touched the crown on her head self-consciously. “We were trying to make Hewitt feel better.”
I glanced at Hewitt, who did look happy, encased in gold. “It was a good idea,” I said.
“You should have seen Ma when she heard you went to the Peaveys’ knowing the outlaws were there,” Zoe chortled.
“She turned into a real black smoker,” Hewitt said sympathetically.
“If Gemma and I hadn’t gone, your family would have lost a lot of your animals.”
“That’s what Ma said.” Hewitt took off the crossbow. “But your ma thinks you’re worth more than a goat. Don’t know why.”
“You’ll be skimming algae for a month,” Zoe predicted gleefully.
“Skimming algae?” Gemma asked.
I shrugged. “Stuff grows on the house, so we have to scrape it off by hand.”
?
??It’s slimy,” Zoe said, clearly enjoying herself. “And takes forever. Your fingers cramp up.”
“That’s another thing better on the Topside.” Hewitt flopped onto Zoe’s bed. “You never have to scrape scum off your house.”
“We don’t have houses,” Gemma corrected.
“Right!” Hewitt sat up. “You all get to live together. Can you imagine it? Everywhere you look there are other people. You plunge outside —”
“Plunge?” Gemma asked.
“Dive, whatever. There’s always someone to talk to. It would be great to have that many neighbors.”
Zoe stopped feeding her pets to listen.
“My boarding home takes up two floors in a seventy-five-story building with over a thousand apartments in it,” Gemma said. “All those people aren’t exactly neighbors.”
“Of course,” Hewitt agreed. “It’s more like one big family all living together. No one ever gets lonely up there,” he said, turning to Zoe. “They don’t even know what the word means because they never need to use it.”
Gemma leaned into me. “Is he for real?”
“‘Fraid so.”
Oblivious, Hewitt went on. “You never have to do anything alone. There’s always someone to help catch dinner. Or harvest the kelp.”
Gemma looked like she’d just been poked with a shockprod.
“Hewitt doesn’t get Topside very often,” I explained in a low voice.
Hewitt heard me. “Never!” He pounded a fist on the mattress. “I never get to go Topside!”
“Because you run away the second your foot touches land,” I replied. “Last time, you busted into a stranger’s apartment and scared the air out of some woman.”
“I called out hello,” Hewitt said defensively. “I don’t know why she started hollering.”
“Maybe because she was in her underwear.” I had gotten all the details from an account a humiliated Shurl gave my mother.
Hewitt crossed his arms, disgruntled. “I just wanted to see the inside of a Topside apartment.”
In the distance, a sub powered over the kelp field, shooting out a trail of bubbles as it neared the house.
“Pa’s home,” Zoe squealed.
“The power is up and running steady,” Pa said, ripping open his diveskin as if he couldn’t wait to shed it. I stowed his helmet for him. “How is Lars?”
“He’ll be fine,” Shurl called on her way down the stairs. “When we got here, Doc was waiting for us, thanks to Ty’s quick thinking.” She squared her shoulders. “Give me the bad news, John.”
“They didn’t take much as far as I can tell. Just food and Liquigen. Your crops should recover.”
“What about the livestock?”
Pa shook his head. “Gone. But we’ve got plenty to spare. If all the families give you thirty fish, you’ll get your schools up to a good size by next year.”
“The house?”
“We only need four people to get it reinflated. We can do it tonight,” Pa assured her. “That’ll give the inside a chance to dry out. Then tomorrow, we’ll give it a thorough cleaning and it’ll be good as new, you’ll see.”
She nodded, fighting back tears. “Come on, then. Dinner’s on.”
As we headed for the stairs, I felt Pa’s hand, warm and heavy, on my shoulder. “You did a man’s job today, Ty. I’m real proud of you.”
If you knew I followed a dangerous outlaw into the open ocean alone, I thought, you might not be so proud.
Dinner felt like a holiday between the company and everyone being all decked out. As soon as Shurl had seen Hewitt and the girls in their finery, she’d insisted that everyone put on an artifact from my collection. “We’re all alive and we’re together. We even have a special guest,” she said, smiling at Gemma. “Tonight is a celebration.”
All the adults obliged. Ma selected a rope of pearls she’d “always had her eye on”; Doc chose a scabbard and sword; and Pa put on a medallion. Poor Lars slept through the whole thing. “I’ll help you clean and retag everything,” Ma whispered to me as we returned to the dining room and took our seats.
“It’s okay,” I said, though I hadn’t chosen a piece for myself. Until the Seablite Gang was caught, I didn’t feel like celebrating anything.
Outside, the giant lamps that surrounded the property were beginning to dim, simulating nightfall. Doc pulled out Gemma’s chair for her. “Are you heading back to the mainland tonight, young lady?”
“No. I’m going to stay in Benthic Territory for a while.”
“Who are you staying with?” Ma asked, setting a platter heaped with steaming lobsters onto the table.
“No one,” Gemma said cheerfully. “I’m going to rent a berth at the Trade Station.”
Everyone froze. If only I had known that was her plan, I would have nixed it right off.
“In the Hive?” Doc asked, dropping into his chair.
Pa frowned. “I thought your brother lived in Benthic Territory.”
Gemma nodded, answering both questions at once. “But I haven’t found him yet.” I was glad she didn’t try and tell Pa how tough she was.
“What about your parents?” Shurl asked.
“I don’t have any.”
Ma and Shurl exchanged a pained look.
“Is there someone else responsible for you?” Ma asked gently.
“Ms. Spinner, the boarding home director. But when Richard sent me money to come live with him, she signed my emancipation form.” Gemma pointed at the serving bowl in front of her. “Is that the fish that makes your skin shimmery?”
“No,” I said. “Monkfish isn’t bioluminescent.”
Gemma’s shoulders slumped.
“You want a shine?” Hewitt asked with disbelief.
“Who wouldn’t?”
“The Hive doesn’t rent berths to anyone under eighteen. Do they, Theo?” Ma asked Doc while passing him a bowl of crispy calamari.
“Nope,” he agreed, heaping food onto his plate. “It’s against Trade Station rules. Only prospectors and miners bunk there.”
“That’s where the prospectors hang out?” Gemma asked excitedly.
“When they’re pearl rich,” Shurl said, cracking Hewitt’s lobster for him. “They trade manganese nodules for cash. Then they spend it all on cards and booze.”
Ma put her hand over Gemma’s. “You’re welcome to stay with us until you find your brother.”
“I’d like that. Thank you.” She glanced at me, which made me feel hot and restless, so I concentrated on spooning jellied crab onto my seaweed salad.
“You can sleep in my room,” Zoe offered. Gemma seemed less thrilled by that prospect.
“Great,” Hewitt muttered. “I get to sleep in Ty’s museum.”
“I left my duffel bag with all my stuff at the Trade Station,” Gemma said. “In a rented locker.”
“Ty will take you to get it in the morning,” Ma assured her.
“How did the outlaws do it, John?” Doc asked, pouring himself a goblet of sea grape wine. “Turn off the Peaveys’ power. I thought that couldn’t happen.”
“So did I,” Pa said ruefully. “Near as I can tell, an electromagnetic pulse shut it all down. But I don’t know how they generated it.”
“If Ranger Grimes puts together a posse,” I said, “I want to be part of it.”
“Not even if he pins a gold star to your chest,” Ma said firmly.
“That wet-hating ranger isn’t going to take a posse into the deep,” Doc scoffed, with a wave of his knife. “The man can’t even swim. He’s the one who should be reassigned to the mainland, not me.”
A lobster claw clattered onto Shurl’s plate. “You’re leaving?”
“At the end of the week,” Doc said resentfully. “I don’t have a choice.”
“If the settlers … I mean when the settlers arrest the Seablite Gang, you can come back, right?” I asked.
“Arrest the … What?” Shurl looked from one person to the next.
“We’ve been ass
igned an impossible job.” Pa set down his goblet. “It makes no sense. The government has been pressuring us for years to expand our farms, grow more crops, breed more fish. And now the ‘wealth is pulling its support over a gang of outlaws? There are plenty of desperados sailing the ocean. What’s so special about the Seablite Gang?”
Doc shrugged. “How long can the settlement last without imported supplies?”
“A week, maybe two,” Pa said grimly.
“No,” Shurl gasped. “We have plenty of food and —”
“After today’s meeting, every last drop of Liquigen was siphoned out of the Trade Station,” Pa explained. “The settlers panicked because without it, we can’t stay outside long enough to get any real work done.”
“We can buy Liquigen on the mainland,” I said.
“And pay full price?” Shurl asked forlornly. “Every dime we make goes toward taxes. If we can’t buy wholesale, we can’t buy.”
“Then there’s equipment,” Pa went on. “If a diveskin or air purifier fails, we can’t even afford to repair it, forget replacing it.”
“Supplies and equipment are the least of it.” Ma tossed her napkin onto the table. “Once word gets out that the Seablite Gang sank a homestead today, a lot of settlers will think long and hard about moving back to the Topside.” Picking up her plate, she left the dining room.
Not us. She couldn’t possibly mean our family. I looked to Pa, but when he offered no reassurance, I felt my future sink into the abyss, where it was bleak and unfathomable.
CHAPTER
ELEVEN
Holding tight to an anchor chain, I struggled to attach it to a spike embedded deep in the seafloor. The Peaveys’ house had inflated quickly once Pa turned on the pressurized air pumps. Nearby, Gemma gamely held on to her chain even though she was floating on her tiptoes. I hid my smile as I watched her collapse into the muck to keep from getting pulled off her feet. I touched her arm to show her that I’d secured the end of her chain. Releasing it, she cheered silently as her section of the house rose into place. Good as new.