Into the Still Blue (Under the Never Sky, #3)(65)

ARIA


Perry, I can’t see where I’m going.”

Aria jogged to keep up with him as he pulled her through the cave. He was barefoot, buckling his belt with one hand and holding on to her with the other, but she was still lagging behind. She didn’t have his eyes, and at this late hour the cave was nothing but blackness ahead of her, below her, everywhere. Every step she took, she felt as though her foot might never touch the ground.

He tightened his grip on her hand. “It’s even footing and I won’t let you fall,” he said, but she noticed he slowed down.

It was a relief when they left the dark hollowness of the cave. A relief to hear the waves and to have the Aether lighting the way. The reddish glow at the edges of the funnels seemed more vibrant now than just hours ago.

“Are we swimming?” she said as he took her down to the water’s edge. “Because the last time I did that wasn’t very enjoyable.”

She’d been in the ice-cold waters of the Snake River with Roar, fighting desperately to stay alive.

Perry gave her a crooked smile. “Same,” he said, and she remembered how he’d almost drowned trying to save Willow and her grandfather. He put his arm around her shoulders, guiding her closer to the waves. “But it’s the only way, and it’s not far.”

“Only way to what? Not far to where?”

He stopped and pointed down the beach. “There’s a cove on the other side of that point.”

She didn’t see a cove. What she saw were waves pounding against rocks that jutted out of the ocean. “Aren’t we standing in a cove right now?”

“Yes, but the one around that point is magic.”

She laughed, surprised by his choice of words.

He glanced down at her, his eyes narrowing. “Are you telling me you don’t believe in magic?”

“Oh, I do. But the way to the magic cove looks cold. And dangerous . . . and cold.”

Perry’s hand slid to her injured arm. “You can do it,” he said, homing in on the real source of her apprehension.

Aria stared at the point. It was shrouded in darkness, and the tide looked rough, and she had no idea if she had the strength to swim all the way there.

“I’ll be right beside you if you need me, but you won’t. And I can’t do anything about the cold until we get there, but it’ll be worth it. There are no problems in the magic cove. Everything over there is . . .” He paused, smiling almost to himself. “It’s perfect.”

Aria shook her head. How could she say no to that?


They waded out past the waves together. She started shivering when the water reached her shins. Her teeth chattered when it reached her thighs. By the time it rose up over her waist, she decided this was the best idea he’d ever had.

Every wave that crashed past them was exhilarating, sending bolts of adrenaline through her. Her mind cleared and her senses opened to the salt water she tasted. To the sound of Perry’s laugh mixing with hers, and his grip tightening when the water pushed them back. She hadn’t even seen it yet, but the magic cove was already perfect.

“We have to go under the next wave,” Perry said, letting go of her hand. “Dive and then swim out as far as you can before you come up. Ready?”

She didn’t have a chance to answer. The wave came, towering and dark and capped in white. She dove and kicked, pushing until her lungs burned for oxygen.

When she came up, Perry was smiling. “All good?” he said.

She nodded, her teeth already chattering. “Race you,” she said.

They swam past the breakers toward smoother water. Cutting through the waves pushed her beyond thought, turning her into pure action. It took strength and yet it demanded surrender as well. It was both, folded into one. Aria only caught glimpses of Perry when she came up for air, but she knew he was right there.

When they finally waded out onto the beach, she was in desperate need of warmth, but she felt better than she had in weeks. The cold had numbed her arm, allowing her to move freely without guarding herself against pain.

Perry pulled her to his side. “What did you think?” he asked, smiling.

“I think you should look more tired.” He’d moved through the water with the same power and effortlessness with which he did everything.

“Not with you to look forward to. Let’s get a fire going.”

Shivering, Aria hurried to gather driftwood. Nearby, Perry hoisted a large piece over his shoulder. He seemed unbothered by the bruises that still covered his arms and legs. Shaking a strand of seaweed from a branch, she remembered a story Roar had told her.

“Did you really sneak into the compound once wearing only seaweed?” she asked.

“Had to.” He dropped the wood onto a growing pile. “Liv swiped my clothes. It was either seaweed or nothing, and I wasn’t keen on the idea of strutting into the compound completely bare.” He smiled. “For days afterward I woke up to seaweed hanging on my front door.”

Aria laughed. “The Tides wanted an encore?”

Perry knelt and began stacking the wood. “Never found out. . . . It was probably Liv again. She was like that. She could never let something go.”

Aria couldn’t see his face, but she knew from the tone in his voice that he wasn’t smiling anymore. While it hurt to see him suffer, it felt better than seeing him retreat behind walls. Liv was gone, but he was letting her back into his life in a new way.