“Neither can I.” Sam makes no move to release his hand and he’s glad for the comfort. “But I should have guessed. It’s a very Luca kind of thing to do.”
“Do you think he’ll stay around?” asks Siena, reminding Hawk they’re not alone, no matter how much it always feels like they’re the only people in the world when he’s with Sam.
“Of course, he’ll stay,” Sam shoots back, but Hawk can’t help wondering if her confidence is misplaced. There’s no rule keeping Luca here. That same sense of rebellion that brought him here could just as easily see him disappearing again.
“Let’s get digging!” Nikita throws a shovel from the boat onto the sand followed by a bucket.
“We need to go where there’s likely to be an aquifer close to the surface.” Sam drops Hawk’s hand and snaps into business mode as she picks up the bucket. “It means we won’t have to dig so deep.”
Hawk scratches his chin. “What’s an aquifer?”
“The layer of freshwater under the surface,” says Sam. “Also known as a lens. If we’re lucky it might only be around ten feet down.”
“Ten feet!” cries Gust. “We’ll die of thirst by the time you hit water.”
“If you can get the shelter built before you die that would be great.” Hawk picks up the shovel. “Come, on, Sam. Show me where to dig.”
“I’ll help Gust.” Siena gives Hawk a look, which isn’t too hard to interpret. The moment Gust is left alone with the supplies, he’ll start helping himself. They can’t let that happen.
“Why don’t you stay as well, Nikita,” Hawk suggests.
Nikita nods. “We’ll unload the boats and find a good spot to set up camp.”
Hawk’s pleased with the way this has worked out. Now he gets some time alone with Sam away from the air pollution that comes out of Gust’s mouth.
They walk up the beach and into the trees. Sam scans the ground, her eyes sweeping the forest floor.
“What are we looking for?” he asks.
“A bit of a clearing would be ideal.” She turns left and moves around some overgrown bushes. “If we can find a section of grass that looks especially lush then that will be our best bet. We don’t want to go too far. Best to stay roughly close to where the others will be setting up camp.”
They make their way through the trees, pausing at a few potential sites until Sam settles on a spot she declares to be perfect.
The grass doesn’t look all that lush to Hawk, but it will have to do. Sam needs water. They all need water. This is the single best thing they can be doing with their time right now. There’s no way the Outlanders are going to spare them anything going by the welcome they gave them last time. And the worst thing Hawk can imagine would be having to row back to Askala and admit defeat. They’re supposed to be the best of the best. What hope does Askala have if even they can’t make a go of it here?
Sam sets down the bucket she’s been carrying and points at exactly where she wants Hawk to dig. “Hopefully it’s not too far down.”
He drives the tip of the shovel into the soil, pleased to find it’s soft. Tossing the dirt away, he goes back for more, aware he’s really going to be in need of a drink when he’s done here, or he’ll be the one who dehydrates this time.
“How wide do we make it?” he asks.
“Wide enough for you to fit inside as you keep digging,” she says.
“We’ll need a rope then,” he says. “So, you can haul up the dirt when I get to the bottom.”
“I’m on it!” Sam dashes away in the direction of the beach and Hawk keeps digging. It’s hot, thirsty work, and before long he strips off his shirt, trying anything he can to reduce the feeling of suffocation. It’s bad enough with the pendant tied around his neck.
Feeling a little better, he scoops out more dry soil. According to Sam he should start seeing some moisture in the soil when he gets about six feet down. If they’re lucky. He can’t be any more than two or three feet down right now at most.
“Hello.”
Hawk gets such a shock at the sound of a woman’s voice, he almost stabs himself in the foot with his shovel. Spinning around, he sees Grace watching him.
“I didn’t mean to startle you,” she says, venturing a little closer.
The sunlight breaks through the canopy and caresses on her face. Her long braid is draped over her shoulder and she smiles at Hawk with dark eyes. He has to blink at how dazzling she looks. She has a different beauty to Sam’s. It’s more obvious. More…dangerous somehow. It makes sense that the Commander claimed her as his own.
“What are you doing here?” she asks, stepping closer.
“Digging a—”
“I mean what are you doing here?” She sweeps her arms out wide.
“Oh.” He leans on his shovel, crossing an arm over his chest, wishing he hadn’t taken off his shirt. He feels so exposed. “A small group of us came back.”
“Corbin won’t like this.” Grace shakes her head.
“We come in peace.” Hawk lets his shovel fall to hold up his palms, noticing that Grace’s eyes dip to his chest and hover for a few moments before being drawn back up to his face.
“How’s my daughter?” she asks. “Did Charity come with you?”
He shakes his head. “She’s safe. She’s being well looked after.”
“Are you sure?” She narrows her eyes at him.
“I’m sure! She’s living with Mercy’s parents. She’s totally fine.”
“Then why are you here?” Grace asks.
“We come in peace,” he says again. “We want to make peace. With you. With Corbin. With everyone.”
Grace nods as she mulls over this. “For what purpose?”
He frowns, wondering how much he should tell her. Where’s Mercy when he needs her? She’d know exactly what to say.
“Did Luca and Mercy find you?” he asks, remembering that they should be here with Grace. “They were looking for you.”
She shakes her head.
“We need to find them.” Hawk picks up his shirt and slips it over his head, the act of dressing himself in front of this woman strangely feeling almost as intimate as if he were undressing. Her eyes never leave him. Surely, she’s not checking him out?
“What were you digging?” she asks, pointing at his shovel.
“A well. We need water. We didn’t think you—”
She tips back her head and laughs. “You can’t dig a well here! We’re surrounded by saltwater.”
Hawk shakes his head. “The rainwater collects in a kind of lens thing that sits on top of the water that’s…” He pauses, wishing Sam were here to explain. “If we can dig down deep enough, we should be able to access it.”
Grace looks at him in astonishment, coming to stand beside him to inspect his work.
“Keep digging,” she says. “We have to know if this is true.”
“Of course, it’s true.” Sam steps out from behind a tree, a long rope snaked around her shoulders. “The aquifer should be just down here. With some luck, the soil will have acted as a filter for the rain, and it should be safe to drink. Especially if there’s limestone in it.”