Undertow Read Online Free Page B

distracted, which was unusual for him.
    Únfortunately, Garth Sead broke his leg skydiving last week. So we·re one short. She,µ
    Zane jerked his chin at Teal, ´fits the bil .µ
    Éxcel ent diver, too. You lucked out.µ Logan muttered. Śam did us a favor there, I think.
    You picking up your usual suspects along the way?µ
    ´Yeah.µ He·d already signed on a few more reliable divers. How could she sleep with her head like that? Zane wondered. She must be pretty damned exhausted to be twisted like a pretzel and stil be zonked.
    Śo she·s Dutch?µ Diego asked, intrigued³probably because the majority of wrecks found in the Caribbean were Spanish. He was referring of course, to the Vrijheid, not Teal. As he spoke, he leaned over to move the point of her col ar to keep it from sticking into her eye as she slept.
    Zane frowned. There was no need to touch her. She wasn·t even aware of them talking, let alone a piece of fabric brushing her cheek.

    ´VOC?µ Diego referred to the Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie or Dutch United East India Company that used to ply Asia and the Pacific routes.
    Únofficial y.µ Feeling oddly proprietary, Zane realized he didn·t like Diego touching his mechanic. A lot. Weird. ´The Berlands and I discovered her a month ago. There·l be gold and silver and,µ his heart tap-danced pleasantly in his chest,
    ´the manifest listed emeralds. Colombian emeralds. Muzo and Chivor emeralds.µ
    Nick whistled. Logan·s avaricious eyes glittered; Zane had told him about the emeralds two weeks ago. ´We·re talking ·round about one hundred and eighty carats ,µ Zane elaborated, his grin widening. Í do believe I·m going to take that ten -grand pot and make you buy me that new engine for Decrepit, gentlemen.µ
    ´Have to get it to the surface and home first.µ Nick pointed out, tossing his empt y beer bottle across the room, where it hit the rough paneled wal and dropped into the trash.
    Zane·s smile widened. Óh, ye of little faith. Watch me and learn, Spock, my man. Watch me and learn.µ

    * * *
Only forty minutes? The trip between Cutter Cay and Tortola seemed like a freaking lifetime to Teal, and the Decrepit had barely cleared the dock. The gut-churning nausea had started the second she·d set foot on board, despite the sea being as smooth as aquamarine glass.
    Fingers white-knuckled on the stern railing, she lifted her face to the warm breeze and tried to sip the salty air to quel the roiling of her stomach.
    As if anything short of a coma could do that. From experience she knew she·d get over the seasickness after a few days. Thank God. In the meantime she·d make sure Casanova didn·t know about it.
    A long trail of frothy white connected the Decrepit to the island like a tenuous tether. The spray cooled her hot cheeks, but Teal couldn·t look down at the swiftly moving wake. She could actual y feel her eyebal s rol ing around in her head like bal bearings.
    She watched the water between the island and the Decrepit widen. Please, God, just kill me now! Would anyone notice if she jumped overboard? Probably not until that pathetic engine crapped out. The Decrepit looked worse up close and personal than it had from a distance.
    She shuddered to think what her engine room looked like if the jerk couldn·t even be bothered to paint his boat. Stil , Sam must have at least done some servicing. How bad could the engines be? She·d look at the maintenance logs as soon as her eyebal s stayed focused.
    She bet she·d have to deal with crappy fuel, and God forbid the bearings were worn, she·d have to drop the whole damn bottom end and pul the mains and rods. The thought of the price tag for that almost made her smile.
    She looked longingly bac k at the island, which was incredibly beautiful, even from this vantage point. An emerald in an exquisite sapphire setting. A smal extinct volcano had pushed its way three hundred feet above the lush vegetation.

    Thousands of years of freshwater runoff from the peak had