The Sea Within Read online

  “How’s it going?” Elle stood behind Jackson, sipped her coffee, and tried to make sense of what was on the screen, but she couldn’t. GPS coordinates maybe? But also, lots of other readouts that she couldn’t decipher.

  “Things are good here.” Jackson reached for the coffee and partially swiveled in the chair. “I’ve altered our re-entry trajectory so that we splashdown in the Pacific, not too far from base.” She paused while she took a drink. “Then the ship does the hard part for us by purging the water tanks and taking on air.”

  “And then our tiny passengers swim free and multiply.”

  “That’s the plan.” Jackson returned to her original position. “Now, I just need to get a message to Nikki.” She started typing. “I’ll place it in the outgoing message center so that as soon as we’re in satellite range she’ll get it.”

  “What are you going to say?” Elle wondered what Jackson might say that wouldn’t trigger red flags when intercepted.

  “Take a look.” Jackson pointed at the typed email on the screen.

  Nik, we’re back a little later than planned. Remember that great trek to Jakarta we did? Jusuf was a terrific host. Let’s have a do-over to celebrate mission completion. Maybe we could meet up after re-entry with a cooler of beer. But no pressure if you’ve made other plans. See you soon, buddy.—JD

  “That seems like a totally normal message.” Elle wasn’t following. “I don’t see how this is going to help us out.”

  “Well, the first red flag to her will be that I called her ‘Nik,’ which I never do because she doesn’t like it and I’ve admitted that we’re late. I’m never late, unless there’s a problem. Then there’s this part about Jakarta and Jusuf.” Jackson sipped her coffee as she studied the screen. “The city government of Jakarta is completely corrupt, in one of the most corrupt countries on the planet. The leadership there basically sold the soul of their country to make money off palm oil. They ruined vast swaths of native habitats in order to plant more palms and cash out.”

  “Oh, I see.” Elle was beginning to understand.

  “And Jusuf was our contact there for a black op four years ago. He was a double agent. He completely sold us out. We almost didn’t make it back.”

  “And the part about the cooler with beer?”

  “I never drink beer.”

  “How will she know that we need her when the ship splashes down?”

  “Because I told her there was no pressure.” Jackson grinned. “She’ll know the opposite is true. When you run ops with someone long enough, you develop codes so that you can communicate openly about secret things.”

  “I hope she’s there when we come out of the gravity tubes.”

  “She will be, you can count on Nikki.” Jackson hit send and the message cycled in the outgoing folder on the screen. “She’ll be there.”

  “We’ll just sit tight, all tucked in until the extraction team fishes us out.”

  “And by then it’ll be too late for Liam. The samples will be free-range at that point.”

  “Exactly.” Jackson slouched back in her chair and angled her head as if she were examining some curious thing. “Departure time isn’t until zero-eight-hundred tomorrow.”

  Plenty of time to fret and worry about whether their plan would actually work and what to do to stave off disaster if it didn’t.

  “There’s one more thing we need to take care of.” Jackson rotated in the chair. “Do you feel up to taking a drive?”

  Chapter Twenty-eight

  Jackson gripped the wheel of the ATV as it crawled through thick understory. They backtracked toward the coast. Taking care of the fallen members of their team and breaking camp had stretched the limits of Elle’s physical strength, and Jackson’s, for that matter. But she knew, in order to leave a clean site, they had to go back.

  Semi-automatic pistols used a single firing chamber that remained fixed in a constant linear position. After the trigger was pulled and the round fired, the recoil of the handgun automatically ejected the shell casing. In her head, she’d done the math about how many shots had been fired. The only casings she’d retrieved were the one from the beach and the shot she fired at Nunez on the trail. By her count, they needed to retrieve at least twelve casings from base camp and the surrounding area. She knew her count probably wasn’t perfect. There was no way to be sure how many shots Harris and Wallace exchanged while she was engaged with Nunez. If she got lucky, the casings would be localized to one or two areas from where the shots were fired.

  Base camp was cloaked in coastal fog when they arrived. The scene evoked the perfect visual for spooky woodland creatures, setting upon unprepared travelers. She hoisted one of the metal detectors from the back of the ATV and handed it to Elle.

  “Do you remember approximately where we found Harris and Wallace?” Jackson reached for the second device.

  “Yes, I think so.”

  Jackson switched on the detector for Elle.

  “Just do slow sweeps until you get a positive signal.”

  “Where will you be?”

  “There were a couple of shots at the trail head I need to look for.” She had a momentary flashback of Nunez firing across her shoulder as she exited the tree line. Jackson fished a silver whistle on a long nylon string from her pocket and held it out to Elle. “And if you see any of your wolf pals, blow this. It’ll scare them for sure, and I’ll come running.”

  “Thank you.” Elle hung the whistle around her neck with one hand.

  Jackson headed down the rough path toward the beach. When she reached the tree line, she tried her best to retrace the path she’d taken. She found the tree splintered by Nunez’s first shot and then walked toward the point of origin. The shell ended up being pretty easy to locate beneath a bit of leaf debris. There was one other shot fired a few yards away, the casing should be somewhere in the tall dry grass. She swept the plate sized sensor slowly in an arc as she walked. The device pinged and she knelt to search for the small metal casing.

  She stowed both of them in her pocket and stood, facing the light breeze that brought fog in from the Pacific. It was as if she were standing in the midst of a cloud. The air was moist and heavy and smelled of seawater.

  Jackson took a cleansing breath. This was the moment of calm before the storm. Re-entry would mean a military inquiry into what went down and what went wrong. She wondered how all of that would play out. She hadn’t voiced any of those concerns to Elle yet. She wasn’t sure Elle was even aware of what they’d be returning to. Dealing with Liam was only one part of what they’d face after splashdown.

  The dark shape of a bird materialized in the fog and banked overhead.

  Lucky bastard.

  The past was a beautiful place.

  * * *

  Elle’s search was successful. Her fingers were dirty from digging around to find the empty casings. This was a morbid task, but she was grateful that Jackson had remembered it. Her attention to detail was impressive. Elle hadn’t even thought of it. A dozen casings clinked in the deep pocket of her cargo pants. She paused and looked skyward.

  She just couldn’t get enough of the trees in this place, in this time.

  Northern California was a land of endless rivers and mountains where the tallest trees in the world reigned over a forest of unparalleled diversity. A bioregion of rare plants, trees, and animals extended from where she stood, up over the Trinity Alps and into Oregon.

  Elle longed to stay here—to explore and experience the wildness that once was everywhere and now was nearly nowhere.

  She heard the rhythmic bellow of a frog and was reminded of something her grandmother had said. “When all the frogs were gone, we should have known.” Elle had been only a child and hadn’t understood, but now she did. She realized she never heard bullfrogs or treefrogs in the wild any longer and the world was worse off for the loss.

  Footsteps caused her to turn. Jackson took long strides in her direction.

  “Hey, listen.” She caught Ja
ckson’s hand. “Listen for there.”

  “Wow, a frog.”

  “Isn’t it amazing?”

  They stood quietly, like wide-eyed children. They held hands and listened to the chorus of sounds around them—birds, frogs, and more birds. So many birds amid the vast, swaying canopy. Like a green sea of trees.

  “We should probably get going.” Jackson squeezed her hand lightly. “It’ll be sundown in a couple of hours.”

  The fog made the hour seem later than it was. Elle definitely wanted to be back aboard ship before dark. That one close, personal encounter with the dire wolf had been enough to remind her of her lowly position on the food chain.

  Elle savored the return trip.

  She tilted her head back against the seat and strained to see the tops of the trees as Jackson wound around them. Elle was certain that on dark, noisy nights in San Francisco, she’d remember this drive and long for the solace of wild spaces.

  Chapter Twenty-nine

  Dinner was yet another freeze-dried culinary disaster. Elle was amazed that someone had gone to the trouble to give each meal a name, when in fact they all tasted exactly the same. A more accurate naming convention might have been brown mush with noodles and sauce. She could discern no taste difference between packets labeled marinara and packets labeled teriyaki. In fact, brown mush covered most of what they’d eaten except for breakfast which did bear some slight resemblance to oatmeal only in that it was a light brown.

  Elle decided to shower after dinner. Jackson had taken one just before her. Elle pressed clumps of wet hair between a towel as she crossed barefoot to the galley. She’d thrown on a T-shirt and underwear and nothing else. Cohabiting in close quarters had created a level of comfort between them, a small bit of familiarity. But that still hadn’t completely dislodged the hummingbirds in her stomach that sometimes swarmed when Jackson touched her.

  Jackson was staring off into space. She held a small flask between her hands.

  “You’ve been holding out on me.”

  “What?” Jackson blinked.

  “Don’t you know when to offer a girl a drink?”

  “Oh, sorry.” Jackson smiled and held the flask out to her.

  Elle sat across from Jackson and took a few sips. The liquor was warm as it slid down. She handed the flask back.

  “What were you thinking about just now?” Not that she necessarily thought Jackson would tell her, but she couldn’t help asking. She suspected there was a lot that Jackson didn’t share, although, she’d been slowly getting glimpses of what lay beneath the surface.

  “I was trying to anticipate our return.” Jackson sounded serious.

  “What do you mean?” Elle suspected she meant more than just the return trip.

  “When things go sideways like this, there’s always a military inquiry into what went wrong.” Jackson sipped from the flask. “I’m just trying to imagine how that will go.”

  “Won’t we just tell the truth?”

  “Yes, but then what?” Jackson offered her the flask and she took it.

  “Are you worried that Liam will somehow be able to cover his involvement? Or that he’ll counter our story in some way?”

  “I don’t know.”

  “You acted in self-defense. You saved my life.” For the first time, Elle realized that this whole situation might have a very different outcome for Jackson. That thought scared her.

  “Let’s hope that’s how the inquiry counsel sees it.” Jackson smiled thinly.

  They were silent for a moment.

  “Have you thought about how you’ll handle things when you see Liam?” asked Jackson.

  Punching him in the face had a nice ring to it but wasn’t really her style.

  “I suppose I’ll have to wait and see how much he reveals to me first.” She wondered if he’d come clean or pretend he’d had no involvement in what had gone down. “It’s hard to anticipate every possible scenario.”

  “Yeah.” Jackson nodded.

  It was late by the time they finished the small flask of whiskey and retired for the night. The last night of the expedition. The last night in the wilderness. The last night in deep time.

  Elle slipped into the joined sleeping bags and snuggled next to Jackson as if this was how they slept all the time. A darkness had shadowed Jackson’s eyes all night and she wanted more than anything to lift it. If they were going to return to the unknown, to likely separation during some official inquiry, then tonight they should relish the bed they shared.

  She propped on one elbow and caressed Jackson’s face, then she kissed her. Elle focused on distracting Jackson from dark places. She slid her leg on top of Jackson’s. Jackson gripped her thigh, tugging Elle tightly against her body.

  Elle stopped kissing Jackson. She raised up and swept her T-shirt off over her still-damp hair. She lowered herself, strategically placing her breasts within reach. Jackson had her hand inside Elle’s underwear, her fingers pressed into Elle’s ass, as Jackson explored her breasts with her mouth.

  Jackson rotated their position. Before she settled on top of Elle, she removed her shirt too. The skin on skin contact was making Elle hot for more. Beneath Jackson, she wriggled out of her underwear, pushing them all the way off with her toes. Jackson did the same with her briefs.

  Jackson was between her legs now, her rock-hard abs pressed against Elle’s center. She rocked against Jackson as they kissed feverishly, as if starved for each other. Then, suddenly, Jackson pulled back. She braced above Elle, her biceps flexed, taut, as if she were about to launch herself and flee. Her expression made Elle’s heart hurt. She slid her fingers tenderly up Jackson’s arms until she reached her shoulders and then the back of her head. She tugged Jackson downward.

  “It’s okay, baby.” She held Jackson’s face in her hands. “It’s okay to feel this way.”

  “Elle, I…” Jackson didn’t finish. She regarded Elle with a soulful expression.

  Elle kissed her softly on the cheek and then feathered light kisses all over her face before Jackson relaxed, sinking into her again. Jackson kissed her deeply as she caressed Elle’s body. Jackson stroked her teasingly and then slipped inside. She arched against Jackson’s hand.

  Jackson thrust slowly as if she were savoring even the slightest contact between them. Her mouth was at Elle’s neck, hot against her skin. Elle applied pressure with her hands against Jackson’s ass as she rode Jackson’s hand. Jackson was driving her crazy.

  “Faster, you can go faster,” she whispered against Jackson’s cheek.

  Jackson obliged. She was getting so close when Jackson slowed her movements again.

  Jackson wanted to savor this time with Elle. She didn’t want to rush their last night together. She searched Elle’s face, Elle’s gaze was intense. She hovered above her, knowing Elle wanted more. But so did she. She took Elle’s hand and pressed it between her legs.

  “Are you sure?” Elle asked, her eyes searched Jackson’s face for confirmation.

  “I’m sure.” Jackson groaned when she felt Elle slip inside. She kissed Elle, savoring their connection. “I want to come with you.”

  She’d readjusted so that Elle’s thigh was between hers and she began to once again thrust slowly and then faster. She rode Elle’s hand and thigh as she focused on making Elle come. It was a complicated dance. She’d sense Elle crest and then lose focus on her own orgasm. She decided to focus on Elle. She used her thumb to tease Elle’s clit as she thrust inside her.

  “Yes, yes…Jackson…don’t stop.” Elle gripped Jackson’s arm with her free hand.

  She was rocking beneath Jackson, pushing her higher. Jackson climbed with Elle. She was lost now, they arched against each other, clinging to each other tightly. Jackson’s orgasm coursed through her. She tensed and gasped for air as she tumbled with it. Beneath her, Elle’s body was rigid and then limp. She collapsed on top of Elle, breathing hard.

  “Elle, I’ve wanted you so badly…all day…every day.” She was breathless. It was hard
to form her thoughts into words.

  “Yes, baby…me too.” Her head rested on Elle’s shoulder. Elle pressed her lips to Jackson’s forehead.

  Jackson relished the feel of Elle’s body beneath hers. She possessively slid her hand up and down Elle’s breast and over her ribs, down to her hip. She was nearly capsized by the realization that she needed Elle, she needed all of her. And not just in this moment, but for as long as she could have her. Emotion overwhelmed her, she swallowed it down. She shifted on top of Elle, caressed Elle’s lower lip with her thumb before slipping it into Elle’s mouth. She wanted to swallow Elle whole, until it was impossible to tell where she ended and where Elle began.

  She covered Elle’s mouth and kissed her.

  Elle sensed a shift in intensity from Jackson. Her touch, her mouth, desire pulsed off her. Elle could feel it in her chest. Jackson’s thumb had been in her mouth and then her tongue. Jackson slid down Elle’s body, exploring with her mouth as she moved, until she was between Elle’s legs. Elle gripped the fabric on either side, in an attempt to hang on. Jackson was bringing her to the brink again. Just as she was about to come, Jackson rolled her onto her stomach and slipped inside her from behind. Jackson pressed her wet center against Elle’s ass as she pumped inside her.

  “Yes, yes…” The words came out raspy. Her face was against the bed.

  She’d never experienced sex like this. She’d never had a lover who took control the way Jackson had. And despite the fact that Jackson could completely overpower her, she felt safe, cared for, and needed. Jackson needed her. Her heart soared.

  Jackson was coming. She pressed hard against Elle, she stopped thrusting but kept her fingers deep inside. Against Elle she stiffened, trembled, and then sank on top of her. Elle had been so close, but she hadn’t made it all the way to orgasm. She let Jackson rest for a moment, the rise and fall of her breathing firm against her back. Then she raised up from beneath her, rolling Jackson onto her back.

  Elle took Jackson’s fingers into her mouth and sucked them, then she slid them between her legs. She lowered her mouth to meet Jackson’s.