The Emerald Quest (7 page)

Noah was training a pair of binoculars on the shoreline. “The moon’s helping, but it’s still hard to make out much. I remember Dad saying there’s an opening to the cave above the waterline, and one below.”

“We should swim in the underwater entrance so no one sees us,” Anthony said.

“Can we shine some light on the shore?” Noah asked.

“Just for a second.” Anthony trained a large spotlight on the shore. “We don’t want to attract attention.” He flicked a switch and a bright beam of light hit the shoreline.

“Wait. There it is.” Noah handed the binoculars to Anthony, then adjusted the spotlight. “Right by that outcropping of rocks.”

Anthony peered through the binoculars. “I wonder how deep the water is there.”

“And if there are barracudas,” Juan Carlo chimed in. He’d changed clothes and looked much more comfortable in shorts and a tee shirt.

“I wish we could get a bit closer,” Anthony said. “Better turn off the light.”

“Will you dive now?” Juan Carlo asked.

Noah shook his head. “We’d have to use underwater lights. If patrolling boats came by, the lights would alert them.”

“We can come back in the morning and dive once the sun is up. We’ll moor the boat out far enough where Wright can’t tell us where to be. I’ll dive over there while you two stay with the boat. I’ll explore the cave and see what I can find. If anything goes wrong, you hightail it out of here and get Chief Burton.”

“Uh-oh. It looks like we have more than barracudas to deal with.” Noah had the binoculars again. He reached over and turned on the spotlight.

“What do you mean?” Anthony asked.

“Watch over by the cave entrance.” The dark water shimmered in the spotlight, and periodically a fin broke through the surface, cutting through the water like a silver knife.

“Sharks,” Anthony said.

“That’s bad,” Juan Carlo shuddered.

“They must be feeding on something in the cave,” Noah said.

Anthony nodded. “Just what we need.”

“How do you get in there if the sharks are there?” Juan Carlo asked.

“Go in the opening above the waterline,” Anthony shrugged.

“It’s up on the left.”

Anthony took the binoculars and studied the cave. “You’re right. But, man, that’s a small hole. I don’t know if I can squeeze through that.” He cut the spotlight power again.

“Then I’ll go,” Noah said, his jaw locked in determination.

“It’s too dangerous,” Juan Carlo said.

“We’ll both go,” Anthony said.

“We can swim over to the left,” Noah pointed south of the entrance. “Then we’ll get out of the water at those rocks. We’ll leave the tanks there and climb over to the entrance.”

“You sound pretty sure of yourself,” Anthony said.

“I’ve played around in places like that before,” Noah said.

Anthony scrutinized the shoreline again. “I don’t see any other way.” He gave the binoculars to Juan Carlo. “We’ll come back tomorrow. If we start at first light, we can be back at the house in plenty of time for the phone call.”

“This is too dangerous,” Juan Carlo repeated. “There must be another way.”

“Not in the time we have,” Noah said. “We have to find those glass pieces before noon tomorrow.”

In the distance, the revving sound of a motorboat pierced the darkness.

“Wright’s patrol,” Anthony said. “They saw the spotlight. Let’s get out of here!”

He sped to the cabin and started the engine. The
Explorer
churned through the inky water, leaving Copper Key behind.

CHAPTER SEVEN

SHARKS

Friday dawned warm, with gentle breezes stirring the palm trees on the south side of Copper Key. Off the north shore, the
Explorer
sat anchored in the thirty-foot depths.

“Here’s the radio.” Noah showed Juan Carlo a VHF marine radio. “It’s set to the Coast Guard channel. You hit this button and then start talking into the receiver.”

“I understand,” Juan Carlo said.

“You tell them the name of the boat, ‘
Explorer’
, three times,” Noah continued. “Give them your location. I’ve written it down for you.” He handed Juan Carlo a piece of paper. “Then tell them what’s going on.”

“If we don’t come back by noon, or if Isaiah Wright’s boats come after you, go for help. Use the radio, or here’s my cell phone,” Anthony handed it to Juan Carlo. “You won’t get reception out here, but once closer to Key West, you can speed dial 21. That’s Chief Burton’s number.”

Juan Carlo threw him a puzzled look. “Speed dial?”

“Just press 21 and hit the call button,” Anthony showed him. “If he doesn’t answer, dial 911.”

“Sí,” Juan Carlo said.

They went aft, where the diving gear was laid out. Noah and Anthony donned the gear in silence.

“Be careful,” Juan Carlo said. He held a fishing rod and would pretend to fish while Noah and Anthony were exploring the cave.

Noah adjusted his mask, bit down on the regulator, and signaled he was ready to go.

“If we see any sharks, you go where I go,” Anthony instructed Noah.

Noah hopped off the boat platform and into the water. Anthony jumped in and swam up beside him. Noah gave Anthony a thumbs-up, then started kicking. He shot through the water. The only sound was his breathing through the regulator.

Ten minutes after leaving the
Explorer
, they approached the shore. Noah kicked hard against a strong current. It buffeted him toward a reef and Noah stuck out his hand to keep from slamming against it. He swam hard, and he and Anthony soon found a place where they could climb out of the water.

They had brought flashlights with them, so Noah set his on a rock, then tugged the fins off his feet. He set them on the rock with the flashlight, then pushed his mask up on his forehead. He found an underwater toehold for his feet, pushed up with his legs, and grabbed the rocks. He then hefted himself out of the water, pulling himself forward until he could get up on his knees. He worked out of the tanks, setting them and his fins in a crack behind a large rock.

Behind him, Anthony struggled to get out. His upper body was halfway out of the water when he slipped. Splash!

“How did you get up there so easily?” he muttered.

“Use your toes to grip the rock,” Noah said. “Like a monkey would.”

“Like a monkey,” Anthony growled. “I still can’t find a foothold.” Noah reached over to give him a hand, and Anthony managed to lift himself out of the water.

Anthony hid his dive gear with Noah’s and they checked out their surroundings. Some of the rocks were smooth from the pounding waves spraying them, but others were rough and jagged. Farther down, they could see the cave opening near the cliff face. The opening was not much bigger around than a car tire.

“I’m not sure if I can fit through that,” Anthony said.

Noah didn’t reply. One of them had to get in the cave and find the hidden box, if it was there. He stepped forward. “Ouch! The rocks hurt my feet.”

“Careful,” Anthony chided him. They worked their way across the rocks, treading lightly. After what seemed like years, but was only minutes, they arrived at the cave. Noah bent down and looked inside.

“I can’t see a thing.”

He was about to shine the flashlight into the cave when Anthony yanked his arm.

“A boat’s coming!” Anthony hissed. He jerked his head around, looking for a place to hide. “Behind that rock!”

Noah scooted after Anthony. They scrunched down and waited. A powerboat zoomed by, its high-pitched engine loudly announcing its presence. The noise faded, then came back.

Anthony leaned over Noah, putting his mouth right by Noah’s ear. “They’re taking a second pass,” he murmured. “Stay down.”

Noah held his breath as the sound of the engine died.

“They’re probably checking the shoreline with binoculars,” Anthony whispered. “Don’t move.”

They stayed huddled so long that Noah’s muscles ached. Finally, they heard the boat’s engine rev up and the boat continued down the shore.

“Let’s go,” Anthony said.

They hurried back to the cave entrance. Noah had to lie down and belly crawl through the opening. He couldn’t see beyond a few feet. He flicked on his flashlight. The beam bounded off black wet walls. He stood only a foot above the water. The cave was large, with a ceiling about eight feet above his head. Noah stood on a thin ledge that ran around a third of the walls, stopping where there was a small crevice. The crevice ran from the ceiling right down the cave wall, disappearing into the water.

“Hold on, I’m stuck.”

Noah turned around. Anthony was halfway through but his hips were stuck in the hole. He pushed with his elbows, freeing himself.

“That was tight.” Anthony rubbed at a cut on his chest. It wasn’t deep, but blood oozed from it.

Anthony shone his light around the cave, then on the water. Two sharks zipped around, then darted out of the cave.

“I’ll bet the chest is over somewhere in that crevice,” Noah said.

“That’s a good bet. Think you can make it over there?” Anthony asked.

Noah nodded. He worked along the wall, his bare feet gripping tiny footholds in the wet rocks. At one point the ledge was no wider than a baseball bat. Noah reached out and grabbed a rock jutting out from the cave wall. He placed his toes down on the ledge and leaned forward. His foot slipped and he dangled for a moment, his hands clutching the rock outcropping.

“Noah!” Anthony yelled. His voice echoed loudly in the cave.

Noah’s foot kicked the water. A second later, a shark snapped the water where his foot had been.

Noah regained his balance and pushed himself onward. “I’m okay,” he said. He had to take a deep breath to calm himself. His hands shook. Below, the sharks flitted back and forth, attracted by the movement.

“Can you get to the crevice?”

“Yes,” Noah said. The last few feet were easier and then Noah was perched on a small rock shelf.

“Good job,” Anthony said as he joined Noah.

Noah shined his light up into the crevice. “I don’t see anything up there.”

Anthony trained his light up the cleft as well, and peered over Noah’s shoulder. “It narrows up there.” He stepped back and looked down into the water. “Maybe the box is stuck down there.”

They aimed their flashlights on the water.

“I can’t see very far,” Noah said.

“Me, either.”

“We’ll have to check it out.”

Anthony nodded. He touched his chest, where the cut still trickled blood. “This will attract the sharks.”

“Then I go.” Noah swallowed the lump in his throat. They both watched a shark that swam around below them. “We have to keep them away from me.”

“I’ll go over by the entrance,” Anthony said. “And I’ll try and distract them. See if you can slide down the crevice, that way you’ll stay out of reach.”

Noah stared down at the water, trying to quell his fear. “Sharks don’t normally harm humans,” he said, more to himself than Anthony. “They attack when they mistake a human for food.”

“Just go slowly,” Anthony said as he made his way back over the ledge to the cave entrance. “Okay,” he said when he arrived. He hit the water with his hand, jerking his hand back up quickly. A shark darted over near him, its fin slicing through the water.

“I wish I had my diving gear and spear gun,” Noah said.

“It wouldn’t have fit through this entrance.” Anthony hit the water again.

Noah sat down on the rock ledge, letting his feet slide into the water in the crevice. The shark stayed over by Anthony. Noah grabbed a rock with one hand, holding the flashlight with the other. He felt his arm strain as he lowered himself into the water. He took a deep breath right before his head went under the surface. He barely fit into the crack. Noah knew he could hold his breath for more than a minute, but that still was precious little time. He shone the light around. Nothing but rock.

Noah pushed down into the crevice, but it quickly tapered off. He would have to go into the cave itself. Fighting to calm himself, Noah edged out of the crevice. The shark darted nearby. Noah plastered himself against the wall of the cave and froze. From above, Anthony smacked the water and the shark turned and swam away.

Noah twisted around and swam down, the light beam illuminating the crevice as it thinned and then disappeared. He didn’t see anything resembling a metal box. He scrutinized the cave floor. No box. He felt movement and swiveled back around. Another shark was in the cave, coming toward him. Noah let himself float upward, hugging the rock wall. The shark swam closer. Noah wanted to scream, but it would do no good. He was out of air and needed to get to the surface. Just then, the other shark rocketed up in front of the first shark. They tangled for a second. Noah’s head burst into the air. He simultaneously sucked in great gasps of air and pushed himself into the crevice. The sharks swam by, too big to get into the crack where Noah was.

“Come on, get out.” Anthony was hurrying toward him. “I saw that other shark and tried to distract him, but it wasn’t working anymore.”

Noah tossed his flashlight on the ledge and hauled himself out of the water. He sat for a moment, dripping as he caught his breath.

“I didn’t see anything,” he huffed. “The crack gets narrower. If Alfonso stuck a chest there, it’s gone.”

Noah stood up as Anthony joined him. “If it’s somewhere else below, we have to get rid of the sharks before we search.”

“Where else could it be?” Anthony mused. They scanned the cave, but saw no other hiding place for a chest.

“Maybe we have the wrong place,” Noah said dejectedly. But what did that mean for his parents?

Anthony let out a big sigh. “We better get back to the
Explorer
. We’ll just have to tell your parents’ captors that we need more time.”

They started back across the ledge. Anthony gripped with his toes much better now, but halfway toward the entrance, he slipped in the same place that Noah did.

“Whoa!” He thrashed out with one hand, snatching at the rock wall above his head. But instead of giving him a handhold, a huge chunk of rock broke away. “What the…” Anthony let go of the rock. It splashed into the water. The sharks darted over, stirring the water. Noah clutched Anthony’s other hand, pulling him back. Anthony gripped another part of the wall, his knuckles white.

“That was too close,” he finally managed to say.

Noah glanced up where the rock had been. “Hey, look at that.”

A gaping hole yawned at them.

“You don’t…” Noah’s voice trailed away.

“Uh-huh.” Anthony grinned excitedly. He reached up and felt into the hole. “I can feel something metal.”