but she’d seen worse.
“I thought he was going to hurt you.”
“We shouldn’t have been there. Not without permission.” She sighed at the frown on his face. She had to try to explain. “I know it’s wrong when Benny hits me.”
“Yes.”
“But he only does it because he wants me to be the best. It never lasts long. Diving hurts too if you do it wrong.”
“That’s different. Hitting the water is not the same as being hit.”
But they were the same, too.
“The first time he hurt me, I thought it was an accident. I didn’t even know he was mad.”
She’d been goofing around, showing off. She had her teammates cracking up. She’d slipped off the board sideways. It had surprised her, almost scared her, but not enough to slow her down or make her stop laughing. Then, as she’d lifted herself out of the pool, Benny had grabbed her arm, at the elbow. She’d thought he was helping her out—not that he ever did. But that’s where her head was, in a place where he always took care of her.
“I was too young and dumb to know he could do that.”
He’d wrenched her arm back, then down. She’d hit the cement, hard, hips skidding and scraping, but the look on his face had shocked her into biting back any protest. His words made a cloud around her, she hadn’t heard what he’d said, not with the way her heart raced and eyes stung. But she’d understood what he meant: She was stupid and foolish. And her whole team knew it. Embarrassed, she’d shaken it off, acted like nothing had changed. The way no one else protested or even said a word told her the truth: She deserved it.
“After it happened he was so sorry. I thought he was going to cry. He even bought me a candy bar after practice. He was so proud of me for forgiving him. But of course I did. I had to. We were partners. We needed each other. He gets angry because he cares.”
“There are better ways to show caring.”
She didn’t argue, but it wasn’t as simple as he thought. Like with all the different ways to go in the cave—the easiest trail wasn’t always the one he’d choose. The destination, the getting farther into the cave was the reason he’d squeeze through a too-tight tunnel and slip down muddy and treacherous hills. He’d risked climbing in the dark with ropes, and the reward was finding that pool. It had been worth it. The part that sucked was also the part that made the magic happen. Benny had led her to the top.
“I’ve been thinking, Cotton. You should go to college. You got that scholarship last night. You could do anything, go anywhere.”
“No. I can’t.”
“There are different kinds of schools. Big and small. Not so far away. You could . . .”
“Squid,” he said, loud and harsh.
“Sorry.” She blinked, blushed hot.
“You don’t need to apologize. You can say what you think. That’s what friends do. But then I can say squid. I’m not angry. That’s why we have the word ‘squid.’”
The sting in her eyes started to calm. She’d forgotten the easy rules of being with Cotton.
“I have to be here when Esther comes back.”
There was no way to argue, even if she thought she should. Squid, squid, squid.
“I want to show you something.” He gestured for her to take his chair at the desk. “I’ve been thinking about your suggestion.” He knelt on the floor and clicked something on the computer. Damn, he smelled good. “The idea of overlapping maps is interesting. It took some adjusting and manipulation, but I got them both to scale.
“This whole area is Pierre. Judging by our mileage and direction, I think we must be heading . . .” He paused, intently focused on the map. She watched as he made sense of what he was looking at, saw that moment when it clicked. The way his eyes lit up made her grin.
“Here! I think the underground pond must be right around here.” He let the mouse hover over a spot on the map, not far from her house.
She laughed at the magic of it. To think the cave was another layer, below the streets.
“It’s not exact. That mileage is including elevation and sidetracks. It’s not direct, not like a bat flies.”
“What about the other caves? Where are they?”
“It’s hard to know. Not all caves are identified publicly.”
“Best guess.”
“If I overlap them, it seems as though there must be one