Dancing Tides (41 page)

Cassie
start
e
d to fade
a
w
a
y
.

“
D
on
’
t go.
D
on
’
t l
e
a
v
e
m
e
alone
again.”

“
I’
ll alwa
y
s be
with
y
ou, Cord.” She
pla
ce
d h
e
r
h
and o
ve
r h
e
r h
e
art. “
I’
ll
be
th
e
re
in
y
ours.
A
lwa
y
s.
B
ut
y
ou n
ee
d to l
e
t
m
e
go now.
Y
o
u ha
v
e
a good lif
e
, Cord.
D
on
’
t stop loo
k
ing for possibiliti
e
s.
Your d
e
sti
n
y
was n
eve
r to be
with
m
e
in
V
irginia.
Y
our d
e
sti
n
y’
s h
e
r
e
, Cord, not wh
e
re
y
ou start
e
d out, not in San
D
i
e
go, but in th
a
t little
town.
P
u
t down r
o
ots, Cord.
Ok
a
y
?
D
on
’
t blow it.
Y
ou alwa
y
s ha
v
e
a t
e
nd
e
n
c
y
to bl
o
w it.” “No, no, don
’
t go. Cass
i
e
!
”

W
h
e
th
e
r
it
wa
s C
a
ssi
e’
s
g
host, the
im
a
g
e
o
f
h
e
r
a
s
a
n
a
n
g
e
l
o
r
som
e
thi
n
g
e
ls
e
, it dissolv
e
d into nothin
g
.

Su
rr
ound
e
d
b
y
r
a
w
sm
e
lls of
s
wea
t
a
nd
u
r
ine
w
ith
a
little
st
a
le
c
ig
are
tte
s
m
oke
th
r
o
w
n in
f
or
g
ood m
ea
su
r
e
, he
w
i
s
h
e
d h
e’
d n
e
v
e
r
l
e
f
t the
f
a
r
m.
H
e
tho
u
g
ht of
the
tidy
r
o
w
s of
the v
e
g
e
t
a
bl
e
s he
t
e
nd
e
d, the
c
h
er
r
y
a
nd
a
pple
o
rc
h
a
r
d
s just b
e
g
inning
to bloss
o
m
a
nd
rea
li
z
e
d he
wa
nt
e
d mo
r
e
th
a
n
a
n
y
thing
to be
outsid
e
.

H
e
miss
e
d the
e
a
r
t
h
y
s
m
e
lls of
h
a
y
a
nd
c
o
w
s, the
vi
ew
s of
the
P
ac
i
f
ic
Oc
ea
n
fr
om the
c
li
ff
s.
H
e
lo
n
g
e
d to s
e
e
t
he
st
ar
s, to sit outside
in
t
he
old po
rc
h s
w
i
n
g
th
a
t
c
rea
k
e
d no
m
a
tt
e
r
how m
a
n
y
tim
e
s he
oil
e
d it d
u
r
ing
the
wee
k.

H
e
d
ec
i
d
e
d th
e
n
a
nd th
er
e
if
he
e
v
e
r
g
ot out of
this pl
ace
, h
e
’
d do
w
h
a
t
e
v
e
r
C
a
ssie
wa
nt
e
d him to do to st
ra
i
g
ht
e
n out his li
fe
.
H
e
n
e
v
e
r
wa
nt
e
d to think of
C
a
s
sie
dis
a
ppoint
e
d in him.

Closing
his
e
y
e
s, he
d
r
i
f
t
e
d o
f
f
to sl
ee
p
a
nd d
r
e
a
m
e
d
a
bout a
w
om
a
n
f
or
the
f
i
r
st time
in t
w
o
y
e
ar
s
w
ho
w
a
s not C
a
ssie
Sp
ear
m
a
n.

Ta
ll, she
stood
a
t l
ea
st
f
i
v
e-e
i
g
ht
w
ith a
m
a
ss of
t
i
ti
a
n h
a
ir
a
nd a
s
p
a
tt
er
i
n
g of
li
g
ht
frec
k
l
e
s
a
c
r
oss the
b
r
i
d
g
e
of
h
e
r
nos
e
. She
loo
k
e
d
a
lot
y
ou
n
g
e
r
th
a
n his thi
r
t
y
-
f
ou
r.

She
h
a
d s
a
v
e
d him.

He
r
e
y
e
s
w
e
r
e
so h
u
g
e
a
nd
a
z
u
re
, like
pools of
g
l
ea
ming
s
a
pphi
re
s. P
e
n
e
t
r
a
tin
g
, is the
w
a
y
he
w
ould
’
v
e
d
e
s
c
r
i
b
e
d th
e
m.
T
h
e
y
h
a
d b
o
re
d
hol
e
s in him.
I
f
he
tho
u
ght
a
bout it long
e
nou
g
h,
h
e
mi
g
ht
e
v
e
n
d
e
s
cr
ibe
th
e
m
a
s
g
l
ar
i
n
g
.
T
h
e
y
h
a
d shot d
a
g
g
e
r
s
a
t
him
w
h
e
n sh
e’
d
ca
u
g
ht him in a
li
e
.
T
hose
e
y
e
s of
h
er
s h
a
d sho
n
e
c
old
l
y
blu
e
, th
e
n
f
u
r
ious.