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grasped everywhere she could, hoping to reach Dawn before it was too late.
It was Dawn s hair that Luce felt first, the thin shock of short, dark waves. Probing lower with her
hand, she felt her friend s cheek, then her neck, then her shoulder. Dawn had sunk pretty far in such
a short time. Luce slipped her arms under Dawn s armpits, then used all her strength to pull her up,
kicking powerfully toward the surface.
They were far underwater, the daylight a distant shimmer.
And Dawn felt heavier than she could possibly be, like a great weight was attached to her, dragging
both of them down.
At last Luce broke the surface. Dawn sputtered, spewing water out of her mouth and coughing. Her
eyes were red and her hair was matted on her forehead. With one arm looped across Dawn s chest,
Luce gently paddled them both toward the life preserver.
Luce, Dawn whispered. In the tumbling waves, Luce couldn t hear her, but she could read her
lips. What s happening?
I don t know. Luce shook her head, straining to keep them both afloat.
Swim to the lifeboat! The call came from behind. But swimming anywhere was impossible. They
could barely keep their heads above water.
The crew was lowering an inflatable life raft. Steven was inside it. As soon as the boat met the
ocean, he began paddling briskly toward them. Luce closed her eyes and let the palpable relief wash
over her with the next wave. If she could just hold on a little longer, they were going to be okay.
Grab my hand, Steven shouted to the girls. Luce s legs felt like she d been swimming for an hour.
She pushed Dawn toward him so that Dawn could be the first one out.
Steven had stripped down to his slacks and white oxford shirt, which was wet now and clinging to
his chest. His muscled arms were huge as he reached for Dawn. His face red with exertion, he
grunted and heaved her up. When Dawn was draped over the gunwale, far enough that she wouldn t
fall back in, Steven turned and quickly took hold of Luce s arms.
She felt weightless, practically soaring out of the water with his help. It was only when she felt her
body slipping the rest of the way into the boat that she realized how sopping wet and freezing she
was.
Except for where Steven s fingers had been.
There the drops of water on her skin were steaming.
She sat up, moving to help Steven pull the shivering Dawn the rest of the way into the raft. Exhaust-
ed, Dawn could barely drag herself upright. Luce and Steven each had to take her by an arm and
heave. She was almost all the way inside the boat when Luce felt a shocking jerk pull Dawn back
into the water.
Dawn s dark eyes bulged and she cried out as she slipped backward. Luce was not prepared: Dawn
slipped out of her wet grip, and Luce fell back against the side of the raft.
Hold on! Steven caught hold of Dawn s waist just in time. He stood up, almost capsizing the raft.
As he strained to lift Dawn out of the water, Luce saw the briefest flash of gold extend from his
back.
His wings.
The way they jutted out instantly, at the moment when Steven needed the most strength it seemed
to happen almost against his will. They were gleaming, the color of the kind of expensive jewelry
Luce had only seen behind glass cases at department stores. They were nothing like Daniel s wings.
Daniel s were warm and welcoming, magnificent and sexy; Steven s were raw and intimidating,
jagged and terrifying.
Steven grunted, the muscles in his arms strained, and his wings beat just once, giving him enough
upward momentum to fly Dawn out of the water.
The wings stirred up enough wind to flatten Luce against the other side of the raft. As soon as Dawn
was safe, Steven s feet touched down again on the floor of the raft. His wings immediately slid back
into his skin. They left two small tears in the back of his dress shirt, the only proof that what Luce
had seen had been real. His face was washed out and his hands were shaking.
The three of them collapsed inside the raft. Dawn had noticed nothing, and Luce wondered whether
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