She laughed, covering her face. “What are you doing? Get that thing away.”

“No chance.” Hopping backward, I called, “Conner, Pippi. Home movie time.” Scanning the phone their way, I captured their white smiles, skinny bodies, and feet splashing in the tide.

“Movie? Can I be the Incredible Hulk?” Conner tried to commandeer the phone.

“I want to be a princess.” Pippa twirled.

Looking at Estelle, I said quietly, “Starting today, let’s document every little thing that matters. Be it rain to drink or a fish to eat...or a kiss to pleasure. Let’s be grateful for what we have.”

I zoomed in as Estelle stared at me with a thousand emotions in her gaze. The camera picked up flashes of brown and green, twisting my stomach into a hundred knots.

Slowly, she grinned. “I’d like that.”

“I’d like it, too,” Pippa said. “Will we be on TV when they find us? Will they use our movies?”

I stiffened.

Who knew what the footage would be used for? Perhaps, it would be used as evidence of how a bunch of ordinary, society-spoiled people endured the elements.

Or...

Maybe the videos would be found many years from now, washed up in a bottle, a message to the outside world of four castaways who didn’t make it.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

...............................................

E S T E L L E

......

Don’t fret when fate forbids you. Don’t cry when life doesn’t listen. Be brave and trust that you will survive. Be strong and never give in.

Never give in.

Never...give...in.

Lyrics for ‘Never Give In’ Taken from the notepad of E.E.

...

FOUR WEEKS

(September bleeding into October)

COCONUT, CLAMS, AND water.

Coconut, clams, and water.

I’m sick to death of coconut, clams, and water.

We’d done our best to supplement our diet with insects and an occasional lizard but even starving, there were limits.

Despite the lack of variety, my body still functioned, my period came and went, the children grew, and life aged us.

I craved fish. Something robust and meaty. Up till now, no one had been physically able or skilled enough to catch any (and we’d all tried, on numerous occasions).

I sat with my arms wrapped around my legs, resting my chin on my knees as the world woke up.

Four weeks and counting.

We’d survived this long doing what we knew. But fear kept us from trying anything new. Along with our unsuccessful attempt to spear a fish, we’d done our best to catch a seagull that’d landed to inspect our quickly growing pile of clamshells.

But we’d failed.

We were slowly starving from sameness.

To make it worse, the clams were getting harder and harder to find. Every day, we had to dig a little deeper, wade out a little farther. We’d exhausted our supplies, and now, we didn’t have a choice but to push ourselves to find alternatives.

The sun appeared on the horizon, spreading its pink glow across the ocean. My eyes drifted to the sea. Below the surface existed plenty of food. However, we had no fishing implements, no way of catching the slippery devils.

We need to change that.

It was time for the next stage. Evolve or die. Life wasn’t kind to those who didn’t help themselves.

My ribs and chest were mostly healed and nowhere near as painful. Conner had taken the strap off his wrist and claimed he could use it with only a small twinge, and Pippa’s shoulder had scarred neatly.

Galloway was the only one still unwell. His ankle gave him grief. He couldn’t move without his crutch. He pretended he was okay, but I could tell he was lying.

He glared at his leg, cursed his disability, acted as if he’d sooner chop it off than wait for his body to fix.

For a week now, I’d had the horrible thought that perhaps his shin, ankle, and foot would never heal properly. What if his bones were crooked and no matter how they knitted together, he would always limp?

Don’t think that way.

I bit my lip, resorting to a habit I’d begun and couldn’t stop. I gnawed on the sides of my cheeks, too, slowly eroding the flesh with stress. My teeth constantly felt furry as the toothpaste had run out and our toothbrush bristles slowly softened with use.

Last week, I’d taught the others what Madeleine had shown me when we’d gone on a double date and a seed from dinner wedged into my teeth. When Madi had taught me, I’d been in awe of the simple (but frankly rather gross) suggestion.

Hair.

A girl with long hair could tweak out a strand and use it as dental floss. Every night, I pulled a few free and passed them to Conner and Galloway. Pippa used her own, and together, we did our best with dental hygiene.

Soap had become seawater and sand and the sun kept us so hot that we sweated freely without smelling. As far as cleanliness went, we’d adapted. Even my hair had balanced in oils and no longer looked greasy but salt-sprayed and crinkled with sun-encouraged curls.

Sunburn was also avoided as we managed to stay in the shade at the height of the day and covered up when we had no choice but to be at its mercy.

Our way of living had advanced, our friendship deepened, our family group wedged firmly in my heart.

I loved them.

I couldn’t deny it.

I loved Pippa with her steely temper and quick-fire questions.

I loved Conner and his teenage need to prove himself.

And...

I loved Galloway.

I loved the way he dropped what he was doing if the children summoned him. I loved how he watched them sleep when he thought I wasn’t watching. I loved the way he left hibiscus flowers for me in the mornings when I went to collect firewood. I loved the way he made me feel as if everything he ever needed dwelled right inside my soul.