Free Uncharted by Tracey Garvis Graves

tent—it’s much cooler and nicer to sleep near the beach. I don’t mind sleeping in the house.”
    “Wicked job, mate.”
    “Thanks.”
    We made our way back to the beach. James seemed all in, but Calia was quiet and I worried that maybe she regretted her decision to come to the island. “I know it’s a bit primitive,” I said. “But there’s a lot to do. We can snorkel and swim. I’ve got books and magazines. The dolphins will be here soon. You’ll like them.”
    “I think it’s fantastic,” Calia said, surprising me.
    “You do?”
    “Yes. It isn’t the five-star resorts that make places like this beautiful. It’s when they’re untouched that I like them the best. James and I much prefer places that are off the beaten path.”
    “Have you done a lot of traveling?” I asked.
    “Loads,” she said. “I picked a new place to explore every summer when I was at university. Something out of the ordinary. James loves it, too. It was his idea to come to the Maldives. Now we’ll really get to experience it.”
    “Calia and I have a bit of wanderlust running through our veins,” James said.
    “We’ve always been a bit impulsive,” Calia added.
    “Mum didn’t quite know what to do with us,” James said.
    “Mum didn’t quite know what to do with
you.
” Calia turned to me as if to explain. “Dad took off when we were young. Said he was going to the pub and never came back. Bastard. James quite fancied himself as the man of the house after that.”
    “I
was
the man of the house.”
    “In
theory,
” Calia said gently. “You were only eleven.” She looked at me. “That’s probably why we’re so open to trying new things. Mum worked two jobs to support us and wasn’t home all that much. We ran a bit wild.”
    “What does she think about you coming here?” I asked. I assumed they’d called home, to let someone know of their change in plans. “Her only children on some remote island.”
    They shared a glance.
    “She died four years ago,” Calia said. “Now it’s just James and me.”
    “And an uncle, Mum’s brother,” James added. “He was my legal guardian until a few months ago, when I turned eighteen. But he’s not all that interested in us anymore. Never has been, really.”
    “I’m sorry,” I said. It struck me as significant that Calia was moving to Kenya to care for orphans when technically she was one herself. Maybe her dad was still very much alive, but Calia and James sure hadn’t benefitted from his parenting in a very long time.
    “It’s fine,” Calia said. “We’re both adults. One of us only barely,” she teased, poking James in the leg. “We were lucky. There was enough life insurance to pay for our education and for us to travel a bit. We’ll settle down someday.
    “My sister is going to save the world first,” James said, his tone half mocking, half adoration.
    I looked at him smiling at her and said, “There’s nothing wrong with that.”
    •   •   •
    We spent most of that first day in the water. I had stored Calia’s suitcase and guitar in the house, and I walked her back to it so she could change. I waited outside and tried not to stare when she opened the door and stepped out wearing a tiny black string bikini. She was fairly tall, maybe five seven or eight, and her legs went on for miles.
    She followed me through the woods back to the beach. I scanned the water, looking for the fins. The dolphins would be arriving soon, and I wanted to see the look on Calia’s face when she met them for the first time. They still amazed me, even after a year’s time.
    James pointed at the snorkel mask and fins that I’d left lying on the sand. “Mind if I borrow them?” he asked.
    “Not at all. You’ll be amazed by what you see.” I pointed out toward the reef. “Saw a whale shark out there one day. I swam with it until I was too tired to continue. It was absolutely incredible.”
    “That’s wild,” he said, bending down to pick them up.