Never Too Far Novel

Chapter 2022

The light shone on Willow’s long hair that tumbled down her shoulder and coiled around her face. She looked as lively as a fairy fluttering around in the warm midsummer. She was vivacious, naive, and sometimes silly, but her smile brightened up the world. Captivated by her smile, Jasper couldn’t move his eyes away.

Noticing his stare, Willow smiled sheepishly and quickly buried her face in the blanket. Jasper snapped out of it. Nervous, he stood up. “I’ll check things out. You get to sleep.”

“Sure, but come back soon,” said Willow.

It was the dead of the night when Jasper came back. Willow had fallen asleep, and her leg was peeking out of the blanket. Jasper was amused, then he tucked her in and nudged her leg into the blanket.

Nothing happened that night. Morning came, and everyone got ready for the expedition. Aside from the designated team, everyone else stayed behind to guard the ship. Willow was on the expedition team, and she had four bodyguards with her.

“Can you help me with my back, Jasper? I can’t reach it.” Willow approached Jasper holding a tub of sunscreen. She was only wearing a black camisole, revealing her arms and beautiful back.

Jasper almost stopped breathing for a moment, but he took the sunscreen and helped her rub it across her back. Her skin was soft and smooth to the touch.

Willow tilted her head so he could rub the sunscreen all over the places she couldn’t reach. Unbeknownst to her, Jasper was tall enough to notice the skin under her shirt when she was in this position. Willow grew perfectly, her body a lot more mature than her face would suggest.

As he rubbed the sunscreen across her back, Jasper found himself perspiring a little. “Done,” he said huskily.

Willow took the sunscreen back and smiled. “Thanks.” She opened up her closet and took a black windbreaker out. She then tied her hair into a ponytail so that it was easier for her to work.

The team set off. They got into three off-road vehicles and drove off according to the guide’s instructions. The cave was only thirty minutes away, and they arrived at their destination not too long later. It was a natural cave with a small entrance. Only a single person could pass through it at one time, and there were a lot of passages inside. The ship was embedded under a stone wall. Thanks to the cave’s shelter, it was preserved nicely.

Jasper followed Willow closely. When they came to the ship, what the team saw shocked them. The excited archeologists quickly whipped out their gear to start their investigation. Willow was equally excited as well. They split into smaller teams and entered the ship in batches. The vessel was gigantic —almost a hundred feet from forward to stern. The deck was about thirty feet wide. Shipbuilding was already decent enough even back in the day. All text © NôvelD(r)a'ma.Org.

“There’ll be two to three layers of cabin in this ship. Maybe we’ll find something.”

They split their team based on the work they would do. Willow’s team would stay on the deck to investigate. She whipped out her magnifying glass to take a closer look, but then the board under her creaked. Even though she wasn’t heavy, this ship was already more than a thousand years old, and the board underneath the deck was starting to give way.

“Careful.” Jasper pulled Willow back to his side. The place she stood on earlier had shattered and fallen. Jasper held the steel pole with one hand and clasped Willow with his other arm, keeping her from falling.

Willow was shocked too, and she gave Jasper a grateful look. Then, she checked out the hole curiously. “Oh, there’s a hidden chamber down there. We can check it out.”

“Watch out for snakes. I’ll clear the path. Wait for me.” Jasper leaped into the hole. Once he was sure the chamber was safe, he said, “Jump. I’ll catch you.”