“I think we should enter on the south side,” Ben said as he snapped his hoses in place and tested them. “It’s an easier entry, and the waves are smaller. Then we can skirt the edge of the kelp forest and head toward the wash rock.”

“Sounds good,” Brian agreed. Ben, assuming that Brian really had no idea why that was a good idea, went in search of Caddie. He found her standing on a dune, looking down at the water. The waves here were larger than at many of the other Monterey dive sites, and they crashed on the shore with more force. Caddie was watching two divers who were attempting an entry on the site’s more difficult northern approach. One had managed to get in and was floating in the water, waiting for the other.

The second diver advanced, froglike, toward the water. As he reached the edge, he suddenly fell forward, slipping on the precarious monster berries and plunging headlong into an oncoming wave. His regulator had not been in his mouth, and now it buzzed around his head, air escaping in a loud hiss, as he tried to locate it.

“He’s got a berry stuck in there, I’ll bet you anything,” Ben said. “Make sure you keep your reg in when you get close to the water.”

In the water, the first diver was helping the second diver right himself. He grabbed the renegade regulator and placed it in his buddy’s mouth just as a second wave crashed over their heads, pushing them both under the surface. A moment later they both popped up again, and Ben reached up and put his closed fist on top of his head. Both divers responded in kind. “They’re okay,” Ben said, relieved that he wouldn’t have to try to assist them. It was hard enough to walk on the Monastery beach; making a rescue attempt was nearly impossible without help.

Brian appeared, pulling on his gloves. “Looks flat,” he remarked, scanning the water.

“Yeah,” said Caddie. “It’s pretty calm.”

She’d agree with him if he said this was the Arctic Ocean, Ben thought to himself as Brian walked toward the south end, Caddie right behind him. He followed, marveling at the determination Caddie was displaying in her efforts to marginalize him. If she was half as into this guy as she’s pretending to be, he’d be lucky to get out alive, he thought as his foot slid on the sand and he struggled to remain upright.