"Potato?"

"Yes, thanks." Sara took the potato. She had been surprised when she saw that Sofia lit a fire before they started their theory but when the blonde put some potatoes and another dough for bread into the blaze she knew why. It would take some time before they could eat them.

"You're welcome. You did good today, Sara."

"I've a very good teacher."

"I takes more than a good teacher to remember all the things you've heard, seen and read the last days. And it takes a lot more than a good teacher to back into the water and dive."

"There was no reason to be afraid I knew I had my own lifeguard with me." That wasn't entirely true. There had been a few moments when Sara felt more than uneasy. When she put on her gear and walked into the water she felt for a moment she was back in the current. When she dove she thought of her nightmares, of drowning, sharks. It took some willpower to push these thoughts away and concentrate on diving.

Sofia knew that but she didn't say a word.

"So your VIPs shuffled your timetable around?"

"A little bit. Usually I've them from ten to two each day but tomorrow is a volleyball match on and they want to play that. So I've been asked to reschedule our appointment to the afternoon and will see them from four to eight. Before that there are two people who booked a single hour each."

"Plus a former CSI in the early morning."

"Yes."

"You're busy."

"There were days with more work. From next month on there will be more people around and I'll be really busy but that's all right. They pay good money."

"Are you the only diving instructor here?"

"No, Andrew is a dive instructor too. He works mostly when we're busy or I'm away for some vacation. It might sound crazy but sometimes it's good to go away from here for a few days into the real world."

"Hard to believe."

"I know. You can appreciate it more when you've been away for a week or two. After a week in New York you really appreciate the silence here. Even when we're fully booked it's nothing compared to Manhattan."

"Especially not when you stay on your own island, private property and every trespasser will be shot."

Sofia laughed. "Yeah, not only with beer bottles. Maybe I need a huge, scary looking dog to scare everybody away."

"Maybe."

"I'll think about that. What about you? Do you have any plans for the time after Magical Beach? Or are they banned until you're on the boat to the mainland?"

"No, I've no idea what I'll do."

"Back to Vegas?"

"No!" That was harsher than Sara had planed. It was almost aggressive. She didn't want to react like this, there was no reason for that. Sofia had asked her a simple question, nothing more.

"Fair enough. I wouldn't go back either."

"You don't have to, you have a job here and own an island."

"That has nothing to do with my decision."

"Not?"

"No." Sofia sighed. It was obvious this wasn't exactly a topic she wanted to talk about. But after they had started it she thought it was only fair to end it. "I won't go back to Vegas anymore. This chapter is closed." With her beer in one hand and a sausage in the other she slipped next to Sara. "Do you mind?"

"You or the steak?" Sara smiled.

"Both?"

"No, not at all." The brunette blinked.

"Do you know or have any idea why I left Las Vegas?"

"No. You never said a word when you left. I came back to work and you were gone, nobody seemed to know why and to where. I asked Brass all I got for an answer were some mumbled words I didn't understand."

"He has no idea why I really left, I never told him."

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want."

"It's all right. After we found you and you were in hospital we were all quite…down. I felt exhausted, asked myself why we do the things we do. Why do we go to work, why do we risk our lives to catch some bad people when for every bad one we arrest two new ones appear? It seemed to be senseless. Plus the fact that I had the feeling something was wrong with the graveyard shift. First Nick got kidnapped and buried alive. Than Greg was almost beaten to death by teenagers. I thought for a while I killed an officer, a father of three, which hit me harder than I thought. At the end you got abducted and died almost. It was just too much.

But bearable. Until the last straw was gone. I hadn't slept for a few days or nights, whatever it was when I was home, I looked like shit and when I sat on my desk and two officers walked past I heard one of them calling me 'Detective Burn-Out'. Apparently my colleagues had noticed how I looked and drew their own conclusion about me. The worst thing wasn't that they said it or that they didn't say that straight to my face, it was that they were right. I felt like I was close to a burn out. So I did the only right thing and quit my job."

"You never said goodbye." Sara's word didn't sound reproachful, they sounded more sad and a little bit disappointed.

"I know, I'm sorry for that. I didn't say goodbye to anybody, just packed my stuff and left. When nobody knew where I was nobody could try to get me back."

"Found you anyway." Sara smirked.

"Yeah, like a truly great investigator. I've no idea which evidence I left, which trace you read but you did an amazing job, Sara."

"I followed the sunshine, the blue water and the white beach. I looked for heaven and paradise and there was only one destiny that includes both: Magical Beach."

"It does, doesn't it?"

"Absolutely."

"How did you find out about it?"

"An advertisement on the internet. Usually I don't read them but this one caught my attention, I read and thought I can give it a try even when the price was quite high for my little bungalow."

"It's cheap compares to everything else you can buy here. As soon as you buy or order something that's not in the package you pay a high price."

"Like a diving lesson?"

"For example."

"How did you get the job?"

"I thought of what I want to do and came up with a long holiday. I heard about this place from a friend of my mother and flew here. When I arrived and asked for dives they told me their dive instructor had just quit his job and there wasn't a new one yet. I told them I don't need an instructor, I've all licenses and know what I'm doing. They looked puzzled and asked me if I need a job. Without hesitation I said yes if it's a job as a dive instructor and I got it. This is the best job I ever had and it was the easiest interview."

"You were at the right time at the right place."

"Yes. That's not what my mother says but I agree."

"Captain Curtis doesn't like that her only daughter is a diving instructor?"

"No, not at all. She hasn't been here once, it's a too big disappointment."

"You're happy, you're doing a great job I can't see anything disappointing."

"She can. Well, the job is just another thing of my life she doesn't like, there are many more. That's how it goes when the daughter has her own head and doesn't want to copy the life of the mother. Some mothers have problems to accept that."

Sara thought for a moment about her own mother. She was still in jail and Sara was sure her mother didn't want her to live the life she had.

"It's important that you're happy and you look happy."

"I am. Absolutely. This is what I want and I doubt I'll get sick of it any time soon."

"Hopefully not I want some more lessons when I return."

"You already plan your return?"

"One day I'll be back. Maybe only for a week because it's quite expensive but I'll be back. This place is far too beautiful to stay away."

"In case you behave yourself well and are willing to bring a few pounds of chocolate with you, you might get a place to sleep for free and have only to pay for the boat."

"And the diving instructor?"

"Maybe you can get that for free too…for another little shopping list."

"You get food here why do you need food brought?"

"Because certain things you don't get here and I miss them. I miss my favorite chocolate, my favorite coffee and pizza."

"Pizza isn't good for your body, you won't attract young men with six packs and sunshine smile anymore when you eat too much pizza." Sara smirked.

"I can't care less."

"Your body isn't part of the work package? Attract a lot of men to make them pay a lot of money to spend some time with you?"

"Sounds like I'm a whore."

"No, a diving instructor."

"My amazing body can safe your life but it doesn't safe your life because it's amazing and perfect, it safes your life because of the smart heat, the watchful eyes and my ability to know exactly when and where somebody is in trouble. Like a good detective I'm able to read people and situations and that makes me the perfect diving instructor."

Sara laughed. "You're so smug."

"And right now you like it and enjoy it."

"I do. Shame on me."

"I knew it." Sofia grinned widely. That was a point for her. The first little victory.

It was dark when they finished their dinner and went inside Sofia's bungalow. When the blonde switched on the lights Sara took her first good look around. The last time she had been here she was too much almost drowned to have a look around. Right next to the door was a kitchenette with an oven and a big fridge. A table with four chairs completed the kitchen area before the room turned into the living room. A couch, an armchair, a TV and a sideboard plus a few plants. Three windows brought light during the day into the room. Two closed doors finished the room. Sara had already found out that the bathroom was the door to the left so the door on the right hand side was to the bedroom. Where she had been after Sofia got her here, coughing and shaking.

"I didn't take my sheets with me for the couch…"

"I've sheets, don't worry about that but you can't turn the couch to a sleep couch."

"All right in that case I've to roll myself up like a cat."

"Sara, this couch isn't a sleep couch."

"Does that mean I'll sleep on the floor?" That wasn't exactly what she had in mind. She was too old to sleep on the floor without a serious backache the next morning, her trip to South America had made that more than clear.

"No, you sleep in my bed."

"You never told me about this part of the plan."

"Scared?" Sofia chuckled. "Again, don't worry you'll sleep in there alone."

"Where will you sleep?"

"In my hammock." Sofia opened a big box that had Sara reminded of a pirate's treasure chest ad pulled a hammock out. A second look at the hammock made it obvious why the box had to be so big. It wasn't an ordinary hammock, there was a mattress in the middle. Interested the brunette watched how Sofia got a snap hook through one ring in the wall and a second one through a ring in the supporting pillar in the middle of the room. Now she had a hammock in her living room with a one by two yards mattress in the middle.

"That's an interesting hammock."

"It's a very handy one. You can't sleep in an ordinary one when you like your back. This one supports your back and it swings like any other hammock. Very handy. I take it sometimes for a sleep outside when there's a really nice night with a lot of stars and a full moon."

"What about the mozzies?"

"I've a huge net."

"Sounds like you're prepared for everything."

"Like a boys scout, always prepared. Feel free to use the bathroom first I have some small things to do so we can start right away in the morning."

"Okay, thanks." Sara went into the bedroom. A queen size bed was in the middle. It looked like a four poster bed with the big net for mozzie protection. Three light green pillows and a bright orange blanket were on top of the bed. Beside a desk with a computer and a huge wardrobe the room was empty. It looked like Sofia wasn't a fan of having a lot of furniture in her place.

Sara dropped her bag on the bed, got her bathroom bag and sleep shirt out and went into the bathroom. She had a sleepover at Sofia's place. Who would have ever thought something like this? It sounded so unreal. If anybody had told her this a week ago she had laughed her head off. No way! Not her! Sharing a house with Sofia, sleeping in the blonde's bed. And now look at her, she was in Sofia's bungalow, was about to sleep in her bed – without Sofia! – and had a good time with her the whole evening. Crazy but true.

"The bathroom is all yours."

"Thanks." Sofia had made herself a bed out of the hammock and handed Sara a small bottle of cold water. "In case you get thirsty tonight."

"Thanks. What time will we get up tomorrow?"

"How early can you get up?"

"Depends on what I get up for."

"A stunning blonde?"

"Late afternoon." Sara shot back dryly.

"Ouch. An astonishing sunrise plus a million fishes in the ocean?"

"Right before sunrise."

"Looks like I lost and nature won."

"So you're telling me you're not nature? You're plastic?" Sara smirked.

"No! Don't you dare to say something like that again, Sara Sidle!"

"Sounded like that…"

"I wish you pleasant dreams – even if you don't deserve then anymore." Sofia vanished in the bathroom under Sara's laughter. That was a nice finish of the day.