Epilogue
Teague stood at the edge of the overlook, watching the last rays of sunlight paint the canyon walls in brilliant shades of orange and purple.
Beautiful.
Breathtaking, even. The kind of view that usually cleared his head. Made problems feel smaller.
But his mind wasn’t on the view.
It was on Eden.
Always Eden.
It had been just over a week since the rescue, since Jeremy’s arrest, since everything had gone down. A week of watching Noah and Meg find their way back to each other. Of seeing Liam and Nimue stronger than ever.
A good week for everyone but him, apparently.
Eden had been avoiding him since the day he’d taken down Jeremy.
No—since before that.
Since the moment he’d hung out of that helicopter. Since she’d watched the video of him spray-painting those coordinates with the ground literally crumbling beneath him. Since she’d seen how close he’d come to dying.
They’d all been gathered in the conference room. The guys laughing and cheering his heroics. But he’d seen something shift in her expression that day—fear bleeding into anger, anger hardening into distance. And she’d been pulling back ever since.
It hurt more than he wanted to admit. More than made sense for a friendship.
He didn’t understand it. They were just friends—technically, officially, on paper—but the friendship had been getting closer. Deeper. The way she looked at him sometimes. The conversations that stretched longer than necessary. The spark he felt whenever she was near.
He hadn’t imagined that.
He couldn’t have.
But now?
Every time he tried to talk to her, she found an excuse to leave. Every time their eyes met across a room, she looked away first. She’d even stopped scheduling herself for the same shifts as him.
She was shutting him out, and he had no idea why.
Chase after someone who clearly didn’t want to be caught? Force a conversation she was actively avoiding? That wasn’t his style.
But letting her go without a fight didn’t feel right either.
The sound of boots on gravel made him turn. Liam approached, holding a piece of copy paper, his expression serious.
“Got a minute?” Liam asked.
“Yeah.” Teague pushed thoughts of Eden aside. Compartmentalized. “What’s up?”
“This just surfaced. Seems to be legit.” Liam held out the paper. “It’s a poem. About the Roosevelt gold.”
Teague took it, studying the faded handwriting. Three stanzas, each four lines long. “Where did this come from?”
“Evidently the Roosevelt family released it.” Liam pulled out his phone. “I already sent a message to Noah. He’s on his way.”
Teague skimmed over the paper. Then read the first stanza aloud.
“Where the river carved its deepest mark, In shadows hidden in a crevasse dark, A treasure rests in canyon deep, Where ancient stones their secrets keep.” His voice carried across the empty overlook.
“The river’s deepest mark is the bottom of the canyon.” Liam tapped the paper with his index finger. “Has to be the first chest. The one Nimue found.”
Teague nodded and moved to the second stanza.
“High above where eagles soar, On cliffs where no footsteps came before, Where birds find rest on rocky ledge, A chest awaits at heaven’s edge.”
Liam frowned. “Where birds land, and on a ledge. That could be anywhere in the canyon.”
“Yeah, not really helpful, but definitely not about the one in the cave.” Teague moved on to the third stanza, reading with growing understanding.
“In caverns hidden from the light, Where darkness reigns both day and night, Tucked in the rocks it waits for you, A chest hides where the spring flows through.”
“That is the cave. It was only about ten feet from Tapeats Spring.”
Liam paced a few steps away then back.
Teague nodded slowly, piecing it together. “So the first one’s already been recovered. The third one’s lost in the cave-in. Which means—”
“The second stanza is the only one left to find.” Liam ran a hand through his hair. “The most obscure, of course.”
“Could be any of the cliff faces, any of the plateaus, any of the—” Teague stopped, looking out at the canyon. At the endless expanse of vertical rock. Thousands of potential sites. Hundreds of miles of cliffs.
“This is going to take months to search properly. And now we will go from cave rescues to climbers who don’t know what they’re doing. Just perfect.”
Amateur treasure hunters with inadequate gear and overconfident attitudes. Teague could already see the rescue calls stacking up.
The hunt for the Roosevelt gold was back on.
And they had thought the canyon was in chaos before.
“Great.” Liam’s voice was dry. “Just what we needed.”
Teague stared at the paper in his hands and knew it was about to turn their lives upside down. Again.
The poem would spread. Social media. News outlets. Treasure hunters from across the country descending on the canyon. All of them convinced they’d be the ones to find it.
All of them putting themselves at risk.
All of them needing rescue.
He sighed, looking back out at the canyon. The light was almost gone now—shadows claiming the depths, stars beginning to emerge overhead.
Then there was the woman he couldn’t stop thinking about.
Eden, with her technical knowledge and guarded heart. Eden, who knew exactly how dangerous climbing could be.
Was that why she was pulling away? Because she’d seen him risk everything for some spray-paint coordinates? Because she couldn’t handle watching him take chances?
Or was it something else entirely?
The questions circled in his mind as Liam’s phone buzzed with an incoming text.
The hunt was on.
But Teague’s mind was still on Eden. On the woman who was running. And on whether he had the courage to chase her.
Whether she’d let him catch her if he did.
Whether some treasures were worth the risk of searching.
Even when you didn’t know if you’d survive the hunt.
Thank you for reading In Too Deep. We hope you loved the story. The action, adventure, and romance concludes with Nothing But Air, the final thrilling Summer Rangers adventure by Susan May Warren and Tari Faris.
One last chance at fortune—or disaster.
The Grand Canyon is officially closed, but treasure hunters keep sneaking in and getting injured on deadly cliff faces. The only option for the Summer Rangers is: find the treasure to end the chaos.
Ranger Dispatcher Eden Garrison and former championship climber has built her new life on solid ground—no more death-defying ascents, no more tragic deaths. But when her secret past is exposed, she's forced back into the dangerous vertical world in the hopes of saving lives.
Ranger and Adrenaline junkie Teague Hamilton lives for the rush, but this mission isn't about glory—it's about the woman climbing beside him whom he’s harbored feelings for all summer. But. Eden's walls are sky-high, and Teague knows the only way to reach her is to prove he'll never let her fall.
When family heir Marcus Roosevelt arrives with knowledge of the treasure location and Eden's old climbing friend Alex Morrison show up to help end the deadly treasure hunt, two teams are on the hunt.
But Alex and Marcus are not who they seem.
When mysterious accidents start happening and teammates are injured, Teague and Eden realize this is much more than a hunt for treasure—it's a fight for their lives.
They're about to discover the only treasure that matters is trust... and the only way out is together.
Don’t look down.
Perfect for readers who love their romance with heart-stopping heights, NOTHING BUT AIR delivers death-defying climbs, psychological suspense, and the breathtaking chemistry between a broken climber and the fearless man determined to catch her when she falls.
Keep reading for a sneak peek…
Nothing But Air | Summer Rangers #3