Lifting one hand, Mathias places his palm against his chest, feigning a look of deep gratitude. "I have no words to express how thankful I am," he tells her, even as his mouth curves up into a grin he can't control.

Shifting, he returns his water bottle to his pack, gaze flickering toward the sky for a moment as he tries to judge where the sun is and how long they have before it sets. He isn't nervous, exactly, Veronica has more than distracted him, but the fear is there. Always there. "Should we get back?" he asks, looking back to her, defaulting to her knowledge of this island.