buoys.”
His words hit me hard and I swayed where I stood, telling myself that it was the waves, not my emotions. “You aren’t going to sink,” I managed.
“Just the same. I don’t want to be separated from you, especially if these are the last minutes we have.” He reached out and smoothed my hair, tucking it behind my ear.
We’d said goodbye so many times before, I just didn’t have the heart to do it again. “No, I won’t say it, so get your ass in gear and let’s get out of here.”
He smiled at me, a whisper of the cheeky man he’d once been. He opened his mouth, then froze.
The boat groaned and we sunk another few inches. Jessica let out a yelp, her fingers digging into my arm as she shivered and clung to me. “We have to go,” I said, my throat tightening with fear.
Sebastian swiftly tied the two floats together and he beckoned me over. Jessica made it difficult, but we managed the few steps. I tried to get Jessica to hang on to the float and a very large flaw in our plan became apparent. She couldn’t grip anything; she didn’t have any fine motor skills.
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Shit.”
“Now what?” Bastian asked.
The water was past my belly button and I let out gasp as the water lapped even higher. Jessica stood tight against me, her whole body quivering, her eyes shut tight and her lips parted as she panted for air. Sebastian stood quietly, his eyes not giving any indication of fear or any other emotion.
“We’ll have to tie her to the floats.”
She didn’t resist us as we rushed to tie her between the two floats. Once secured, Sebastian took the float on the left, I took the one on the right and we went to step out into the open water.
“Wait!” Sebastian said, our feet on the lip of the boat. I jumped, startled, as he turned back and dove down into the cab of the boat. I sucked in a lungful of salty air, my heart struggling to catch up with my racing thoughts. What was he doing? There was nothing in there of any value. Bubbles floated to the surface as I started to count in my head. When he’d been down for forty-five seconds I started towards where he’d gone in.
“Come on babe,” I whispered, my hands clenched around a cold, wet length of rope.
A sudden rush of bubbles and he broke the surface, gasping for air. I struggled towards him, grabbed his hands and helped pull him upright. Gripped in his teeth was a large knife.
“You went back for that?” I asked. He nodded and I shook my head as the boat suddenly shifted, groaned, and began to sink in earnest, the water rising at an alarming rate. Jessica let out a howl and I swam—it was easier than walking at that point—to her side. The water was to her chin. I tightened the ropes and tucked her between the two floats. Taking a deep breath I looked over to Sebastian. He had the knife in his left hand, the right on the ropes attached to the float closest to him. He gave me a smile and a wink and my heart lifted a little. For now, he was with me, 100%.
With a small push, we were out in open water, the floats sagging under the weight of the three of us, but holding. Jessica whimpered, her eyes still shut, her body limp in the ropes.
“This isn’t so bad,” I said, as we started to swim for shore.
“It’s a long ways in, love. I wouldn’t get too cocky, yet,” Bastian said. I rolled in the water to face him and saw that he was struggling to keep his head above water. He was still heavy with the effects of Nevermore, the density in his bones dragging him down.
There was nothing I could do except swim harder and hope, to all that was holy, that we would make it.
Halfway to shore was when the quiet calm that had settled over us evaporated in the hot mid-afternoon sun. My mind and body were numb from the constant push. I could see Sebastian out the corner of my eye still struggling, but keeping it together. Jessica was still pretty much a rag doll in between us, her breathing rapid, but her body
His words hit me hard and I swayed where I stood, telling myself that it was the waves, not my emotions. “You aren’t going to sink,” I managed.
“Just the same. I don’t want to be separated from you, especially if these are the last minutes we have.” He reached out and smoothed my hair, tucking it behind my ear.
We’d said goodbye so many times before, I just didn’t have the heart to do it again. “No, I won’t say it, so get your ass in gear and let’s get out of here.”
He smiled at me, a whisper of the cheeky man he’d once been. He opened his mouth, then froze.
The boat groaned and we sunk another few inches. Jessica let out a yelp, her fingers digging into my arm as she shivered and clung to me. “We have to go,” I said, my throat tightening with fear.
Sebastian swiftly tied the two floats together and he beckoned me over. Jessica made it difficult, but we managed the few steps. I tried to get Jessica to hang on to the float and a very large flaw in our plan became apparent. She couldn’t grip anything; she didn’t have any fine motor skills.
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Shit.”
“Now what?” Bastian asked.
The water was past my belly button and I let out gasp as the water lapped even higher. Jessica stood tight against me, her whole body quivering, her eyes shut tight and her lips parted as she panted for air. Sebastian stood quietly, his eyes not giving any indication of fear or any other emotion.
“We’ll have to tie her to the floats.”
She didn’t resist us as we rushed to tie her between the two floats. Once secured, Sebastian took the float on the left, I took the one on the right and we went to step out into the open water.
“Wait!” Sebastian said, our feet on the lip of the boat. I jumped, startled, as he turned back and dove down into the cab of the boat. I sucked in a lungful of salty air, my heart struggling to catch up with my racing thoughts. What was he doing? There was nothing in there of any value. Bubbles floated to the surface as I started to count in my head. When he’d been down for forty-five seconds I started towards where he’d gone in.
“Come on babe,” I whispered, my hands clenched around a cold, wet length of rope.
A sudden rush of bubbles and he broke the surface, gasping for air. I struggled towards him, grabbed his hands and helped pull him upright. Gripped in his teeth was a large knife.
“You went back for that?” I asked. He nodded and I shook my head as the boat suddenly shifted, groaned, and began to sink in earnest, the water rising at an alarming rate. Jessica let out a howl and I swam—it was easier than walking at that point—to her side. The water was to her chin. I tightened the ropes and tucked her between the two floats. Taking a deep breath I looked over to Sebastian. He had the knife in his left hand, the right on the ropes attached to the float closest to him. He gave me a smile and a wink and my heart lifted a little. For now, he was with me, 100%.
With a small push, we were out in open water, the floats sagging under the weight of the three of us, but holding. Jessica whimpered, her eyes still shut, her body limp in the ropes.
“This isn’t so bad,” I said, as we started to swim for shore.
“It’s a long ways in, love. I wouldn’t get too cocky, yet,” Bastian said. I rolled in the water to face him and saw that he was struggling to keep his head above water. He was still heavy with the effects of Nevermore, the density in his bones dragging him down.
There was nothing I could do except swim harder and hope, to all that was holy, that we would make it.
Halfway to shore was when the quiet calm that had settled over us evaporated in the hot mid-afternoon sun. My mind and body were numb from the constant push. I could see Sebastian out the corner of my eye still struggling, but keeping it together. Jessica was still pretty much a rag doll in between us, her breathing rapid, but her body
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