Page 47 of Weston

“Wes! Oh, God, hurry!”

Her cry for help made him move faster despite the slippery bottom. Somehow he managed not to wipe out even though he lost his footing several times. After a few turns, his flashlight beam landed on her. Hunched over, wrists tied up and secured to some metal rod buried in the rocky wall, Ellie had her head twisted at a funny angle, doing her best to keep her nose above the quickly-rising water. But waves kept pounding through the small tunnel, washing over her face, and she was probably ten seconds away from being completely submerged.

“I’ve got you. Hold on!” Wes finally reached her just as her entire face disappeared under water.Fuck.Pulling in a deep breath, he lowered his face beneath the surface, pressed his mouth to hers and blew air from his lungs into hers. Then he gave her arm a squeeze, reached down into his boot and yanked his knife out.

???

Ellie did her best to remain calm and suppress the rising hysteria. But the water kept getting deeper and no one was coming to her rescue. She’d rubbed her wrists raw trying to escape, but the damn rope refused to loosen. Now, knowing she only had minutes left before she was completely submerged, she felt a strange calmness pass over her. This was it. There’d be no escape this time.

Weston.His name filled her head and she wished she had more comforting memories with him to ease her transition into death. But, she didn’t and she felt cheated. Tears streamed down her cheeks, mixing with the seawater that splashed up and hit her in the face. Gasping for air, she thought she heard Wes call her name. Hoped was probably more accurate.

“ELLIE!”

Her eyes popped open and she twisted her head, straining to keep her nose above the dangerously high water. Wes was there, coming for her. He was alive! “Wes! Oh, God, hurry!”

Like some kind of mirage, or maybe the miracle she’d asked for, a beam of light appeared and then she saw him, heading straight toward her. She got a quick glimpse of his soft, brown eyes—now filled with worry—before the ocean finally and completely covered her. He said something, but she couldn’t hear. Then his lips pressed against hers. For a moment, it felt like a goodbye kiss, but then she realized what he was doing. Opening her mouth, accepting the air he offered, Ellie breathed in, her lungs gratefully filling.

Renewed with a burst of determination, Ellie opened her eyes as he squeezed her arm reassuringly and began cutting through the rope that secured her to the rod.Oh, thank God.Excitement filled her as the rope frayed and broke beneath the sawing blade.

It wasn’t long before her lungs started to burn again. She nudged his shoulder, needing more air. Wes broke the surface then immediately came back down and opened his mouth against hers, giving her the breath she needed. Her lungs expanded and she watched Wes lift the knife again. Right as he began to start the final cuts, his entire body flew backwards and Ellie watched in shock as he was dragged away from her.

Their eyes met through the watery depth, or maybe she just imagined it. Time seemed to freeze. Then it sped up so fast, everything blurred. Wes tossed the knife and flashlight at her, hard and fast, before being yanked out of sight, somehow jerked back through the dark, swirling water.

What the hell was going on?

Her gaze dropped to the knife and flashlight now laying near her foot. Lowering herself, she reached for the knife, knowing she had to grab it and finish freeing herself fast. Wes had managed to cut through most of the rope, but there hadn’t been enough time to finish the job. Now, it was up to her.

Stretching her arms out, her fingertips brushed the edge of the blade’s handle before the current shifted, picked it up and swept it right out of her reach. Lungs burning, her hope just swirled away with her only chance of freeing herself.

It was over.

???

Goddammit!The rope around Wes’ waist jerked him away from Ellie, knocking him off-balance, and the only thing he could do was throw her his Ka-Bar and flashlight so she could finish freeing herself. Someone was dragging him away from the woman he was intent on saving. Heads were gonna fucking roll.

His team wouldn’t pull him out unless he’d alerted them he had Ellie. That could only mean one thing: there was a problem. Fucking pirates.

He didn’t have time to untie the knot and free himself, so he reached for his Glock and came up out of the water like an avenging Aquaman. A quick assessment told him everything he needed to know: Pirates? Check. His team fighting back and kicking ass? Check. The scum holding the end of his rope and trying to drag him away from Ellie? Dead.

Wes fired off two successive shots and the pirate dropped. Turning his weapon, he scanned over the situation, and quickly decided his team had it handled. His priority was getting back in that cave and making sure Ellie had been able to free herself.

But what if she hadn’t gotten hold of the knife? What if something bad happened in the last thirty seconds that would forever change the rest of his life?No.He’d found his wife and he wasn’t losing her. Not again. Wes turned and charged back into the drowned cave, ignoring his soaked liner and slippery prosthetic. Trying to disregard the sharp fingernails of doom scraping across his gut, tearing it open.

“Ellie!” he yelled, plunging himself back into the dark, winding cavern.

???

With her lungs ready to explode, Ellie gathered all of her sapped strength and gave it one last shot. She stretched her leg out, reaching with her foot, stretching her arms out until they screamed and felt like they would rip from their sockets. Her foot barely brushed the tip of the knife’s handle.

Nooo.It was still out of reach. Her heart plummeted and all she could think about was being the reason Wes would shatter and break all over again. Why did he love her so much? She didn’t deserve it. More importantly, she couldn’t bear for him to go through losing her all over again. It wasn’t right or fair, and she hated herself for it. Inflicting pain on the man who loved her more than anything killed her.

Suddenly, the current shifted, spinning Wes’ knife closer and Ellie sprang, reaching back out. Her fingers curled around the knife’s handle and, even though she was out of air, a renewed fire burned through her. Moving back to the rod, she gripped the blade firmly between her tied hands and finished cutting through the section where Wes had been working on. The rope severed after three strong cuts and Ellie felt her body get picked up and tossed around in the wildly shifting water.

Desperate for air, she kicked hard, found her footing, and her head broke through the surface. Gasping, choking, she dragged in several lungfuls of air before she saw Wes approaching her fast, a wild look in his usually calm, grounding gaze.

“Ellie!”

“Wes!” she screamed. He grabbed her, crushing her against his chest, and she nearly wept. She was safe, alive and clinging to the man she loved. Though she didn’t remember their past, sheknew they had a future together, and it was a bright, beautiful one that she looked forward to more than anything.

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