Page 99 of Treasure of the Abyss

Hearing that eased some of her tension. “Okay.”

Jax leaned down and kissed her forehead. “I must go. I will return as soon as Ican.”

Macy brushed her hand over his arm, nodded, and watched him leave. She counted the seconds; how long would it take for him to gather with the others and exit thebuilding?

When she was sure he wouldn’t come back, she ran across the room and to the dresser. She tugged off her clothes, opened the bottom drawer, and hurriedly donned herPDS.

Jax would be furious when he found out, but that wasn’t important. All that mattered was finding Melaina. Macy wasn’t as fast or maneuverable as the kraken, but she had something none of them possessed —Sam.

Once her mask was sealed, she strapped on her gun and her knife, making sure they were within easy reach. She left the cabins and made her way toward the exit cautiously, checking around every corner before she proceeded, but saw no one. Still, she couldn’t stop glancing over her shoulder as the pressurization chamberdrained.

She entered the chamber. The door slid shut behind her, and she drummed her fingers on the gun holster while the roomfilled.

“Re-pressurization sequence initiated,” Sam said. The light over the exit door turned green, and itopened.

Macy swam out and stilled. The endless, lonely sea surrounded her, and her breath was suddenly short. Those old, familiar feels rushed back and coiled around her heart. Every time she’d been in the water, Jax was by her side, anchoring her with hispresence.

Now she wasalone.

“Irregular respiration detected. Do you requireassistance?”

She closed her eyes and forced herself to take several slow, deepbreaths.

No, not alone. She had Sam. And Melaina neededher.

She reopened her eyes. “Sam, do you have…heat vision, or something like it? Something that will make living creatures standout?”

“Thermal and infrared vision are limited in the water, but living creatures can be detected through a combinationof—”

“I don’t need the details, Sam. Just…turn that on,please?”

“Scanning for living creaturesnow.”

For a moment, her vision was unchanged, and then a soft, barely perceptible wave of light spread outward from her location. As it advanced, spots of brightness appeared. It took her a moment to realize what they were — sea creatures. Fish swam amongst the rocks, and little, many-legged creatures scuttled along the bottom, their forms highlighted by themask.

“Sam, can you show me only creatures the size of a human toddler andlarger?”

“Filtering.”

Most of the highlighted shapesvanished.

One problem down. On to thenext.

Where had Melainagone?

Several small arrows hovered on the left side of her vision; Macy turned her head to see a group of kraken, their bodies highlighted by the mask, swimming in the distance. If they saw her, they’d likely send her back inside. Worse, her violation of the kraken’s terms would provide individuals like Kronus with reason to renew their efforts againsther.

She swam away from the Facility, glancing behind only once. She couldfeelthe distance between her and the doorgrowing.

Her heart pounded, but she kept her breatheven.

I can dothis.

The seafloor was increasingly rocky and uneven as Macy proceeded. She swept her gaze from side to side; large fish drifted near the bottom, and whenever one of them moved out of her field of view, a little marker appeared on the edge of the mask. Sam was detecting creatures all around, whether she was looking at them ornot.

She looked back again. The Facility was little more than a hint of light in the distant gloom, and no kraken had followed her. Macy took another calming breath. She’d be fine; the building was back there, somewhere, and Sam probably knew theway…

Jax will findme.

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