Page 63 of Lover from the Waves

There was no time to despair.

She took a deep breath, pressed her lips together, and let herself sink under the water. Her heart skipped a beat when she spotted the creature swimming only a few meters away, its motions erratic and jerky, as though it were being led in conflicting directions. If it was only responding to sound and movement—which she was almost certain of by now—she guessed it was being overly stimulated by the churning water and the debris floating atop it.

Tilting her head back to set her focus on the rope, which was blurred and barely visible through the rippling surface, Kathryn kicked her feet and swept her arms down, launching herself up into the open air. She thrust her hand up again. The rope brushed her palm, and she closed her fingers around it.

Gravity pulled her back down. For an instant, the rope went taut, and she felt the strain on her shoulder and elbow as the rope took her weight. Then the rope slipped out of her wet hand.

Her heart stopped for an instant as she dropped back into the water, plunging deeper than before. Her hair obscured her view; she swept it aside as she desperately attempted to orient herself. True terror pierced Kathryn’s heart the instant her vision was clear.

The beast, with its big, tooth-ringed mouth opened wide, was speeding directly toward her.

Kathryn refused to let fear freeze her in place. She called upon all her strength to swim out of its path, swinging her arms and legs desperately. The creature’s mouth passed within a few centimeters of her back. But she didn’t have any such clearance from its fins, which struck her hard, powered by the creature’s size and momentum.

She spun around, and her world became a chaotic blur of bubbles and roiling water. Effectively blind in those moments, she kicked her legs, forcing herself toward what she hoped was the surface.

When her head broke into open air, she threw it back and sucked in a burning breath.

“Kathryn!” Ector desperately called out. “The rope!”

Kat turned and nearly cried out in relief when she spotted the rope nearby—half a meter of which was now floating on the surface of the water. Behind her, the creature thrashed, sending out waves that threatened to push her away from her lifeline, from her salvation. She gritted her teeth and swam harder than ever to cover that last bit of distance.

She stretched out an arm to grasp the free-floating rope and quickly wrapped it around her wrist, pulling herself to it. “Now,” she shouted as she latched onto it with her other hand.

The force suddenly exerted on that line was immense. The rope bit into her wrist and threatened to pull her shoulder and elbow out of their sockets, but she would not let go. Her torso emerged from the water. Another yank tugged her legs out to the knees.

The creature whipped its snake like body toward her and lunged again, lifting its toothy maw partway out of the water.

Ector roared.

Just before the creature could strike, Kathryn was pulled out of the water completely. Her boots brushed the monster’s back. She clutched the rope and, limbs trembling, lifted her legs away from the thing. The creature dipped under the surface again, becoming a pale, blurred shape in the deep blue.

Another tug on the rope lifted her another meter over the water. Kathryn released a rough, ragged breath, relaxed her legs, and finally looked up. Her eyes widened all over again.

Ector wasn’t justleanedover the edge—almost his entire body was beyond it, his torso angled down toward her. The end of the rope was wrapped around his right arm, and he was using both it and his left hand to haul her up a little at a time. His muscles were strained, defined harshly by his exertion, and she could see the bulging veins under his skin even from this distance. At least four of his tentacles were on the rock face below him; she imagined his suction cups had taken whatever desperate purchase they could on the bare stone.

She felt twice as heavy as normal, especially given her wet clothing, but Ector barely swayed as he pulled her up. She knew in the logical part of her mind that she should still be terrified; his position looked so dangerous, so precarious, that he could’ve fallen at any moment. But her relief was too immense, and it was difficult to focus on any logical thoughts while her skin was impossibly hot, and her heart was racing.

As soon as she was within reach, Ector wrapped an arm around her and drew her against his hard chest. As hot as Kat was, the heat radiating from Ector was far greater—but it was welcoming, soothing, comforting. His crushing embrace was the best thing she’d ever felt. Closing her eyes, she threw her arms around his neck, wrapped her legs around his waist, and held on tight despite the aches and pains in her limbs.

Ector buried his face against her hair and rasped, “Kathryn.”

For a few moments, they just held each other, and everything else was forgotten. It wasn’t until he began to slowly raise his torso that she opened her eyes and allowed herself to recall their current position.

Ector’s body was well beyond the edge of the hole, anchored by those tentacles on the cliff face—and his other four tentacles, which were spread wide behind them, each tangled in huge clusters of vines and vegetation that were all pulled taut.

Somehow, she found it in her to tighten her hold on him. The vegetation he was using to keep himself in place shook as he continued his smooth but slow movement. Kathryn did the only thing she could do to help—she bent all her willpower toward the plants, silently begging them to hold, to remain strong.

Though it felt as though an eternity had passed, Ector was upright and easing back from the edge within seconds, maintaining his solid embrace on her.

They said nothing as he carried her back to camp. Ector refused to relinquish his hold on her, and Kathryn was fine with that. She needed his solidness, his closeness. She neededhim. His hearts pounded, his body shivered around her, and his grip only seemed to tighten as he moved.

It wasn’t until they were in the center of their camp—which they’d not even set up yet—that everything crashed down upon Kathryn. They were alive.Shewas alive. The relief was so powerful it brought tears to her eyes. They spilled down her cheeks and onto Ector’s skin. She released one shuddering breath after another, her shoulders shaking with her cries.

Ector slid one hand up along her spine and buried it in her hair, cradling the back of her head. His entire body was wracked by shivers.

Kat lifted her head and drew her arms back to cup his jaw. Expression strained, he searched her face as though memorizing every minute detail. Within those golden eyes, she saw all the same fear, relief, love, and need that was brimming within her.

“Ector,” she whispered, brushing her thumbs over his cheeks.

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