Page 79 of Explorer's Revenge
Its mouth clamps down on his leg, dragging him off her as he screams, clawing at the dirt as he’s hauled away. Maeve climbsto her feet and starts firing at its face as I race toward Logan, picking up a stick as I go.
Adrenaline pumps through me as his scream grows louder.
Leaping onto its back, I stab the stick into its head with all the strength I possess. It shakes from side to side, jarring Logan in its mouth as he howls, before I hit a sensitive spot that causes it to let him go. Maeve drags Logan away, and they fall into the dirt, him lying across her. His eyes are open, but he’s bleeding from his leg, and he looks pale.
It jerks suddenly, and I’m thrown from its back. Rolling across the dirt, I smack into Way, who’s coming over to help, knocking him back. That thing turns and focuses on Maeve and Logan again, and she pushes him aside, kneeling in front of him as she reloads. It gets closer and closer as I scramble to my feet. Finally, she lifts her arm and fires as it roars and spins, hitting her with its tail and knocking her into a tree. Her gun is gone.
Logan yells for her, and when it advances on her again, he’s the closest.
“Logan, no!” I bellow, but it’s too late. He throws himself into its path to protect Maeve, who’s slowly sitting up, shaking her bleeding head. Wrapping himself around its mouth, he tries to hold it shut, yelling the entire time.
“The gun!” I yell at Way as I rush over. He hurries to find it as Aiyaret protects Rick. The croc jerks its head, and Logan flies off, rolling across the ground until he’s by Maeve, but that thing keeps advancing, even when Way finds the rifle.
“Wilder!” he yells as he tosses it to me.
Catching it midair, I spin, ready to fire, but freeze.
Its jaw is open to swallow Maeve, but Logan presses his feet to the top and bottom of its mouth. When it snaps its maw shut, it catches his leg, and the agony-filled scream that leaves his mouth will haunt me for the rest of my life. He drops to the ground, screaming, and I fire.
I keep firing as it chomps, tossing something in his mouth, and I realize it’s Logan’s leg.
Horror makes my stomach roil as Maeve scrambles to staunch the bleeding, but I don’t have time to check on them. I keep firing, and it snarls before diving into the jungle, racing away from us.
I keep the gun up, my arms shaking, but when it doesn’t return, I glance back.
Logan is still screaming and writhing on the ground, and Way is with Maeve, both covering his right thigh, his leg missing just past the knee.
His leg is fucking gone.
Oh God.
FORTY-FOUR
MAEVE
Panic grips my chest and tears fill my eyes as I stare down at Logan. His face is pale and covered in sweat, and his eyes are too wide, showing too much white. He’s still screaming, the horrible noise filled with terror and agony.
“My leg, my leg!” he finally shouts. “Is it gone? Is it gone? I can’t—I can’t feel it!”
“Carter, keep him calm!” Way orders. “The more he panics, the faster his heart pumps.”
I feel tears drip down my cheeks as I pull my hands away from the stump where the bottom half of his leg used to be. I’m covered in blood, and Way swears as he tries to stop the bleeding, but Logan is moving so much, it’s hard.
Gripping his face, I force him to look at me. “It’s going to be okay. It’s going to be okay,” I insist, but tears won’t stop falling from my eyes. “You’re my hero, do you know that?”
“Maeve,” he cries. “My leg . . . Is my leg gone?”
I glance at Way, who shakes his head, and I force a smile. “You’re okay. You’ll be okay,” I repeat.
“I can’t . . . I can’t be an explorer without my leg. Is it gone? Please tell me!” he yells as Way does something and swears.
“Pin him down!” he shouts.
I force my full weight across him even as I cry, guilt and horror winding through me. I can still hear the bone crunching when the croc bit off his leg. My stomach churns as I shake my head, trying to focus on Logan and nothing else.
If it wasn’t for him, that would have been me.
He saved me, but at what cost?
