Page 3 of Raven's Nest
She startled at the next boom of thunder. “We have to go. The hull’s not going to last much longer.”
She turned, working that damn crank.
He shifted off to her right, each step sending another shiver down her spine, the sound reminiscent of those men. The calculated tap. The way it echoed. “I thought you were dead, already.”
Already?
She glanced over her shoulder at him, her inner voice poking at her. “I… Were we attacked? And what’s that pulse that keeps bellowing up from the hull? I can’t remember anything once it hits.”
“I’ll explain it all later.” He motioned to the crank. “Keep turning.”
She blinked, then refocused on the handle. On lowering the boat without breaking the remaining line. The wind rocked the craft sideways, tugging on the rigging until she thought it’d snap. A weight settled between her shoulders, the hairs on her neck prickling.
She stopped and waved Maddox over. “Get onboard. I can’t guarantee this line won’t break. Someone should be at the helm, just in case. If all goes well, I’ll lower it the rest of the way, then climb down.”
“I really wish it hadn’t come to this.”
“It wasn’t your fault, but I can’t leave you here.” She grabbed the other line when it looked as if it was about to let go. “We can talk once we’re underway.”
“I… I can’t… She’s been like a daughter to me.” A step. “You do it.”
She froze.
His words. That step.
Both sent off warning bells in her head. She tightened her grip on her weapon, mapping out how she’d counter a dynamic situation as she shifted her gaze to the Zodiac’s window — staring at the reflected scene behind her with the next flash. A figure stood beside Maddox, half his face hidden in shadows, a gun pointed her way. His finger moved — slid inside the trigger guard — when the ship dipped hard to starboard as a report boomed through the air. Pain tore through her shoulder blade, the force of the hit pitching her forward. The Zodiac swung, catching her in the thighs — tumbling her onto the deck as it continued through, hanging in mid-air before swinging back. She hit hard, head grazing the edge of the rear seat, her weapon sliding across the molded fiberglass and into the raging waves below.
The line snapped, dropping the Zodiac the last twenty feet into the water. The vessel bounced, nearly submerging as theVigilanttipped, the resulting surge pushing the Zodiac away as the massive ship listed hard to port. A horn sounded in the distance, the hollow tone lingering in the air as she drifted in a numbing haze, none of the signals getting past the throbbing in her head.
Rain stung her skin, the biting wind finally rousing her. She groaned, blood mixing with the water beneath her as she rolled over — dragged her back against the seat. Thunder clapped above her, each bolt of lightning highlighting the storm. Clouds circling. Waves looming above.
Saylor swallowed, nearly blacked out, then staggeredto her feet. She cradled her right arm as she stumbled to the helm, starting the engines as she scoured the horizon. TheVigilantwas gone, Maddox along with it. Nothing but massive swells and raging crests in every direction.
She grabbed the first aid kit from beneath the panel, did her best to plug the hole — brace her arm enough to use the throttle.
Had she been shot?
She couldn’t remember. Couldn’t get the thoughts to stay long enough to be sure.
A whispered pep talk, and she managed to crawl across the deck — grab a life vest. Not that it would do much if she ended up in the water. But it gave her a false sense of hope. That if she pushed past her limits — rose to the challenge — she just might get to shore alive.
The Zodiac roared to life as she hit the throttle, riding the swells up, then down. She aimed the bow east, aware she’d likely capsize before she’d covered any significant distance, but she’d try. Go down fighting.
She worked the throttle, surfing the waves, using every trick she’d learned to keep the boat upright. Squeeze one more mile out of her before it all went sideways. More dots slid across her vision, the numbing cold slowly drawing her under.
The wind howled past, and the salt stung her eyes, but she kept pushing — clawing out a few more minutes of life. An ear-piercing pulse sounded in the distance, the deafening tone ringing through her head and into her chest. Rattling what was left of her thoughts androiling her stomach, just like when she’d been back on the ship. Or maybe the noise was simply her imagination. Remnants of theVigilantas it finally sank beneath the surface. Either way, hearing the reverberation echo as she slumped against the wheel seemed fitting, that ominous tone following her into the darkness.
Light.
Brighter than it should be. Burning through her eyelids. Too white to be the sun. More like a spotlight. The same intensity she’d seen on the ship a moment before the bulbs had exploded.
Saylor inhaled, adrenaline spiking her heart rate as she pried open her eyelids. The harsh glare roiled her stomach, and she turned — dry heaving over the edge — her cheek braced against a metal railing.
Gentle hands brushed back her hair, a soft, cool towel dabbing her forehead. “Easy. You’re still too weak to be up and about. Sleep.”
That voice. She recognized it. What was her name?
The thought drifted with her in a numbing haze, weaving in and out of the images flashing in her head. The remnants of a memory trying to take shape. There had been shouting and chaos — footsteps racing along the hallways — then some kind of pulse that had dropped her to her knees…
