“Go drink my champagne and ignore the pathetic girl,” Remington said cheerfully. “We’ll let you know if she drowns or not.”
I focused on my breathing, trying to ignore the way my throat felt ragged and swollen once again, as if I’d never draw in a full breath. My heart was racing so hard my chest ached, as if it were about to burst. My arms and legs were wind milling through the water frantically, keeping me upright but exhausting me, and I tried to slow my pace even though it felt as if I was going to die.
“I don’t know!” I shouted up at Stellan. “I never would’ve hurt her!”
“Bullshit!” Stellan shouted back at me.
He was completely unhinged. I looked over my shoulder at shore, but down here, I could see nothing but the dark waves rolling toward me. I couldn’t see a glimpse of the shore’s bright lights. I tried to swim around the ship, but there was no way up. The guys strolled along the railing, pacing me. Only Stellan seemed to care; he was wild-eyed and frantic. The others were talking, making jokes. Pax began to whistle to himself.
I was exhausted, and my lips kept sinking below the water. My body had shivered so hard my muscles ached, but now I felt warm. Sometimes my toes brushed something underwater—bones, maybe—but the glow coming over me meant I didn’t care.
Some part of my brain knew I was dying, but I didn’t even care anymore. Rest was so close.
“He took her because of you!” Stellan yelled at me.
Was that true?
“She ran away!” I called back, my voice coming out weak in a way that scared me. I wasn't sure Stellan could even hear me.
She’d always hated her stepfather. As warm as her mother was to me, she’d come to hate her mother too, for staying married to him.
“She didn’t run away!” His hands knotted into fists. “That’s what everyone believes, that’s why no one looks for her. But he took her, I know he did.”
The image of my best friend, screaming, tied down to his table while he cut her open surfaced in my mind…
It was so strong, so detailed, that it felt like a memory.
It jolted me, and I swallowed cold water, coming up spitting and sputtering.
Had that happened?
Had I just blocked it from my mind?
There was water in my lungs again, and I kept trying to spit it out, but then I couldn’t manage anymore.
The warm glow blurred things, even the panic that maybe I was the reason The Demon had hurt her.
I was slipping under the waves.
13
Aurora
There was a splashing sound, distantly. Then I felt strong arms circle my waist, drawing me against his body. His legs moved with big, powerful strokes. I was in and out, but then he was passing me up the ladder, and someone caught me, lifted me, laid me down on the hard deck.
Pax rolled me onto my side, and hammered my back hard enough to bruise. I vomited out a burst of water that made my head explode with pain.
Then I was coughing. I was alive.
Cain crouched in front of me, beads of water gliding over his body. His eyes caught me, held me.
“You can’t get away from us that easily, little girl.”
I made it up to my knees, the hard deck seeming to press painfully against my skin, and swayed. I felt sick and light-headed.
Cain scooped me up again. “Move,” he growled at someone who dared to get in his way, then he was carrying me below decks. I caught blurry glimpses of the dancers scattering to get out of his way. Then he deposited me on the bed, his touch surprisingly gentle as his hand cradled my head down to the pillow. I wouldn’t have thought Cain would be capable of gentle.
I shouldn’t have been able to sleep so soon after that dose of fear and adrenaline, but my head felt heavy as if panic had exhausted me. Even my bones felt as if they’d all turned to lead, weighing me down. I found myself drifting into sleep, leaving Cain’s gaze behind.