“I’m trying, Glen! What are you hooting for anyways? It isn’t illegal to hunt sharks out here.” He chunked a large wad of the nasty bait into the water, oblivious to my presence.
“Doesn’t matter. If Chief Bailey or that dimwit deputy of his, finds us out here baiting, he’ll take us straight to jail, say we were polluting the waters or something.” Glen clicked his flashlight on, scanning the sea around the dock. “And I don’t like being out here. Something eerie about how peaceful and dark these waters get at night. You wouldn’t know what swam around until it hit you.”
“The only thing eerie out here is your stank-ass ordering me around,” Ray mumbled under his breath.
“What was that?” The heavier man aimed the golden beam in Ray’s face, momentarily blinding him.
“N-nothing Glen,” he stuttered, chumming the water with speed.
“Mhm. Help me with this circle hook. I can’t see shit out here even with the flashlight.” The two men fumbled with stringing the large metal hook, preparing to cast it out as they intended to use it to fish for sharks. I dipped my head back into the ocean, drifting into the darkness, waiting.
The current rippled as I watched the metal hook sink, piercing a thick chunk of fish meat. The old, clotted blood of the carcass clouded the water, disgracing it with its foul odor and taste.
“Now, we wait.” Glen’s muffled words sank through the water as I watched him tie the fishing line to the wooden post of the old dock. The two men then sat in a pair of old lawn chairs, waiting to catch a shark.
You want a shark? Fine, I’ll give you a shark.
“Glen? Glen! Look. Look!” Ray pointed to the fishing line, watching as it tugged, rippling the blood-stained water.
“Holy shit. We did it, Ray. We really did it! We caught a shark!” The two cheered, shocked by their successful endeavor.Fucking fools.
“Wait, Glen.” Ray stopped, the gleeful look dripping down his pale face. “How are we supposed to pull it up?” Before either of the idiots could muster a thought, the line pulled harder, causing the rickety old dock to sway. “What was that, Glen?”
“Shut up, Ray!” he snapped, standing. He glanced around the water, pointing the beam of his flashlight into the darkness below. The line tugged harder, the wood of the dock splitting as it began to separate. The impact sent Glen back, landing on his ass as he scuttled.
“Glen!” Ray yelled, watching as Glen and the end of the dock completely broke from the rest of the pier, drifting out to sea.
“Shit. Ray. Ray!” Glen stumbled, falling as the wooden planks began to unhook from one another, breaking into the water, slowly submerging.
“What do I do, Glen?” Ray shouted, panicking as he watched the distance grow between him and his friend.
“The rope. Throw me the rope!” Glen pointed.
Ray quickly grabbed the thick rope, tossing the end towards him. It sank, hitting the water, completely missing Glen.
“Damn it, Ray! Pull it back and toss it again. Quickly!” he snapped as the thin man reeled the rope back.
Ray tossed the rope a second time, the end landing perfectly in the heavy man’s hands. Ray rushed, looping the thick rope around the wooden pillar, tying it tightly as Glen began to tug, pulling himself towards the pier. Ray watched helplessly, the color draining from his face as he raised his hand, pointing out toward the abyss. “S-s-sh-sh—”
“What?” Glen snapped, struggling to pull himself towards the pier, the heavy weight of the wet wood slowing him down. “What is it? Spit it out, Ray!”
“S-sh-sh-ar-k-k!”
Glen turned just as I lunged from the water, my jaws wide as I sunk my razor sharp teeth into his flesh. His screams faded as we slammed into the water, aiming further into the shadows. The man struggled, bubbles pouring from his mouth as he tried to punch me, kicking his feet, fighting to survive. It was pointless.
I bit down harder, the sound of his bones crunching as my teeth pierced deeper into his meaty flesh, the taste of his blood pouring into my mouth. It was savory, with a hint of a bitter aftertaste. I devoured him, quickly consuming all that I couldbefore swimming back towards the dock.Time to take care of your friend.
Ray stood at the edge of the ripped dock, twisting his cap with his hands, crying as he squinted, peering into the water. “Glen?” he sobbed, wiping his face. “Glen? Where’d you go? Come on now, this isn’t funny.” He kneeled, leaning closer to the water, noticing something in the depths below. “Glen?”
I shot towards his silhouette, noticing the immediate shift in his face, fear smothering him as my teeth clenched around his neck, ripping his head clean from his body. I bit down, swallowing it whole before circling back to finish off his body as it lay, the decapitated corpse dangling over the dock, his blood pouring into the water like wine.
I hate fishermen.
SIX
DELILAH
It had beendays since I last saw Reef. I frequented that same spot on the beach every morning and evening, desperately hoping to find him sitting there like before, but every time. I was disappointed.What happened to him? Was he avoiding me? Did I do something?I couldn’t help but blame myself, as though I was the reason for his absence.
