Bang.
A gunshot rings through the forest, and the bullet whizzes right by our heads. I muffle my scream, burying my lips against Roman’s shoulder.
“Almost there. Get ready to swim as hard as you can,” he says with a raspy voice. His breathing is labored, but he doesn’t let up.
My stomach coils. “Swim? The lake is too big to cross!” The words come out shaky. The adrenaline is already coursing through my body.
It’s the same feeling as the night Callum tried to kill me.
Another shot and something hits the back of the vest. Pain instantly flares up in my shoulder, and I choke on a breath. My muscles seize up. I can’t hold on, and I’m slipping from Roman’s arms. I hit the sand and roll a few times before I’m being dragged up to my feet and thrown into the lake. The cold water hits my body like a lightning strike.
“Go!” Roman shouts as I practically inhale a mouthful of water. My body isn’t responding—I think I was just shot. I start hyperventilating and stare with horror as three figures erupt from the tree line around the beach.
“Goddamn it.” Roman gets in the water too and grabs my arm, hooking it around his neck. “Don’t let go,” he growls as he starts pumping his legs.
The water is so icy that each breath feels heavier than the last. Not to mention there’s a fucking dead guy in here somewhere. I shudder at the thought.
That could very likely be us soon.
“W-who are they?” I barely get the words out past my clattering teeth.
Roman’s growing tired. I can feel his muscles trembling. “Men who want me dead and you likely dead or alive.” He leaves it vague, but at least he answered me.
Either Roman’s cult is a lot crazier than I initially thought, or he’s in something much worse. But why me? I have nothing to do with any of this.
They start shooting at us from the beach. Bullets pelt the water inches away from us, and I barely have time to inhale a deep breath before Roman dives under.
We get separated, and I can’t see a fucking thing. I swim desperately in what I think is the same direction we were going. My clothes are pinching around my joints suffocatingly. It feels like they’ll drag me under if I don’t keep swimming like my life depends on it.
I can’t hold my breath any longer. The last time I had to hold my breath with my heart racing like it is right now, I was in a grave. The second the water breaks, I inhale sharply and muffle my coughs in case we’re still close enough for them to hear.
It’s a sobering predicament to be in: swimming alone in a vast expanse of black water. Night swimming is an ultimate fear of mine, alongside being hunted by people. Two for two.
I blink furiously to unblur my vision and scope the beach. It’s empty; the men either left because they’re worried their gunshots will attract others, or they’re waiting for us to swim back to shore.
Oh my God, I might actually die out here. A knot balls in the back of my throat, and I have to take a few steadying breaths before I get my bearings.
Wait, where’s Roman?
I look all around me but don’t see any sign of him.
Was he hit? There’s a strong chance of it, the bullets were pelting the water all around us. My eyes widen and terror sends another wave of adrenaline through my veins.
“R-Roman.” I wince at the scratchiness of my voice. “Roman.” I’m not speaking over a whisper, yet with the stillness of the night, I may as well be shouting. Any sound has a chanceto give away our location. The dark water is smooth like glass and gives me a foreboding, worried itch in the back of my throat. For a forest so big, it doesn’t sound like there’s a single creature stirring. Maybe they’re all watching, waiting for the lake to take its next victims.
I run my hand on the back of the vest over my shoulder and knock something metal loose. A bullet hit me, and Roman’s vest stopped it.It’s bulletproof.Why the fuck would he be wearing a bulletproof vest as casual wear? My thoughts are muddled with exhaustion and fear.
I continue to search for him, spotting something floating a handful of feet away finally. I swim over to it and let a breath of relief out when I see that it’s Roman.
He’s on his back floating, taking shallow breaths that wrench at my heart. I mean sure, he’s not likable, not even a little, but it hurts to see him like this.
“Are you okay?” I hastily ask, pushing away every thought about my own safety. I try to help him float, but it only pushes me down more.
Roman winces and takes a few more short breaths. “I’m…” He groans. “Fine.”
He’s acting like he’s been hit. It’s too dark to see if there’s blood in the water, but Roman wouldn’t just be floating here if he wasn’t wounded. He’s conscious, but it’s like his muscles have seized up.
“Tell me what to do. Where do we go?” My tone is nothing short of determined. Although my limbs are already so exhausted, I feel like I could sink to the bottom of this lake any second.Spending energy on him might mean I don’t make it either.I push the fears away and focus. As tempting as it is to save myself and flee, it’s not who I am.
