My head broke the surface and I took a greedy inhale that hurt more than anything. But I must have gotten something out of it, to where I gathered myself enough to cough out the water from my nose and mouth. The hacking fit hurt my chest. Drowning was just as painful as my dreams had told me. As if it was something that I’d experienced first hand.
More water left my orifices than I could ever think possible, and it took longer than I thought it would to get a steady inhale and exhale rhythm. Almost as if I’d forgotten how to breathe for a moment.
I floated on my back, so I could rest. Part of me expected an alligator to snap me in half, but nothing ever came. That would be about right for me though.
The bright stars above my head shone like tiny beacons of freedom. Welcoming me back and celebrating that I’d made it.
“Take that, Asshole,” I whispered breathlessly, letting the sounds of native crickets and frogs fill my ears.
The wilderness was more comfortable than a man-made oasis any day.
Quiet shock I didn’t feel resonated through me. He was louder inside me now. It probably had something to do with the magic his master used to make him.
Just the thought that magic might be real made me want to laugh, but his very existence gave that explanation more plausibility than my scientific mind was comfortable with.
Memories of crawling though my house, and a shadow on the wall that didn’t make sense, filled my mind. What was I trying to remember?
Then my mother’s screams made my next breath shake. I locked the memory back down inside me, where it couldn’t hurt me.
I didn’t make it through that underwater death trap to lose my grip once I made it out.
Water nearby moved and three alligators came into view.
Time to go.
Chapter 15:
Mylegscouldbarelycarry me as I trekked through the swamp. It was like my bones were swapped out with jelly, and even muscles I didn’t know I had complained with every step.
I expected the camp to be empty.
No doubt the others escaped already, but my hammock would still be there. Sleep sounded like heaven at this point.
More importantly, the sage patch would be there too. If I’d been abandoned, again, there was at least a safe place to rest until morning. My flashlight was completely destroyed, since it was in a side pocket of my pack, and I mentally cursed myself for not packing a spare, as I tried to navigate in the dark.
But that made the illumination of the cackling fire in the distance that much clearer.
Fuck, yes. That’s what I’m talking about.
I rolled my ankle in my rush, not seeing the log in the dark, but it was easier to get myself up and moving again with the promise of warmth and hopefully food nearby.
What I wouldn’t do for a pizza right about now?
I stepped into our camp, surprised to find everything was still in place, despite all the missing people.
Drew was the only person there, laying on his side in the cot I left him. A walkie talkie clutched in his shaking hand, like it would save his life. He gasped when his eyes landed on me. “There you are! You survived.”
His pale face and the sheen of sweat on his shiny forehead worried me. The temperature had dropped quite a bit, but maybe I only thought that because I was soaked. No amount of logic shook the sinking in my raw stomach.
“That’s what I do.” I took a deep breath as I warmed my hands by the fire. “Did help come?”
“No.” He shook his head. “Prof Carter hasn’t returned yet. Everyone else is out looking for you.”
“Foolish.” They should have moved on while I had him distracted.
He gave a painful laugh. “Shannon wasn’t going to allow anything else.”
My lips twitched at his words. My heart grew warm and full, with foreign emotion.Bossy bitch.
