The boat lurched again, and Hollyn began to suspect something very large and very alive was making passes each time the boat shook.
The captain suddenly let Hollyn go, shoving her toward Kai. “Trust me, I don’t want to stick around any longer.”
Kai let the deckhand go and caught Hollyn in his arms. “There’s just one thing I don’t understand. How did you set us up? I mean, how did you know which boat I would charter?”
The captain shook his head a few times before he said, “That damn, little girl we kidnapped in California wouldn’t shut up about it. Kept going on and on about how we needed to go to Big Sur and to find a boat namedThe Gala Queen.We lost the girl somewhere on land, but imagine our surprise when we show up in Big Sur, go to the first marina we see, and find the boat she wouldn’t shut up about. Then, we waited, and lo and behold, you showed. You walked right into a trap we didn’t even know we were setting.”
Hollyn sucked in a breath. They had been the ones who’d kidnapped Willow, and being the fate she was born to be, she had led them to a convergence point where Hollyn and Kai would eventually end up.
The boat shook violently again and nearly capsized as something that had to be humongous slammed against the side. Everyone went down to the deck, rolling and sliding around with grunts and cries.
The captain and the two deckhands ran to the railing and dove overboard, leaving the ship completely vulnerable to whatever was attacking from below and the giant trash vortex that grew ever closer.
Once the boat settled upright once more, Kai was suddenly by Hollyn’s side. She met his gaze, wondering if he had a plan to get them out of this.
He sighed heavily and helped her back up to her feet.
She looked around them. “What do we do now?”
As the boat lifted and shook once more, Kai called out, “I think we jump into the water.”
“Are you crazy? That thing is in there, the closest land is actually a swirling mess of hot trash, and we’re in the middle of the Pacific. I don’t know if you remember, but last time we were stuck floating in the open ocean, things didn’t turn out all that great.”
“We don’t have a choice. If we stay on board, whatever has the boat in its clutches will destroy the vessel and us along with it.”
She stared at him in horror, even as she knew he was right. When the boat began to shake back and forth, Hollyn knew it was time to go. Kai took her hand and they threw their legs over the railing, teetering on the edge for a few minutes before plunging to the choppy water below.
Almost immediately, Hollyn regretted her decision.
