In Deep Water: Chapter 23
In Deep Water
I stumble to the Hydra, clinging to Sophie’s arm. My vision swims as crew members rush to ready as many available submersibles as possible. I blink away my tears as my seatbelt clicks into place. Xander and Nathan are talking, but I can’t discern them past the ringing in my ears.
A loud pop pulls me back to my senses. Water gushes from the Hangar doors, sending people and vehicles crashing backward. Xander curses, his finger hovering above the button that detaches the Hydra from her perch.
“What are you waiting for?” Sophie’s brows draw together.
Xander licks his lips. “If I disengage now, we will end up wrecking into those other subs.”
“It’s much safer to let the room fill before we pilot around the debris.” Nathan jerks his thumb toward Red Reaper, who appears to be doing the same thing. “They have the same idea.”
The space is soon immersed, AUVs and other diving equipment threatening to collide with our sub. Xander steers us out of the double doors that once stood above water.
Sophie’s bottom lip quivers and I grab her hand, giving a hard squeeze.
“Did Eddie get out?” Xander asks into the communication systems.
Red Reaper responds. “I thought he was with you.”
“Negative.” Xander sends back.
“I watched him board the White Witch.” Max calls from the Yellowjacket.
An awkward silence fills the space until Red Reaper intones. “The White Witch didn’t make it out.”
I whimper. Hot tears stream down my cheeks as I recall the last time I spoke to Eddie. His panicked look forever etched into my retinas.
“Oh no,” Sophie chokes on a sob.
“Fuck.” Xander slams the receiver on its hook. “I should have paid more attention.”
Nathan stares at his hands. “You can’t blame yourself. You did the best you could in the circumstances.”
It’s quiet as our HOV glides around the sinking Griffin, her bow rising higher into the air as her stern floods.
Nathan addresses the other HOVs. “What happened to the beast?”
“We have eyes on it,” Yellowjacket informs. “Starboard side.”
Xander veers right. “What the hell is it doing?”
The Livyatan rams the Griffin, biting and tearing at her hull.
“I think it’s trying to kill it.” Sophie chews her bottom lip.
A crack forms right where it was in the video footage. I shiver at its familiarity. “So creepy.”
The Griffin’s lights flicker twice before dying as her bow slips beneath the surface, dragging her closer to the abyss below. I watch with bitter fascination as the beast stalks her like prey to be fed upon. Its head turns in our direction and an icy fear rushes through my veins.
“Oh, shit!” Nathan yells.
Before Xander can react, Yellowjacket is racing to the beast. “Max, what are you doing?”
Her sub jerks backward, forcing the creature to turn and follow Max deeper.
An eternity passes before her voice cuts through the speaker. Her tone is shaky but resolute. “I’m finishing this. Find that wormhole, Xander. Get everyone home. Don’t argue; my crew and I have already agreed. This is for the best, but you might want to leave now. Who knows the radius of this blast?”
The Yellowjacket hurdles past the beast. The animal lashes out with its teeth, grazing one of the sub’s wings. They disappear into the darkness below, the Livyatan on the Yellowjacket’s tail. Max swallows through the emotion lacing her next words. “Thanks for the adventure of a lifetime, boss. Tell my family I love them. This is the Yellowjacket signing off.”
The radio switches off as a bright white flares in the distance. The Hydra and Red Reaper turn and race in the opposite direction. I scream, clutching my seat as the shockwave somersaults us ten feet.
Sophie stifles a sob.
Xander flicks a couple of controls. He thumbs the bridge of his nose before picking up the receiver. “Anyone have a word on the lifeboats?”
“I’ve had contact with them.” Red Reaper crackles down the comms. “We’re on the edge of the storm. Some of the crew are nervous the boats can’t handle these waves.”
“We’ll help as much as we can.” Xander steers the Hydra up, the ocean becoming choppy and violent.
“It’s impossible.” Nathan rakes a hand through his unkempt hair. “The Griffin was better equipped for this.”
Xander purses his lips. “We’ll have to find a way.”
“The light.” I wipe the tears streaming down my cheeks.
Nathan frowns back at me. “What?”
“If wormholes develop from super bolts, we should follow the lightning,” I reason.
Nathan blinks. “Huh. That could work.”
“It’s worth a try.” Xander relays our plan.
We aid the lifeboats with a towline. The rain comes down in buckets, making it impossible to see but a few meters in front of our sub. Jagged bolts of light flashes in all direction.
“Well, this is difficult.” Xander crests another wave, the crack of thunder growing in intensity as we maneuver through the storm.
Nathan keeps checking on the rafts. “The force of these waves is alarming.”
Each wave grows. Soon, all of our focus is on keeping the lifeboats afloat.
“If we don’t get out, these boats will be torn apart,” Nathan says between clenched teeth.
Xander sighs. “I wish I knew a way out.”
A bolt of lightning strikes the surface three feet in front of us. I close my eyes to the brightness of it, my stomach heaving. A wave sends the Hydra hurtling in its direction. I put my head between my legs and pray I don’t throw up.
“Shit,” Xander curses. “I think that’s our superbolt.”
“Hang on!” Nathan hollers over the roar of the thunder and rain. The Hydra vibrating in time with the sound.
The glow disappears in the next second. Sophie’s panicked voice breaks through the darkness. “I can’t fucking see, can y’all?”
“No,” I croak, my throat hoarse from screaming.
The tapping of the rain on the Hydra’s roof dies out. The ocean calms around us.
“What the fuck happened?” Sophie looks up at the sky. Dark, angry clouds roll away, revealing the bright orange colors of the setting sun.
“Could it have been a super bolt?” Hope blooms inside my chest. “Maybe we found the wormhole.”
Xander glances down at his cell phone as an unknown voice calls over the radio.
“This is Coast Guard. Griffin, please come in.”
Xander grabs the walkie. “This is Hydra of the Griffin. We hear you, Coast Guard.”
“Oh, thank God. We were about to send out a search party. Is everything ok?”
Xander hesitates. “Random question, what day is it?”
A pause, and then a response. “Tuesday, sir.”
“The date?” Xander frowns.
“The thirtieth of May.”
Xander glances at Nathan. “And the year?”
“Two thousand and twenty-five. Why are you asking? Do you need assistance? Please respond.”
I let go of the breath I’d been holding. We’re back in our own time.
Sophie squeals, kicking her feet like a baby in a highchair.
“The Griffin is sunk. We’d like to request a rescue. We have survivors in and out of the water. I’m sending our coordinates now.”
A static-laced reply comes. “Received. We will be there in ten. Over and out.”
I can’t tell if it’s a machine or a man’s voice, if it matters at all. For us, the two are interchangeable, both promise and verdict. Nathan sags into his seat, throwing an arm over his face with a groan. Sophie curls up in her chair, locking her arms around her knees, a soft smile playing at her lips.
I lean into Xander’s back, wrapping my arms around his neck in a hug. His hands envelop my own and squeeze. “We made it.” His blue eyes are sparkling.
I let myself relax into Xander’s embrace, drifting down into relief the way you fall asleep after staying up all night. Every muscle slackens; every worry dulls. Above our heads, the buzz of distant engines teases at the horizon, a reminder that rescue is no longer a wish but a real thing, closing the gap minute by minute. I watch the sun glare off the slick surface of the water, painting fire across the foam, and realize, with a sudden fierce gratitude, that I am not ready to die after all.
I glance at Sophie and Nathan, at Xander whose mouth is twitching into something like a smile, and then back out at the impossible blue. Voice soft but steadfast, I sigh. “I don’t know about y’all, but I’m ready to go home.”
Editor: Lucy Cafiero
