Megalodon Riptide

Home > Other > Megalodon Riptide > Page 22
Megalodon Riptide Page 22

by Watts, Russ


  “To be fair, he let us all have a say. Even Ava. He apologized again for letting his temper get the better of him. You know, I’m beginning to warm to the guy. He’s no angel, but I’m pleased he stuck with us. We had a chat about things, and decided he was best placed to run the ship. While you were sleeping, we all agreed it felt safer to head north.” Manny shrugged. “Seemed little point in continuing south. For now, Weir’s our best shot at surviving, right? He knows how to hunt, how to sail, and how to be an absolute ass. We need him and he needs us. He’s realized that now.”

  “And Pippa and Chelsea? They were okay with this?” I couldn’t but wonder if Pippa was just going along with it. She didn’t want a future for Chelsea out here on the water. No matter where we went there would always be danger.

  “She said she wanted to talk to you, but yeah. Essentially, I think she was okay with it. The only question mark was you. It’s not like we could pull up to the nearest hospital. You look pretty beat up. You sure you’re all right?”

  I guess I had to go and talk to Pippa, put her mind at rest. I wanted to see Chelsea too. I had to thank her for what she did. If she hadn’t shot Donovan, things could be a whole lot worse for all of us. I hated that she was put into that position, forced into doing something horrible, but I was proud of her for making the choice she did. It can’t have been easy. It had been a rough few days. Heading north sounded fine to me. Anywhere that we could regroup, refresh, and come up with a strategy of how we were going to live, was fine with me.

  “I’m pleased you’re here, Manny. We should—”

  Before I could finish, something in the water caught my eye. Debris littered the ocean, but this was different. There was something there, something moving with a purpose. It was just below the surface, but large enough that it was pushing the water upward as it came toward us. At first glance, I assumed it was one of the planes from the airports. What appeared to be a tail fin poked up above the crest of the largest wave, and yet the speed with which it was approaching us suggested it had an engine. It couldn’t be a plane, or another boat.

  “Manny, is that..?”

  I pointed at the oncoming wall of water which was still rising steadily, blocking out the view of the city. A tapered silhouette danced just beneath the surface until the dorsal fin appeared, rising up out of the sea like a dormant volcano forced up as it erupted. Suddenly, the fin extended higher and revealed the glistening gray skin wrapped around it. The monster was streamlined and built to perform the perfect attack, completely at home in the water. The predator was at the top of its game and the top of the food chain. We stood little chance against it.

  “The Megalodon,” whispered Manny. “No. It can’t be.”

  It had to be a mile away, yet I could already make out the shape of the shark as it powered toward us. If it struck us head on it would destroy the yacht in seconds. I had to get Weir to turn us away, perhaps outrun it.

  “Come on, we don’t have long.” I grabbed Manny and ran back to the bridge, running as fast as I could. As I flung open the door and burst into the bridge, Weir turned to greet me.

  “Luke, I was just—”

  “It’s here. The shark. The Megalodon. It’ll be on us in seconds. You’ve got to move this boat, Weir. Get us the hell out of here, or we’re all dead.”

  CHAPTER 21

  I raced back to the door and pushed it open. Staring out at the approaching shark I waited for the impact. There were only seconds and no way that Weir could move the boat out of the approaching monster’s way in time. The massive beast was finally going to get us. The swell of water came at us fast and I prayed the end would be quick. Although Weir sped the yacht forward, the huge wave of water crashed into us and knocked Manny off his feet. I clung onto the doorframe with both hands and held my breath, awaiting the crunch of the hull as the Megalodon sank its teeth into the boat. But there was no sound, no sign the shark had actually hit us. Where was the teeth enveloping us? Where was the boom as the yacht disintegrated? Instead, the shark seemed to miss us. Still clutching the doorframe, I looked out at the sea and I saw the fin descend into the ocean. The monster swam right beneath us. The yacht was tossed around as the water rocked us back and forth, but there was no contact with the shark.

  “The bitch is playing with us,” muttered Weir.

  “Let’s skip the games and get as far away from here as we can,” said Manny, as he got to his feet. He went to the forward windows and peered out. “I can’t see it.”

  “She’s out there.” Weir began to turn the boat. “And next time she won’t miss. She was checking us out, seeing if we were worth eating.”

  New York came back into view and I suddenly realized Weir was taking us right toward it. We sped up quickly and I was looking right at the torch of the Statue of Liberty again as it loomed larger on the horizon. The mass of gulls around it were darting in and out of the water, evidently having found a school of fish to feast upon.

  “Weir, don’t, we can’t go back to the city. It’s too dangerous.” I staggered back over the uneven floor to the controls. “There are a million things we could crash into hidden beneath the water. Not to mention the crumbling buildings. You know the foundations are—”

  “I see it.” Manny banged on the glass. “Starboard. I can see the fin.”

  “Weir, it’s too risky. Can’t we outrun it in this?” I asked. “This must have more power than the Tukino. Can’t we just..?”

  “It worked before, it will work again. Shallow water. That’s the only thing we can do to beat it. You’ve seen the size of that thing, closer than anyone else on board this ship. We get to shallow water and it’ll disappear. We’ll run out of juice before we outrun that thing.”

  The mention of shallow water immediately made my brain turn to Gills. He had been killed in the shallows and Chelsea had almost died. We had grounded the boat and almost killed ourselves in the process of escaping the shark. Was it such a good idea to do the same? “Weir, what if..?”

  “It’s coming back around!” yelled Manny. He turned to us. “Dead ahead.”

  “Brace yourself, monkey,” grunted Weir.

  I caught Manny’s eyes. There was a hopelessness in them that I hadn’t seen before. The fear and amazement was something I had gotten used to. But this time was different. How could we beat it? We couldn’t outrun it, we couldn’t kill it, and we couldn’t hide from it; heading to shallower water was the only option, and yet it carried as much danger as doing nothing.

  “I have to warn the others. I have to find Pippa and Ava. Where are they, Manny? Where is..?”

  The impact sent all of us flying. I landed on my back with Weir next to me, scrambling quickly to get back to the controls. I waited for the onrushing water to drown us, for the jaws of the shark to clamp around the boat and drag us down, but they never came. The yacht began to tilt and then it righted itself.

  “Just a glancing blow,” said Weir. “We’re okay for now. She’s probably testing us, seeing what we’re made of.” He looked at me. “You can rely on me when I say she’ll be back. Third time won’t be lucky.”

  “Manny, how much farther?” I asked. He glanced out of the forward windows.

  “Liberty Island is coming up. We’re close. Another few seconds and we’ll reach Lower Manhattan.”

  “Hold on,” said Weir. “This is going to get tight. You might want to go find the others and hold on. This ain’t gonna be pretty.”

  “Can you handle this yourself?” I asked, hoping Weir would confirm he could. I had no knowledge of how to operate a huge ship like this, and I really wanted to get to Ava.

  “Manny can stay and be my eyes, right?”

  Manny nodded.

  “Then go,” said Weir. “Get going. If you find Douglas tell him I need him up here. He can mourn later.”

  I raced to the exit and rushed outside. The ship was large, but there were only so many places they could be. Outside in the fresh air I could see we were almost back home. Governor’s Isl
and was on my right, and the drowned remains of Brooklyn passed us by in a flash. I made my way down the deck to the rear of the ship carefully, wary that the shark might attack again at any moment. I didn’t doubt Weir when he said that next time it would take us down. I had seen it up close, seen just how nasty it was. If it wanted us, it could open up its jaws and bite the ship in half. Below the helicopter landing pad, I found the dining area where the glass doors were open. I had to go into the bowels of the ship to find my friends and family. Before I went back inside I looked back at the ocean. Trailing behind us was the fin of the Megalodon. It almost appeared to be following us, as if drawn to us out of curiosity. By entering the bay had we already scared it off? I remembered leaving the apartment and what had happened to old Mr. Johnson. No, it wasn’t scared. It was just picking its moment. Even in the close and shallow streets of New York it could still attack. It might struggle to navigate, and we would have an advantage at last, but would it be enough to ward it off before it took a bite out of the hull? The fin was tremendous, as large as the sail on any boat I’d seen. The rising sun hit it and sent a huge black triangular shadow across the stern. The colossal hunter was trailing us at a distance, seemingly following us but not coming in for the kill. Perhaps it just wanted to let us know it was there. Perhaps its food tasted better when it had been tenderized by fear and terror.

  I wished we had something to defend ourselves with. There wasn’t so much as a harpoon on the boat as far as I knew, and no flare gun was going to do anything. We were utterly reliant on Weir this time.

  The shark suddenly veered away from the boat, its fin sinking beneath the surface of the water and I ran to the safety rail. I saw the outline of the monster beneath the water, its bulk incredible. It swiftly darted to the side and disappeared. Was it preparing to attack? I nervously watched the water and waited but it had gone. Just as I thought it might have gone for good there was an almighty booming sound and I looked across to the west. The Megalodon’s head reared up out of the sea just as the flock of gulls took to the air. For many of them, they were too slow. The shark’s jaws opened wide and revealed a dark abyss. It must have swallowed a hundred or more of the gulls alive before it crashed back down into the water. As it did so, it took out the statue’s torch, smashing it to pieces and destroying the last visible sign that the Statue of Liberty was still standing. The masonry fell to the seabed and the icon was gone forever. The Megalodon vanished beneath the water, its appetite only sweetened by the appetizer the gulls had made. I saw the monster thrash around briefly, perhaps caught on the statue, but then quickly it resumed its hunt for us. I saw the fin turn right toward our boat and then disappear. There was no more time. It was coming.

  “Ava? Pippa!” I yelled, running into the boat. “Where are you?”

  I frantically ran down the upper corridor and began banging my fists on the doors.

  “Chelsea! Estelle? Douglas?”

  I heard shouting from below and raced down the interior stairwell. Reaching the bottom, I skidded to a halt and found Pippa standing in a doorway.

  “Luke, what the hell is going on? Are you okay? Did we hit something? It felt like—”

  “It’s back. The Megalodon is back. We have no time, Pippa. Is Chelsea with you?”

  Pippa frowned and nodded. She ran her hand across my brow. “Christ, Luke, I thought I’d lost you.”

  “We were just preparing breakfast. There’s a whole kitchen in here,” said Ava, emerging from the room behind Pippa.

  Beyond her I saw Chelsea.

  “Everyone come with me up to the bridge. I think we’re better off up top, where we can see. The bridge has almost 360 degree views around us. The shark’s back.” Ava’s face fell. I felt almost guilty for bringing them bad news, but there was no way of disguising it. “Weir’s going to try and navigate a path through the streets, hope we can put it off.”

  “New York? We’re home?” Pippa almost smiled. “Too bad we can’t go back to our apartment and away from this nightmare.”

  I grabbed her hand and led them all back up to the bridge. If we were going to die, I wanted us all to be together. There was little point in hiding down in the bedrooms, waiting for the inevitable. I wanted to see New York for one more time. I hadn’t realized how much I missed the place. It seemed apt that we had gone full circle. The shark had destroyed our home days ago and now it had returned to finish the job.

  “Manny, how are you?”

  We entered the bridge and Pippa rushed forward to greet Manny. Chelsea gave me a passing hug and did the same.

  “Where is it, Weir?” I asked, as Ava slipped her hand in mine. “You got the drop on it, or what?”

  Our speed had dropped considerably and we had sailed into Manhattan. Somewhere beneath us was the city: homes and stores, people and animals, vehicles and death, all waiting for us to join them. Somewhere below was the Megalodon.

  “No sign,” said Weir. “I’ve got my hands full getting through these streets. I can’t do it all. I need eyes. I need you out there.”

  The buildings around us were getting closer, the shattered frames of skyscrapers bludgeoning the sky and squeezing in on us.

  “I’ll take the starboard,” I said, dragging Ava with me to the open door. “Pippa, take the port. Chelsea, stay here and help Manny with Weir. Any sign of it, holler as loud as you can.”

  I made my way out back onto the upper deck and looked back into the bridge. Chelsea seemed content to stay inside with Manny which is where I wanted her. It was probably the safest place for her right now. I was reluctant to ask Pippa to help, but Weir was right. We needed as many eyes looking for the Megalodon as possible. I could see through the tall windows, past the controls and out to the other side, where Pippa was nervously pacing back and forth.

  “Look at this place, Luke,” said Ava, squeezing my hand. “Look at what’s become of it.”

  Her eyes were drawn to the remains of New York. Brooklyn Bridge was behind us now, the dappled sunlight striking its brilliant arches. The Hudson and the Atlantic were as one now, and there was no distinct separation between the land and the water. The parks were gone, and it was an odd sensation to be sailing above the city. So many of the buildings were submerged, yet so many were still visible, their rooftops poking out trying to claim one last breath. We passed one covered in blankets and clothes, a few fishing poles lined up along the southern end of the building. There was no sign of anyone still living there. I looked down at the water we were cruising through. It was dirty and oily, and I’m sure I saw a mangled body drift close by.

  “You wouldn’t know it, but we’re somewhere over Chinatown,” I said. “There used to be a great little restaurant on Mulberry Street. Best wontons in the whole state.”

  “Gonna have to take your word on that.”

  Ava seemed mesmerized by the place. It was like a ghost town, like something out of an old western, except dust and sand had been replaced with icy cold water. As much as I would’ve loved to reminisce about my home, I knew we had to stay focused. “You think we’ve lost it? I thought it would have found us by now. What’s keeping it?”

  Ava peered around her, looking up and down the avenues and streets. “I don’t see it. You?”

  I looked back at Pippa. She caught my eye and shrugged. “No, maybe we lost it.” I noticed that Estelle was in the bridge now, sticking closely to Chelsea. “Maybe Weir was right about the city being too shallow for it. There’s a whole heap of shit down there. If it has any sense it’ll head back out to deeper water and—” I paused. Movement caught my eye. It was just a shadow, a vague shape from where Confucius Plaza used to be. I pointed to Ava. “There. You see it?”

  There was a ripple in the water and then suddenly it appeared. Ava screamed and I refrained from joining her as she squeezed my fingers to breaking point.

  “Weir. It’s coming!” I yelled. The massive shark was heading for us from the east. Its giant body was rising up out of the water, perhaps because Weir was right a
bout it being unable to navigate through the shallows. It was bigger than the boat, and its massive jaws were bearing down on us, slightly agape. I could clearly see its black eyes as it bore down on us and we had very little time to avoid it. “Weir, for Christ’s sake, do something.”

  Suddenly, the engine burst into life and the boat turned rapidly toward the AT&T building. Many of the upper floors were still above water, and then suddenly we turned away from it again. A huge apartment building, its shiny exterior glistening in the morning light, rushed to meet us, blocking the approach of the shark.

  “Shoot.” I pulled Ava back from the edge of the yacht as we flew by quickly, perilously close to the apartment. I could have reached out a hand and touched it as we sailed past.

  “Where is it?” Ava pushed her back against the windows to the bridge. “Where is it, Luke?” she asked anxiously.

  I had to admit I wasn’t sure. Weir seemed to have thrown it off, sailing us so close to a building that it couldn’t follow us. We began to leave the apartment building behind. “I think we lost it. That was close.”

  A door on the lower deck suddenly flew open and Douglas appeared. He began to march up the metal stairs toward us. He looked terrible, as if he had been crying non-stop for hours. His eyes were red and puffy, and he still wore the same clothes covered in his wife’s blood.

  “Douglas? Where were you?”

  “Sorry, I… I couldn’t face it,” he said, as he ascended the stairs to us. “I was going to hide. Without Honey, I didn’t want any part of this, but when I heard Ava screaming… I’m sorry. I should’ve come sooner. I just—”

  It sounded like a rocket going off. The apartment building behind us exploded as the Megalodon tore through it, destroying one corner of it as the shark’s massive body ripped it apart like paper. I watched in amazement as the building began to crumble and the shark splashed its way toward us. Huge clouds of white dust billowed up and across the water, obliterating the faint sunlight, as the giant shark zipped through the water. It parted its massive jaws, revealing those powerful jagged teeth I had seen all too closely, and then it pointed its snout down, disappearing under the water. There was a brief moment of quiet, and then the shark reappeared. Its giant jaws opened up and smashed into the stern of the boat, ripping off the rear of the boat, tearing through fiberglass and aluminum with ease. The monster’s wake slammed into us like a hurricane hitting a 747.

 

‹ Prev