Touching? Check.
“It's alright,” she panted, squeezing my arms.
Kissing? I slammed my forehead into hers. Uncheck.
Evidently I was still owned by Ulvic, but pair-bonding with her had freed me from ever physically hurting her again. Relief poured through me in waves.
“Ow,” Cass groaned, rubbing her head. “Why'd you do that?”
“Sorry I-” the words stuck in my throat. Still couldn't explain. But hey, I was way better off than I had been two seconds ago. “Slipped,” I lied.
“We need to get out of here,” Cass said, reaching for the hatch above.
I lifted her by the waist. “Stand on me,” I encouraged and she scrambled up my body – which I didn't mind one bit – and placed her feet on my shoulders. A gentleman wouldn't have looked up her dress. Fortunately for me, I was not a gentleman.
She hauled herself up, slipping through the hatch with ease. I didn't reckon I was going to fit through this one so easily. That thing looked tighter than a gnat's arse.
I braced myself against the wall, reaching up and catching hold of the edge. Cass grabbed my arm, helping me up and I squeezed my arms and shoulders through. I tried to inch further forward, but became almost instantly jammed.
“Shit.”
Cass took hold of the collar still locked around my neck and hauled.
Real cool, bro.
With a wrenching snap, the collar broke and Cass stumbled backwards.
“Well, that's not the worst thing in the world,” she mused, dropping it to the floor with a clang.
“Yeah, but not much good if I have to live in this hatch forever.”
In answer to that, Cass stepped forward and took hold of my ears.
I shook her off like a wet dog. “I'd rather keep those. All the better to hear you with and all that.”
Cass stepped back again, assessing the situation. I was glad I didn't look like an idiot, 'cause that would have been real embarrassing...
Cass suddenly burst out laughing.
“Very funny,” I drawled. “Can we keep our mind on problem-solving though, Firefly?”
She clutched her side, apologising through her laughter. “You look so stupid.”
She moved toward me, biting her lip to hold back a smile, then wriggled her fingers between my sides and the metal hatch. Her arm muscles flexed then she wrenched hard and the metal buckled. I fell forward, dragging myself through the widened gap, water spilling in after me. A lot of water. Oh crap.
“Go!” I hurried forward, turning Cass around and encouraging her down the corridor ahead. We passed large laboratories, the windows giving us a view into them as we moved. Water chased us down the corridor to the far end where another stairway would lead us to freedom.
“Silas!” Cass gasped, darting through a door.
I spotted him through a window and jealousy spiked through me as Cass threw her arms around him. He was holding a small kid who looked unconscious.
I pushed the door open, leaning against the frame. Water washed into the room over my boots.
“Why did you come back?” Silas asked, gripping Cass's arm, looking concerned.
Back off, bro.
“I couldn't get off and...” She glanced over her shoulder at me, then cleared her throat.
“Time to go,” I said, feeling like I was interrupting them and not liking it one bit.
Silas nodded, keeping Cass tucked under his arm as they hurried toward me.
Back. Off. Bro.
I held the door wide as they exited, giving Silas a false smile.
“What about your work?” Cass asked him.
“Everything's backed up online. That'll have to be enough,” he said.
The floor creaked and groaned beneath our feet. With a rush of noise, the corridor ahead of us caved in. I grabbed Cass's arm, tugging her away from the disintegrating floorboards (and out of Silas's arms). Silas fell backwards to avoid the gaping hole that had opened up before us. The carnage was swept away into the lower deck by a river of water below.
“Christ,” Silas cursed, scraping a hand through his hair.
“Is there another stairwell back this way?” I pointed in the direction we'd come, still holding onto Cass.
“No...but there's an elevator,” Silas said.
I gestured for him to go ahead. “Lead the way.”
He nodded, hurrying forward as he guided us past the laboratories. Cass slid her arm out of my grip, muttering a thanks as she fell into step beside me.
“Any time, Firefly,” I murmured.
We soon emerged in a short passage that led to an elevator.
I moved toward it, confidently pressing the 'up' button. When nothing happened, I glanced back at the others. “Guess that was a bit optimistic, huh?”
“How can we get these doors open?” Silas stepped forward with a frown.
“We need something to leverage them with,” Cass said, jogging back in the direction of the labs. I almost followed her, but remembered the girl could handle herself. Much as I loved being the hero, I didn't think I'd ever be that for her.
A minute later, she reappeared with a piece of pipe and moved forward to jam it between the doors. She pulled backwards and I slid my fingers into the gap that appeared, wrenching the doors wide.
I stuck my head into the shaft, spotting the rising water on the level below. Above, the lift was sitting on the next floor, blocking our way up.
“Dammit.” I stepped back while the others took a look.
“Is there a way into the lift through the bottom of it?” I asked.
“I can't see a hatch,” Silas answered, stepping back from the edge and giving Cass a concerned look. “We need to get it moving.”
“And how are we going to do that?” Cass asked, her eyes flitting between us.
“The control room is on the next floor down,” Silas said, glancing into the shaft again. “If we could reach it, maybe we could start up the system.”
“But isn't it broken?” Cass asked.
“The lifts automatically shut down in an emergency.” Silas gazed up at the lights on the ceiling. “Seeing as the power is still on, it will probably still work. We just need to override the emergency shutdown then we should be able to ride the elevator right up to the top deck.”
I kicked off my shoes, moving to the edge of the lift. “Where is it?”
Silas held the young girl out to Cass. “Here, take her. I'll go with Jameson.”
Cass reluctantly took the girl. “Maybe we should all go?”
“No point in us all getting wet again.” Silas leaned forward, placing a kiss on her cheek. My heart bashed itself against my ribcage at the display of affection.
I ground my teeth together, waiting for Cass to catch my eye.
I longed to walk over there and plant a kiss on her that would teach Silas exactly who she belonged to. But I couldn't. And she'd probably slap me for it. Because as far as she believed, she didn't belong to me. So I gave her a small nod instead that would have sufficed if she was a stranger to me. But I didn't know what else to do.
Silas picked up the metal pole and gripped the side of the lift, peering down into the bubbling, dark water below. “We need to swim down one level then head into the maintenance passage on the other side of this shaft.”
He was pointing, but I wasn't looking. I was gazing at Cass and she was staring right back.
“See you, Firefly.”
“Bye,” she whispered.
I hesitated a moment longer before marching to the edge of the lift and diving into the water.
When I resurfaced, I gazed up at Silas. “Not much point hanging around up there,” I taunted.
He rolled his eyes before diving off of the ledge, dunking into the water beside me. He swam to my side, his face dripping. “That way.” He reiterated, pointing behind me.
I nodded, gesturing for him to go ahead. “I'll follow you.”
He took a deep breath then dived underwater. I sw
am down, following him further down the shaft. On the floor below, Silas gripped the edge of the lift access doors, jamming the pole between them. He gestured for me to help and I pushed the pole toward him until they parted.
When the gap was big enough, I wrenched them wide. We swam into a hall lit by green lights, casting eerie patterns on the walls. Silas swam to a door across from the elevator, trying the handle. It didn't budge.
I moved to his side, grabbing hold of the door frame and slamming my heels against the wood. The lock gave and Silas led the way inside.
We emerged in a flooded room full of fuse boxes. Silas pointed upwards where the water was swirling around the ceiling. I followed him to it and we soon breached the surface in a pocket of air.
“The control panel is back down there,” Silas panted. “There's an override switch, but the lift will automatically head to the ground floor once we turn it on. If that happens, it'll flood and become useless.”
“So how do we stop that?”
“There's a keypad for each floor. Press seven to send it up a level instead. Then we can call it when we get back to Cass.”
I nodded stiffly. “Right, let's do this.”
He dived under and I followed his heels all the way back to a control panel on the lower level. He wrenched a metal door open on a box marked with a drawing of a lift, revealing a series of buttons within it.
He pointed to the keypad a few feet away and I gave him a thumbs up, before he slammed his hand against a large red button.
A mechanical sound carried through the water and I jammed my finger on the button for floor seven.
As quick as we could, we headed back out of the maintenance room. I took the lead this time, swimming across the corridor toward the elevator shaft. I halted, my gut rolling as I discovered the lift blocking our way forward.
Shit. It's sunk.
I turned, gesturing frantically to Silas, his cheeks puffed out with air. He swam down to the carpet, picking up the pole he'd discarded earlier and wedged it into the lift doors. I grabbed hold of it too, pushing hard sideways until the lift opened. Water poured in and we were sucked with it. Lights flickered above us before cutting out. I rose rapidly with the seawater, coughing and spluttering as I took in a mouthful of it.
I collided with the roof of the lift and pressed my hands to the metal to brace myself. Throwing my head back, I gasped down a lungful of air just before the space flooded. The bubbles fogged the water as I searched for Silas. I found him clinging to a hatch in the roof, yanking it open.
I swam frantically toward him, catching hold of the hatch as it opened. Silas climbed out first and I dragged myself after him, finding ourselves atop the lift floating in the shaft. Silas pulled me to my feet and I gazed up to the floor above. Cass was looking down at us, seeming relieved, her hair hanging forward in damp strands.
“I told you to press the button,” Silas snapped.
“I did.” I reluctantly dropped my eyes to him, wringing water from my shirt. “You saw me do it.”
Silas glared at me. “Well now we're stuck, all because you couldn't follow a simple order.”
“You bloody saw me do it!” I barked, my hackles rising. Maybe it was because he'd just hit on a touchy subject for me about following orders, or maybe it was because he'd draped his hands all over my girl earlier. Either way, he'd just set my mood to volcanic.
“Guys, stop!” Cass called, but neither of us looked her way.
“We could have ridden this elevator to the surface,” Silas growled, snatching my shirt in his fists.
We were nose to nose, both of us practically snarling. “Take your hands off of me,” I commanded in a deadly tone.
“Or what?” he growled, daring me to act.
“Or you'll be coughing up teeth for the next few weeks,” I warned.
Silas shoved me away from him and I stumbled back. A millisecond of dangerous silence followed, then I lunged at him. My fist connected with his jaw and he hit the back wall with a metallic clang. I shook out my hand, expecting him to give up, but he came at me fast with a roar of anger, rugby-tackling me to the floor. My spine slammed into the metal roof of the lift and I nearly threw up a lung.
I rolled, fuming right through to my core as I slammed him against the top of the lift. Water splashed over him and he spluttered, slamming a fist into my ribs. I wheezed from his strength, regaining my feet and clutching my side. How was this guy so bloody strong?
Silas slowly stood, blood dripping from a cut by his eye, his hair a wet mess. His shoulders rose and fell with his frantic breaths.
“We done here?” he asked.
I rolled my shoulders. “I was just getting warmed up.”
“Stop it, you idiots! There's a ladder!” Cass shouted.
We both looked up at her and she pointed to it on the inside of the shaft.
Silas sighed, looking to me.
Cass rolled her eyes. “Just get up here, we need to move.”
I was determined to be the bigger man, so leant back against the wall and locked my hands together to give Silas a boost up. He grumbled a thank you which I was sure had more to do with Cass than it did me. He stepped into my hand and I pushed him up. He scrambled up the wall and I turned, waiting until he was standing next to Cass to make my move.
The water had risen to my midriff, making it more difficult for me to manoeuvre. Silas leant down from the doorway, holding out a hand to me.
I swallowed my pride and jumped up, catching hold of his palm and letting him heave me up. I fell onto the floor beside him, before quickly gaining my feet.
Silas gently took the young girl from Cass's arms.
“Let's go.” Cass moved toward the hatch, springing sideways in a cat-like movement, disappearing as she headed up the service ladder. I grinned stupidly after her, then spotted Silas doing the same.
A primal fury gripped my chest as I shouldered my way past him. I gazed up into the shaft and stepped out onto the ladder, moving after Cass, my shoes clanging on the metal rungs. I glanced down occasionally to check Silas was doing okay. Not that I really cared. But Cass probably wouldn't forgive me if I left him to drown in an elevator shaft. Tempting though.
He was moving a lot slower than us, which probably had to do with the girl he was carrying. What was the deal with her?
Below, the water was spilling into the corridor we'd just departed from.
Cass clambered into the small space before the doors on the next level. “We should go through here and cut across to the stairwell. Her eyes were pinned on Silas. He wasn't going to be able to carry that child all the way to the top level, that was clear.
“Okay.” I pulled myself into the gap, holding onto the top of the door frame for support.
Cass prised a piece of metal from the wall, jamming it into the doors. I pulled one way and she wedged her foot into the gap, pushing it open with her leg. Was I inappropriately drooling over her exposed thigh? Yes. Yes I was.
We stepped into the corridor on the other side and I gazed back down into the chute. “Go and check that the stairs aren't blocked,” I ordered Cass, dropping to my knees to help Silas.
He was still several feet lower than the doorway and the water was lapping at his ankles. “Here, give her to me,” I called, reaching down.
He clung tighter to the girl as if I might hurt her.
“Come on, bro,” I encouraged, reaching further.
He nodded stiffly, his expression taut as he lifted her up for me to take. Didn't have much choice but to trust me.
I grasped her tiny, cold arm and pulled her up onto the landing. I held her like a baby, getting to my feet and gazing down at her still features. My heart tugged a little. I wasn't sure if I wanted to know the story behind this. But she definitely didn't look alive...
A minute later, Silas heaved himself up over the ledge, hurrying to his feet, reaching for the girl. I let him take her and he hugged her against him, his expression hard.
Cass reappeared, joggi
ng toward us. “The stairway's clear.” Just as she said it, the lights stuttered out and we were plunged into absolute darkness.
“Take my hand,” Cass said and as my eyes adjusted, I spotted her intertwining her fingers with Silas's. It was definitely the wrong time to be jealous. Silas was now blind on a sinking ship; he needed help. But I just wasn't a big enough man to rise above the emotion.
“Come on,” I grunted, leading the way forward. We seemed to be heading uphill, which meant the stern of the ship must have been severely flooded now.
I picked up my pace as Cass called out directions to the stairs.
“Is there a lifeboat we can head to?” I asked as we stepped onto the staircase.
“There's a few inflatable rafts in the control room, but the staff knew about them,” Silas said. “If they're still there, it'd be a damn miracle.”
“There was still a helicopter on deck the last I saw,” Cass said. “Any chance you can fly one?” She looked to Silas who gave her a guilty look.
“No,” he said.
I slowed as I headed up the stairs, keeping pace with Cass who was still guiding Silas. “Well let's hope there's still someone onboard who can.” My thoughts pin-balled to Ulvic.
Oh please let it be someone else.
Cass
We fled onto the upper deck. The sky was thick with darkness and the bow was titling threateningly toward it. We didn't have much time. The back end of the ship was almost fully submerged and water was rushing toward us at an alarming rate.
We fled up the walkways, heading toward the helicopter pad, our footsteps clattering on the wooden deck.
I could hear the whirring of propellers, the tic tic tic filling my ears, making me run even harder. We tore onto the front deck and I stumbled to a halt at the sight ahead of me.
Rockley Jones stood before the final helicopter, pointing a gun at Kodiak's head who was on his knees before him. Immortals were being herded into it by Ulvic's Werewolves. Ulvic was at Rockley's side, arms folded, his eyes dark, his trench coat flapping in the wind.
Jameson and Silas halted on either side of me, absorbing the sight.
The bow was tilting higher into the sky and the helicopter began to skid across the pad.
Wolf Games (The Vampire Games Book 4) Page 25