Wolf Games (The Vampire Games Book 4)
Page 26
“We have to stop them,” I hissed, stepping forward.
Jameson caught my arm. “We're outnumbered, and the second I get close to Ulvic again, he can control me.”
Silas adjusted the girl against his shoulder, his expression saying he didn't want to get into a fight one bit.
As the last of the Immortals were herded into the helicopter, Rockley dragged Kodiak to his feet, gesturing for him to get in, too. He resisted, squaring his huge shoulders at Rockley. I strained my ears to catch what he said.
“I'm not going anywhere with you,” he growled and my heart beat stuttered.
Rockley pressed the butt of his gun against Kodiak's chest and whispered something I couldn't hear above the dying ship and the raging wind.
Kodiak grabbed Rockley by the throat, and before I knew it, I was running towards them. Jameson may not have been able to help, but I could.
I sprinted up the deck, my muscles flexing as I charged uphill, the bow rising higher at a frightening rate.
A gunshot rang through the air, the sound reverberating through my body. “No!” I cried, watching as Kodiak fell to the ground, sliding across the deck in a pool of his own blood.
Rockley grabbed Ulvic's arm, dragging him into the helicopter. The door slid shut just before the whole thing rose into the sky at a sharp angle. The propellers sliced diagonally through the air as the helicopter took off from the slanted deck.
I ran to Kodiak, but was slowed by the dramatic tilting of the ship. His huge body slid toward me and I was knocked over as he collided with me. My gut spiralled as we slipped backwards in a heap. I hit a railing, catching hold of it to stop myself from falling. I glanced over my shoulder as the bow rose even higher, spotting Silas holding onto a bolted down table.
My heart flipped over.
Jameson wasn't with him.
I gasped at the sight of him crawling up the deck, struggling his way toward me.
“Stop!” I screamed at him. “Hold onto something!”
It was too late to jump. The enormous bow was rising higher and higher out of the water until the railing was the only thing stopping me from plummeting down the deck. Jameson made one last, powerful leap, catching hold of the metal bar I was clinging to. I still had hold of Kodiak, but only just, his shirt slipping through my fingers, his body limp.
Jameson wrapped an arm around my waist, locking his other over the railing.
I cried out as Kodiak slid another inch down the deck; my arm felt like it was being wrenched from its socket.
“Help him,” I begged Jameson, straining with Kodiak's full weight hanging from my shoulder. Even with my extra strength, it was too much for me to bear.
Jameson shook his head, giving me a desperate stare, gripping me tighter. “You have to let go.”
“No,” I gasped, but I was losing my hold on the railing. It was him or both of us. “Jameson!” I cried, desperate for him to find a solution. But there was none. I knew it. But I couldn't accept it.
“He's gone, Firefly.” Jameson tugged me hard against his body, making sure Kodiak's weight didn't make me fall.
“Let go,” Jameson said against my ear.
A tear slid from my eye as I complied, my tense fingers loosening. Kodiak's weight fell away and Jameson pulled me closer to him.
I gazed over my shoulder through the tears in my eyes, watching as Kodiak slid fast down the near-vertical deck. He fell past Silas, smashing through the glass wall of an indoor swimming pool. I flinched at the sound of the distant crash, turning away, clinging on for dear life.
That will be my fate if I fall.
Fear fuelled my muscles and I clung tighter to Jameson, offering him as much support as he offered me.
The bow reached its highest point, swaying precariously as we held on for dear life. It tilted back and forth, the groaning of the structure finally quieting.
Silence fell around us and Jameson nuzzled my cheek to get my attention. “You've seen Titanic, right?”
“No,” I breathed and he barked a laugh.
“Alright, you, me, Titanic. That's a date we're going to make it to.”
I nodded, my heart fluttering, panicked breaths passing my lips.
“If this thing goes down like Titanic-” He halted as the bow continued to tilt forward. I gasped, clinging to the railing as the whole ship began to fall forward toward the water, flipping itself backwards.
“Forget Titanic,” Jameson said in a strained voice, gripping onto me. “When we're hanging over the water, we let go.”
My knuckles were turning white on the bar. I shook my head on instinct. I couldn't do it. Letting go seemed impossible right then.
“We either let go, or this whole ship is going to fall over and crush us,” Jameson said seriously.
I nodded, frantic. “Okay,” I breathed, putting my faith in him.
A thought fluttered into my mind, desperate to be spoken. If we were going to die, Jameson needed to know he would have been a father.
“Jameson, I have to tell you something.” We lost our footing as the bow leaned back too far and our feet swung out below us. Fear sped through me.
Say it now.
“I have a whole lot of things I'd like to tell you too.” He looked choked, his muscles straining as he held onto the railing with one hand and kept the other locked around my waist.
I nodded, not giving him time to elaborate. My thing was of the highest priority. “Jameson...I'm pre-”
The bow tilted sharply, dropping dramatically, falling toward the water.
“LET GO!” Jameson roared and I hoped Silas heard it too as he clung to a table by barely two fingers below us.
I shut my eyes and released my hold on the bar. My stomach swooped as I lost my grip on Jameson, falling a hundred feet toward the water, the skirt of my dress flying up around my hips.
A scream ripped from my lungs as I opened my eyes, seeing the ship falling toward me from above.
I smashed into the water and it felt like I'd hit a brick wall. Pain ripped through me. I spun over and over, before finally remembering to swim. My hands reached for Jameson in the darkness, but he was gone. I was alone. And all I could think was that I was going to die.
I had to dive down as far as I could, then make it out from under the ship. But I'd forgotten to take a breath. I was winded, my body aching and bruised. I managed to keeping swimming, hoping I wasn't heading up in my disorientation.
I kicked my legs, diving down, down, down. I swam as hard and as fast as my Immortal body would carry me.
The moment the ship hit the water, I lost my senses. It felt like an earthquake as the shock-wave radiated through the sea. I was plunged into darkness. Even my heightened eyesight couldn't pick up a scrap of light.
Bubbles streamed from my nose. My ears popped from the pressure as I continued to swim down.
Something sharp ripped past my leg as pieces of the ship sunk around me. I cried out a silent scream into the water, kicking hard to try and swim away from the foundering wreckage.
I imagined the ship looming down on me, taking me with it to its watery grave. I thought of the little life inside me and swam for both of us. We were going to live through this. We had to.
I used every ounce of strength I possessed, powering away from the boat, its huge shadow growing around me.
When I couldn't go a second longer without air, I swam up, dizzy and disorientated. I didn't know if I could make it to the surface. I couldn't feel anything but the ache and strain of my muscles carrying me onward.
Darkness found me before I reached air, my fingers grazing the waves above. So close, and yet not enough. Not enough to save myself. To save us.
My thoughts drifted to Jameson, his golden hair and smiling eyes.
I'm sorry you never knew the truth...
I took in a mouthful of water as my lungs cried out and my muscles gave up. I lost my senses, my body going still as I drifted down into the depths of the ocean, disappearing into the endless abyss
.
Epilogue:
Cass
I woke to the feeling of cool water lapping against my left cheek. Sharp rocks dug into my side. I was curled into the foetal position in a large rock pool. The black stones circled up around me, so I couldn't see anything beyond them. Cuts and bruises lined my skin. My dress was torn, exposing my bent legs which were pulled toward my chest in a vague effort to protect myself.
My arm was twisted awkwardly beneath me and I couldn't tell if it was broken through all the pain coursing through my body. But I was alive. That was something. I just didn't know how I'd ever move from that pool.
The tide lapped against a nearby shore, gentle and calm as if it hadn't just swallowed a cruise ship whole.
“Jameson?” I tried to call out, but my throat was parched and the word came out as a croak.
There was a strange, clicking sound reaching to me. I was sure I recognised it, but couldn't align my thoughts enough to place it.
“James...” I tried again, but it was barely a whisper.
A horrible feeling of dread filled me that he hadn't survived. It was such a terrifying thought that I immediately crushed it. If anyone could survive a disaster like that, it was him.
I attempted to lift my head, but exhaustion took hold of me and I sank back down into the cool water. It felt good against my aching body. I tried to assess the damage, but until I got up, I didn't think I'd know for sure.
Perhaps someone would find me and I wouldn't have to drag myself up alone. But the longer I lay there, the more distant that dream grew.
The moon looked larger than ever tonight, glowing like a giant pearl in the sky. It was full and bright like a single eye, watching me in my lonely pool.
The clicking sound grew closer and fear bled through me as I finally recognised it.
A rustling sounded from some nearby trees and a terrifying voice carried to me, sending a tremor of fear right down to my toes.
“Taste...”
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COMING SOON
Wolf Games: Island of Shade
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V Games
V Games: Fresh From The Grave
V Games: Dead Before Dawn
ALSO BY CAROLINE PECKHAM
THE VAMPIRE GAMES: SEASON 1
V GAMES
V GAMES: FRESH FROM THE GRAVE
V GAMES: DEAD BEFORE DAWN
THE VAMPIRE GAMES: SEASON 2
WOLF GAMES
WOLF GAMES: ISLAND OF SHADE
THE RISE OF ISAAC SERIES
CREEPING SHADOW
BLEEDING SNOW
TURNING TIDE
WEEPING SKY
FAILING LIGHT
THE RISE OF ISAAC NOVELLAS
FALLING FIRE (PART ONE)
FALLING FIRE (PART TWO)
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