She’s freeing me.
I snatch up the bag from beneath the bed. My heart beats like a war drum. Every second feels like a fight for survival. If I’m caught, it’s game over. My father will never allow me out of his sight, and Eli will never forgive me. Pulling the strap of my bag over my shoulder, I creep through the house. The front door is open for me.
Thank you, Mother.
I race from the house, heading straight toward the dock, and check my watch.
11:55.
She’s there. I see her. “Claudia,” I whisper, gaining her attention. Relief settles into her features as a smile tugs at her lips. “You came.” She exhales.
We embrace for a second, grateful to each other for being here. Rows of big fishing boats line the dock, along with three supply boats and a couple smaller wooden boats hidden in between. Nerves chew away at my insides. A rush of anxiety stirs through me as she pushes me up the dock and takes my bag from me while keeping watch of our surroundings.
“Get in.” She gestures to a smaller boat used for perimeter checks. My mouth pops open. It’s so much smaller up close. Is that even safe? “And put this on.” She picks up a life vest and hands it to me.
“We’re not taking your dad’s?” I worry my lip, my heart racing as I slip into the vest.
“Do you want him to come looking for it?” She raises a brow in question.
No.
Hell no.
Crap, of course not. Taking the smaller one makes sense. It’s only used for traveling around the island’s borders.
I pull the necklace from my pocket and fasten it around my neck, needing to ease my impending meltdown.
“How long will it be to get across the water in this?” I step into the boat with her help, stalling when it rocks, almost knocking me over. I take a couple breaths, then carefully sit, grateful to see a couple blankets folded inside.
“There’s a motor we can use once we’re far enough away. We don’t want to raise suspicion with the noise.” I lift a rope attached to the motor she speaks of. “Don’t pull that yet!” She raises her hand in warning, and I hold up my own, releasing the rope. “Okay. Is this what makes it start?”
“Yes.” She exhales, her eyes closing briefly.
When they spring back open, they fall to my chest, to the necklaces hanging there. Her brow pulls down as she studies the small pendants. “Where did you get those?” she asks, a look of surprise in her eyes.
“Do you know where she got these?” Urgency and hope spill out in my tone. Tracing Clara’s last movements building up to her murder is key to finding who did this to her.
“Claudia?” a voice calls out from the darkness. “Is that you?”
Oh my God, we’ve been caught. A stone lodges in my throat as fear seizes my muscles. Crap. My father will never allow me to leave. He’ll cleanse me for this while the entire village watches. Acid burns my throat, and tears well in my eyes as Claudia holds a finger to her lips, encouraging me to keep silent.
“Claudia, is that you? What are you doing?”
Fear ignites in her eyes as footfalls pound against the dock. Her eyes track over her shoulder to her bags, still sitting too far away from us. Defeat mars her features, her body sagging. She tosses my bag at my feet.
“Claudia?” I whisper-yell. Shaking her head, she unties the boat from the dock, her panicked eyes boring into me. “Get down under the blanket. Do not come out for any reason. Promise me.” She jumps back to the dock, and chucks a small object at me.
“Take that. Find the Ward brothers. They’ll have some answers. That’s where your sister’s body was found, on their property. Travel directly east, you can’t miss it. Go straight east, Mona. It will bring you there,” she instructs, pushing the boat out into the water.
“Wait—you’re not coming?”
“Go,” she urges as I slide to the bottom of the boat and pull the blanket over myself to hide. I can see her silhouette through a sliver of a gap just as a hand reaches around her mouth from behind. No, no, no. Tears fall rapidly down my cheeks as her body is pulled backward. It’s too late. She’s been caught. Pain squeezes my chest. This was supposed to be her getaway. I wait to see if the warden will return. Did he see the boat moving away before he took her? Holding my breath, I start counting. When I get to a thousand and the dock fades from view, I sit up, examining the object she tossed me. A compass. My soul grieves for what she lost helping me, but I understand I owe it to her to make it. Taking the paddles, I begin to row into the darkness, letting it swallow me. There’s no turning back.
I’m doing it.
I’m free.
When I’m far enough away, I tug on the rope to start the small engine. Nothing happens. No, no, no. I pull again almost toppling over, a spatter of noise pierces the air and then dies. Argh! Despair and determination has me yanking harder on the rope. Finally, the engine comes to life with two more strong pulls. I silently thank Claudia and sag in relief. Taking my seat, I calm my breathing and then head east, as instructed.
The night is frigid. Rain begins to hammer down. I stare into nothingness, the black from the night blinding me. Time is endless. It’s been hours I’ve been drifting, at least three. Lights glimmer from afar, getting closer with each labored breath I gulp. A scraping sound triggers the boat to rock. The water thrashes, pouring over the sides. I’m jolted and tossed around as the boat hits rocks.
I try to hold on, but I’m flung from the boat’s safety, plunged into the ice-cold water, which steals my breath. The vest keeps my head above the surface as I attempt to breathe and gain control. My leg hits something beneath the water, a slicing pain penetrating my nerve-endings. My hands reach out, grasping boulders, fear and desperation driving me to find strength to pull myself to safety. I can’t swim. Thank God for the rocks.
Pulling myself up with tired arms, I tug off the vest and fall onto my back when I hit grass.
My dress is ruined and torn. When I catch my breath, I get to my feet, attempting to inspect the cut, seeing nothing more than dark wetness bleeding down my leg. Crap, that hurts. I edge forward a couple steps, and blinding light flicks on, lighting everything around me. “This is private property,” a man calls out. “Don’t move.”
My heart races, the urge to run making my legs tingle.
A mountain of a man appears a few seconds later, dressed in black, his skin as dark as the night sky. “Ma’am, please come with me.”
Holding an umbrella over my head, he leads me toward a vast building with turrets and gargoyles. It looks almost like a castle from the story books. I check the surroundings, then glace up at the man guiding me. Will he catch me if I run?
“Don’t even think about it. The gates are locked. There’s nowhere for you to go, unless you want to get wet again…” His voice is deep and rumbling.
“What do you want with me?” I ask, shivering from the cold seeping into my skin.
“Nothing. Mr. Ward, however, may have other plans.”
Mr. Ward...
Nine
Mona
The man keeps frowning down at me, and I can’t help but smile up at him.