CHAPTER 81
With Novak and Simon in the lead, they raced up the ladder, weapons at the ready, and ran out onto the deck. The wind had picked up again, and Sarah squinted against the cold rain as it stung her face. She glanced around in panic, expecting to see giant tentacles with teeth-lined sucker-mouths, or a bulbous elephantine head sticking up out of the water and peering at them with baleful yellow eyes, but there was nothing. Fog rolled in over the ocean, obscuring their view.
The boat listed to the side again, spilling them onto the deck. The vessel groaned, as if under great stress.
“Grab on to something,” Novak yelled, struggling to his feet. “Be ready for—”
A clacking sound interrupted him.
“The hell is that?” Mylon scrambled backward. “Sounds like a big pair of maracas.”
The boat tilted more, and waves splashed over the side, drenching them. Then something else came over the side, as well.
At first, they only saw the eyes—two basketball-sized black dots attached to stalks that waved back and forth like wheat. Then a massive, serrated claw latched on to the railing, snapping it in half. A second claw appeared, and seized a length of metal ductwork. The steel bent as the claw squeezed. Then the claw’s owner heaved itself over the side and onto the deck. The deck shook beneath them.
It was a giant crab. Sarah gaped at its size. It was big enough that the eight of them could have used its hollowed-out shell as a lifeboat. The eye-stalks wiggled as the creature surveyed them. It waved its arms in the air, clacking its claws together. Then it scuttled forward, its segmented legs clacking across the wet deck. Tatiana screamed as the beast bore down on her. Sarah saw Simon and Novak trying to reach her, but both men slipped as the ship rolled even further to the side.
Tatiana jabbed at the crab with her makeshift spear, but the creature grasped it, snapping the weapon in half. She shrieked as it pinned her down with two of its smaller legs, the tips piercing her chest and thigh. Then it seized her head in its other claw and squeezed, slicing the top off. Tatiana’s brains slipped from her open skull and slid across the deck, leaving a grayish-pink trail behind.
Novak and Gail opened fire, pelting the crab with shot after shot. Most of the rounds were ineffectual, unable to penetrate the hardened shell, but they succeeded in blasting off one of the creature’s eyes. Hissing, it stomped on the deck, writhing with agony.
“Aim for the other eye,” Gail yelled, reloading.
She and Novak unleashed another volley, driving the enraged crab back to the rail. The ship rolled again, and Novak’s shots went wild. The others ducked, except for Henry, who crouched next to Sarah, gaping. She grabbed his pants leg and pulled him down.
“Hold on to me,” she shouted, wrapping her arms around a cable. “Don’t let go!”
Nodding, Henry closed his eyes and shuddered.
Novak and Gail continued firing, forcing the crab back into the water. It paused on the railing, claws waving in frustration, lone-remaining eye glaring at them. Then it dove. As it did, the boat rocked hard. Tatiana’s lifeless body slipped over the railing after it. The others screamed, hanging on for dear life. Then the boat splashed back down again, and rocked back and forth.
“Everyone back inside,” Novak ordered.
“This was just the first,” Simon said. “There will be others like it. Leviathan will send more denizens of the Great Deep after us. I suggest you make haste, Mr. Novak.”
“I don’t think we have enough fuel, Simon. I gun it, we’re going to run out that much faster.”
“If you don’t, then we’ll die here.”
“Pedal to the metal, then,” Novak said. “Next stop, Pennsylvania. If we can find it, that is.”
“Pray we do,” Simon answered. “All of you pray that we do in time.”
CHAPTER 82
Hours later, Sarah, Henry, and Mylon were sitting in the galley, hastily grabbing a meal of granola bars, canned fruit, and bottled water before heading topside for a turn on watch. Mylon was sullen and sat apart from them, quietly sipping the juice from the can.
“Penny for your thoughts,” Henry said.
At first, Sarah didn’t think the older man had heard him. But then Mylon slowly raised his head and looked at them with red-rimmed eyes.
“Uh,” Henry stuttered. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you were… crying.”
Mylon shrugged. “It’s okay. I reckon you didn’t mean any harm.”
“Do you want to talk about it?” Sarah asked.
“Just thinking about my family. My wife and two daughters.”
“Are they… did they?” Sarah wasn’t sure how to phrase the question.
“They died,” Mylon said. “No need to tiptoe around it. They died early on, before the flooding got bad. Remember when the super-storms first started, and those really bad winds were tearing down whole cities?”
Sarah and Henry both nodded.
“Well,” Mylon continued, “one of those gusts hit our house. We were hunkered down in the basement, hiding from the worms, but it sheared our home right off the foundation. My wife and one of my daughters were killed by the debris. The worms took my other daughter soon after.”
“I’m sorry,” Sarah said.
“It’s okay. Like I said, I’ve had time to deal with it. What I’m struggling with is that… I… well, I can’t remember what they looked like anymore. I mean, I have a recollection, but it’s not complete.”
“Do you have a picture of them?” Henry asked.
“No. They got me one of those smart phones last Christmas, before all of this. I stopped carrying my wallet, and had all my pictures on the phone. Once the electricity and phone service went out, I didn’t see the point in lugging it around anymore. Not to mention all this dampness in the air probably gummed it up anyway. Only pictures I have of them are in my mind, and some days, my mind feels like it’s starting to fade.”
“That’s normal,” Sarah said. “I’ve certainly felt that way. We’re scared all the time, half-starved, cold, wet, and exhausted. It’s natural for us to feel a little cloudy.”
“That’s not what I mean,” Mylon said. “It’s like earlier today, when that crab crawled over the side. It’s terrible what happened to Tatiana, but afterward, I got to thinking that she was the lucky one. She doesn’t have to deal with this shit anymore. We do.”
“Not for much longer.” Henry gulped the rest of his water. “If Simon can do what he says, then we’ll be okay. You can even see your family again!”
“And run into another world’s version of myself? No thanks. I reckon I’ll just—”
A burst of static squawked out of the intercom, startling them. Sarah took a deep breath, expecting Novak to announce that yet another monster was pursuing them. Since the crab’s attack, the crew had spotted various dark, humped forms in the water, but Novak had maintained maximum speed, and so far, they’d been able to shake the pursuit. What he announced instead was the last thing Sarah expected.
“Folks, this is your captain speaking.” Novak sounded surprisingly cheerful. “I just thought you might like to know that we’ve just made radio contact with another vessel. We’re talking to them right now, if anybody would like to come up to the cabin and listen in. The man in charge says his name is Kevin Locke. It sounds like he’s got a pretty big group with him.”
“Holy shit,” Henry gasped. “We’re not the only ones left alive!”
“Let’s go,” Sarah said, standing up. “I want to hear this.”
Mylon joined them, and the three made their way to the bridge, where they found Novak and Gail gathered around the radio, while Simon stood to one side, listening. Through the fogged windows, Sarah caught a glimpse of Caterina, standing watch outside in a yellow raincoat.
“You guys can listen in,” Novak said, muting the microphone, “but don’t say anything. We think he might be a
