He fell to the ground, groaning in pain. I was distantly relieved to know that Maurice was well, but concerned about Victoria. To think, she was from Atlantis as well! I pushed those thoughts from my head as I ran away from him. It was more of a drunken stagger, but I managed to make it through most of the chairs on deck before he grabbed me. I could see the stairs just a few feet ahead and I screamed for help. It was hoarser than I’d intended, but all I needed was one more person on the deck. I thrashed, twisted, and desperately tried to fight him through the fog that was my brain. It was a struggle just to stay conscious.
I saw the railing again in my peripheral and I forced my limbs to do something. The fog was coming faster the closer I was to his body as all I could smell was him. It wasn’t as if I didn’t want to go back to Atlantis, but there was no way of knowing for sure that we would. I really didn’t want to die now that I’d found my soul mate. I prayed for a miracle.
She came with disheveled hair and frumpy clothing, brandishing a very large metal pipe. I ducked just as she swung, and heard a massive, juicy thwack behind me. I fell to the ground tangled with Stuart and covered with his blood, brains, and pieces of his skull.
“Asshole! How could you drug your own kind?” Her voice shrilled in anger. “Are you all right, Natasha?” I looked up at Victoria in all her brilliant rage and thought I was looking at an angel. It was the most I’d ever heard her speak, and the worst I’d ever seen her look, but she was beautiful.
“I think so. Will you help me up? I honestly don’t know how I’m even still conscious.” I lifted a gore-splattered hand, trying desperately not to think about the brains on my arms as she lifted me up. She sniffed my neck as she pulled me close.
“So, it’s true,” she said in awe, her expression mystified. “My master thought you might be the one, but he wasn’t sure. He sent me here to watch and protect you, if necessary. It was fortunate for you that Stuart attacked during the night, as I’m mostly useless during the day. Add that stupid drug to the mix and let’s just say that you are one lucky girl. You need to go get cleaned up somewhere where no one will see you. I’ll clean this up.” She gestured to the body still on deck. “Don’t speak of this to anyone. I’ll find you later.” With that, she lifted Stuart’s body as if he was nothing but a bag of flour and tossed him overboard. She removed her shirt to clean the deck, and I ran to my suite.
We arrived in Miami without any further incidents. No one noticed Stuart was missing until Maurice woke two hours before arriving in the Miami port. It was chaos as people looked around for the missing passenger. Maurice was devastated and I didn’t have the heart to tell him what had happened. Not that I could have even if I’d wanted to, he was surrounded by people. He was a very popular man, especially with a certain male crowd. Somehow, I knew he’d eventually be okay.
“I’m still going to come back with you, if that’s okay.” Keith’s voice intruded on my musings, mumbling something about his parents.
“I’m sorry things turned out how they did, Keith,” I replied, hoping he could hear the sincerity in my voice. “I do care about you, and I hope we can be friends.” Disappointment flashed across his face, and I knew that friendship between us would never exist. He believed he loved me, and while I truly cared for him, I could never love him as I did Raif.
“Of course. I’ll see you on the plane,” he replied, rushing off to meet back up with his friends before our departure from the ship. I secretly wondered how many other friendships I’d lose from this trip. It had started out so promising, but was ending with such heartbreak; it was hard to not be depressed. I held onto the flicker of life I could feel in my heart. Knowing that Raif was out there, waiting for me, kept me going.
Victoria met me on the docks. She hadn’t said anything to me since Stuart’s death the night before and for that I was grateful. It was not a night I wanted to remember. It was hard to believe that less than a week had passed since I’d boarded the ship. With all that had happened, I felt like years had gone by.
“You will come with me. Everything will be explained once we reach my master. Come.” Every inch of her was covered. Huge, dark tinted glasses covered half her face, while a scarf covered her mouth, obscuring any facial expression.
She had been dressed in a very similar manor when we’d gone diving. For someone so young, she really didn’t like the sun. I didn’t have anything pressing, and I was curious to know who’d sent her, so I followed her. We flagged a cab and I was surprised when we pulled up to the Krypt Keeper.
“Why are we going to a bar? I thought we had to meet your boss?” I was feeling uneasy about having gotten into a cab with someone who was essentially a stranger.
“We are. Come.” She got out of the cab and walked into the club as if she owned the place. I supposed I could have just asked the cabbie to take me somewhere else, anywhere else but here, but I felt that I owed her and her boss for protecting me.
The bar was much less magnificent
