He dragged her farther and yanked her to her feet by the front of her shirt.
“You’re such an arrogant bitch.”
Her toes barely touched the ground, making it hard to regain her footing. She braced against him with her elbow digging into his chest. In such close combat her choices were limited. He drew back one arm to land another punch and she seized the opportunity. She lunged, breaking his nose with her forehead.
He let go and she dove for the gun. But he regrouped, even angrier now. He grabbed for her, blood gushing from his smashed nose.
He had her ankle. She kicked at him with her other foot.
Jackson stretched for the weapon.
Her fingernails scraped at the ground.
She was so close.
Just a little more.
Just a little more.
He tried to twist her foot in an attempt to force her to roll onto her back. He was on her again. Fuck, he was heavy. He had her in a choke hold. Blood from his face dripped onto hers. She wedged her arms between his and braced against his elbows to break the hold. As she gasped for air she only had one thought in her head.
Elle.
Adrenaline and rage surged in her chest. This was not the end. There was no way she was giving this asshole control over her destiny, her life. She wedged the heel of her hand beneath his chin and applied pressure. When that didn’t work, she swung for his broken and bloody nose. That did it. He recoiled and uttered some combination of a growl and a gurgle. She punched him in the throat and wriggled out from under him while he tried to regroup.
She lunged for the gun.
He grabbed the back of her T-shirt and yanked her up from the ground, but she already had the weapon in her hand.
* * *
Elle was startled by the sound of gunshots. They reverberated off the rocky cliff above her. It was hard to know for sure where the shots were coming from. Something must have happened at base camp. She was in shallow water near one of the tidal pools. She gathered her things with the intention of hustling up the trail to see what was wrong. But when she looked up, Ted was standing at the water’s edge holding a gun.
She blinked, hoping she was seeing things, but Ted was still there. His hand shook and he steadied it by gripping the sidearm with both hands. He held the weapon out in front of him as if Elle were a threat. But she wasn’t a threat. Was he hallucinating? He hadn’t been quite himself since they’d made the jump the previous day.
“Ted, it’s me. What are you doing?” She was standing knee-deep in water, still holding the collection of specimen jars.
“I’m sorry, Elle.”
“What’s there to be sorry about? Put the gun down, Ted. Everything is going to be okay. You’re okay.” She bent to set the jars on a flat rock at the edge of the pool she’d been sampling from.
“Don’t move!”
“I’m not moving.” She held up one hand. “I’m just putting these down so that I don’t drop them.”
“I’m sorry, Elle.” He repeated the apology and sounded as if he truly meant it.
“Ted, whatever is going on, we’re in this together. I’m not your enemy.” She took a step in his direction.
“We’re not in this together.” He took a step back, keeping the gun in front of him. She was afraid he might shoot her by accident. “There’s nothing you can do.”
“Okay, okay.” She wanted to calm him down.
More distant gunshots. Ted glanced over his shoulder toward the trail and then back. Her heart rate ratcheted up. Where was Jackson? What was happening?
“They can do things. They can make things happen if you don’t do what they want.”
“Who is they, Ted? What are you talking about?”
“They wrecked my car.” A tear slid down his cheek. He wiped at it with his shoulder.
“Who, Ted? Who wrecked your car?”
“The AI driver never fails unless someone wants it to. They were sending me a message, Elle.” His voice faltered. “I have no choice. I have to do this.”
“And if you do this, then what happens?” She still didn’t know what this was, but maybe if she could keep him talking she could find out.
“If I don’t do this, they derail the surgery, the transplant for Alden.”
“Your son, Alden?”
“They promised, Elle.” He sniffed and shook his head. “I do this for them and they make sure Alden gets a new heart and lungs. That’s the deal.” He took a breath. “I have no choice.”
“Who is they?” She understood now why he was desperate, but she needed more information.
“Don’t pretend you don’t know.” He was getting angry.
“Ted, I really don’t know.”
“Liam.”
“Liam? But why?” Could this be true? This made no sense. The mission was funded by BIOME for BIOME. “Why would BIOME sabotage their own expedition?”
“Not BIOME.” He shook his head. “Liam works for other people, people who stand to make a lot of money off this expedition…from the samples we bring back.”
“But—”
“Don’t be so naive, Elle.”
“But why?” She couldn’t stop the question.
“Greed…selfishness…It’s always the same reason, isn’t it?”
“Ted, think about what you’re doing.” Another gunshot, this one sounded closer, but she still didn’t see anyone descend the trail. No one was coming to save her this time.
“I’ve already thought about it.”
“Ted, you might save your son, temporarily, but if we don’t do what we set out to do here and reseed the oceans we’re all dead. The world is dead. Don’t you get that?”
“There’s nothing I can do.” But for an instant he seemed to consider it.
“You can make the choice to do the right thing, Ted. You have free will in this.”
“People certainly have a will, but is it free?”
“Yes, it is.” Elle’s feet were numb from standing in the cold surf. “People make choices all the time. We are free to choose.”
The tide was coming in. Each wave washed a little farther. The water swirled around Ted’s feet. He was lost in thought and didn’t avoid the rippling shallow wave.
“I’m sorry, Elle. But we’ve talked enough. There’s nothing either of us can do to change reality. The world is a horrible place and we each have to figure out our own way to survive it.” He pointed the handgun at her with renewed resolve. “You’re a good person. Just know that this isn’t easy. But I have to do this to save my son.”
Her eyes widened to the sky for an instant. Was this the last light she would ever see? A sharp rush of panic constricted her chest. She covered her face with her hands. And with the darkness had only one thought—Jackson. Please let Jackson be okay.
“Good-bye, Elle.”
She still covered her face and didn’t respond.
The gun fired.
She flinched but felt nothing.
Had he missed?
She lowered her hands and opened her eyes to see Jackson, splashing through the knee-deep water, rushing toward her. Ted was lying on the beach. The surf lapped at his unmoving form. Jackson swept Elle up into a hug, lifting her out of the water.
“Are you hurt?” Jackson set her down and held her face in her hands.
“I’m okay.” Elle’s heart still raced. “But you’re hurt.”
There was blood on Jackson’s face and her T-shirt had smudges of dirt.
“No, I’m fine, but I’m worried about Wallace. He was wounded and I had to leave him.”
“Why did you leave him?” The answer seemed obvious the instant she uttered it.
“I had to make sure you were safe.” Jackson drew her into another embrace.
Elle sank into Jackson. Relief tumbled over her in successive waves.
“I think I’ve lost the feeling in my feet.” She stumbled and Jackson caught her.
Jackson kept her arm around Elle’s waist as they waded to s
hore.
“Here, sit down.” Jackson helped her to a spot near the trail where a few large rocks jutted from the sand.
Jackson knelt and removed the water shoes.
“Your feet are ice cold.” She rubbed them briskly between her hands. “Hang on.”
Jackson walked to where Ted had fallen and dragged him up and away from the surf. She retrieved his gun and came back to where Elle was sitting.
“I’ve checked the cartridge and the safety is off. If anyone but me or Wallace comes down that path you just point and shoot.” Jackson put the gun in her hand.
She stared at it. Guns weren’t her thing at all.
“Where are you going?” Her teeth chattered; she was probably in shock.
“I have to go back for Wallace.” There was urgency in Jackson’s voice.
There’d been no more distant gunshots. Elle wasn’t sure what that meant. She involuntarily shivered, from shock or the cool air, she wasn’t sure which.
“Hey, you’re going to be okay.” Jackson swept her palms up and down Elle’s arms to warm her. “Just sit tight.”
She stood and checked the ammunition in her gun. She shoved the magazine back into the handle.
“I don’t want to stay here. I want to go with you.” Elle got to her feet.
“No, if there’s more shooting I don’t want you becoming a target.” Jackson was firm.
Elle nodded and then watched Jackson sprint up the trail.
She sat and tried to make sense of all that Ted had revealed. Liam was someone she admired, someone she trusted. Was it really possible that he’d worked against her on this? Why had he even selected her for the mission if he’d planned for her to fail?
Maybe she was supposed to succeed, but only in the acquisition of the samples. Liam knew how much this meant to her; she’d spent her entire career on this research. He had to know she’d go to any length to succeed. She was his guarantee of mission success. Ted was blackmailed into delivering the samples, but she must have been the only person Liam trusted to choose the right spot and verify the organisms were viable.
He had used her.
He’d used her and then planned to discard her. And not only her, Jackson and Wallace as well. Shock and sadness gave way to anger.
She’d sunk her toes in the warm, brown sand until the feeling began to return. She tugged on her soggy shoes and started the climb to base camp. Whatever awaited Jackson there, Elle didn’t want her to face it alone. They were in this together now.
Chapter Twenty-two
Jackson jogged all the way from the beach. She was winded when she reached the tree line. She slowed her pace and tried to calm her breathing as she approached base camp. Nothing was moving. The scene was eerily quiet. With her weapon drawn, she slipped from tree to tree until she was close enough to get eyes on Wallace. He was where she’d left him. His back was against the oversized tire with his legs extended in front.
She scanned the area for Harris.
Finally, she saw him, facedown not too far from Wallace. She checked for a pulse. Harris was dead.
Jackson moved swiftly to Wallace’s position. He was still breathing, but he was gasping for air. He’d taken a third bullet in the chest and he’d lost a lot of blood from his leg wound. Red-brown ooze spread on the ground under him.
“Hey, man. Hang in there.” She knelt beside him. He didn’t look good at all.
“Is everything…” He coughed and drew a shaky breath. “Elle and Ted?”
“Elle is safe. Ted was part of this.” She tried to offer him some water, but he couldn’t choke it down. “Ted didn’t make it.”
“Nunez?”
“He’s gone.” She frowned. “That bastard tried to kill me.”
“You finish this, Cap.” His words were raspy, barely more than a whisper. He was fading. “You see this through.”
“Don’t worry, Wallace. I’ll finish this. You can count on that.”
His head lolled to one side and she tried to prop him up.
“Wallace, stay with me. Wallace?”
But he was gone.
Jackson sank back, letting her hand holding the canteen drop to the ground. This whole situation was royally fucked up. And she still had no idea why or for what purpose.
Footsteps behind her caused her to pivot on one knee, weapon drawn.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to surprise you.” Elle held her hands up. She still had Ted’s gun with her. “I…I didn’t want to…I was worried you might need me. I was afraid Wallace might need help.”
“Wallace didn’t make it.” Jackson holstered the weapon and stood up.
“I can’t believe this. Ted, he—” The knot in her throat choked the words.
“Hey, we’re okay.” Jackson removed the pistol from Elle’s loose grip and drew her into a one-armed hug. “We’re okay now.”
Elle took a shuddering breath.
“We’re going to be okay.” She said it again.
Elle wasn’t sure whom Jackson was trying to convince, but still, the words soothed her. She was grateful for Jackson’s calm strength.
“We’re alone.” The words sounded far away in her own head. Had she actually spoken or simply thought them?
The immensity of the primeval world seemed suddenly overwhelming.
“Yeah, and we can’t stay here.” Jackson surveyed the camp. “There’s too much blood. Your wolf friend will be back and he’ll bring others with him.”
“I didn’t even think of that.” Elle watched Jackson pace. “What should we do? We can’t leave the bodies here either.”
Jackson’s leave no trace lecture was on point, even now, even more so.
“We can take a stretcher and carry Ted up from the beach. We should work fast.” Jackson searched through first aid gear in the nearest trailer. “The scent of blood will bring too many unwanted creatures in our direction. There are big cats here too, right?”
“Yes.” Elle nodded.
“Come on.” Jackson had the collapsible stretcher under one arm as she started back toward the beach.
* * *
Jackson wanted to know what Elle was thinking, what she was feeling as they moved Ted to the stretcher. As a soldier, Jackson had experienced the loss of comrades in the line of duty before, but this was different. Elle was a civilian and her research partner, her friend, had tried to shoot her. That was betrayal on a level Jackson had thankfully never had to experience.
Elle stepped away to retrieve her backpack and other things she’d left earlier. There was also a gallon of seawater. She set it in the sand beside the stretcher.
“We’ll come back for that.” Jackson riffled through Ted’s pack. She found what she was hoping for, a small towel. She used it to cover his face, tucking it beneath his head.
“Thank you.” Elle’s words were soft, quiet. She reached for the large container again.
“Elle, leave it.”
She had a confused expression.
“We’ll come back for it because we have two other containers to fill.” Jackson figured they’d have a hard enough time carrying Ted without the additional weight.
“We’re going to fill all the tanks?” Elle slipped the straps of her small pack over her shoulders.
“Hell yes, we are.” Jackson faced her. “If we don’t then Wallace gave his life for nothing. Not to mention all the people we left behind who are counting on us.”
Elle nodded. She was shaken, Jackson could see it. But they had a lot to deal with at the moment and she needed Elle to pull it together.
“Listen, focus on the tasks for now.” Jackson put her hand on Elle’s shoulder. “We’ll deal with our feelings later, okay?” Jackson cupped her cheek. “Act now, feel later.”
“Okay…yes, you’re right…I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry. There’s nothing to be sorry about.” Jackson grabbed the handles on one end of the stretcher. “Ready?”
Elle nodded. They hoisted Ted and made the slow climb up th
e steep trail. Jackson was in back, in the downhill position, so that she could bear the brunt of Ted’s weight as they climbed.
Once they were back at camp, Jackson retrieved a body bag for Ted. There was always the chance that something unforeseen could befall a team in the field, so they had prepared for every scenario, or tried to. That preparation involved the loss of a team member. They had bags that could be vacuum sealed for transport. Each would be contained within one of the black bags and then placed in their assigned g-tube for the return flight.
Nunez was the most difficult to retrieve. For one thing, he was extremely heavy. Additionally, he was in the open, away from camp. By the time they got back to him vultures were circling. The huge black wings cast moving shadows on the ground.
“How did Nunez die?” Elle stood, looking down at his body, which was facedown.
“I shot him.” Jackson glanced up at the dark-winged scavengers.
“Did he…” Elle didn’t finish the question.
“Yeah, he tried to kill me.” Jackson readied the black plastic bag for Nunez. “And then I’m pretty sure he was on his way to make sure Ted had taken care of you.”
“I still can’t believe it.” Elle swept her fingers through her hair and looked out at the churning sea.
The wind had picked up and the water was choppy.
“I believe it only because I lived it.” Jackson knelt beside the body.
She’d driven one of the ATVs, pulling a trailer to pick up Nunez. After his body was bagged, they half dragged, half lifted him onto the trailer.
“Stay here. I’ll go get that container from the beach.” Jackson started toward the cliff.
“No, I’ll go. You look exhausted.”
“You’re exhausted too.” Jackson studied her.
“Yes, but I didn’t have to survive hand-to-hand combat the way you probably did.”
Jackson hadn’t described what had happened, but maybe she didn’t have to. She was fairly sure her face was bruised. Her cheek and her eye socket throbbed from the punches Nunez had landed. Her ribs were definitely sore too. Once she stopped moving she’d probably collapse. But she needed to get them to safety before that happened.
“Let’s just fill the last two and take everything back in one trip.” Jackson swiped the last two empty containers from the back of the ATV and followed Elle.
The Sea Within Page 15
