Hungry Darkness: A Deep Sea Thriller

by Gabino Iglesias

  Mariana was the first to react. Despite every atom in her body telling her to move away from the giant octopus and toward safety, something deeper and stronger told her to get out of the water and help her friend.

  Voices came at Mariana from behind. She could feel the panic they packed like buckets of cold water on her back. No, they said. Get away from that thing, they said. But she didn’t obey. She had to save Susana.

  Then came a loud crack followed by the most bloodcurdling scream any of them had ever heard. The worst thing about it was not that it kept going or that it came from someone they all loved, the worst thing about it was that it suddenly turned into an unnatural gargle and then stopped.

  Mariana was about six feet away from one of the octopus’s arms. It was as wide as a tree trunk. Its suckers on it were as big as plates. It sent a chill down her spine that followed the one caused by Susana’s last scream.

  The sheer size of the animal in front on Mariana was enough to kill all her hopes of a rescue. With no weapons and standing on rocks that were digging into her feet, there was not a lot she could do. Her eyes were starting to water as she turned around and jumped back into the water.

  Between strokes, she yelled at her friends, all of whom were apparently frozen in fear. They had to make it back to the boat and get the hell out of there before the octopus was done with Susana. Abandoning her friend was the worst thing she could imagine, but it was also the only thing that could help them stay alive.

  Her broken instructions weren’t very effective, but seeing her move toward the boat was enough to make the rest of the gang snap out of it and start moving.

  Maikel had a really hard time not looking back every two seconds. First, because the octopus had started moving toward them across the rock, and he knew that once it hit the water their swimming speed wouldn’t matter. Second, Joselito, the shortest and chubbiest of the group, was a really slow swimmer, and he could see his friend was getting left behind.

  Maikel looked forward and saw Mariana had already reached the boat and was in the process of pulling the small anchor from the rocks where they had lodged it. Sebastian was almost out of the water as well. That left him and Joselito. Then he realized that the octopus would probably get to his friend first. That would give him more time. Guilt, happiness, pain, sadness, and hope all clashed inside him and made his head spin. He felt horrible and hopeful at once, and that combination was entirely new to him.

  Mariana pulled the anchor out and took a few steps toward the boat. She watched Sebastian crawl out of the water and grit his teeth at the pain the rocks caused on his hands and knees. Behind Sebastian, she could see Maikel swimming toward them, and further back, Joselito’s tear-streaked face. The implications of not seeing anything on top of the protruding reef top behind Joselito’s head quickly registered. The octopus was in the water.

  “Guys, hurry up!” she yelled while pushing the boat toward the opposite side of the reef. It moved a few inches and stopped. Mariana grunted and applied her shoulder, but the thing refused to move another inch. She was about to turn around and ask for help when Sebastian pulled up next to her and pushed the boat sideways. It moved. They both pushed together and didn’t stop until they reached the water.

  “Wait for me!”

  Maikel’s voice was broken and too high. Mariana and Sebastian held the boat next to the reef and yelled back at their friend to hurry. They knew running on the rocks was impossible, but Maikel was going to have to try, or get left behind.

  Joselito felt like his lungs were about to explode. He couldn’t catch his breath. His head had already gone under three times. His limbs felt heavy. His friends seemed to be too far. He kept swimming, but a tiny voice in his head was telling him he was not going to make it.

  The fourth time Joselito’s head went under he thought it was only because he was tired. Then he realized one of the octopus’s huge arms was wrapped around his waist. He felt his whole body spin twice, and then the arm applied so much pressure that everything inside him shifted. The world turned dark.

  Mariana watched Joselito go down and knew the shadow underneath him was responsible. She screamed at Maikel who was now cursing up a storm and trying to walk fast on bloody feet. He had to hurry the hell up or be left behind.

  “We have to leave him,” said Sebastian.

  “Not yet,” said Mariana. “Get in the boat and get the motor going.”

  Under most circumstances, Sebastian would have argued. He still had issues taking orders from a girl. This time, however, the fear constricting his lungs kept him quiet, and he did exactly what Mariana told him to.

  Maikel was about ten feet away when he heard the motor start. They were leaving him. He looked up from his torn, bleeding feet and the ragged rocks right in front of him and saw Mariana. She had one hand on the boat and was signaling to him with the other. He still had a chance. He moved forward even faster, ignoring the pain that kept shooting up from his feet and threatening him with unconsciousness.

  Mariana reached out to Maikel, grabbed his outstretched hand, and pulled him with all her strength. The boy flew forward, his upper body landing inside the boat. The hit knocked the air out of his lungs, but feeling that hard wood touching his body made him so happy that he smiled despite the horrific circumstances and the incredible pain coming from his feet.

  Mariana jumped into the boat. Sebastian didn’t wait for any orders. Four long seconds later, the boat was jumping up and down on the open ocean. The water spraying their faces mixed in with the tears rolling down their cheeks

  Chapter Thirteen

  Gabe’s understanding of the criminal world came, like that of most people, from what he’d learn from movies and television shows. Except for illegal fishing and his two trips as a mule, he was in the dark when it came to doing things that could put you behind bars. That morning would show him that most of his ideas were wrong.

  It started with the phone call. He thought that he would have to wait until nighttime to get his guns because under the cover of night is when crime operates. Instead, his cell phone buzzed in his pockets a couple of minutes shy of 11:00 a.m. No one answered when he picked up and said hi, so he grabbed the money, all of which came from the check he had deposited the minute the bank opened that morning, and walked out of his apartment and down to the parking lot.

  The man waiting for him was the second element that shattered his expectations. Gabe had expected to find someone dressed either like a classic rap video thug or a mafia wiseguy from a movie. Instead, an older man who looked like someone’s alcoholic uncle was waiting for him in a dilapidated blue LeBaron.

  When the man saw Gabe, he grabbed something from the passenger seat and stepped out of the car without killing the engine. He had a blue gym bag in his left hand.

  “You Gabe?”

  The man was tall and had a face full of acne scars. He wore brown pants, a black t-shirt, and grey tennis shoes that belonged either in the trash or on the feet of a homeless man.

  “That’d be me.”

  “Got the money?”

  Gabe handed over the envelope. The man reached for it. His right hand was missing its pinky and ring fingers. When he looked at the man and applied the context of their situation, the missing digits became the first thing that was in tune with Gabe’s expectations.

  The man grabbed the money with his three-fingered hand and made it disappear into his right front pocket. Without a word, he raised the gym bag. Gabe took it. The man turned around, climbed back into his car, and pulled out of the parking lot.

  Gabe was left holding a bag full of shotguns. He ran into his apartment, shut the door behind him, and dropped the bag on the sofa. He wanted to open it, but he also wanted it to disappear. Finally, curiosity won out.

  The three guns were more or less the same, and Gabe didn’t know enough about guns to know what exactly was different. As far as he knew, two had wood on them, and one had not. There were two boxes of ammo in the bag. Since they were the same,
Gabe deduced all three guns would use the same. He booted up his computer and looked up how to use the guns on YouTube.

  After loading and unloading the shotguns a dozen times, he felt ready. Back when the idea occurred to him, he hadn’t thought about reloading. The damn things only held three cartridges. Reloading in a moving boat with a giant octopus trying to eat them would not be easy, but they’d have to make it work.

  Chapter Fifteen

  The second call Gabe received that morning was from Emanuel. The scientist was ready to get going. Despite his apprehension and his constant reminder that Gabe’s plan barely deserved to be called a plan, the man seemed eager to get in the water and see the monster with his own eyes.

  The third call was not as great.

  Suarez sounded angry. He kept repeating that he understood that he’d only contacted Gabe two days ago, but the problem at hand had to be dealt with immediately. Gabe felt the same way he’d felt every time a teacher had scolded him. He assured Suarez that he was going into the water in a few hours, and that he had a way to ensure that the animal would be dead if it came close to the boat. He also said he had some irresistible bait. There was nothing to worry about. Suarez’s response was as hard and cold as a knife pulled from the freezer: “There better not be after tonight. We have a couple of dead kids on our hands.”

  The call left Gabe shaken up. Grown men finding a horrible death in the water was one thing, but when it came to kids, death just seemed unfair and wrong.

  Two hours later, Gabe was sitting by the docks waiting for Emanuel.

  The marine biologist finally showed up. He was riding in a small white boat with a rail-thin man with olive skin. Emanuel jumped onto the deck and tied the boat. Then he helped the skinny man step onto the deck. The two of them approached Gabe.

  “Gabe, this is Martin. Martin, Gabe.”

  The men shook hands. Martin was stronger than he looked.

  “Martin is the guy I told you about. He saw the arm trying to get into his boat while he was out fishing with his son. I knew he’d be on board with anything that had to do with getting rid of that threat.”

  Martin looked at Gabe and nodded.

  “I make my living out there, and my boy loves spending time with me. I don’t want something that can eat my son and me inside our boat sharing the water we go into daily. The professor told me you were going to shoot this thing. I think that’s a bad, dangerous plan, but I’m in.”

  Gabe decided not to argue. He led the two men to his apartment. He handed each of them an unloaded shotgun and showed them how to use them. Martin looked somewhat comfortable. Emanuel looked like he was handling a venomous snake instead of a weapon.

  “Regardless of what you think of my plan, I’d appreciate it if you guys could take measures not to shoot my boat or me. I’d also appreciate if you didn’t shoot each other. I’d like for the three of us to come back in one piece. Deal?”

  Martin and Emanuel nodded. They looked ready to go. Gabe wondered how long that façade would last once they laid eyes on the monster.

  Chapter Sixteen

  According to Emanuel, octopodes are territorial animals despite the fact that most species regularly change dens. The marine biologist had started rambling after Gabe asked him if he had an idea of what would be a good place to start looking for the beast. The scientist hadn’t shut his mouth since.

  “We should definitely head to the reefs near Giant Cave. I’d bet that’s where this octopus is hiding. Think about it. True, it has been spotted here and there, but not by many people. An animal of that size would cause quite a stir if he was active or visible during the daytime. Also, the sun’s about to go down, and that’s when he’ll be most active. If we can be already there when he decides to go get some food, then we won’t really have to wait long before we’re face-to-face with him.”

  To Gabe, Emanuel’s words were more or less like the sound of the boats engines; he knew it was there, but his attention was elsewhere.

  The closer they got to Giant Cave, the smaller Gabe thought his boat was. Gabe owned a 1999 31' Fountain Center Console Fishing Boat with a couple of 275 Mercury Verado motors in the back. It was more than he needed and certainly more than he could afford, but he’d been lucky. The last time he decided to buy a newer boat, he found a listing that he was sure was a scam, but he called anyway. Turns out it was not a scam, but no one else had called thinking that it was. The man who owned the boat was about to get a divorce and wanted to sell as many things as he could and send the money to his girlfriend in Florida. He ended up giving the boat to Gabe for $20,000. Gabe knew that was the first and last time something like that would happen to him.

  While the boat always felt good under Gabe’s feet, now he couldn’t stop imagining the whole thing being crushed with the three of them inside. Also, the two men sitting on the boat with him would soon have shotguns in their hands, and Gabe was starting to realize how bad his plan really was.

  They reached the reef near Giant Cave and dropped anchor. Emanuel placed a hand on Gabe’s shoulder.

  “Time to get in the water, man,” said Emanuel.

  “What? No, I have some crabs in the…”

  “This octopus won’t show for some tiny crabs, Gabe. I told you, you have to turn yourself into the bait. You don’t have to be in the water for long. Just jump in, splash around a bit, and come back. For some reason, this octopus likes to hunt near the surface. I could give you a three-hour presentation on why that’s absolutely bonkers, but we don’t have that much time.”

  Gabe looked at Emanuel. He was serious. Martin was sitting near the bow, his dark eyes shifting back and forth between the water and the two men.

  Getting in the water was the last thing Gabe wanted to do, but he knew it had to be done. Although he understood the necessity for it, he was also very aware of the fact that he was not even remotely interested in playing hero. He was going to jump in the water, splash around, and climb back onboard before the last few drops caused by his splashing were done falling back into the ocean.

  “Martin and I are going to be right there with you.”

  “That’s okay, just don’t point your guns at me unless you actually see something coming for me, deal?”

  “Deal,” said Emanuel with a smile that was very much out of place.

  Chapter Seventeen

  The water was tepid. The sun looked like a radioactive orange that was being submerged in black ink. The two men who were supposed to take care of Gabe the short time he was going to spend in the water looked like schoolboys who had been caught looking at porn during class.

  Gabe looked at the two pairs of eyes that kept jumping from him to the water and sent up a silent prayer to a god he’d stopped believing in a decade before.

  “The time is perfect. Get in there, and do your thing,” said Emanuel.

  Instead of thinking, which surely would lead to chickening out, Gabe jumped into the water.

  As a diver, Gabe knew that the world underneath the surface of the ocean was mysterious and dangerous. He knew that while many alpinists had reached the top of Everest, no one had reached the bottom of the ocean. At that moment, with his feet moving around in the water and his hands splashing around with a desperation he didn’t have to fake, he could somehow feel the immensity of the world underneath him and his own insignificance in relation to it.

  Then his right hand shot out and grabbed the boat.

  “What are you doing? You can’t get in just yet, man. Splash around some more!”

  For a second, Gabe thought Emanuel was joking. Then he looked at his face and realized the marine biologist was serious.

  “How long do you want me down here? I’m not really happy feeling like a flapping chunk of bait.”

  “Not much longer. Twilight is when these guys come out. We only need you in there long enough to make sure this octopus knows we’re here. Usually they hide in their dens and wait for prey to get close, but he has been going up to boats, so it seems like
he either hears boats or senses their presence.”

  Gabe had never wanted to kill anyone as bad as he wanted to kill Emanuel right then. He grabbed the aluminum ladder with both hands and climbed onboard.

  “If that’s your theory, then we can just leave the fucking motors running!”

  Emanuel’s eyes opened wide. Gabe was right. Putting him in the water had been as dangerous as it had been unnecessary.

  “Listen, Gabe, I’m really sorry I…”

  “Guys!” Martin’s voice reached them and made them turn around.

  “I just saw something!”

  Emanuel and Gabe ran to where Martin was sitting. They looked at the water next to the boat. The sun was covering the water with glare. They couldn’t see much.

  “What did you see?”

  “No idea. It was big and dark. I just saw this shadow go by under the boat.”

  Gabe knew it was time to get the shotgun.

  Chapter Eighteen

  The second Gabe’s right hand wrapped around the shotgun’s barrel, Emanuel’s voice erupted. Gabe turned around, feeling like someone had just dumped a bucket of ice-cold water on his head. The tightening in his skull and around his neck and chest was something he hadn’t felt in a very long time.

  Emanuel and Martin were looking at the water, their bodies bent over starboard. Gabe imagined a giant arm coming out of the water and knocking them into the ocean. It made him put a shell into the chamber and get out of the cockpit.

  “You guys see anything?” Gabe asked.

  “Just a large shape, like Martin said. I think it’s studying us. Remember what I told you: the octopus is the brain of the ocean. With the size of this beast’s brain, I’m afraid he might even know we’re up to no good.”

  Just as he had done at his lab, Emanuel was turning the octopus into a brilliant creature with unlimited powers. Gabe opted to ignore that because in his head, he wanted it to be nothing more than a soft, overgrown animal that could easily be blown to pieces by the gun in his hands.