“In that it’s completely missing. You haven’t been down here long, have you?”
“No,” Bryonie said. “But … what’s the big deal?”
“There’s something else. Just a little something. I’ll show you.”
They stepped out onto the main deck. To the right of them were scattered pieces of the missing door.
A chainsaw lay flat in the centre of it.
“Weird,” Bryonie said.
“Yes, it is weird,” Melissa said carefully. “I wonder why someone felt the need to do this.”
“I guess you better let the others know. They’re on the roof with the pools and stuff.”
Melissa smiled without looking at her.
Bryonie started to back away.
She turned.
“Stop,” Melissa’s voice rang out behind her.
Bryonie stopped.
Melissa approached her from behind. “Are you going somewhere?”
“I don’t know,” Bryonie mumbled. “I thought I might take a walk on the beach.”
“By yourself?”
Bryonie twisted her neck round.
They locked eyes. “Did you want to come with me?”
Melissa shook her head. “It’s important we stay where we are for the time being. Is … Is Finn still on the roof? Or has he moved on?”
“He was there when I left,” Bryonie replied.
“Maybe we should go see him together.”
Bryonie stiffened. “No. That’s okay. Thanks.”
Melissa shook her head. “I’m serious. Let’s go.”
“What’s your problem?”
Melissa lifted up her top.
Bryonie’s jaw fell as she saw a pistol was strapped to Melissa’s waist.
“Everything alright,” a familiar voice stirred behind them.
Bryonie looked over her shoulder as Finn approached them.
“This is between us,” Melissa said firmly, pushing her top back down. “Careful what you say.”
Finn moved in between them. “What are you guy’s talking about?”
“It’s nothing,” Bryonie muttered. “You come with me. I’m going for a walk.”
Finn watched Melissa carefully as she slunk back inside the door frame.
“I’d be delighted.”
CHAPTER SEVEN
Taylor was on the left. Leah was on the right.
Darien was in the middle.
The gloved hands of the bartender shuffled between them, stirring and shaking and pouring and sliding their glasses across. Darien raised his to both of theirs. “To a wonderful evening,” he said merrily and then drank.
Taylor watched as Leah’s gaze shifted from Darien to her glass … to Taylor.
Taylor tilted her head back.
Then she drank as well.
“Gawd, where is everyone?” Leah murmured, looking behind them. “This isn’t going to be much of a party if it’s only three people hanging out at the same time.”
“Well, you know I would have tried harder to make Finn stay,” Darien said, “but it seems he’s really fallen for that friend of yours.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Taylor said sipping on her drink.
Darien and Leah both faced her.
“The thing about Bryonie is the longer you know her, the more realize what a dumbass she is.”
“Don’t be mean,” Leah said sternly. “She’s supposed to be your friend, remember?”
Taylor set her glass down. “And I thought Erin and I were supposed to be your friends. Yet you were going to blow us off for … whatever this is.”
“Which one is Erin again?” Darien chimed in.
“She ran off with Perry,” Leah replied. “When we first arrived.”
“Oh,” Darien said. “I guess we’ll have to look on them in a bit. Keep them from being anti-social.”
“I have no objection,” Taylor said.
“We’ll have a few more rounds first,” Darien said signaling for their drinks to be topped up.
Taylor listened to the liquid filling up her glass without actually seeing it fall.
“You know, while we’re on the subject of Bryonie,” Leah began, “I really do have to put it forth again that you could do a better job at making her feel welcome.”
Taylor rolled her eyes.
“I’m serious,” Leah said as Darien handed their glasses back to them. “If there’s any fun to be had tonight, it’ll start with you all making up and getting along. Like we used to.”
Darien clinked their glasses.
Taylor studied Leah, thinking about her next comeback as the alcohol touched her lips.
She could tell Leah was unnerved by her stare alone.
Taylor’s gaze carried weight.
“There are things you don’t know, Leah.”
“What things?”
Taylor shrugged. “You should ask around town. You might learn something about that so-called friend of yours.”
“Ladies, please,” Darien said. “Don’t leave me out of the conversation. I am still here you know.”
Taylor nodded. “Very well, Darien. What do you want to talk about?”
“Well, I –”
“Just a minute,” Leah interrupted. “What the fuck are you talking about, Taylor?”
Taylor shrugged.
“Are you just bullshitting me? Are you just trying to fuck with my head for no reason?”
“Forget it, seriously,” Taylor said. “It’s water under the bridge.”
Leah got off her stool.
She marched by Darien and stood in front of Taylor.
Hands on hips.
“What are you on about?”
Taylor smiled. “Rumors. Shit to do with Bryonie. And…”
“And what?”
“They’re gonna kill me. They’re literally going to –”
“Spit it out!”
“Ask Penelope,” Taylor said. “She heard something from her brother about how your Dad and Bryonie got off together. So um … yeah…”
Leah’s jaw dropped.
She burst out laughing.
“Fuck off,” she said. “You know I think Erin texted me some bullshit about this before…”
“It’s just what we heard,” Taylor said. “I didn’t want to say anything because…”
Leah shook her head. “Bryonie and my Dad. That’s – that’s fucking ridiculous. There’s no – there’s no fucking WAY that happened.”
But Leah’s cheeks were going red.
“Maybe you should ask her,” Darien said.
Leah glared at him.
“Just an idea,” he shrugged.
“Alright,” Leah said mildly. “I’ll get to the bottom of this. You just … stay where you are. I’ll figure it out.”
Leah then stormed off.
To find Bryonie presumably.
“Another drink?” Taylor said waving her empty glass in Darien’s face.
“No problem,” Darien said, snapping his fingers again. “You know, that’s some crazy shit right there. I wonder if you made that up.”
“Why would I do that?” Taylor replied.
“I don’t know,” Darien said handing her glass back to her. “Maybe you wanted to get me alone.”
Taylor clinked his glass. “You might have something there, Darien.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
Bryonie and Finn had made it a couple hundred meters down the beach without really talking with one another. Bryonie knew it was her fault. Every time Finn went to say something helpful she cut him off with a sarcastic comment. She didn’t want to behave like a bitch or anything, even if she was probably coming off that way. She’d come out here to clear her mind, to think, to gain perspective of their situation. But now that she could see the ship from a distance, and now that Finn was right in front of her with the sunset melting into his gorgeous skin – Bryonie still could not find peace within herself. Perhaps it was doomed from the start.
“This doesn’t have to go
any further,” Finn said.
“What doesn’t?” Bryonie replied.
“You and me.”
Bryonie’s heart sank. “Oh.”
“The reason I asked you out here was because I thought we got on well this afternoon, and that we would have a good time together. I know I was shit-stirring you at one point, but that’s all it was. I do it to everyone. When I … I think they’ll get the joke. You obviously took it a lot more seriously than I realized.”
Bryonie sighed. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”
“There’s nothing wrong with you,” Finn said. “You’re just not ready. It’s okay.”
“No, it isn’t.”
“We can’t keep pretending there’s something between us when there isn’t. You obviously have a lot going on without worrying about me.”
“But, but – what do you think about –”
“Bryonie,” he said. “You can go anywhere tonight. Be anybody. The world doesn’t live or die on this moment. We can always stay in touch, and then maybe one day…”
He trailed off.
Finn turned back to the ship and raised his hand to block out the remaining sun.
“Sometimes I don’t know who I am myself,” Finn said.
Bryonie looked at him.
Just looked at him.
Finally, it seemed she could push out all the pre-existing thoughts from her mind.
And she knew it.
She knew she wanted him.
Bryonie launched forward putting her arms around Finn.
Finn stumbled back, taken by surprise.
Even as she grasped him, she knew the embrace wouldn’t last without his full compliance. His strength to resist was far too much for her.
She felt her fingers slipping.
His hands locking onto her arms to push her away.
Except…
EXCEPT –
He didn’t push her away.
Instead, Finn brought her deep into his all-consuming hold, and lifted her mouth to his.
The kiss was like air. Fresh, beautiful air that she could breathe between them.
So she could keep going.
So that she wouldn’t drown.
CHAPTER NINE
Agent Malone stood from her place on the ship overlooking the beach where Finn and Bryonie were. Arms around each other. Making out in the sunset. If only she knew what she was getting herself into. If she had any idea…
“Trudy?” Agent Malone whispered. “Trudy, are you there?”
“It’s okay, Sarah. We got our eyes on them. We won’t let them get too far.”
“Okay. I’m going to check out the lower deck. See what sort of surveillance they have on board.”
“Do you think any suspicious activity has already taken place?”
“I don’t know,” Agent Malone said honestly. “Someone appears to have taken a chainsaw to one of the doors here. I’m not sure when it happened. But it just gives me a funny feeling. I’ve spotted cameras inside the ship, so maybe it was caught on tape. Just hope no one’s erased it.”
“Check in soon. Report what you find.”
“No problem.”
Agent Malone pulled out the earpiece and stored it away again. She made her way back inside the ship through the broken door frame.
Ding.
Several metres ahead Agent Malone spied one of Bryonie’s friends stepping out of the elevator. She turned to the right missing Agent Malone completely, storming off with a purpose.
Agent Malone trailed her for a short while before the girl exited out onto the main deck.
Agent Malone paused a moment, and then decided to let it go.
She looked up towards the ceiling where a small blue light was gazing down at her.
She approached it slowly.
“What have you seen?” she murmured out loud. “Are you … Are you watching me now?”
A quick sidestep on the carpet nearby.
She turned as a shadow faded down the wall.
Agent Malone pulled the gun from her waist.
“Hello?” she called.
Nothing.
She walked back a few steps.
“Is someone there?”
A loud bang.
Far away.
A door slamming shut.
Agent Malone approached the stairwell. She put her hand to the door adjacent and pushed down on it. It opened easily.
A set of steps leading down were revealed.
Agent Malone inhaled and held it in.
Had someone been watching her? Was the whole fucking ship involved?
She edged down the steps with caution. The gun still in her hands.
Her eyes peeled.
The stairs took a right turn and descended further.
The area began to get dark.
“Is someone there?” Agent Malone whispered. “I’m warning you…”
Nothing.
Silence.
She made it to the bottom of the steps.
Carpet once more. But this carpet wasn’t soft or thick.
It was shallow and hard.
She made out a sign on one of the doors that read ‘STAFF ONLY.’
She put her ear against it.
Some people were muttering amongst themselves on the other side.
“Can I help you?” a voice boomed behind her.
Agent Malone whirled round with the gun facing the man on the stairs behind her. She swallowed hard.
“Oh, it’s you,” he said. “We met earlier, I think.”
“Colton,” Agent Malone responded.
Colton, as in Colton Van Wieran.
The owner of the ship.
“Please, call me Colt,” he said.
“Don’t move. Stay where I can see you,” Agent Malone instructed.
Colton gave a small nod.
Agent Malone bent down and opened her handbag.
She took out a pair of handcuffs and tossed them to him.
They landed by his feet.
“Put those on,” Agent Malone ordered. “Do it now.”
Colton bent down.
He picked up the handcuffs.
“What is this all for?” he asked.
“I’m working with the Paranormal Police. We have your ship surrounded.”
“Is there a crime that has been committed?”
Agent Malone stepped forward. “Put those fucking cuffs on. Don’t make me say it again.”
Colton’s eyes shifted across her.
Beady.
Predatory eyes.
She raised the gun up violently just as he snapped the cuffs shut.
Agent Malone waited for the click.
Then she launched forward.
“Turn around. Start walking.”
CHAPTER TEN
Eventually, the kiss had to end. Bryonie and Finn separated their lips from one another, their eyes still locked together in an unbreakable bond. She had seen him before. Somewhere inside, she knew his face. She knew this moment. It had been her destiny from birth. This wasn’t random. He wasn’t a stranger. This was the missing part of her she’d been searching for.
“What?” Finn said with a small smile beginning to form.
“Nothing,” Bryonie said trying to contain her own smile.
Of course she didn’t mean ‘nothing’. She could talk about this forever. In fact, she needed to. She could feel the ramblings gushing out of her. And oh, the questions too. Like, was he in this same place with her? Had he dreamed of this moment as well?
Was the kiss as good for him, as it was for her?
“Nothing, huh?” Finn said skeptically.
“My lips are sealed,” Bryonie replied.
Their embrace fell away.
Then he took her hand.
“Want to go back now?” he asked.
“I think so,” Bryonie said.
“Do you think we will have a good time?”
“I hope so…”
“I’m not a bad guy,
you know,” Finn said. “You’ve seriously lucked out.”
“Shut up!” Bryonie exclaimed, punching him. “Don’t be so fucking up yourself.”
Finn laughed.
Somehow, they were still holding hands.
Looking out to the blissful beginnings of the night, Bryonie couldn’t wait to get back. She couldn’t wait to get into the water.
She wanted to drink drinks.
Listen to music.
Embrace all that she could.
Finn could make it possible for her.
And there was still so much she didn’t know about him.
“Hey,” Finn said, breaking through into her world. “Is that Leah…?”
Bryonie looked ahead. “Uh-huh.”
“I wonder what she wants.”
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Bryonie wasn’t the only one who could remember a day where she’d been bullied. As Bryonie had recalled earlier the day where she, Taylor and Erin had thrown her off the side of the boat ride back in high school, Leah had been all too quick to dismiss it. What Bryonie didn’t realize was the years of torment Leah had been put through by the hands of certain individuals – one in particular who caused Leah a lot of suffering. It was easy for Leah to dismiss Bryonie’s account of bullying, because she had a completely different perspective. Of course, Leah had known what they had been to her that day. The cool girls. The hot girls. The popular girls of the class. But behind Taylor’s bitchiness, Erin’s superficiality, and Leah’s abstract malevolence – there had been a day where each of them had suffered at the hands of someone truly evil. Someone older. Someone in a position of power and authority. If Leah’s Dad didn’t show up when he did, well, there’s no telling how far it could gone with them…
Leah would never tell Bryonie. Bryonie was who she used to be before it happened. She wasn’t going to fuck Bryonie’s mind up with that stuff, nor did she want to talk about it. It was better that Bryonie saw herself the victim. Better that she saw Leah as being the strong person. Collected and together. In charge.
But the past ten minutes had Leah wondering if she should have wasted all the time with Bryonie that she had.
It hadn’t taken long for her to confirm that Taylor had been telling the truth. For some reason she couldn’t get hold of Penelope, but other people, including people who didn’t have any beef with Bryonie were saying that it was true. Leah didn’t want it to be. She could hardly believe it. But then… She started thinking about certain things. Like how Bryonie saw herself the victim. How Leah, and perhaps her whole family, had been the cause for strength in her life.
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