Ravenous

   I bent over as I ran forward, struggling through the sand sifting beneath my feet. I could barely see or hear anything over the noise and lights. Cade was beside me, he had ditched the tank from his back. He was reaching out for me when he tripped and fell. For a moment I didn’t understand what had happened, Cade was always so graceful and sure. Then I felt the sharp tug of the rope still binding us.

   I cried out as I was pulled roughly back and knocked off my feet. My fingers clawed uselessly at the beach, but there was nothing for me to grab hold of, nothing to stop my violent propulsion backward. I flipped onto my back, horrified to see Cade halfway off the ground. One of those thingswas wrapped around his waist, tugging him into the air, and toward certain death.

   A scream of terror tore from my throat. I lunged at him, trying to grasp hold of his hands as we were pulled backward. My heart hammered, it was not my life and safety that I was concerned with anymore, but his. Another tentacle snaked toward me, but Cade was somehow able to turn and knock it away. I was tugged sharply forward, lifted off the ground and awkwardly thrust back onto my feet. I stumbled, reaching for Cade again, but he was getting further away from me.

   “Cade!” I screamed. Jerked roughly forward, I was spun sharply around before being slammed face down onto the beach as the rope joining us was pulled taut. The breath was knocked out of me, I could barely see as stars burst before my eyes. I struggled to clear my vision, spitting sand out as I tried hard to breathe again.

   I was pulled toward the shore, drug by the rope binding us. Somehow I managed to flip onto my back once more. Grabbing hold of the rope I tried to dig my feet in, tried to get some kind of leverage as I fought to keep Cade from being torn away from me. My hands caught fire, rope burns tore across my palms, laying them raw, but I refused to let it go.

   My feet hit the water; I was plunged in up to my knees. For one brief, horrifying moment, my eyes met Cade’s wide eyed gaze. For one brief, clarifying moment I knew true, and heart stopping, dismay. “Cade.” His name was just a whisper on my lips, a bare breath that even I barely heard, but I knew that he had somehow. I was jerked to my feet again as Cade cut the rope.

   A scream of agony and fear swelled up my chest, choked through my throat, and tore out of me. “No!” I wailed as I fell into the ocean. I scrambled to my feet, crashing into the surf, trying to catch Cade as he disappeared from sight.

   “No! Caaaaade!!!!”

   I was so focused on him that I didn’t see the other tentacle coming at me until it knocked me off my feet.

CHAPTER 18

   I didn’t know what happened after that, didn’t know where I was. Hands grasped at me, pulling me from the water, carrying me somewhere. I wasn’t handled roughly, but there was a hurried urgency to the hands that was disconcerting and frightening. I couldn’t quite make sense of anything; I didn’t know where I was. Time came in and out in flashing blurs that left me disoriented and confused.

   At times I was certain that no time had passed, at others I felt as if an eternity had slipped by. Yet, through it all I was acutely aware of one fact and one fact alone.

   Cade was gone.

   He had cut the rope. He had been ripped away. He had been taken by those awful creatures. He was gone. He was probably dead.

   In those moments of utter clarity the pain of his loss was so intense that it was all consuming, and debilitating. Agony would flare through me, it would sear me with its intensity and I would once again lose myself to the world of delirium and denial that enshrouded me.

   And then one day, I awoke. At first I wanted to return to oblivion, wanted to lose myself to the world of delirium and denial. But I couldn’t. I had to face the facts, I had to face reality. I couldn’t simply curl into a ball and die like a part of me so badly wanted to. It hurt to breathe; my heart was a broken vessel that only served to pump blood through my veins. But it continued to pump, I continued to breathe, and apparently the world was still turning. It was time that I rejoined it.

   I found myself in a small room, one that I didn’t recognize, and one that I couldn’t begin to place. I frowned as I stared at the dingy white walls, gray concrete floor, and ceiling fan spi

   What the hell?

   I sat up slowly, wincing as I swung my legs over the side. Pain ran up my left leg, it lanced across my hips and waist. I was wearing a shirt that I didn’t recognize and a lose pair of sweats that were most definitely not mine. I pulled the shirt gingerly up, my mouth dropping slightly as I took in the long red wound marring my skin and the stitches holding it together. Pulling the pants down, I was not surprised to see a bandage covering my hip and upper thigh.

   What had happened to me?

   My eyebrows drew tightly together as I tried to ponder the answer to that question, but it completely eluded me, as did my location.

   Bracing myself I slipped off the table. I winced as pain shot up my left side, but I was able to support my weight. The floor was cool beneath my bare feet as I crept toward the closed door. I bit on my lip, frightened by what I might find on the other side, but I had no choice. I knew Cade was gone, but where was my family? I needed to find them, they might need my help.

   Although it was obvious that I had most certainly not been much help lately.

   My hand trembled slightly on the knob; I held my breath as I pulled it slowly open. I placed an eye to the crack, peering out on a long, vacant hall. I blinked in surprise, trying to place what was stretching before me, but unable to do so. I shuffled slowly forward, moving past the few closed doors before coming across one that was cracked open. I hesitated, my hand resting against the cool steel as I pushed it slowly open.

   My eyes widened in surprise, horror pooled through me as my mouth dropped open. A scream of terror burned its way up my throat; I could hardly breathe through the tight constriction that encased my chest. I had seen many horrible things in my life, but this had to be one of the worst.

   “You’re awake.”

   I jumped in surprise, stumbling slightly as I spun toward the voice on my right. My breath exploded from me, my hand flew instinctively to my wound as the abrupt movement caused pain to flare hotly through me. It was not a monster beside me, or at least he appeared completely human, but after what I had just seen I wasn’t so sure I could trust my own eyes anymore. The aliens appeared human too, had I been captured? I swallowed heavily, finding it exceptionally difficult to breathe. “Yes.”

   I don’t know why I had bothered to respond, it was obvious that I was awake, I was standing here after all. “How are you feeling?”

   I studied the tall man, weary as to what the hell was going on. He appeared to be in his mid to late thirties. His wavy brown hair had hints of grey at the temples; his grey eyes were wide behind the horn rimmed glasses he wore. He appeared friendly, personable even, but with what was inside that room I couldn’t even begin to feel at ease.

   “Ok,” I said softly, unable to stop my eyes from darting back toward the door.

   “You were wounded pretty badly.”

   “My brother and sister?”

   “They just went upstairs to eat. They’ve been sitting by your side for the past week.” A weekI had been out of it for a week? “They’ll be relieved to see you up.”

   I’d be relieved to see them and find out just what the hell was going on around here. “Where am I?” I asked softly.