Tiger

I am excellent at controlling my anxiety in high stress situations. For about two minutes. I managed to last ten before letting myself fall back into an all too familiar stupor of hysteria. I tried focussing on my breathing, keeping my strokes in the water regular. I told myself Alice was alright even though she was nowhere in sight. Nothing helped. One minute we were literally walking on water and the next I was stranded alone in the middle of the ocean, in the middle of the night. I sucked in a lung full of air and submerged myself in the numbingly cold water, straining my eyes to seek her out. But there were only shadows from the moonlight. The current must have separated us more than I'd thought.

Clumsily I positioned myself so I was floating on top of the waves to conserve my energy, an icy breeze quickly forcing me back under. I could try to swim for shore but I wasn't even entirely sure which direction it was in. Even if I did there was no way it would be close. Not having any confidence in my swimming abilities already, the idea was quickly thrown out. That left me with few options. One of them was yelling louder than I'd ever had to yell before, calling Alice's name over and over, calling out for anyone who might hear. But even if by some chance someone were out this late, it was impossible they would spot my pathetic splashing in the dim starlight.

It felt better to be out of the wind so I swam below for a while, trying to reach the bottom. As much as I couldn't imagine Alice sinking helplessly I couldn't rule it out. But I couldn't make it all the way without coming up for air. I strained my lungs as much as they would allow, but soon I was too exhausted to continue. I willed myself not to weep as my head broke the surface again, biting my lip in irritation. I had to keep a level head. I knew vampires didn't need to breath, so there wasn't much worry of her drowning. Still, vampires weren't supposed to vanish into thin air either. She had tried to warn me. She felt something was wrong. What could it have been? Maybe if I'd stopped to pay attention we wouldn't be in this mess. The only thing I could think of was that she must have had another vision. Like the one before at graduation. The one she still wouldn't open up to me about despite my hinting. It had happened afterwards too. She had tried to stay calm and go off calmly with some excuse but I always knew the real reason. We'd be sitting in a movie and she'd suddenly seem to doze off. Once she flung herself out my bedroom window abruptly with a hasty "I need to hunt!" and I wouldn't see her for the rest of the day.

There were secrets between us. Big, ugly, fearful secrets she couldn't share and I couldn't force her to. I lowered my face into the water so I wouldn't have to feel the tears fall. She loved me. But she couldn't trust me. That thought stung sharper than the frigid air. If she had told me maybe we could have figured it out together, not waiting till the problem left us stranded grasping at straws. I tried to fight it, but I couldn't help but feel anger towards her. It felt like she was literally scaring me to death, my heart beating much too quickly, every good feeling seeming as far off as the sand, Renee's warm house. Even she wouldn't think to look for us in the morning. We were always going off on our own. It could be hours until someone found us. How long could I keep treading water?

After what felt like an entire night I knew I had to try to find land. I felt as though I was abandoning her even though I would have to know where she was to do that. A brief hope grew inside me as I wondered if she'd swam to safety. Maybe she was just busy getting help. But no, Alice would look for me herself. There was no doubt in my mind that she would find me if she was able. I could just hope she wasn't in pain, that she was safe somewhere. I tried to focus on that thought as I made sloppy strokes through the waves. Weariness took hold. Normally I would be fast asleep in her arms by now. The faint glow of dawn could be seen sneaking back into the dreary sky. If only I could just lie on my back and float to shore. I found myself biting my lip with worry again but then froze.

Blood. Vampires weren't the only creatures who could detect it from great distances. I sucked at the wound I hadn't really noticed before, trying to stop the bleeding. Light as it was, I had no knowledge whatsoever on the subject of sea predators. I wasn't sure how long it had been flowing either. It was a habit that had gotten me in trouble before. I should really have known better.

Shoulda, woulda, coulda.

I first felt the water shift as if someone had jumped in off a diving board. I could have dismissed it as the wind except there was none. Exhausted as I was I couldn't ignore the feeling of something cold brush against my leg. It was probably for the best that I froze up with terror instead of flailing about. It could just be a fish, I tried to reason with myself. A really big fish...

Dread filled my veins as the undoubtable truth weighed upon me.

I was about to be torn to pieces by a shark.

I didn't know what else to do but hold still. Long minutes passed with my eyes clamped shut and my heart racing. What could I do? Should I yell for help one last time before those enormous jaws took me? But all I could think of was her. Her voice, whispering to me through a bad dream, her light touch as she stroked my hair. Please let this be just another nightmare. Wake me up, Alice. Please. Tell me this isn't happening. But the cold just grew colder and the dark shadow beneath me did not melt away. It wasn't until I heard the ear splitting whistle that I was shocked from my fear. Bright lights shone from a couple miles away. The sound of an engine humming, coming closer. I waved my arms, trying not to disturb the water too much but it proved useless. I was making huge splashes and screaming at the top of my lungs.

"Over here! Help!" I cried, glancing back into the water to try and spot the creature. Maybe the boat had scared it off? It looked as if the vessel were heading in a different direction but to my relief it turned and headed straight towards me.

"Are you hurt?" Called a man's voice drowned out from the harsh lights.

"No," I yelled back, hoping it was true. "But I think there might be a shark nearby!"

"What?" the man called. I could almost reach out and touch the boat now. The thought of being out of the water made me realize just how drained I was.

"Shark," I bellowed, grabbing on to the boat's side. A hand reached down and I grabbed it right away. When the shark's head broke the surface I screamed and all but jumped into the man's arms, almost knocking him over. To my horror he only laughed and spoke to the animal affectionately.

"What have I told you about this, Sasha? You bad girl. Scaring the poor girl to death." He had a German accent and was dressed in an expensive white suit. "You must forgive her. She's mostly harmless really."

I sat dripping on the deck, trying to catch my breath and my wits, Before I could do so a large blanket was around me and the man was speaking what I assumed was German to the shark.

"Tiger sharks do not usually attack, but even when they are trained like her you want to be careful." It wasn't until then I noticed the severe pallor of his skin, the odd color of his eyes. I jumped to my feet, backing towards the back of the boat. I knew as soon as I had done it it was a bad move. It was always best to make vampires think you were oblivious to their nature. That you didn't really know they were anything but human. But now I wasn't sure which put me in more danger. The shark infested waters or the blood thirsty vampire. I wished for the hundredth time that Alice were with me.

He didn't advance, only looked at me curiously. "I can see very well you know of what I am."

I could only nod.

"You don't have to worry." He clapped his hands over his stomach and laughed. "I have just eaten. With your friend."

I should have been able to relax a little, but I didn't know him. A stranger was potentially dangerous, but an unknown vampire was almost always fatal. Wait, did he say 'with my friend'?

"Alice?" I asked in a whisper.

"She said you would be out here and I should please go look for you." With that he struck a match and lit a cigar.

"You found her? She's okay? Where is she? Did she-"

"You speak very quickly for my English," he chuckled. "There is heater inside and house is not too far away. Come sit and do not freeze, okay?"

Somehow I managed to bring myself over to the shelter where I practically hugged the little heater. I didn't move until I was handed a bit of gauze. He pointed to his lip.

"If you could please stop the bleeding," he said, still keeping his distance.

"Oh-" I blurted, pressing the gauze to the still open cut on my lip. "Sorry."

He shrugged and went to steer the boat, speeding up. "I could smell you and your friend in the night," he explained. "Well, Sasha did first. Your friend was asleep when we found her. Does she do that a lot?"

I sighed. "It seems that way."

"Very strange. She spoke of many stories."

"Stories?"

"While she slept," he explained. "Something about person called Cynthia and pearls. Does this make sense to you?"

Actually it did. Cynthia was the name of her sister. I pulled out the pearl we had found earlier that was still in my pocket, remembering that her father had been a pearl trader and jeweler. Alice seemed to be focussed a lot on her past lately. I rolled it around my palm, deep in thought, a theory forming. When she slept did she not have visions of the future, but memories of the past? I shuddered to think of how painful it might be, but more so at the suspicion that she might be regaining some of her memory. Was she uncovering more about herself in these visions she refused to share with anyone else? She'd never had a problem sharing the future, but when it came to her past life she would hardly say two words.

But soon we'd arrived at a large house hidden behind tall plants, the sunrise making it look like a postcard. Alice stood on the dock where our German rescuer tied up the boat. Our eyes met and I knew my theory was correct. She had the haunted look of memories in her eyes. But would she share them with me? Could I help her fight off her demons?

Did she even want them to go?

A/N: I wanted to do a lot more with this chapter but I'm afraid I just didn't have the time. I've been sick for weeks and have been preparing for a trip. Excuses, I know, but I hope you liked it all the same. I'd love to hear your thoughts and theories. Unfortunately I'm going to have to take some time away from this project again. Two months starting monday. I can't wait to start writing again though and I hope some of you are still here when I return but I understand if the time gaps are too annoying. I hope all of you have a fantastic summer! Keep reading, keep scribbling,

-MIS