Hey guys! I know I said Monday…but it didn't work out! So sorry! Well, thanks to my 28 readers and 3 reviewers:
LivieLi
ReillyScarecrowRocks
untitledwings11
I'm hoping this story is coming to a close soon. A tentative goal is forty chapters…but that is VERY tentative! To tell the truth, I'm ready for Cammie to get home. I think she is too. But I promise there is going to be one final showdown, and I think that you'll like the idea I have for it! And I know that this should be an Alex chapter but Cammie wanted to tell her side of the story again.
Cammie's POV:
"Isn't it odd that the ship leaves in the middle of the night?" Alex asked as dawn broke over the ocean.
We had been at sea for nearly eight hours (and I hadn't been asleep yet) and the deck was nearly empty, "I guess so…I've never really been on a cruise ship before."
Alex snorted, "If you can call this a cruise ship."
That was a pretty true statement. The 'ship' was more of a tub with a five year old paint job. It was a lot smaller than I expected and I'm guessing from the shady passengers and the even shadier crew members, this ship isn't entirely legal. Thank you so much Zach.
I shivered despite my four layers as the freezing winter wind hit me in the face again. I had thoroughly checked out the whole ship twice and the most suspicious thing was in the kitchen…which might have been our breakfast. I let out a sigh, "I think I'm going to go back to my cabin and sleep for awhile."
I turned around and let the wind push me toward the door, knowing Alex would be close enough to be my shadow. Our cabins were connecting with adjoining doors at the end of a dark, dank hallway that had seen better days. Alex had made me promise that I would unlock the connecting door 'for my safety' and I told him that I would but that if he came in without permission, I could kill him and not leave enough of him for anybody to find. I shuffled down our stupid little hallway trying not to fall over at the force of the waves. I was really missing Gallagher.
Pros and Cons of Having A Cabin At the End Of a Dark, Questionable Hallway
Pro: No noisy neighbors
Con: Your only neighbor is one Alex Rider (at whom you are still rather steamed)
Pro: If you get kidnapped, there's only one way out
Con: If someone's after you, there's only one way out.
Alex smiled at me with that deliciously sweet, sorry smile then disappeared into his cabin. I couldn't decide if I was still mad at Zach and Alex or not. Sure, they had been having a knock-down, drag-out fight over me (which could be considered a compliment). But I don't want to be fought over like a piece of property…it was degrading.
I let out a long huff as I shut my door behind me and de-bulked my top two layers. As much as I would have liked to have jumped in my bed, I knew I should shower and re-pack…and edit out what I wasn't going to need, I could always leave it here.
What's in the Backpack Now
An Edited List by Cameron Morgan
½ Of a big makeup kit
8 Pairs of jeans in assorted colors and styles
10 Shirts in assorted colors, styles, and brands
3 Hoodies
Plenty of socks, underwear, bras, and other such items
A pair of cheep knock-off Uggs
A pair of cheep knock-off Converse
5 Pairs of gloves/mittens
1 scarf
Part of a pack of pens (Twenty)
1 Notebook
2 Maps of North America
3 Super Zooped-Up Swiss Army Knives
2 Compasses
2 Wigs
Don't ask me how, but I managed to get all of that into the backpack I had bought…and it didn't even look like an orange wearing a banana peel. I locked myself in the tiny bathroom and took one of the fastest showers of my life...'cause after five minutes I was out of hot water.
As soon as I finished my shower, I pulled on the longest t-shirt I had (do to the fact that I had no pjs) and hopped under the covers. They were nowhere near as nice as the ones at Bex's but there were plenty of them, they smelled clean, and they looked clean. What more can a girl ask for?
As I drifted off to sleep in the tiny little cabin, I couldn't help but wonder where Bex and Zach were. London? Belgium? Russia? China? Gallagher? The new unanswered questions merged with the old ones that rattled around my bed, swirling into a pitch black hole that eventually turned into a dreamless sleep.
AR-GG-AR-GG-AR-GG-AR-GG
I woke up feeling very rested, very confused, very hungry, and very cold. It turns out that t-shirts make rotten night gowns. When I remembered I was on the USS Sinking-Probability-High and that Alex was next door, I wrapped one of my blankets around me and headed over to my little porthole.
The tossing of the boat seemed like nothing compared to the weather outside. The sky was a dark slate color and the white capped waves rushed up to meet the angry sky. On the horizon was a tiny black speck. I rationalized that it couldn't be land…I hadn't slept that long…or had I? I grabbed my bag and changed in the bathroom, pulling on jeans, boots, a long sleeved shirt, hoodie, and winter jacket. I picked up the second winter jacket, the one I had discarded and shoved it back into my bag.
Pulling open the closet, I saw a forest green bag on the floor. I picked it up and read the side that proclaimed it was water proof. I shrugged and stuck my backpack inside. Who knows when this boat might sink? Dropping my newly water proofed bag on my bed; I knocked loudly on Alex's door, "Alex? Are you up?"
The door swung open to reveal Alex dressed and perky enough to prove that he had been up for awhile, "Well, well, sleeping beauty arises."
I shot him a look I had learned from watching Macey, "I haven't been asleep that long."
He laughed, "You're kidding."
"No, I'm not."
He shook his head, "You don't know. You've been sleeping for three days straight."
"What!"
"You were really out. I was seriously considering coming in to see if you were still breathing."
"You're lucky you didn't. Never sneak up on a Gallagher Girl. Especially a sleeping Gallagher Girl."
"You hungry?" he asked, ignoring my comment.
I didn't have to answer, my stomach did. He laughed again; someone was feeling rather cheery. Stepping back, he beckoned, "You're still in time for breakfast, let's go."
I nodded and followed him down the hallway, swaying along with the waves, "How long has this storm been going on?" I asked.
"Since last night," he replied, "And it's only going to get worse."
"Great," I muttered under my breath. To Alex I said, "When I looked out my window, I saw something that looked like land…is that possible?"
I watched the back of his head nod, "It is. This cruise isn't exactly what Zach said it was going to be."
"How so?" I demanded.
"It turns out we're going to be docking in Yakutat not Anchorage…we've been traveling along the coast for the past two days."
"How did we get so far in so little time?" I asked as I reviewed the map of Alaska in my mind.
He shrugged, "The boat's lighter and faster than she looks. We've been doing nearly 70 knots the whole time."
"This tub can't go that fast! It cannot be legal," I pointed out.
We got into the short line at the breakfast buffet and Alex shrugged again, "Not like we can say anything about being legal or not."
I nodded my head in agreement, "To true."
He glanced back at me, "So are you still at me?"
"I wasn't just mad at you. I was furious at both of you," I replied as I piled eggs and bacon on my plate.
"So you heard most of it."
"I heard all of it."
He plunked his plate on one of the empty tables and slid into the booth, "Oh."
I set to filling my empty tummy and let Alex be miserable for awhile. We were almost eating in content silence when a shout rang out, "Oh Lord, we're taking water in the hull!"
This set people to panicking, "To the lifeboats!"
"Out of my way!"
"This way!"
"Hey, watch where you're going!"
"Alex," I yelled, "We need to get our stuff out of the cabins!"
He nodded and we took off at a sprint down the twisty, dark halls. From what I could tell, there were about fifty people besides us on the boat and it seems like they had all made their way higher up. By the time we got to our rooms, the hall was deathly silent.
I rushed to my bed and grabbed the waterproof sack with my backpack in it. I met Alex in the hall, taking his heavy back pack I shoved it into the bag and zippered it closed, and then tired the long cord through my belt loops, "Let's go!" I yelled as I held on tight to the big bag-o-bags as we raced up the stairs.
Somehow we made it across the deck, fighting the wind and the waves all the way. I had noticed three row boats when we had come aboard and now I could just make out the man I knew was the captain getting into the last boat, "HEY! WAIT FOR US!" Alex shouted against the wind.
The man looked back and motion to us to hurry. The boat was nearly five feet from the top of the boat by the time we got to it. Without waiting, or thinking, I grabbed Alex's hand and jumped.
We landed on top of something hard and square. I could see the other two boats secured to each other by a bright orange rope that someone was now tying to the bow of our boat.
What happened next is a little fuzzy. I remember we were in the boat for a long time, feeling the rain and the bitterly cold wind. The suddenly the boat jerked and we all tumbled into the frigid water. The cold took my breath away and when I tried to scream, my mouth was filled with icy, salty water. I tried to kick and swim but the heavy bundle tied to my waist was pulling me down and my fingers were to numb to undo the knot.
Slowly things became blacker and blacker and I knew I was going to die. After all that I had been through, after all the miles I had traveled, I was going to die of hypothermia in the ocean off the coast of Alaska. I was too young to die, I wanted to shout, I have so many things left to do. I fought to keep my eyes open but it was worthless. As I drifted off to sleep, images of my friends and family passed me by, all waving goodbye.
OMGGG! I AM SO EXCITED THAT I'M DOING THIS WHOLE AUTHOR'S NOTE IN CAPITAL LETTERS! THE TITLE AND SUMMARY FOR GG5 ARE OUT!
OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF TIME
http:/ allycarter .com /blog/ out-sight-out-time
MARCH 20, 2012 CAN NOT COME SOON ENOUGH…AND NEITHER CAN THE COVER! WHOOHOO, PUT YOUR HANDS TOGETHER FOR ALLY CARTER!
YAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAY!