Alex Rider: Contamination

By: Edna Baudelaire

Chapter Seven: Luck of the Devil

Alex's POV

I never would have dreamed that 2 hours into this mission, I would be soaking in the sun, in the middle of the ocean just off the coast of Australia, playing water games and having fun with complete strangers.

But I was.

Bindi's laughter was contagious. I couldn't help but smile at the tiny girl splashing around in front of me. This felt completely strange and normal at the same time. I mainly keep to myself so I don't really spend time with kids. Children are just awkward. They're not for me. But now, I feel like I've been doing this my whole life.

I feel like a father.

My mind wandered back to my beginning years, when I first became I spy. I was a boy then.

Now, I feel like a man.

Waist deep in the water, I hoisted Bindi up on my shoulders and twirled in circles, beaming as she clapped and giggled.

I envisioned Bindi, Anna and I, together, having fun. My heart ached. Instead of playing with Bindi and me, Annabelle chose to go scuba diving with Aace. The anger temporarily flared at the thought of them spending time together. My eyes scanned the sparkling water, praying that she would resurface and swim over to me, her skin shining in the morning sun.

But the waters were still and empty, except for Dale and the boat that dropped Aace and Anna off.

I worried about her. I had made a promise to myself that I would not leave her out of my sight. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if something bad happened to her, but here I was, above water while she was under it.

My stomach felt uneasy.

She's only with Aace, I reminded myself. She'll be fine. He can't do anything to her. She can fend for herself.

The sound of the sea was calming; wave after wave crashing onto the shore, laughter, the sound of the boats motor, the sound of the dog frantically barking, the sound of Aace resurfacing and yelling for help...

Everything seemed to go wrong at once. One moment, I was happy, content and having fun. The next moment, I was aware of the danger, like a deer sensing a hunter close by. I froze.

"Aaron! Aaron!" Aace yelled as he waved his arms in the water. "Something got Alyssa!"

A rock sunk in the pit of my stomach.

Annabelle.

I swam over to Aace quickly, refusing to let the panic consume my senses.

"What's wrong?" I heard Bindi shout, from what seemed like miles away.

"Give me your gear! Now!" I shouted at Aace, already wrenching the air tanks off his back.

"You'll never make it. There's not much air left." He warned. I ignored him, a picture of Annabelle, deep in the ocean, in the jaws of a shark crept into my mind. My breath caught in my throat at the thought.

"Where is she?" I asked, shoving the regulator in my mouth.

"By the underwater caves," Aace replied, out of breathe. Without thinking, I took a deep breath and submerged myself, immediately feeling the strain of minimum air. I had to get Annabelle.

I had to, or I would die trying.

It didn't take long to find her. All I had to do was follow the horrid trail of blood. As I followed it, I wished desperately that it wasn't hers, but as the cloud of red thickened, that was when I spotted her.

She wasn't moving. Her skin was pasty white.

She's dead.

I gulped back the fear that had risen in my throat and quickly swam closer. That's when I saw the harpoon and realized this was no shark attack.

My heart skipped a beat as I saw her eyes flutter open. I raised my arms, putting pressure on her wound, too terrified to know what else to do. She pointed to her gauges, and then to her mouth. Her eyes were slowly closing.

I frantically ripped the regulator out of my mouth and shoved it into hers. I saw her chest rise and fall as she took huge gulps of the generic air. My heart pounded in my chest wildly. The lack of air was making me dizzy.

She gave the regulator back to me and I thankfully sucked in the oxygen. I had to stop panicking or the supply would dwindle dangerously. Annabelle pointed to her leg, which was chained to the mossy rocks. I swam lower to examine it. It was wedged into a crack. I closed my eyes, trying to think.

If only Annabelle had brought her "birth control" with her, we could have used it to blow up the chains. But she was in a wetsuit, and she would not have taken the pills with her.

Anna's hand frantically tapped my shoulder, with as much strength as she could muster. I swam up and gave her the regulator but she refused, her eyes wide, staring at something above my shoulder.

And there it was again.

That feeling.

Danger.

I turned around and my heart dropped. I thought the situation could not get any worse, but I was wrong.

A great white shark prowled in the depths of darkness, inhaling Anna's trail of blood. Before I knew it, screams erupted from my mouth, rising up in the form of bubbles. I handed the regulator to Anna and she thankfully took it as I swam back to the chain, hysterically searching for a solution.

If I didn't get the chain undone, the shark would kill us both.

Or we would drown.

The weight of our lives rested solely upon my shoulders.

I gulped.

The shark sensed us. I could see its head twitching, sensing our body warmth and the sickening cloud of blood that enveloped us. It was heading straight towards us. I tugged on the chain, but it wouldn't budge. I kicked and punched and prayed, but nothing was working. Anna's hand enclosed around my shoulder and I swam back up to face her. Her eyes darted upward as I saw tears.

Go, she seemed to be saying.

No, I shook my head furiously. The shark loomed closer and closer. Anna shoved the regulator into my chest and pointed upwards. I gave it back to her, refusing to leave.

The shark was 5 feet away.

The sense of danger grew ever stronger.

4 feet away.

An idea popped into my head.

3 feet.

I swam down to the chains one last time.

2 feet.

I turned towards the shark. I could see his eyes glinting, the hunger, and the instinct. I could count every one of his razor sharp teeth.

1.

Just as the shark attacked, I swam to the side, with a quick swipe of my arm. I rocketed to the left and the beast's mouth closed about the chains imprisoning Anna.

The chain broke perfectly. A chunk of it remained imbedded within the rock, while another part was attached to Anna's leg, and the last part was stuck within the shark's teeth.

Sheer luck of the Devil.

I quickly grabbed Annabelle and raced towards the surface, where I saw the shadow of the boat. I prayed the shark wouldn't notice he got cheated out of a meal.

But he did.

He angrily spat out the chewed up metal and raced towards us.

We're not going to make it.

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Edna B.