Only Shadows Ahead
Chapter Fifty-One
The feeling of weightlessness. The calming lull of the water currents swirled around her.
She rose slowly, controlling her ascent. Allowing the swim fins to propel her ever upwards, toward the dreary daylight above; visible even from her current depth.
Gi cleared her regulator. A mass of bubbles escaped as she adjusted her mouth piece. It really was beautiful, here. The water was the only place where she truly felt free.
She squinted, kicking leisurely as she broke the surface. With a final regulator blast for good measure, Gi removed the mouthpiece and glanced around, treading water to keep herself afloat. It was a drab day on the water, cloudy and overcast. She paddled around for a moment, expecting to see Dae Jung and the research vessel nearby.
She soon spotted the speedboat some distance away, much further than she had anticipated.
"Dae!" she shouted, beginning to swim towards the boat. "Na wass-eo!"
She saw movement. Someone waving. The figure bent over the bow, pulling up the anchor. The engine soon sputtered to life as the speedboat roared in her direction.
Even over the noise of the motor, Gi's stomach rumbled loudly. She was starving. Thoughts of fried chicken and fries were a pleasant distraction until Dae pulled up alongside her.
"I was getting worried!" he yelled, idling the engine as he reached over and hauled her equipment onboard. "That was a lot longer than fifteen minutes!"
"Lost track of time," she replied, handing him her scuba mask and doing her best not to get entangled in the cords. "Why did you move?"
"I didn't!" He grabbed her hand, lifting her into the boat. "Did you mark the colony of —"
"Yeah," she said, breathless as she waved her hand dismissively. The wetsuit was too small, and she lowered the zipper slightly, catching her breath. Wiping the water from her face and hair, she took a seat on one of the padded benches. "It's done."
"I was about to go in after you, Gi. I —"
"I'm fine."
"I warned you. You should be diving with another —"
"Meh." She waved him off again. "You planning on telling the boss?"
"Why bother?" A small smile curled Dae's lips as he dropped into the drivers seat. "The man thinks the sun rises and sets on —"
"I can't help that."
"Golden daughter."
"What can I say?" she said loftily. "Only child syndrome — there's no one to compare me to."
He laughed, and she smiled, towelling her hair dry. Dae flicked some switches and adjusted the sunglasses slipping down his nose, protecting his eyes from the reflection on the water.
"Dad's trying to buy me a car," she said, drumming her fingers on the fibreglass. Gi gazed out towards the ocean beyond, deep in thought. "Says I need to get out more."
"He has a point."
"Hmph." The engine roared to life again and she slumped back in her seat, closing her eyes and enjoying the ride back.
They talked a little on the way home. She was comfortable with him, always had been. Dae Jung had been a mere apprentice when she'd started with the Planeteers. He was now their longest-serving employee. A lovely man. Earnest, hardworking and probably at the top of her parents's list of potential suitors.
Much to her chagrin.
The harbor approached and Dae slowed down, negotiating his way through the heavy traffic on the water. People sightseeing, pleasure cruisers, fishing trawlers and aluminium rust-buckets that really shouldn't have been floating at all.
The wharf was in sight. Gi sighed, resting her chin on her arms as they puttered along. Her father paid a small fortune to lease the rickety timber mooring, but the convenience was undeniable. It certainly beat having to go through the long process of preparing, towing and offloading the boat and equipment on a daily basis.
The motor cut out and they glided in. Gi jumped to her feet, grabbing the rope and leaning over. She tossed the mooring line over the post with well-practiced ease.
"Hungry?"
"Yeah." She nodded to the employees who came scurrying towards them, intent on gathering Gi's tanks and supplies.
"Would you like to go grab something?" He scratched his head, looking somewhat nervous. "With me, I mean?"
His tone was hopeful, and she smiled back, tucking her wet hair behind her ears.
This wasn't the first time he'd asked.
"Maybe another time?"
"Okay." He nodded, giving her a slightly awkward wave before walking away. Hands tucked deep within his pockets, she watched him wander off towards the harbour.
Gi sucked a deep breath in, peeling off the wetsuit using her well-practiced technique — a cross between an elongated bounce and a one-legged shimmy. She pushed the stretchy material down over her thighs until it lay in a wet puddle around her feet.
She stepped aside, shoving the wetsuit into her bag. Throwing a cotton sundress over her bikini, she tossed the bag over her shoulder and headed towards the market.
Her stomach rumbled again, as if reminding her of the task at hand. The marina section closest to the water housed the fresh fish vendors: crates of cod, salmon and mullet: gutted, de-boned and on ice, awaiting purchase. She took a detour away from the fresh seafood area — the smell of cooked fish and spice beckoned.
It had become something of a tradition in the past few weeks — grabbing a bite to eat and heading back to the marina, content to watch the world go by. It gave her time to reflect and she looked forward to any rostered duties that brought her here.
Being around her parents felt cloying. They were worriers by nature. Always had been, especially of late. Heads together, the whispered conversation would hush whenever she entered the room.
Not that it bothered Gi. Nothing much bothered her these days, but she supposed it was a result of the medication. The little white pills she popped every morning had made a world of difference. They had even acquired a nick-name — she called them her 'I-don't-give-a-shit' pills.
Life was becoming bearable and for that she was thankful. The memories were still present, but they were simply there. No longer burdening her to such a degree.
She picked up the pace, intent on beating the lunch-time crowds. She was starving. Gi turned the corner, mouth watering.
The light changed in an instant, in the blink of an eye.
The overcast day suddenly gave way to bright sunshine. She staggered to a stop, raising her hand to her eyes in confusion.
The smell of fish was gone, but so too had the rest of the market. The people were gone, the shanties and street vendors were no longer there.
"Dodaeche?" she mumbled, circling around in confusion and trying to account for the sudden change in location.
It was sweltering here. Tropical plants surrounded her; overgrown palms flapping in the breeze. She moved through them quickly, pushing them aside with her hands.
Shouts and loud voices could be heard nearby. She searched for the owners, pushing her lank hair away from her face; already sweating from the cloying humidity.
Through the dense foliage she caught a glimpse of timber — the gabled roofline of a hut that she had passed so many times over the years.
Hope Island.
The shouts continued and she caught the distant figure of a person bolting towards the beach from the furtherest hut. She squinted, just making out Ma-Ti's form disappearing over the sand dunes, clutching something to his chest.
She tossed her bag aside and started jogging, shoving leaves and ferns aside — and that was when the screaming began. Ear-piercing shrieks of pain and terror.
At that point she broke into a run, legs pumping. Her feet touched sand and she dashed over the dunes, cresting the top and half-stumbling at the sharp descent. The earth moved and her feet gave out under her. She landed on her ass with a yelp, winded.
She groaned, propping herself up and finally taking in the scene in front of her.
Ma-Ti was splashing through the shallows in front of her, yelling at someone already in the water. Her mouth dropped open in shock as she observed Wheeler in the water with a third person.
The source of the ruckus was a woman, and she was out of control — limbs flailing and screeching at the top of her lungs. Pale skin and thick, bedraggled hair trailing in the water. Wheeler's arms were wrapped tightly around the woman's waist and he was struggling to maintain a hold of her.
Wheeler looked up. He locked eyes with Gi but she was frozen in place — still staring at the scene in front of her.
"Wha —"
"GET THE HELL OVER HERE, GI" he bellowed, twisting and dodging an errant fist to the face. "Jesus, she's —"
"Wait, just —" Ma-Ti's voice was softer, but Gi couldn't make out what he was saying, drowned out by the shrieks of broken English and garbled Russian echoing from the water.
Gi gave a strangled cry of recognition. She clapped a hand to her mouth; tears slipping down her cheeks.
Linka.
"Oh my God," she moaned.
The revelry broke. She was on her feet in an instant, tearing down towards them, past a mass of clothes and bags lying strewn throughout the sand. She dragged herself through the water; diving under the swell and paddling hard against the undercurrent.
It took a few moments to reach them. She surfaced nearby in a hail of droplets. The water was chest high and she yelped again, unprepared as Linka's foot flew too close to her chin for comfort.
"Need to hold her!" Wheeler yelled as Ma-Ti grabbed hold of Linka's ankles. "This is not goin' well."
"What happened?" Gi cried, trying to help steady her, but Linka continued to buck and wrench away; her body twisting and contorting despite their attempts to hold her still. "Oh my God, she's —"
"Goddamn possessed, she's… oh shit —" Wheeler turned his back towards the large wave heading in his direction. It smashed into him and he grunted, nearly getting swept of his feet.
"Linka?" Gi cried, grabbing the delicate fingers currently clawing at Wheeler's face. She pulled them away, clutching them tightly against her chest; doing her best to ignore the shrieking. "How is she here? What happened, I don't —"
Another voice called out from the beach and she searched for the owner. Kwame stood in the sand; his hands on his hips and looking just as astonished as she felt. He started running towards them.
"Get towels!" Wheeler bellowed and Kwame changed direction with lightning speed. He disappeared over the dunes as another wave crashed over them. "C'mon, babe. Calm down."
"What happened to her?"
Gi was crying now. She clutched Linka's face in her hands, stroking the matted hair away from her eyes. Slipping a supportive hand under her neck, Gi did her best to keep Linka comfortable as the undercurrent swirled violently around them.
"I think we need to wrap this up," Ma-Ti said, gazing down at Linka worriedly. She seemed to go limp finally. The screaming had stopped, replaced by a high-pitched wheezing sound and Gi wasn't sure which was worse.
They waded through the water, managing to carry her out between the three of them. Wheeler was the first to collapse onto the sand. The momentum caused both Gi and Ma-Ti to tip forward and they fell against him in a heap, with Linka sprawled across their laps.
"Let's not do that again."
"I can't believe she's —"
Ma-Ti slumped tiredly and Gi burrowed into him. "She's a mess."
"What happened?" Gi sobbed, sweeping her eyes over the cuts and bruises on Linka's skin. "Oh my God, look at her! What —"
Wheeler just shook his head. He looked exhausted, slumped over Linka's legs; face lowered as he regained his breath.
Gi hugged Linka tightly, pressing her cheek to her pale forehead. She ran her hands over the embroidered blouse hanging off one shoulder. It was several sizes too large for Linka's small frame. Stark white, contrasting with the ugly black bruises marking her throat.
"Oh my God, look at her throat?" she gasped. The tears were flowing again. She was unable to control them. "What happened to her?"
"We don't know," Ma-Ti said tiredly. "We don't know much at —"
"Who found her? How did she —"
"Bleak," Ma-Ti murmured. He jacked his thumb in Wheeler's direction, still hunched over with his head bowed low. "Bleak rung him."
"Bleak?"
A large beach towel flopped down in front of them. "It is the only one I could find."
Kwame sat down next to Wheeler, looking bewildered. She watched Kwame bend low, seeming to inspect Linka's feet with a worried look on his face, prodding the skin carefully and reaching for the medical kit discarded nearby.
They sat in silence for a while, tucking the towel around Linka's body and allowing the sun to dry them properly. Gi swallowed, staring out at the crystal-clear water, wiping the excess moisture from her face.
"Anyone going to fill me in?" Kwame asked quietly, unrolling a thick white bandage.
Wheeler's response was to flop backwards on the sand. He rummaged in his pocket, pulling out his water-logged cell phone and tossing it aside with with a heavy sigh.
Gi looked down at the shivering body draped across their laps. She tightened her arms around Linka, cuddling her as Ma-Ti began to talk, listening intently as he explained the events of the past few hours.
The smell of jasmine and salt greeted her. She stirred, struggling to open her eyes. Groaning, she rolled over into her side, doing her best to ignore the persistent throb behind her eyes and within her joints and muscles. A chair creaked nearby and her eyes fluttered open again.
Her telescope was a darkened mass beside her window. The sound of the surf crashing relaxed her. It was comforting.
She cleared her throat, wincing in pain and raising her hand to her neck. Her hand was bound in something — a thick wad of fabric wrapped around her palm.
"Wha —" she croaked, swallowing nervously. She tried again. "What is —"
Her voice was barely there.
"Hi," a voice said softly. "Welcome back, my friend."
A gentle hand descended, resting on her forehead. A face lowered and she could just make out Ma-Ti's face hovering over her. Her bedside lamp switched on and he grinned down at her, looking delighted.
"Why is my hand —" she whispered, gasping in pain and clutching her throat. "Ah, bozhe moy."
Talking was agony. She gave up, raising her bandage and staring at it. She tried to sit up and a wave of dizziness overcame her. She swayed and Ma-Ti gently guided her back down again.
"Don't try to get up, Linka," he said. "How are you feeling?"
"Hungry," she rasped. "Feel weak."
"I'll be back," he promised, rising to his feet and hurrying away. She slumped back against the pillows, raising her knees painfully. Everything hurt. Her arms, her legs, her skin. Even breathing caused her discomfort.
Ma-Ti soon returned with some fruit and water. He placed it on the bedside table, and Linka glanced up as Gi entered close behind him.
"What time is it?" Linka whispered, confused, still holding her throat. Gi wiped tears away, dropping down next to her on the mattress.
"Two in the morning." Gi's arm settled around her shoulders.
"Oh," she replied, leaning back into Gi's tight embrace.
Linka's hair fell over her face as she beckoned towards the water. Ma-Ti passed it to her and she downed the lot in three gulps, soldiering through the discomfort. The pair seemed quiet and fidgety, and Linka's eyes kept flicking nervously towards them.
"Do you remember anything?" Ma-Ti gently pressed.
"Remember what?"
"Anything about what happened?"
Linka shrugged, reaching forward with trembling hands to grab a strawberry. She eyed Wheeler and Kwame as they slipped inside the room, taking a seat on the edge of the bed. Their worried faces seemed to watch her every move. She swallowed self-consciously, grabbing more fruit.
She was starving.
"Linka?"
She flinched. "Da?"
"Do you remember what happened?"
She frowned, staring at the stains spreading on the crisp white bandages from the strawberries. "Something has happened?"
"You were missing for nearly three months, Linka," Kwame said. His hand rested gently on her ankle. "You were gone. We thought you were dead."
"Dead?"
"Do you remember anything?"
"Nyet," she whispered, staring at her hands and now noticing the bindings on her other wrist. "I do not remember."
"Your wrist was broken," Gi said, touching the bandage gently. "Ma-Ti was able to reset it. You've got a laceration on your palm. Looks like you took a walk through a field of razor blades —"
"What?" Linka whispered. She flexed her toes, feeling a tightness across the heels and the balls of her feet. "I —"
"We found shards of glass. Kwame got most of them out."
"What do you mean?" She was mildly panicked now, staring at the four of them with a sense of mounting hysteria. "I do not remember —"
"Blight's lab?"
"What?"
She was so confused, unable to make sense of anything; unable to shake the fog that had settled over her brain. Memory and recall were no longer second nature to her. Nothing made sense.
Linka burst into tears. Gi pulled her close, whispering to her in soothing tones.
"I think this can wait until tomorrow," Kwame said, squeezing her ankle before rising to his feet. "You have been through enough."
"Why don't I remember anything?" she sobbed hoarsely. She clutched her throat in pain. "What is wrong with my —"
"Took you swimmin' earlier today," Wheeler said, fiddling with the soft cotton quilt. "You were pretty vocal about it."
"You have some bruising around your throat," Ma-Ti added. "It might —"
"Hurts," she whispered. She tucked her head into Gi's neck, soothed by Gi's hands rubbing her back in slow circles.
Kwame tapped Ma-Ti on the shoulder, indicating towards the door.
"So good to see you, my friend," Kwame said, leaning forward and kissing her forehead. "You were dearly missed."
Ma-Ti touched her face fondly. "We'll let you sleep."
They left. Linka wiped her face, sniffling quietly. The bed lurched as Wheeler resettled himself at the opposite end of the bed. Legs stretched out, he nudged Linka's thighs through the cotton quilt cover, smiling at her.
"We missed you," Gi whispered, running her fingers through Linka's hair. "Thought you were dead."
Linka closed her eyes, lulled by the motions.
"Maybe I was."