THIRTY-TWO

In no time, Isabella whips into her cabin, pulling on her trousers and scrambling for a weapon. I race across the deck, cursing myself for leaving my weapons behind, when I meet Jasper climbing up. He holds out my pistol and scabbard and I thank him, securing them to my person before we both turn to face the cause of the alert.

I can hear the men on watch shouting, and I rush to the railing, my eyes casting out on the dark night. "What is it?" I demand, my gaze burning for any sign of danger.

"I saw it," Benjamin exclaims. "It were huge!"

I turn to the boy, frustrated. "What was it?" I ask again.

He turns to me, his face pale under the thin moonlight. "A demon come from hell. It …" His voice trails off, his face a mask of horror as his gaze travels somewhere beyond my shoulder. I twist in time to see a tentacle, taller than our mast, rise above the ship.

I let out an unholy swear, and beside me, Isabella knocks a hand into my chest. "No time for foreplay, darling," she says, pulling out her saber. "Save that filthy mouth for me."

I want to curse her, but she sends me a wink before racing off across the deck. I haven't the time to follow her as I run with Jasper to the upper deck where the crew are fighting off other tentacles. The air smells of brine and decay, and above us, the sky lets out an outraged crack before rain begins to fall, sudden and fierce. It makes fighting the beast almost impossible.

"Jasper!" I shout, my sword hacking through one writhing appendage. It falls heavily to the deck with a slippery thud. "Behind you!"

He turns in time to see a tentacle reaching for him. He brings up his own sword, impaling the creature. I haven't a mind to figure out what it is we are fighting; every breath in my body is running on pure survival instinct.

Despite how many pieces of it get hacked off, the creature's ire never wanes. It wrenches crewman after crewman off the ship, flinging them into the black stormy waters below.

"Captain!"

I look up in time to see Captain Thorne motion me over toward the cannons. I slip across the deck, sheathing my scabbard so I can help her load them.

The creature has climbed higher up the ship's side, tentacles oozing thick black fluid where they have been cut now wrapped around the rigging.

We work to load the cannons before lighting them. They go off with a terrible bang, shooting straight through a tentacle reaching for the main mast. The creature lets out a roar that I can feel vibrate through the ship itself.

"Saints above," Captain Thorne swears. "Abandon ship!"

It's a startling order, but a moment later, I see why it has been issued. The creature is squeezing the hull, the wood beginning to fracture under its unwaning strength.

Sailors begin jumping overboard, and I am about to follow when I remember Aster.

I swear, turning and racing below deck.

I hear someone shouting my name behind me, but I don't slow down.

I drop into the brig, landing in a high layer of water.

"What the bloody hell is going on up there?" Aster shouts, his eyes wide and terrified.

"We're abandoning ship," I tell him. "I'm going to release you, but on my life, if you make a single move against Miss Brandon, I'll kill you myself," I warn.

Aster's nostrils flare, but then he nods.

I move across the space, trying to wade quickly through the rising water. The keys, which are meant to always be hanging on an iron hook, are missing.

"Where are they?" I ask, my eyes sweeping the dark waters.

"They fell!" Aster says. "I tried to grab em," he admits.

I swear. I'll never find them, not in time.

I look up at Aster, whose eyes have gone wide and terrified. "Don't leave me here," he begs. "Please."

I shake my head. "Shut up. I won't leave you," I snap, angry yet again at myself for the poor choices that have led me to this point. The water is rising too swiftly for me to consider my options. I have to do something.

"Stand back," I instruct Aster.

He does as I bid as I dive below the water, looking for something heavy. I come up with a hammer that must have come loose from the tool closet. I bring the hammer up, banging on the lock. It lets out a terrible clang, but the lock is iron, and I know it cannot be beaten open.

Around me, I can hear the ship creaking and groaning, and I look at Aster through the bars. We have seconds, if not less, before the ship is crushed in the arms of the beast below.

"Take a deep breath," I tell him as the water spills in faster. It's at my chest now. "The ship is about to be torn apart," I tell him. "Hold your breath and use this," I say, passing him the hammer. "When the ship buckles, try to break your way out through the exterior wall."

"You're mad," Aster accuses, his eyes wide and terrified.

I shake my head. "It's your only hope!" I shout. There is a splintering sound, and a rush of water comes in again. "Now!" I yell, sucking in a breath as the ship buckles, crumbling under the weight and strength of the creature. The world is dark as pitch, and in the water, I can hear the terrible grinding and groaning of the ship being ripped apart. I feel debris fly into me, knocking into my head and chest as the ship is torn asunder. I struggle not to gasp, to hold my breath, praying for one last lick of luck.

I am no longer a man worthy of a second chance, but it is exactly that which I pray for now.

There is a horrible screeching echoing through the water all around me. My chest is burning, desperate for a breath. I feel my head go light with the lack of air, and I know I have a matter of seconds left.

I think of Jasper, who has been the most loyal companion I've ever known, my best friend, my brother. I think of Miss Brandon, and I hope that she makes it out of this nightmare, and that Jasper finds the courage to pursue his own happiness.

My mind drifts to Isabella, and I find I am truly mournful that I won't be able to kiss her wicked mouth one last time.

My life ended the day she snuck onto my ship, and despite the trajectory of the last few years, I know I wouldn't change a single moment of any of it.

With a final wrenching sound, the ship implodes completely, sending me spinning into the inky blackness of the sea.