Page 30 of Drowning in Sins
“It was nothing,” I lied. “Get back inside. The storm is only going to get worse.” That part wasn’t a lie. Anyone could smell the rain mixing with the salty air.
She hesitated before thankfully going back inside.
“Are we going to talk about it this time?” Frederick crossed his arms.
I nodded. “After the storm passes, let’s talk.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
ROSALYN
Iknew what I saw, and so did they. They may have been able to convince me to go inside when the storm happened yesterday, but they couldn’t stop the team from continuing its research today when the sky was clear and the sun was welcoming. I couldn’t let my fear of the unknown stop me either.
The ocean was too big and unexplored for us to know all of its secrets. I’d always believed that. Seeing something unusual was all the evidence I needed. I couldn’t do as much research out here from books or the internet. But I could allow my mind to wander as we swam in the depths. I could allow my eyes to see the truth of what lurked, and that was the scariest part.
It was healthy for me to be scared, but I couldn’t stop. I thought it was just the mysteries of shipwrecks and discovering the past that captivated me. How wrong I was. It was the unknown that kept me at the edge of my seat. I craved danger, and that alone was perilous.
I checked the numbers on my tank again as the AUV slowly made its descent. Once we were at the bottom, I let go of the handle with the others, and we all started toward our stations.
It was busy work today, scanning over areas more meticulously. The owners were getting more obsessed with the missing parts of the wreckage, and I couldn’t blame them. Something wasn’t adding up, and I had a gut feeling things were going to take a turn for the worse.
It wasday after day of nothing new. No new discoveries. Nothing was left uncovered, not scientifically speaking. There was something else. Anytime I brought up what I thought I saw, Kai and Frederick brushed it off.
If that weren’t enough, they both had been avoiding me ever since. Was that how it was now? They both got what they wanted and chose to forget how good it felt? Had it all been in my head? I didn’t know what I did, but I didn’t think I deserved this. I would demand answers.
Luck was finally on my side late one night when I wandered into the dining area to find the two of them talking softly as they huddled near the coffee pot.
“The waters are different. Something in my gut is telling me we need to leave now,” Frederick whispered.
“I told you, we’ll tell them as soon as they rise. There’s another storm coming, and we need to head back to land,” Kai argued. “There’s time. We can wait a few more hours.”
The boat rocked a little more. Not enough to notice it if you were asleep, probably. But enough for the boys to glance around and notice me standing near the door.
“How long have you been standing there, Rosalyn?” Frederick’s jaw ticked.
“I’m surprised you even noticed. The two of you have been avoiding me.” I shook my head and attempted to keep my voicedown as to not wake anyone else. “I guess you both got what you wanted. That’s all this was, right? We knew it wasn’t anything that would last outside of this expedition anyway.”
Kai shook his head. “You know it’s not like that.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. “Are we all going to stand here and pretend this is normal? I’ve never been interested in more than one person at a time. Fuck, I’ve never been interested inanyonethis much. I think we all know each other well enough to know none of this can last.”
We were doomed from the start. Even if they wanted something after this, it would be too awkward. I sure as hell wouldn’t choose and knew they wouldn’t share.
If I could’ve stepped away and ran from this conversation, I think I would’ve. We were stuck together in the middle of the ocean for at least another day though.
The ship rocked suddenly as if we hit something, but we weren’t moving. “What was that?”
The brothers looked at each other fleetingly before running out of the room and up the stairs. I quickly followed.
I was frozen in place as soon as I was on deck with them. The sight was directly out of the nightmares that kept repeating themselves for so long I lost track. Tentacles coming up and over one side of the railing.
Then I heard it. The beautiful terror with its alluring voice. As if speaking right into our heads. It didn’t affect me the same way as it did Kai and Frederick.
They moved closer to the edge as if they were in a trance.
“No.” I shook my head. “Fuck this.” I would not allow my nightmare to become my reality.
The storm came as soon as the siren’s eyes met mine.
