The Sharks are shouting now. At least I got their attention. Dru and Gem flank my captor, their guns raised. Kiya reaches the port rail first, notices the pontoon and immediately shoots at the guy on board. She hits the motor instead. The guy fires back, and Kiya collapses in a shimmering Tesla cage.
‘HOLD YOUR FIRE!’ my captor roars. ‘Or Ana Dakkar dies!’
He twists so his back is to the rail and I’m between him and the Sharks. He knows my name. Of course … I was the target all along. I don’t understand the motive, but this whole attack has been about capturing me.
Gem and Dru keep their Leyden guns trained on us. On the starboard side of the deck, the last LI commando goes down when Tia Romero smashes him in the groin with a fire extinguisher.
I lock eyes with Gemini Twain. I try to say Just shoot us both, but my voice won’t work.
‘I wouldn’t,’ my captor warns Gem. ‘Maybe you didn’t notice the needle I’ve got at your friend’s neck. Nasty what you can make from sea-snake venom. She’ll survive, unless you freshmen get stupid with those Leyden guns. Shock me, you shock her. That really wouldn’t be good for her nervous system right now.’
Slowly, Gem sets down his Leyden gun. Then, just as slowly, he draws his twin SIG Sauers. ‘How about I shoot you in the mouth instead?’ he suggests – calm and polite, as if he’s offering our guest a moist towelette. ‘Unless your face is bulletproof, too.’
Gem is an excellent marksman, but that doesn’t decrease my level of panic. My captor’s face happens to be right next to mine.
‘I don’t care how good a shot you are, Twain,’ my captor snarls. He knows Gem, too. He’s done his homework. ‘This needle will go into her neck. A second dose of sea-snake venom? Definitely fatal. I’m going over the side now, with Dakkar. And you’re going to let me.’
‘You’re just going to leave your friends behind?’ Gem flicks one of his gun barrels towards the pile of unconscious LI commandos now decorating our starboard deck. ‘How about we make a trade?’
My captor snorts. ‘Keep them. They did their job. This one, though?’ He tightens his grip on my throat. ‘None of us can afford to see her get killed, can we?’
My captor and I tumble backwards – free-falling from the side of the Varuna. I get a glimpse of blue sky. I feel the thunk of our impact as we crash into the water. Then the cold sea closes over my face like the folds of a burial shroud.
When we surface, I’m choking and spluttering. I have a blurry view of my classmates gathered above, their grim faces lining the port rail of the Varuna. Dr Hewett is there too now, looking seasick. Gemini Twain has switched to his M4A1, the rifle’s sight fixed on my captor.
The Varuna has cut her engines. The world is quiet except for the slosh of waves against the hull and my captor’s ragged breathing in my ear. It must be hard work pulling me along, using me as a human shield while swimming backwards towards his pontoon. I hope he drowns.
Above us, Gem says grimly, ‘I’ve got the shot, sir.’
I don’t think he meant for us to hear this comment, but voices carry at sea. The idea of him firing makes my stomach twist. With the ocean swells, and the movements of the ship and my captor, it would be a tough shot even for Gem. Besides, I assume my captor still has his little hypodermic needle somewhere at hand. I hope he sticks himself with it.
‘Stand down, Mr Twain,’ Hewett orders.
Really? I think. That’s all you’ve got, Hewett?
‘That’s right,’ my captor mocks. ‘Stand down, Mr Twain.’
Hewett narrows his eyes. ‘Caleb South, I know your voice. Don’t do this.’
Caleb curses. Apparently, he doesn’t love Hewett any more than I do.
We reach the pontoon. Another set of rough hands grabs me. The guy at the motor hauls me aboard.
‘Dave,’ my captor snaps, still in the water. ‘Keep a needle on her while I get aboard.’
Great. I’ve been abducted by two evildoers named Caleb and Dave. I wonder if the Land Institute yearbook voted them most likely to open a family restaurant or maybe a gardening centre.
My limbs still aren’t working, but I can feel some tingling in my toes. The toxin is wearing off. I try to speak. All that comes out is a gurgle.
Caleb South climbs into the boat. He pulls me over him so I’m once again blocking Gem’s line of sight. Dave scoots astern and starts messing with the outboard engine.
‘Dave, hurry,’ Caleb barks.