Free falling through the air, his body tumbled and twisted. Julian dared to open one eye. Stalactites hung like jagged upside down mountains, crowding the roof of a cave. Jungle vines, thick as ropes, snaked through the rocks that sped by as he fell faster, propelled by the flood of water rushing into the cave. He’d slipped into another crevice of the mountain instead of falling into the river below.
Leaning his head slightly, he saw the end drawing near. The edge of the rocky surface disappeared into a dark void. Panicking wasn’t an option. Fire blazed through his muscles. His head crashed against the rocky wall, stunning him. The pain exploded within his head. His mind reeled.
Inhaling a deep breath of air, Julian clenched his eyes shut. He plunged into the water. A rushing roar filled his ears. Sinking fast and deep,
He’d trained for situations like this. Arms bound, feet bound, caught in equipment at the bottom of the training pool in Coronado, with only minutes to free himself and get to safety. He knew the dangers of panicking. Hyperventilating. Fear. Any of those take hold and you were dead. He kept his mind blank, forcing his eyes open as the surface of the water grew further and further away.
He visualized Mena’s face. Smiling at him. He couldn’t die in the bottom of this obscure cenote. He had to get back to Mena, one way or another. He had to force his body to move.
Air bubbles seeped through his lips as he hit the bottom of the cenote floor. Seaweed and coral tangled around his body. His head throbbed, dulling his senses and reflexes. Trash floated through the water, plastic bottles and jugs brushed against his skin. Julian had to hold his breath for as long as possible. He had two minutes, maybe three, before his body would force all the air from his lungs, desperate to breathe again.
Concentrating through the searing pain, he focused on his feet, trying to propel himself up through the dark murky water. His efforts were rewarded with excruciating pain in his leg, tangled and caught in something on the cenote floor. He fought to move his hands, barely able to make out their form in the water. The silence was deafening, calling to him as a watery resting place for his body.
No fucking way his life was ending like this.
Julian closed his eyes. Mena’s face floated to the surface of his mind. Her body was partially submerged in the ocean. He saw her laughing as she splashed through the sea, daring him to catch her. Racing to their favorite spot to watch the sunrise on the jetty at Saffron Beach. She was drifting away, increasing the space between them. Turning, she frowned, scolding him for taking too long.
“We’re going to miss the sunrise,” Mena’s voice burst through his ears. “Come on.”
Julian reached for her. The searing pain subsided. His eyes flew open, staring into the cloudy waters of the cenote at the shadow of his hand, moving in the water toward the vines snaking around his leg.
Ignoring the pain, Julian jerked and yanked at the branches until his leg was free. His lungs felt like they were about to burst.
He didn’t have much time.
Shifting his position, he crouched low against the ocean floor, then pushed his thigh muscles with every force within him. His body burst upward through the water. Air bubbles seeping from his mouth, unable to be contained as he craved fresh air.
He still couldn’t see the surface of the water. The cenote was deeper than he’d thought. Fifty feet. Maybe more. Propelling his arms up and down, he tried to increase his speed, but his lungs were out of air. He needed to breathe.
Panic gripped him as he rose higher, but nowhere close to breaking the surface. Pumping his thighs harder, Julian struggled to swim upward, desperate to break the surface. The urge to open his mouth and breathe was almost uncontrollable. He couldn’t hold his breath for much longer, but the surface of the water seemed out of reach. He could see the opening to the cave. He wasn’t going to make it. His mouth opened. The water was salty, gritty as he involuntarily swallowed, then gagged and coughed. Body seizing, Julian floated lower as his world went black.
Chapter Forty-Four
Mena steered the rental car along the winding road.
The news radio host’s voice blared through the speakers:Cell phone video of campers in the Valley of Waterfalls show what appears to be the fugitive, Julian Montgomery, tumbling head over foot down a waterfall and plunging into a river below. The waterfall, known as The Lonely Sister, is over three hundred feet tall and passes over several caves and tunnels of the mountain. It is unclear how far Montgomery fell. St. Mateo and St. Basil Police SWAT Teams as well as the PIIB are scouring the area for the missing Tiverton inmate. All residents of St. Mateo are urged to remain indoors until the criminal is apprehended.
The story hadn’t changed since Mena left St. Basil earlier that morning. The thought of Julian being captured and remanded back to Tiverton filled her with dread. But the truth was much worse. How the hell had he fallen from a waterfall?
She kept telling herself that Julian was a frogman, for God’s sake. He’d trained for worse conditions. If anyone knew how to survive that fate and escape capture by the police, it was an ex-Navy SEAL. Julian had to be alive. He had to be hiding out, biding his time until the cops stopped looking for him. He would call her when it was safe.
Mena glanced at the burner phone resting on the passenger seat of the car. It had been silent since the moment the first Palmchat Islands alert had blasted across every cell phone on the island. Omar and Regina had offered to sit with her as she waited for news on Julian, but she didn’t want them around in case Julian contacted her. He could need her help. She didn’t want to make her best friends accessories to harboring a fugitive. She would do it all on her own. If Julian needed her, she was going to do whatever he asked. He’d risked his life over and over for her in Kenya. Driven only by his love for her. It was time for her to do the same for him.
Easing the car off the highway and onto the scenic road, Mena looked up in amazement as the Valley of Waterfalls appeared. The mountains stretched toward the sky on each side of the valley, enchanting as the sunrise began its ascent. Breathtaking was the only word that came to mind. Waterfalls cascaded through cave openings across the terrain, giving the mountains the appearance of weeping at the sheer beauty of its own existence. Mena wished she was visiting the iconic site under better circumstances.
Steering the compact car around a sharp bend, Mena slowed the vehicle. Up ahead, red, blue and white flashing lights danced across the road. A barricade blocked cars from passing and the traffic was being diverted. Mena pulled out of the lane onto the shoulder and put the car in park.
Exiting the vehicle, she slipped the burner phone into her pocket and walked slowly toward the officer directing the traffic. Behind him, cops clustered in groups in front of the jungle, pointing up at a waterfall and then gesturing toward a path that led to the rushing waters of the Pourciau River.
Mena stared up at the massive waterfall. Was that where Julian had fallen from? A shudder rocked her body as reality sunk in. Mena paused and pressed her hand against the coarse rocks next to the road. She almost couldn’t catch her breath thinking of Julian falling from so high. She tried to tell herself not to worry.
Julian could handle this.
Couldn’t he?
A memory of Julian lying unconscious on the front porch of the blue house in Giriftu as the rebel gang pulled her away filled her mind.
Julian being beaten in the red desert, then handcuffed to the military vehicle by Tubeec’s men.
