I spread my arms out, trying to maintain my balance. My legs shook too hard, making it an impossible feat. “L-Lord Camden!”
“Don’t move!” He tore his boots off and threw his jacket from his broad shoulders.
“Why? What are you doing?”
“Apparently, missing my meeting,” he grumbled.
“What? I think I misheard you.”
Before he could clarify, he dove into the water.
I was nearly squatting in the boat now, afraid to stand all the way or attempt to sit again. I had lost all faith inRuby. She was red—the color of the devil. I wanted out. Out. Out. Out. Someone please get me out.
The muscles in my legs cramped and my panic mounted. I was certain it would be years before Lord Camden reached me, but he proved to be a strong swimmer. Miraculously, I was still alive when his powerful strokes brought him to the side of the boat. I could not trust the boat or the water, but somehow, I knew I could trust him.
Lord Camden pushed his wet hair off his forehead and met my desperate gaze. “Don’t worry. I’ll take you back.”
Bless him. I took back all my evil thoughts about him. He was a hero.
I reached for him and jumped.
Chapter 12
Atlas
Ihave never caught a woman flying toward me from a boat while simultaneously treading water. And I certainly did not catch this one. Tackled might have been the appropriate word. Thankfully, her wide skirt and layers of petticoats spread out over the top of the water, giving her some temporary buoyancy. I managed to get my arms around her, which proved nearly impossible with the way she thrashed about. I daresay, she was attempting to climb me like a ladder. Her arms were around my head, my neck, and then my head again.
Why on earth had the woman jumped from the boat?
“Stop moving or we’ll both drown,” I ordered.
It seemed to snap her from her immediate panic. “I . . . I cannot swim.”
She was terrified and rightly so. She terrified me, too. “Hold on to my neck.” Immediately, Miss Lewis had me in a choke hold. “Not so tight,” I eeked out.
She loosened her grip, but her legs started thrashing against me again.
I reached for the last thread of my patience. “If you stay still, I can get you back into the boat.” She was slight enough that I hoped I might throw her back inside. With a quick turn of my head, I realized the depth of our plight. When Miss Lewis had propelled herself from the boat, she had sent it careening in the opposite direction—away from us and awayfrom the shore.
“Not the boat!” Miss Lewis cried between her chattering teeth. “I don’t trust it.” Her body shook violently. The water was cold, but I guessed it was from shock.
“Very well. No boat.” It would be wiser to head toward the bank anyway. “But you have to promise to do exactly what I say.” I was breathing hard already, and she would have to cooperate if we were going to make it. “For starters, hold still.”
She nodded and her body relaxed obediently, but not the way I had prepared for. Her soft cheek pressed itself against my own, as did the rest of her. This time her tight embrace was not the reason my breathing was inhibited.
I had been in a haze before and just after my accident thanks to Mary Anne, and the thought of losing even an ounce of control unnerved me. Doing the best to maintain a clear head, regardless of the woman strapped to me, I held on to her waist with one arm and attempted to swim with the other. I figured we had at least twenty feet and then I might be able to touch the bottom.
“Keep . . . your . . . legs . . . straight,” I said through spurts of air. “Start . . . kicking against . . . the water.”
Remarkably, she listened. Together, we began a slow, labored swim. I had worked hard to regain my strength after my accident, but despite my training, I knew I was not as strong as before. This became abundantly clear in my struggle to make any progress in the water. I kicked hard and reached far with each stroke.
“Did you feel that against your leg?” Miss Lewis’s words choked. “There’s something in the water.”
Her panic was escalating again.
“It’s a fish, not a shark,” I said with a quick inhale. “It won’t . . . harm you.”
Miss Lewis shuddered against me.
