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I swim toward him.

But he’s sinking fast.

My lungs burn, screaming for oxygen, but I refuse to surface. Not without him.

Not without the man who has become my life.

I swim faster, with everything I’ve got… but it’s not enough. I am going to lose Cil.

No, I can’t.

I can’t lose him.

So I weigh my options… how to move faster and how to reach him, but every calculation in my head ends the same way: with Cillian gone or both of us dead.

Then an idea crosses my mind… one that will probably kill me, but it’s the only way I can reach Cillian in time.

Fuck!

I don’t think Björn would even do something this insane.

Screw it.

I spin in the water, raise my rifle, and aim for Julian’s belt. Right where the idiot had a pack of C4.

I steady my body and pull the trigger.

The bullet slices through the water and hits the metal cap inserted into the C4.

The explosion is instantaneous.

The shockwave slams into my body, propelling me toward Cil, and—Fuck! That’s gotta be two broken ribs, a ruptured left eardrum, and at least three months of rehab.

But the blast pushes me exactly where I need to be.

I reach out and grab one of the ropes, hauling Cillian into my chest.

He is completely limp, and he isn’t breathing.

No, no, no!

Please don’t die…

I wrap my arm around his waist and kick for the surface with every ounce of strength I have left.

And just when I think we won’t make it, a body breaks the surface and hits the water.

Leif.

He dives toward us, shoving a spare regulator over my face while reaching for Cillian.

I want to refuse to let go, but Cillian needs air now.

I take two breaths from the oxygen mask and follow Leif as he carries Cillian out of the water.

We break the surface and gasp.

I am cold, hurt, and most of all, terrified out of my fucking mind.