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Ghost tackles the man to the deck, but the Siren is still holding the machine gun. The storm is back in full force, rocking the boat, so she is shooting wild, hitting the wooden railing and causing splinters to fly everywhere. One of the splinters hits my right shoulder blade. Now the Siren is running toward me. I’m grazed along my side and pushed back against the rail, completely breaking the model ship off. I grab it, gripping it tight in my hand.
The Siren gets close and is about to shoot me in the face. I use the model and stab the figurehead swordfish into her gut and pull it up and to the side. She screams in pain, dropping the gun while grabbing and pushing me. My foot gets stuck in the rungs of the railing, which breaks off behind me. We’re falling now.
We hit and go under the water before emerging at the same time, but the railing my foot is caught in is starting to pull me back down.
“Artyom and Katana?” I manage to ask, breathing heavily, feeling the pain of my wounds.
“Tied up below,” she says in a daze. “Going to kill them both after we see what all the racket is up there.”
“I don’t think so,” I say. The Siren’s eyes open wide in recognition, and her face is full of anger.
“You!” she screams and grabs me, pulling me under once again. I’m too weak to fight, and the weight of the railing is too heavy for me to be able to get up to the surface again. It’s okay, though. Mari and her family will surely be alright now. And they’ll be together. My crew has the upper hand. They’ll get Artyom and Katana out of there, and they’ll take care of…
The Siren’s grip around me loosens a bit as her life comes to an end. My laughter from under the water causes bubbles to rise. I’m ready to die, knowing Mari will be safe. My mind must be playing a pleasant trick on me. In the water in front of me is the only face I want to see in my final moment.
25
MARIKA
I watch in helpless desperation as Josef stabs Sonomi with one of the model boat decorations. He’s been shot, but he’s still standing and fighting. Hope flutters in my belly. All of this may finally be over, with everyone I love still alive and safe for the most part. Then Sonomi pulls Josef over the side along with a large section of the railing, crushing the fluttering in my belly. There’s no time to scream.
My fingertips hit the water first as I dive in and go under. My body seizes up at the icy water for just a few moments before I'm able to get myself moving. It’s getting light out, but it's still too dark to see anything below 2 or 3 feet. I surface to take in a deep breath. Bubbles pop on the surface near me, and I dive back down. I stretch my arms out as far in front of me as possible and begin sweeping them all around. I finally feel something, and the fluttering hope returns. My fingers close and tighten around what feels like hair, long hair. Hair too long to be Josef's. My body heats up with rage, making the biting, cold water a bit more tolerable.
I grab the long, stringy clump of hair and grip it as tight as I can. I yank hard against it, using the weight of my entire body to pull Sonomi Sagawa's foul, wretched corpse up and to the side. I catch a glimpse of her gaping, lifeless eyes and wide-open mouth. I swim down deeper while feeling around as best I can, but it's no use. I can’t see a damn thing.
Lightning flashes from the thunderstorm above. A glimmer of light from below me pierces through the water and into my eyes. It's a reflection. I recognize the medallion that was hanging from Josef's neck, glimmering in the sunlight the first time I saw him. I keep swimming down, grabbing at the light until I feel him. I curl my fingers around anything I can get a hold of, grasp tight, jerk my arms back, and pull him, but he won't budge. He’s caught on something. His bright blue eyes are open, and he's looking at me with a faint smile, then his eyes shut. Is he giving up? No! I won't let him. I will not allow it.
Smack
My slap was a little lighter than usual, slightly impeded by the water. I rear my hand back once more, ready to smack Josef in the back of his head again. Suddenly, lightning flashes from above, and I see Josef’s medallion, and those beautiful blue eyes are open and shining again. Bubbles start to pour from his mouth, which has curled up in a big, wicked smile. Josef forms a fist with a large, powerful hand. He leans over and strikes the section of railing, breaking it in half and freeing his foot. I take him from behind, hooking my arms beneath his and around the front of his shoulders. I kick my legs back and forth, tugging him along as I swim back up to the surface.
Ghost is sitting in a small dinghy just a few feet away, and I make my way over to him. He hoists Josef in while I help by pushing him up from underneath. Once he is safely on the boat with Ghost, I start to scramble my way aboard to join them. Ghost has a small pouch in his hands that seems to be some sort of first-aid kit. He gets to work on Josef, ripping away his shirt and pouring something over his bloody wounds. By the time I'm in the boat, Ghost has the injuries packed with gauze, and his hands are pressed against them to slow the bleeding. It seems he might be as skilled at keeping people alive as he is at killing them. While Ghost leans forward, applying pressure to Josef's wounds, I can see in the dim light a small gold medallion falls out of his shirt and glimmers just as another bolt of lightning flashes in the sky. It’s the same as Josef’s with two big hands wrapped around two smaller ones.
“He will be okay. Looks like no bullets inside. They went through and through. Only wood splinter in back. I take out and patch the holes,” Ghost says. “You will introduce me to sister now?”
“Ha, ha! She may need a little time first, my friend,” I answer with a hearty laugh. I can't help it. I'm just so relieved to have Josef here with me, alive and going to stay that way.
“Her sister,” Josef groans, managing a chuckle as well. “You have good taste. She’s very pretty. Ouch! Will you stop that?”
“Never,” I promise him.
It doesn't take us long to get back to the Maximum Splash, and people help us aboard once we arrive. They lead us inside one of the cabins and have Josef lie on the bed. One of the men gets to work on cleaning his wounds more thoroughly and bandaging them up properly. I don’t know why I’m surprised that most of the people are tending to the wounded. I guess it’s smart in their line of work to have some first-aid training.
“So, you made it,” Artyom says, hovering over Josef.
“That was some gamble,” Katana says, also standing nearby.
“Gamble?” Josef asks. “He couldn’t lose. If I didn’t make it, he’d take over the Bratva.”
“Not likely,” Katana says. “The Siren was about to kill us both before you decided to make that ruckus and take her out. Thanks, by the way.”
“Da. Thank you, Boss,” Artyom says.
That makes me realize that Josef will be the leader of the Bratva soon. There is a commotion outside, and an angry, unfamiliar voice booms over a megaphone.
“Put all weapons down and prepare to be boarded,” the voice is saying.
“You’re up,” Josef says to Katana.
