Chapter 8
Chapter 8
Nobody saw it coming when the boat, sailing along just fine, suddenly blew up!
The explosion was bizarre. The flames seemed to be fueled by something, shooting high into the air and lighting up the sky around them. Flames spread across the sea surface in all directions.
With a loud splash, Jacob jumped into the sea, not thinking twice.
His eyes burned with rage, and his face twisted in pain as he stared hard at the sea.
“Allison… Allison!” he cried.
His voice was so sharp and piercing that it made everyone’s skin crawl. Ignoring everyone, he pushed forward, the seawater already up to his chest.
“Sir, that’s too dangerous!”
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A nearby police officer finally snapped out of his shock and rushed over, grabbing Jacob by the arm. “You can’t go that far! Please, calm down!”
Jacob seemed to snap back to reality. He locked his gaze on the blazing. sea and said in a hoarse voice, “Get… get the speedboat ready! Right now!”
“Yes, Sir! I’ll alert the rescue crew right away!”
Sadie, frozen in place until now, finally reacted. She quickly clung to Jacob’s arm and whispered, “Please calm down, Jacob. Everything will be
fine…”
But Jacob didn’t even glance at her. He kept his bloodshot eyes fixed on
the sea.
He thought to himself, “Fine? Everything will be fine?
“No way.”
“Allison was on that boat. After such a huge explosion, how could she possibly still be alive?”
Just thinking about it made his chest feel like it was being ripped open, like something inside him had been broken apart.
What if something really happened to Allison? How should he live?
et? V
“Why isn’t anyone here are they all?!”
Jacob slammed his fists on the railing like a madman, and his knuckles split open, bleeding instantly.
The officer nearby didn‘
say a word, but soon the sound of sirens echoed through the air. Rescue helicopters and lifeboats started to arrive.
Jacob walked to the front, leading the way. The farther he went, the stronger the awful burnt smell filled his nose. The heat was intense, and parts of the sea were still covered in flames.
“This isn’t a normal fire. Something’s definitely off with this boat!”
Those words hit him hard, and he started to tremble.
“Who would do something like this to Allison? Who was behind it?!”
Water cannons blasted toward the flames, but Jacob didn’t wait for the
Chapter 8
fire to be fully extinguished. He jumped straight into the sea.
It was nearly impossible to see underwater. The blast had left behind floating wreckage and murky water… And streaks of red liquid so sharp they burned his eyes.
Jacob kept praying over and over in his heart. Maybe Allison had sensed something was wrong on the boat and jumped off in time. Maybe she was out there now, floating somewhere, just waiting to be rescued…
But before he could hold onto that hope a second longer, the worried shout of an officer on the boat reached his ears.
“… Yes! The people on the boat were unconscious at the time. They wouldn’t have been able to move on their own. It’s very likely they couldn’t escape and may have been blown to pieces now…”
Jacob’s mind went blank, and everything around him became silent.
The waves crashed over him. He coughed hard from swallowing water, and for a moment, everything went black.
“Sir!”
“Captain Stinson!”
He came up for air, waited to catch his breath, then dove back under. He did it over and over…
But one thought wouldn’t leave his head. Just moments ago, he had used that spray to knock Allison out and placed her on that boat himself.
He only wanted to scare her a little, not to see her dead.
Minutes dragged on slowly. The flashlight from above lit up the surface, but below was still dark and empty. Jacob’s energy was long gone. The
Chapter 8
metallic taste of blood filled his mouth, but he didn’t dare to stop.
“Captain Stinson, you have to take a break!”
Sadie walked over, tears streaming down her face. “Jacob, please rest for a bit.”
He shoved her hand aside and growled, “Keep expanding the search zone!”
“But the experts said an explosion like that…”
“Shut up!” Jacob snapped, turning sharply. His eyes were red and wild. “She’s not dead… She can’t be dead!”
His angry shout stirred something inside him. Everything suddenly spun, his vision blacked out, and a loud scream echoed in his ears.
“Jacob!”
“Sir!”
Seconds later, he knew nothing anymore.
