HAYWIRE: A Pandemic Thriller (The F.A.S.T. Series Book 2) (52 page)

He landed in a pool half-filled with deck chairs.

He surfaced in time to see the helicopter careening sideways above the ship, completely out of control.

The chopper slammed sideways into the satellite tower.

The explosion was instantaneous.

One moment the chopper was banking out of control, and the next it was a warped mass of fiery steel wrapped around the satellite tower.

Christov hauled himself from the pool and began climbing hand-over-hand up the deck toward the bridge.

‘This isn’t over!’
he yelled up the deck. ‘This isn’t even close to being over!’

Forest ran for his life.

Seawater chased his heels.

He threw aside the plasma lance. The weapon had done its job.

They didn’t see their enemy’s helicopter crash, but they certainly heard it.

‘Hurry!’ Erin shouted at Forest.

‘This way!’ King yelled.

All three fled from the water engulfing the rear section of the ship. As the mighty ship sank backward into the water, Forest felt like he was climbing the wrong way up an escalator.

Erin took the lead, using her knowledge of the ship to help them outrun the water.

‘Up here,’ she pointed.

The main hallway through the rear cabins sloped straight up the deck. To survive they needed to stay ahead of the water. Behind them the water began surging into open cabins.

Forest scrambled up the hallway after Erin.

King shuffled up the slope. He moved damn fast for a man with two bullet wounds.

No one spoke.

The sloping hallway required every ounce of their concentration.

If any of them slipped and rolled back down into the water filling the hallway they’d be sucked into a cabin. They’d never get out.

The ship screeched and groaned around them.

Forest looked back. They were pulling ahead of the rising water.

Finally they climbed out onto a wide balcony overlooking the promenade.

Erin dashed down the stairs to the promenade.

‘Not down,’ called Forest. ‘We have to go up!’

‘The promenade will flood last,’ Erin yelled back. ‘The water has to get through all the cabins first.’

King followed Erin.

Forest grabbed the railing as foaming seawater surged onto the balcony behind him. They were only seconds ahead of the rising water. He ran down the stairs as the water raced hungrily for his boots. Behind him the water crashed down the stairs like a waterfall.

All three began climbing the promenade.

King stopped and put pressure on his wounded leg. ‘We’ll never climb this in time. We need to find something that floats.’

Forest realized King was right. They couldn’t scale the ever-increasing slope of the promenade ahead of the water.

 ‘What about an inflatable raft?’ King said.

‘The inflatables are all on the outer decks,’ Erin replied. ‘We can’t reach them. We’re cut off.’

Forest pointed at the small balconies overlooking the promenade. ‘What if we cut through the cabins above us?’

‘They’re already filling with water,’ said Erin. ‘As soon as they’re full, the water will flood in here with us.’

Forest looked at the water behind them. ‘But we’re still above the water level.’

Erin shook her head. ‘No, we’re not. This end of the promenade is already below sea level. The cabins are just slowing the water reaching the promenade.’

‘Wait,’ said Forest, trying to fathom Erin’s meaning. ‘The flood water is already above us?’

King pointed. ‘Look!’

Water began pouring from the cabin balconies all around the promenade. Water cascaded into the promenade from balconies three decks above their heads.

The water thundered down the edges of the promenade and joined the water already pursuing them from behind.

She’s right
, realized Forest.
I thought we were keeping ahead of the water, but it was racing around us. This end of the ship is already under water. We are under water! It just hasn’t reached us yet!

Behind them, churning white foam swallowed shops and restaurants. Only the path directly ahead wasn’t pouring seawater directly toward them.

‘Come on,’ yelled Erin. ‘This is it!’

They’d reached the Hot Rod Cafe, a twenties-style diner filled with booths shaped like muscle cars.

‘This is what?’ asked King.

Outside the Hot Rod Cafe stood a bright red Alfa Romeo sports car. Passengers could buy tickets for a chance to win it.

Forest stared at Erin.
Does she mean the car?

King yanked on the door handle. ‘It’s locked!’

Erin smashed open a glass box beside the car. Inside hung car keys. Lights flashed as Erin used the key fob to unlock the car.

Beep-Beep

‘Quickly,’ yelled King. ‘Everyone in!’

Erin climbed into the driver side. Forest jumped into the passenger seat. King dove in the back seat and slammed shut the door.

Forest looked in the side mirror. Water was rising up the car’s rear wheels.

‘Go,’ yelled King. ‘Drive!’

Erin keyed the ignition and hit the accelerator.

The engine roared.

Water flew up off the back wheels as though the car had propellers.

Forest braced himself.

The car didn’t move.

‘What’s happening?’ cried Erin.

‘The wheels can’t get traction,’ said King.

Forest knew that any moment the car’s rear wheels would lift off the deck and then they’d be helpless.

Even the car knew it.

It sensed the loss of traction.

A light flashed on the dashboard as the car’s back wheels lifted off the deck.

King pointed between the seats. ‘Push the four wheel drive button!’

Forest hit the button.

The front wheels bit into the deck. The car thrust forward. Forest and King both flew back in their seats.

It felt like sitting in a launching rocket.

A rocket suddenly caught in an obstacle course of trees and seats and signs and lights and everything else on the promenade.

‘Put your seatbelts on!’ yelled Erin.

Forest and King rushed to oblige.

Erin wove through the obstacles like a professional rally car driver. The obstacles she couldn’t avoid she just smashed right through.

They were halfway up the promenade when water began pounding onto the car from the cabin balconies above.

Erin braced her arms on the wheel and pressed her chin to her chest.

‘Here it comes!’ she cried.

Forest caught a single glance out his window before the car plunged underwater.

He witnessed an unbroken ring of waterfalls roaring from all the balconies surrounding the promenade.

In a heartbeat the water swallowed the car.

‘Anchor yourself!’ yelled Forest.

Erin grabbed the handbrake and the handle above her door. Forest did likewise. King jammed his boots under their seats and grabbed the handles above both rear doors.

The current flipped the car like a dry leaf.

Water blasted into the car from a hundred different places. Through the windshield Forest caught topsy-turvy glimpses of the promenade.

Debris swirled everywhere.

Smack!

Something hit the car.

Forest didn’t see what they’d hit. It took everything he had just to hold on as the car twisted and rotated.

Something pounded into the bottom of the car. Something else struck the door beside Erin. If they took a direct hit to the windshield, water would fill the car instantly.

For a moment the current held them motionless.

Forest saw streams of bubbles rising everywhere. The bubbles travelled in the opposite direction to the car.

Forest knew bubbles only ever went up.

That meant the car was going down.

My God,
thought Forest.
The ship is sucking us down with it.

Coleman dropped Neve into the pilot’s chair.

He was utterly exhausted.

Hauling them both up the sloping deck had been the most grueling climb of his life. His legs felt like jelly as he climbed out the bridge’s broken front window.

‘Can you see their lifeboat?’ Neve called out. ‘Can you see Justin?’

He scanned the churning, debris-filled water around the sinking ship.

Somebody must have reached a lifeboat
, he thought.

Myers and Craigson had orders to get Justin safely to a lifeboat at any cost.

Coleman scanned the water desperately.

Something sizzled in the sky. Coleman looked up.

A flare.

‘I see a flare!’ he yelled back to Neve. ‘Someone discharged a blue flare.’

‘That must be Justin,’ Neve shouted back.

Coleman couldn’t see where the flare had come from.

I need to get higher
, he thought.
Maybe on top of the bridge.

He turned and looked for a way to climb higher. At that exact moment, he saw someone diving through the air toward him.

What the...?

WUMP!

It was Christov.

Their bodies crashed together. Momentum sent them tumbling off the bridge. Coleman felt himself falling through the air and then...

CRASH!

Locked together, the men smashed through a glass ceiling.