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Authors: Bella Forrest
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being bitten?”
“Oh, I’m sure you’ll find a way,” Aisha said nonchalantly. “You have a rare talent for figuring out how to save your own skin.”
I felt goosebumps as Aisha lowered me again to the boat, heart-stoppingly close to the Bloodless.
“Okay,” I wheezed, trying to force my panicking mind to think clearly. “I will need to search for the box, and I’ll try to lock one of them inside and then… then you’ll need to help me lift the box away. There is no way that I can do this all on my own.”
“Deal,” the jinni said. “If you manage to herd one of those things into your blasted box, I’ll help you get it off the ship.”
Julie
M ercifully , this time, Aisha lowered me onto the mast instead of the deck, directly above the trap door that led down to the ship’s lower levels. The trap door was flung wide open. I couldn’t be sure whether or not any of the monsters were down there.
The moment my feet hit the mast, the Bloodless began hurrying toward me. Again I fought my every instinct to leap back into the ocean and swim like a maniac. This time, I would need to dive right into the fray.
Tearing off a piece of sail using my claws, I wrapped it tightly around my throat to form at least somewhat of a barrier against the monsters, no matter how measly. The rest of my body would have to remain as it was—vulnerable and unprotected—because with the Bloodless encroaching, I had no time to come up with more makeshift armor.
With one giant thrust of my legs, I flung myself from one side of the ship to the other. They all hissed and spat, turning to follow. But as soon as they neared me on the other side, I pulled the same trick, moving back to the previous side. I wasn’t sure what I was doing. I was flying completely by the seat of my pants, just hoping that my antics would disorient them and place me at some kind of advantage.
But things didn’t exactly pan out that way.
The Bloodless wised up, and, rather than follow me from mast to mast, they displayed an unnerving level of intelligence and split into two groups, positioning themselves at each one. I could no longer play this game, especially as the Bloodless began swarming up both of the masts. At least in doing so they left the deck clear. I took the opportunity to leap down and sprint for the trapdoor.
It felt like I was committing suicide as I dove down the stairs. I couldn’t even pull the trapdoor shut above me to buy myself some more time. It was broken, splintered to pieces. Landing with a crash at the foot of the staircase, I loped along the hallway toward the small storage room where the box had been kept.
I knew this ship like the back of my hand—it was my ship, mine and the Mansons’—but in my panic, my brain almost forgot my way around. The state of the ship didn’t help. Good grief… The whole lower deck was horribly disfigured. They’d wreaked havoc, shredding the walls and ceilings with their claws.
My heart was in my throat as their footsteps descended the stairs. I reached the storage room where I’d left the box. A horrid, vile smell filled my nostrils even as I exhaled in relief to find that the box was still here. Its lid was open, and when I hurried up to it, it was filled with the rotting body of a werewolf. I felt nauseous from the stench. Who put this in here? I wasn’t sure how long the body had been lying there, but it was already riddled with maggots and flies.
Clenching my jaw, I held my breath and dove my hands into the box. Grabbing hold of the thick fur around the wolf’s neck, I tugged with all my strength. The body was heavy and bloated, and though I could handle the sheer weight, I was physically much smaller than the beast. I managed to pull it out of the box, but as the body flopped to the floor, it crashed down against my shins and feet. I lost balance on the slippery floor and collapsed onto the werewolf’s body, which, to my horror, squelched like a water balloon. A burst of
“Oh, I’m sure you’ll find a way,” Aisha said nonchalantly. “You have a rare talent for figuring out how to save your own skin.”
I felt goosebumps as Aisha lowered me again to the boat, heart-stoppingly close to the Bloodless.
“Okay,” I wheezed, trying to force my panicking mind to think clearly. “I will need to search for the box, and I’ll try to lock one of them inside and then… then you’ll need to help me lift the box away. There is no way that I can do this all on my own.”
“Deal,” the jinni said. “If you manage to herd one of those things into your blasted box, I’ll help you get it off the ship.”
Julie
M ercifully , this time, Aisha lowered me onto the mast instead of the deck, directly above the trap door that led down to the ship’s lower levels. The trap door was flung wide open. I couldn’t be sure whether or not any of the monsters were down there.
The moment my feet hit the mast, the Bloodless began hurrying toward me. Again I fought my every instinct to leap back into the ocean and swim like a maniac. This time, I would need to dive right into the fray.
Tearing off a piece of sail using my claws, I wrapped it tightly around my throat to form at least somewhat of a barrier against the monsters, no matter how measly. The rest of my body would have to remain as it was—vulnerable and unprotected—because with the Bloodless encroaching, I had no time to come up with more makeshift armor.
With one giant thrust of my legs, I flung myself from one side of the ship to the other. They all hissed and spat, turning to follow. But as soon as they neared me on the other side, I pulled the same trick, moving back to the previous side. I wasn’t sure what I was doing. I was flying completely by the seat of my pants, just hoping that my antics would disorient them and place me at some kind of advantage.
But things didn’t exactly pan out that way.
The Bloodless wised up, and, rather than follow me from mast to mast, they displayed an unnerving level of intelligence and split into two groups, positioning themselves at each one. I could no longer play this game, especially as the Bloodless began swarming up both of the masts. At least in doing so they left the deck clear. I took the opportunity to leap down and sprint for the trapdoor.
It felt like I was committing suicide as I dove down the stairs. I couldn’t even pull the trapdoor shut above me to buy myself some more time. It was broken, splintered to pieces. Landing with a crash at the foot of the staircase, I loped along the hallway toward the small storage room where the box had been kept.
I knew this ship like the back of my hand—it was my ship, mine and the Mansons’—but in my panic, my brain almost forgot my way around. The state of the ship didn’t help. Good grief… The whole lower deck was horribly disfigured. They’d wreaked havoc, shredding the walls and ceilings with their claws.
My heart was in my throat as their footsteps descended the stairs. I reached the storage room where I’d left the box. A horrid, vile smell filled my nostrils even as I exhaled in relief to find that the box was still here. Its lid was open, and when I hurried up to it, it was filled with the rotting body of a werewolf. I felt nauseous from the stench. Who put this in here? I wasn’t sure how long the body had been lying there, but it was already riddled with maggots and flies.
Clenching my jaw, I held my breath and dove my hands into the box. Grabbing hold of the thick fur around the wolf’s neck, I tugged with all my strength. The body was heavy and bloated, and though I could handle the sheer weight, I was physically much smaller than the beast. I managed to pull it out of the box, but as the body flopped to the floor, it crashed down against my shins and feet. I lost balance on the slippery floor and collapsed onto the werewolf’s body, which, to my horror, squelched like a water balloon. A burst of
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