Chapter 11 - Dragged into the Abyss
The heat from the burning salon licked at Naomi’s skin as Julian dragged her across the slick deck. His fingers were locked around her ankle like iron cuffs, driven by the frantic, dying strength of a man who refused to perish alone.
""You're coming with me,"" he hissed, blood bubbling at the corner of his lips. ""We sink together, Naomi!""
The ship shuddered violently as its keel broke beneath the waterline. Black ocean water surged over the stern, mixing with burning diesel fuel in a sizzling halo of fire. Marcus shrieked as a wall of water swept him off his feet, carrying him screaming over the portside rail into the black void of the Atlantic.
Naomi rolled onto her back, her bare foot kicking frantically against Julian’s shattered shoulder.
Julian screamed in pain, but his grip didn't loosen. Instead, he lunged forward, throwing his entire weight onto her legs, pinning her against the rapidly submerging deck. The ocean was up to her waist now, ice-cold and smelling of fuel.
She raised the 9mm pistol, pressing the barrel directly against the center of Julian’s chest.
""Let go,"" she ordered, her voice completely steady amidst the roaring storm.
Julian stared at her through the rain, his eyes bloodshot, his face twisted in bitter hatred. ""Do it. You pull that trigger, you become me.""
Naomi didn't flinch. ""No. I survive you.""
She pulled the slide back just enough to verify the chamber, then brought the heavy steel butt of the pistol down with savage force across the bridge of Julian’s nose.
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The bone shattered with a sickening crunch. Julian’s grip broke as he lost consciousness, slumping face-down into the rising water.
Naomi kicked herself free from his body, grasped the railing, and threw herself over the side of the sinking yacht just as the main fuel tank erupted in an apocalyptic pillar of fire.
