Africa (Complete)

Chapter Eleven

Stepping out of his hiding spot, the sounds of Nancy screaming came flooding in. His loose-fitted shirt flapped as the windy ocean air rushed by. In any other circumstance, it would have felt good against his sweaty skin, but given his current situation, it did little to calms his nerves. Bill and Nancy were in danger, and Kam felt duty-bound to protect them. Not only did he make a promise to protect them, but he was their only hope.

Holding the gun with both hands like he was taught, Kam crept forward unsure the danger he was walking into. He was in a flow state, similar to what he would experience in high-level competition. His pupils were dilated and he was hyper sensitive to his surroundings. Beads of sweat poured down his forehead and built up on his hands making the gun handle slippery.

As he moved down the hallway, he could hear people coming so he hid once again. Two more people had boarded the vessel. Kam postured up, peeking over the edge. The boat in which the men were on was now empty. There was no telling how many of them were on board, and any attempt at getting closer could jeopardize his safety. He realized hiding in a closet may not have been the best strategy as he was now unprepared for the situation and was operating blindly.

Through the sounds of the commotion on the upper deck, he could hear Nancy whimpering. His hands were beginning to cramp up as he had been gripping the gun tightly for so long. He wiped his hands on his pants one at a time to dry them off while remaining crouched. He calculated his options.

His first option was to sneak up and take out the crew, one by one. But this wasn't a Steven Segal movie, and he wasn't trained in any sort of martial art. He had no confidence in his ability to quietly snap necks and strangle people.

The second option was to charge at them guns blazing and try to kill as many as possible. Upon firing the first shot, he knew he would likely be in a shootout, which he was not prepared for, and was surely outnumbered. That would most likely play out with the men threatening harm to Bill and Nancy, forcing Kam to surrender.

His third option was to do nothing. It was the cowardly way, but likely the only scenario where everyone makes it out alive, including himself.

Just then, the boat engine fired up and the vessel began to move. The men's boat remained stationary, bobbing up and down, becoming more distant with each second.

Kam heard another scream and what sounded like a body plunging into the water. Kam peeked over the edge and saw Bill in the water. He was bleeding profusely, which pooled around him, as his arms thrashed frantically trying to remain afloat. Nancy was still on the boat. He could hear her cries.

In that moment, instincts took over. Kam tucked the gun into the back of his pants and he ran off the back of the boat. Leaping over the edge, he dove into the choppy ocean like a torpedo. The ice-cold salt water shocked his senses as he plunged beneath the surface. With his adrenaline pumping and his heart racing, he began to swim toward Bill, hoping the men didn't see him. The salt water stung his eyes, making it difficult to see, and the powerful oceanic currents drained him of his energy.

Bill was in no position to save himself. He was flailing his arms and bleeding badly. Despite having no chance of survival on his own, he fought with every last bit of energy to remain afloat. He watched helplessly as his boat carrying his beloved wife sailed away.

In his final moments before his arms fatigued and he would succumb to his fate, sinking into the icy depths of the Atlantic, he felt something grab him. At first, he thought it was a shark attack, which would make sense given all the blood that was in the water.

"Hang on, buddy, I got you," Kam said.

"Nancy," Bill said with a heartbreaking anguish.

"We'll get her back, but first, we need to get you to safety."

Kam got behind Bill and flattened out so that they were both more parallel to the surface. The large rolling waves lifted them up and down, but they remained buoyant. With one arm hooked under Bill's armpit and across his chest, Kam used his free arm to paddle. They both kicked with their legs. The abandoned boat was roughly thirty metres away, but it didn't appear to be getting any closer as they slowly made their way toward it.