Chapter 17.
Liam's P.O.V.
We'd decided after a few hours of planning, that the best thing to do was get Ainslea's pet dolphin, Kevin, to try and pick up Hannah's scent. Then, we'd see where it lead us.
Luckily, Kevin knew Hannah's scent a little and we managed to pick up a trace off the coast of Port Douglas.
"I hope this works." I mutter, as Ainslea and I swim behind Kevin, keeping up a steady pace.
"Don't worry Liam, it will, Kevin is really good at this, I used to play hide and seek with him all the time and he always found me very quickly. He has a great sense of smell." Ainslea explains, trying to reassure me.
"Alright, I hope we can find her soon, who knows how long she's got." I mutter, reaching up a hand to run it through my hair, but suddenly remembering, I don't have much to run it through.
Kevin picks up the pace, Ainslea and I following quickly behind, our tails moving at lightning speed as we race through the dark waters.
"So, uh just wondering, how long will I have my tail for?" I ask Ainslea as we speed through the midnight blue sea.
"Hmm, from everything I know about Sea Witches, I'd say you have three days, and then it's back to your legs." Ainslea replies.
"I hope we can find her before then." I mumble.
"Me too Liam." Ainslea replies, giving me a look of concern as we dodge a school of fish.
I wonder how long we have.
Hannah's P.O.V
I awaken, how many hours do I have left now?
"Owww." I moan, feeling an instant pain course through my body as I try to move, I'm still tied up against this stupid bed.
Why am I in pain though?
I guess my heart is still aching a little after that crazy woman, Jenna, injected me, but today I feel a different kind of pain. It's everywhere, weakening me.
I glance frantically to my arm and gasp in surprise to see a drip attached to it.
So they're feeding me...
But why would you drip feed a person you were going to kill in a few hours?
You wouldn't, would you?
I bet whats going through that tube into my arm isn't any food substance, maybe it's why I'm feeling so weak.
Could they be poisoning me?
Possibly drugging me out to make my imminent death easier, maybe making me too weak to struggle, or scream?
Whatever the hell this drip is putting into me, it's not good. It needs to be out of my arm, and fast.
"Damn scientists." I mutter, realising my hands are strapped down so I can't pry the drip out with them.
Desperate times call for desperate measures though.
I crane my neck, stretching it as far it can go, trying to reach the drip towards the top of my left arm. Eventually after a few painful seconds, my outstretched tongue touches the outer case of the needle feeding the drip into my arm.
I crane my neck further, and my teeth close around the needles' case.
I steady myself for the painful thing I'm about to do.
Quickly I use all the strength I can muster to hold onto the needles' case in my mouth as I try not to cry out in pain whilst pulling it out of my arm.
I grit my teeth together around the case, feeling like I might end up breaking it, but a few painstaking seconds later the drip is out of my arm, and dangling a few meters away from the cold white floor of this torture chamber, still hanging from the drip cord.
I gasp in pain as my arm throbs, desperately wanting to move, but failing because of the straps around me.
A few minutes later the pain has calmed down a little and I sigh in relief as I realise there are no strange substances entering my body anymore.
Curiosity takes over me and I decide to look down at the needle from the drip that used to be in my arm, wondering what was actually in it, seeing as the tube and drip case were opaque and unable to see the substance through.
"Oh my God." I mutter, as I watch a drop of the substance come out of the needle and splash against the stark white floor.
It was red, blood red, poison red.
It sure wasn't food.
Liam's P.O.V.
"How much longer?" I ask Ainslea as we speed through the water, which is all we've been doing for the past twenty-four hours, just searching, no solid route. The water around us is now orange in the sunset, which would usually be the most beautiful thing to see from this point of view, but now, it was like the sun was telling me that Hannah didn't have much time left.
"I don't know Liam, but I feel like we're heading out further into the open sea, not near to any part of the coast of Australia, or anywhere in the world for that matter." Ainslea replies and my hope begins to fade. What if this dolphin is just chasing some food instead, or playing a game with us, Hannah wouldn't be in the middle of the sea, she'd be on land by now.
Wouldn't she?
The two of us continue to swim, dodging many different kinds of fish, the occasional shark, (which manages to scare me every time), more dolphins, everything really.
I just can't help but think about what might be happening to Hannah right now.
"Hey, Liam?" Ainslea asks me softly as we catch a current Kevin veered off into.
"Yeah?" I ask, turning to look at her pale face, her light blonde hair flying out behind her.
"What are you going to do if, we don't make it in time?" She asks me quietly.
"I don't know Ainslea, I just can't afford to think like that." I reply, staring out in front of me, at the rapidly darkening sea.
The water continues to darken, but there is a point in the far distance, like a star, that continues to stay light.
"Liam!" Ainslea shouts suddenly, pulling me out of my hopeless phase.
"What?" I ask, looking over to see the fair Mermaid frantically pointing at the dot in the distance.
"I think thats it. That's the place." Ainslea exclaims, and the two of us push ourselves as fast as we can go, speeding towards the dot. Kevin in the lead.
As we near the dot, my eyes widen in surprise, for it's a small island, one I've never noticed on any maps before. I bet they have reasons for that.
"Don't worry Liam, we're going to find her." Ainslea reassures me, and both our hopes seem to be renewed.
A few minutes later we come to the edge of the island, and the two of us drag ourselves up onto the pale sandy beach of the small secluded place.
Kevin stays in the water patiently, and Ainslea explains he'll wait until we come back.
Us on the other hand, are both completely impatient as we wait for our tails to disappear, but soon enough, we both have legs again.
I sigh in relief as I realise I still have my beach shorts on, and Ainslea seems to be wearing a bikini.
"Ok, lets do this." Ainslea mutters, pushing herself up off the ground and sweeping her long blonde hair out of her eyes as the two of us survey the area.
I quickly get up off the ground behind her and the two of us begin to walk stealthily down a sandy path, into the depths of the island.
We both hide behind palm trees, and try to be as quiet as possible as we get deeper and deeper into the island, there seems to be nothing here yet though.
"Psst, look, over there." Ainslea whispers to me as we both crouch behind a bunch of tussocks, a cool breeze brushing against us.
I follow the tip of Ainslea finger and realise she is pointing to a building up ahead, it looks huge and dark, menacing almost.
Not a place I would like to be.
The two of us fall into step and we dash down through the trees and sand, heading straight to the building.
"Ok, I can't see any guards, it's so secluded and hidden I don't know why they would need them anyway." I mutter, as the two of us hide behind a tree close to the perimeter of the building.
"Liam, I've got an idea." Ainslea whispers and I raise my eyebrows, wondering what it is.
She silently points to an open window on the wall of the building we are looking at, it's not too far off the ground, and looks easy enough for us to climb through.
"Lets go!" I reply, and the two of us sprint out from behind the tree and over to the window. I quickly peer through, and as a pleasant surprise the room is empty, it looks like a lab of sorts, plain white walls and floors, and filled with closed cupboards.
"I'll go first." I say, and slide through the open window, Ainslea following swiftly behind.
The two of us stand the middle of the plain white room and look around.
"What now?" I ask, my feet feeling a little cold on this floor.
"Lets put on those." Ainslea replies, walking over to a rack of white lab coats, a simple but perfect disguise.
"Now, for shoes." I mutter, as the two of us button up our coats.
We both search through some of the cupboards and manage to find one filled with plain white sneakers, probably for walking around the labs in.
They really like the colour white here.
Once both of us have our shoes on, Ainslea spots a rubber band and quickly ties up her long hair, realising it may look a little out of place if it's not tied back.
"Ok, ready?" I ask Ainslea, as we stand in front of the only door in the room, ready to go out and rescue Hannah.
"Yup, come on!" She whispers, and the two of us grin, full of hope and confident that we have a chance of saving Hannah from whatever they are trying to do to her here.
Just then a horrific, loud, ear piercing scream fills our ears.
Ainslea and I turn to look at each other with shock.
In that one scream, I feel like all my hopes of saving Hannah has been shattered into a million pieces.