"I'm sorry...!"
... were her last words before a gunshot broke the calm of the mild August night and drilled a bullet into her body. In disbelief, she stared at the shooter, then down to herself, where a red spot quickly spread on her white bridal gown. The force of the bullet hurled her against the railing, where she lost balance and plunged backwards into the foaming waters.
For a moment she remained paralyzed on the surface, right before the next wave pulled her down. But I did not fight this long, to be now swallowed up by the ocean, she thought. She was Emily Thorne, or better Amanda Clarke, a survival fighter. But fighting against the forces of nature was not easy. Relentlessly, the waves rolled forward, swallowing up everything that stood in their way. Emily tried to keep herself on the surface, but she plunged deeper and deeper, felt salt in her mouth and in her lungs. But coughing was useless, she knew that. If she gave in to the urge to breathe, she would drown. And what would remain?
She noticed how the water turned red beside her, but she felt no pain. The cold had a numbing effect. Where'd he hit me? As she fought against the waves, she tried to touch the place where blood seemed to be leaking, but it mingled with the water too quickly, so that she could not find the bullet hole. Her dress was soaked with blood and water, she needed to get rid of it. Although she barely had any strength left, she tried to reach her back and pulled around the mother-of-pearl buttons, until she felt that she was free. A wave captured the dress, lifted it up and then devoured it completely. Would the dress be washed up at the coast? Would someone find it? And how long would it take to find me? With every wave rolling over her, she felt her strength fading at an alarming rate. But she could not and would not give up. Everything she had fought for all these years would have been for nothing. Closing her eyes, she allowed the waves carry her body. The plan! What was the plan again? She tried to focus and heard Aiden's voice in her mind...
''... Before you go to the yacht, I sneak on board and deposit the weapon you bought on Victoria's name. Then I hide and wait until ten past nine sharp. Then you'd have to be near the buoy. You start with the slideshow. After that, you have to take care of Victoria leaving the room. I'll lock her in and wait for the gunshots. Don't forget to spread the blood sample on deck. This way it's even more believable that Victoria shot you. Jump over board and swim to the buoy. There is a box with a mini diving equipment. Follow the stream until you reach the beach. I'll wait for you there."
The buoy! That was it. She needed to swim to the buoy! She let herself drift on the stream for a while before she finally discovered the buoy. But her powers had diminished and now she couldn't manage to lift the box. Desperate and with last strength, she clung tightly to the buoy and hoped for a miracle.
Suddenly, she remembered the tracking device. Just before the wedding, Aiden had given her a garter with the tracking device. That was her last chance! She groped downwards and gasped with relief when she discovered that it was still attached to the garter. With force, she pressed the button and leaned her head against the cool metal of the buoy. She closed her eyes and thought of Amanda, who had found her last rest in the sea. Would she suffer the same fate? Would they be united again, as they had been in the youth detention center before they had exchanged their identities? If there was such a thing as fate, Emily hoped it would know what it was doing. With this comforting thought she let go and let herself be carried away by the waves back into the wide ocean...