The Deep

Chapter 13

*Mack*

They found me floating near the mouth of the bay. It was still being debated how I made it there in the first place. My boat was found not long after. It brought even more questions than answers. I was in the hospital when Jamie's family visited and asked me about him. I told them what I knew. Or at least some of it.

It hurt not being able to tell them everything that happened on my boat. Especially since the culprit-as far as I knew-was still out there. And he might've killed Arya. The last thing I remember was that damn spear coming out of nowhere and throwing her off the boat. Then, Jamie called me for help. He was losing control of the wheel before a wave hit us. There's nothing past that. I have nothing to tell them when they ask what happened to Jamie because I genuinely don't know.

After I got discharged, Ava picked me up eagerly. Her visits in the hospital were tense and quiet. I know the questions are at the tip of her tongue now. I wish she wouldn't. It would only make her another person that I had to lie to, and I didn't want to lie to Ava.

Three days passed before any new information about Jamie spread through town. It was one that I didn't expect and one that I've come to carry on my shoulders: Jamie was declared dead. Lost at sea. The Barr family didn't want to drag the search out. No one could survive a storm like that and make it past three cold nights out in the open sea. And this is all according to past accidents.

This all runs through my mind as I watch Jamie's empty coffin lowered into his grave. The pain of losing my closest friend overshadows the pain that emits from the physical wound that I acquired from being thrown by a wave. Ava stays close to me, careful not to disturb my slinged up arm. "I'm sorry, Mack." She says quietly.

It's funny. Everyone else seems to be finding their closure in this. Except me. I don't want to accept that Jamie's dead. Maybe it's because we were together in my blasted boat. Why did he die and not me? What made all the difference in my survival and not his?

"Elinnn..."

My gaze sharply studies the tree line along the cemetery. I don't know how I knew she was there, but my eyes landed right where she was standing. Her hair blew slightly in the wind. She's dressed in all black like the rest of us. But unlike everyone else, she's here for me. I glance around, wondering if anyone else notices the strange intruder. Nobody does.

I look back and she's gone. Did I even really see her? I still have my doubts about whether she's real, but Jamie did see her on my boat. How did she here by herself? "Mack," Ava lightly touches my hand, "the party is going to the pub to celebrate his life. Are you feeling well enough to go?" Honestly, I didn't have it in me to go. I'm sure Jamie would forgive me if I missed this one.

"No, I'm going home." She simply nods in understanding. We still haven't talked about our brief argument that we had before I left. I know that she's trying to give me time for myself, but I can't stand her hovering. Ava is only trying to help me, is what I keep trying to keep in mind. "Do you want me to go with you? I can tell the girls that I can meet with them later."

"No," I say quickly-too quickly, "I'll be fine on my own."

We walk back to my car in silence. I unlock my door clumsily with one hand and turn back to her. "I'll see you later, okay?" There was a silent promise that I'm sure she heard. She smiles and kisses me softly on the cheek. I watch her saunter back with a decision weighing heavy on my shoulders.

*****

I didn't mean to drive all the way here, but here I am. The factory will be empty for the next few days. I have yet to review the data that I collected during the weeks we were away. My subconscious knew better than to let me go to a quiet and desolate apartment.

My lab is adjacent to the fishing warehouse. The company created a contract with me to fund any of my research as long as I became some kind of liaison for them. It was a good opportunity for the town and it gave me the resources to pay my student loans.

The laboratory has everything I need. Every kind of tech that I'll potentially need to experiment with. I drop on my swivel chair. My boat was salvaged and most of my things were also salvageable. My computers all had water damage, but fortunately for me, it was all backed up. Thank God for universal cloud drives.

I log on to my monitor and begin retrieving all my data. It takes about twenty minutes for it all to upload on the device. There are countless spreadsheets and many more data retrievals. I lean back and watch my computer load. "I'm not sure it'll go any faster if you watch it load." I jump with a start. I didn't expect anyone to be here, especially someone that I least suspected to ever wander in here. "Merida." She shares a softer smile with me. It's been a while since I've spoken with her. I all of a sudden feel guilty for not checking up on her recently. "What are you doing here? Is everything okay?"

"Everything is okay." She hesitates for a brief second but seems to make her decision quick. "It's just...she wanted to see you."

She? I cautiously stand up from my seat and circle around my desk. "She..?" The question was plainly obvious, but I couldn't find it in myself to finish it. "Me." Arya whispered the word right behind my ear. Startled, I turned around and back from her. Arya looked different. More human, I guess. "Hello, Elin." Her eyes curiously roamed all over my body and every now and then her eyebrows would twitch as if there was something that she didn't understand or had never seen before. I notice how she fists her hands, how tense her shoulders are. She's holding herself back for some reason.

"Arya," I breathed her name, "hi."

She tilts her head, observing my face carefully before she starts looking around my lab. "W-what is she doing here with you, Merida?" Arya wanders off, gently touching one thing after another. One part of me wanted to tell her to back away from the expensive equipment, while the other-the crazy part- wanted to see what she would find. "Arya has something to tell you, Mack." Merida answers me a bit nervously. Her gaze flickered between me and her-no doubt still wondering if this was a good idea or not. I'm also wondering the same. "Tell him, Arya."

Without taking her eyes off my testing tube rack, she utters the opposite of what I have been imagining all day. "Your people lie. Your friend isn't dead, because I saved him."