Fallen 2. Torment(42)

She was pretty sure that when it came to her past lives, she was going to be on her

own.

Wait a minute.

The first day of class. During the icebreaker. Shelby had said-Luce rose to her feet, forgetting completely that she was in the middle of a

meeting, and was already crossing the deck when a piercing scream rang out behind her.

As she whipped around toward the sound, Luce saw a flash of something black

dip off the bow of the boat.

A second later, it was gone.

Then a splash.

"Oh my God! Dawn! " Both Jasmine and Amy were leaning halfway over the

prow, looking down into the water. They were screaming.

"I'll get the lifeboat!" Amy yelled, running into the cabin.

Luce hopped up on the ledge beside Jasmine and gulped at what she saw. Dawn

had tumbled overboard and was thrashing in the water. At first, her dark head of hair and

flailing arms were all that was visible, but then she glanced up and Luce saw the terror on

her white face.

A horrible second later, a big wave overtook Dawn's tiny body. The boat was still

moving, pulling further away from her. The girls trembled, waiting for her to resurface.

"What happened?" Steven demanded, suddenly at their side. Francesca was

loosening a foam-ringed life preserver from its ties under the bow.

Jasmine's lips quivered. "She was trying to ring the bell to get everyone's attention

72

for the speech. She b-b-barely leaned out--I don't know how she lost her balance."

Luce took another painful glance over the ship's bow. The drop into the icy water

was probably thirty feet. There was still no sign of Dawn. "Where is she?" Luce cried.

"Can she swim?"

Without waiting for an answer, she grabbed the life preserver out of Francesca's

hands, looped one arm through it, and climbed to the top of the bow.

"Luce--stop!"

She heard the cry behind her, but it was already too late. She dove into the water,

holding her breath, thinking on her way down of Daniel, and their last dive at the lake.

She felt the cold in her rib cage first, a harsh tightening around her lungs from the

shock of the temperature. She waited until her descent slowed, then kicked for the

surface. The waves poured over her head, spewing salt into her mouth and up her nose,

but she clutched the life preserver tight. It was cumbersome to swim with, but if she

found Dawn --when she found Dawn--they would both need it to stay afloat while they

waited for the lifeboat.

She could vaguely sense a clamoring up on the yacht, people shouting and

scurrying around the deck, calling down to her. But if Luce was going to be any help to

Dawn, she had to tune all of them out.

Luce thought she saw the dark dot of Dawn's head in the freezing water. She tore

forward, against the waves, toward it. Her foot connected with something--a hand?--but

then it was gone and she wasn't sure whether it had been Dawn at all.

Luce couldn't go underwater while holding on to the life preserver, and she had a

bad feeling that Dawn was deeper down. She knew she shouldn't let go of the life

preserver. But she couldn't save Dawn unless she did.

Tossing it aside, Luce filled her lungs with air, then plunged down deep,

swimming hard until the surface warmth disappeared and the water became so cold it

hurt. She couldn't see a thing, just grasped everywhere she could, hoping to reach Dawn

before it was too late.

It was Dawn's hair that Luce felt first, the thin shock of short, dark waves.

Probing lower with her hand, she felt her friend's cheek, then her neck, then her shoulder.

Dawn had sunk pretty far in such a short time. Luce slipped her arms under Dawn's

armpits, then used all her strength to pull her up, kicking powerfully toward the surface.

They were far underwater, the daylight a distant shimmer.

And Dawn felt heavier than she could possibly be, like a great weight was

attached to her, dragging both of them down.

At last Luce broke the surface. Dawn sputtered, spewing water out of her mouth

and coughing. Her eyes were red and her hair was matted on her forehead. With one arm

looped across Dawn's chest, Luce gently paddled them both toward the life preserver.

"Luce," Dawn whispered. In the tumbling waves, Luce couldn't hear her, but she

could read her lips. "What's happening?"

"I don't know." Luce shook her head, straining to keep them both afloat.

"Swim to the lifeboat!" The call came from behind. But swimming anywhere was

impossible. They could barely keep their heads above water.

The crew was lowering an inflatable life raft. Steven was inside it. As soon as the

boat met the ocean, he began paddling briskly toward them. Luce closed her eyes and let

the palpable relief wash over her with the next wave. If she could just hold on a little

73