Deadly Tides

Chapter 3

David is shivering uncontrollably as he wanders back and forth along the shore. Staring across the open water, he senses he has escaped from something terrible but his mind is unable to open up and let the memory in.

He can hear Dana’s thoughts. He knows she is close. It is the only thing he knows with any certainty. Even his own name slithers away like a snake as he tries to trap it. Feeling the need to find her overwhelming his senses, he begins searching for a way up the hill. He walks farther down the beach and around the spit of sand and rocks jutting out into the water. His feet are bare and the rocks cut into them sending tiny jolts of pain so small they shouldn’t make him cry, but they do.

Finally he sees the wooden stairway zig-zagging up the hill. Halfway through the climb, he almost tumbles off as a wave of dizziness sweeps over him. Regaining his balance, he makes it to the top. He sees a bench and sits down heavily, gasping for air.

Dana’s thoughts are clearer now. She is thinking about him…something about the ice. A piercing pain splits his skull and he cries out, but there is no one near enough to hear. The pain subsides as exhaustion overtakes him. He curls up on the bench and falls into a deep, dreamless sleep.

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