I wasn’t even sure I was breathing. I struggled to hear anything over the chug of the boat and the splashing of the water, but I couldn’t make out anything threatening.
“I’m coming up beside you to your right.” Viktor’s low voice seemed overly calm, which frightened me further.
I could make out his movement to my right, but Viktor seemed to be moving further away from me, which made me want to cry out in fear. What was behind me? I wanted him to tell me, but a bigger part of me didn’t want to know.
“Now, whatever you do, remain completely still, just for a few more seconds.” His voice was taut.
The crack of the gun nearly deafened me, and then something warm sprayed over my neck. I heard a dull thud at my feet right behind me.
“You’re in the clear.” There was a casualness to his voice that I didn’t understand.
“What’s happened?” Skipper called out from above us.
“Everything is fine. Keep the boat moving,” Viktor called back.
“What was that?” I managed to say, although I didn’t seem capable of movement.
I could sense, rather than see, Viktor come toward me. The closer he got, the weaker my knees got.
“What was that?” I asked from between clenched teeth.
“It’s dead.” Viktor bent down behind me.
Maybe it was his nearness, or the fact that something behind me was dead, but my body went into flight mode. I spun around, backing up, until I bumped into the sink. Both my hands fisted over my mouth when he lifted up the headless body of a massive black-and-white snake, with a thick body.
I heard myself shriek: a pathetic, high-pitched noise.
Then I ran—away from the acrid scent of the gunpowder, away from the snake, away from the danger—straight into the netting. I fought the sheer fabric like an idiot before I managed to battle my way free. And then I was in the dark, in the middle of the deck, gasping for air.
I watched as Viktor calmly followed, carrying the dead snake and throwing it over the edge of the boat with a heavy splash. Then he stopped in front of me. “Are you okay?”
I was pretty sure I was in shock, but I worked to remain calm. “Was that snake poisonous?”
“Yes.”
“It was near me?”
“It was wrapped around one of the beams and hanging down behind you, coming toward your neck.”
At that thought, I shuddered and instinctively touched the back of my neck. I was covered in something warm, sticky, and wet. Upon inspection, I realized my fingers were slick with blood.
My tone had a slightly hysterical note. “Am I bleeding? Whose blood is this? Did you shoot me?”
He grabbed my hand and yanked me toward him before spinning me around so my back was to the light. “No, it’s just arterial spray from the snake when I shot it.”
My neck was covered in wet dead snake blood. That thought dimmed the light of the world as I fought nausea. I started to lose all the energy in my shaking legs.
I managed to mumble, “I need to sit down.”
And then the whole world went dark.
My eyes fluttered open, and I slowly focused on my surroundings. I was lying in the hammock, and beside me stood Viktor.
I had no idea how long I had been out. “What happened?”
“You fainted.”
“For how long?”
“Not long, maybe a minute.”
My stomach rolled with a queasy wave. “I don’t feel great.”
He put a big warm hand on my forehead. “Fainting does that to a person. Plus, you’re dehydrated and short on sleep.”
Suddenly, I felt terrified and alone. I was in the middle of nowhere, so far away from my home and my life. This whole situation seemed impossible. Would I save my grandfather, or was this hopeless, stupid journey in vain? Would I die out here?
I fought the pervading hopelessness of this situation. If I started down that path, I would never make it back. I needed to keep moving forward. I tried to sit up.
With almost no effort, Viktor pushed me back. “Rest.”
I needed to move or I knew I would start crying. “I want to wash my neck.”
“Stay here.” He sounded more gruff than normal.
He moved to the sink and wet down a cloth. Although moving made me want to hurl, I forced myself to climb out of the hammock. My eyes searched the tarp above my head and the deck at my feet for anything that slithered.
“Where did the snake come from?”
“Could have come off the water, maybe when we were stopped.”
If one snake got on, that meant other snakes could also be on board. Was no part of this boat safe? “Did you search the tarp?”
“What for?”
My voice faltered. I hated to ask him to do something so dangerous. “For other snakes.”
He moved toward me. “Sit down.”
I looked at the table and chairs, but the chairs suddenly seemed too close to the deck. Not caring how rude it was, I sat my ass on the table and crossed my legs, keeping them off the floor.
Viktor stood in front of me with the cloth.
I lifted my hand to take it from him, but without speaking, he moved his hand away.
“Look up at me.” His voice was low and serious.
I tilted my head back and stared up at him as he gently wiped my face free of sweat, tears and possibly blood.
Our eyes met as he put one hand on my shoulder. “Hold still.”
I jumped when the cool cloth dabbed at my neck, but eventually I relaxed into how good it felt. When he stopped, he didn’t step back.
I got trapped in his intense gaze. “What?”
“Thank for you for finally listening to me. It saved your life.”
“You saved my life.”
His jaw tightened. “It was a team effort.”
It was embarrassing how much that comment cheered me. He was finally admitting we were a team, and that meant I wasn’t doing this alone. Maybe there was hope after all. “I’m sorry I fainted.”
“Nothing to be sorry about. I’ve seen soldiers twice your size pass out.”
“I’ve never fainted before.”
“Fainting helps your body rapidly process shock. It reboots your system to ensure blood is getting to all the organs.”
I wasn’t so sure I felt rebooted. “I’m still scared.”
“Of what?”
“What if there are other snakes?” I looked down at our feet, looking for any movement on the floor.
“You want me to take a look around?”
I swallowed. I really wanted him to make sure this boat was snake-free, but it also sounded like a dangerous venture. “You don’t have to.”
He reached behind me, into his bag, and pulled out his flashlight. “I’ll take a look.”
I grabbed his thick forearm until he looked back at me. “Thank you.”
It might have been a trick of the light, but I thought I saw concern flash across his face before he quickly wiped all expression from his face. “Stay here.”
If it kept me safe, I think I would stand on my head if he told me to. For the first time, all his bossy rules were starting to make sense. “Okay.”
I sat on a chair, at the table, my knees up, and I watched as Viktor devoured three sandwiches. I liked the way he ate. Only Viktor could make eating seem manly, but he took these big sturdy bites that gave me glimpses of his straight teeth. For a second, I hated all the women he went on dates with.