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Gasping, Macy vowed to herself that she would never to be in another situation where she had to run through the woods. She loved Miriam to death, but from now on, she’d stay home, relying on her computer and research skills. No more fieldwork. Ever.
Never ever.
She lost sight of Miriam briefly, but then saw Miriam pull up just enough that Macy could stay on the path. Macy should have just stayed in the parking lot. The nice, empty, safe, parking lot.
At some point, the hum of the helicopter grew louder. She could see it just barely as she bobbed between trees. It was almost certainly above the lake, though Macy hadn’t discerned the purpose just yet, or why Kim had taken off into the woods as she had.
As she rounded the next tree, the helicopter turned sideways—then started dropping out of the sky. She couldn’t even make sense of all the noises. There were screams in there, but she didn’t think they came from Miriam or Kim. They sounded masculine. The engine of the helicopter whined and sputtered, and Macy felt sure she had been transported to some Michael Bay movie. She almost expected a forest-flattening explosion.
Suddenly, there were no more trees for her to navigate. She burst through the tree line and onto the bank of the lake in time to see the helicopter crash. Ripples of water shot out in all directions, lapping against the shore with the intensity of a near-surfable wave. Kim and Miriam stood nearby, staring in awe, their eyes wide, mouths agape. Macy hadn’t seen the whole thing, but her immediate concern went out to whoever was in the helicopter.
She surveyed the surface of the water, spotting only one man. A quick shared look with Miriam, and Macy knew what they had to do. The one thing the two of them had in common. Lifeguarding.
Miriam took the lead, diving into the water without hesitation. Macy braced herself for the cold and followed, where she kicked across the surface with expert grace. The sounds around her were hard to discern. Screams and splashes. The dying groan of the sinking helicopter. She pushed forward toward the chaos. She was always more capable when worrying about someone other than herself.
Kim didn’t follow, no doubt uninterested in saving the men who’d done harm to Kawa.
Once close enough, Macy began treading water to spot the survivors, wanting to prioritize anyone who looked incapable of swimming on their own. She found her mark quickly. A man floating face down near the wreckage of the helicopter.
“I’ve got that one,” Miriam said, impressively not winded at all.
Macy nodded as Miriam took off, then surveyed for someone else. The man she’d seen from the shore floated nearby, his eyes wide with shock.
“Hold on!” she yelled towards him. “I’ve got ya.”
She started her swim towards him, but got knocked off-course by something in the water. It grazed one of her feet. She pulled up to right herself, just as she saw Usa’s sleek outline pop above the water, cutting across the surface like a giant snake. At least she hadn’t been hurt in the crash.
The man chattered ahead of her, emitting something halfway to a scream. A sound of panic.
“You’re fine,” Macy said. She dove back into the water just as Usa breached the surface, the man in her jaws. Macy stopped hard and looked up, the man’s body flying through the air as Usa tossed him skyward. She hadn’t anticipated this.
Usa fell back into the water as the man toppled downward, but he never hit the surface. Usa was out again, this time chomping her massive jaws across his midsection, the sickening crunch of her teeth meeting through his skin. Macy averted her eyes too late, seeing just enough of the carnage to make her stomach turn. The man’s last gurgling scream shook her soul.
“Mama!” Macy yelled, temporarily forgetting Kim’s name for the creature. “Stop it!”
Usa made no indication that she heard or cared what Macy had to say. She disappeared into the blackness of the lake, leaving her kill behind, a body nearly severed in two. It took a bit for Macy to find her head before snapping back into action. She’d failed this one, but perhaps there were other survivors. It didn’t occur to her in the moment to be afraid of Usa. Usa wouldn’t hurt her. Not after what they’d been through together.
A tarp floated nearby, outlining the form of Kawa’s dead body. So these people had come to take away the body.
Friends of Abby, then.
She spotted an irregular lump near the outside of the tarp. Maybe just a part of Kawa’s body, but maybe a person. She dove back into the water and surged forward. On a breath, she saw Usa arching out of the water nearby, close to her, circling her. Every few strokes, Usa crossed in front of her again, each of them getting closer and closer to one another.
Usa wouldn’t hurt her.
When it became clear that Usa wasn’t going to give her room to swim, Macy stopped and tread water, watching as Usa swam impressively tight circles around her.
“Come on, girl,” Macy said, not really knowing if her voice would carry below the surface of the water. “It’s okay. It’s alright.”
Her breath caught in her chest as she realized that Usa wasn’t responding. These men had come to take her mate, and she was angry. Perhaps beyond recognition.
Usa wouldn’t hurt her. Right?
Macy continued to tread water, suddenly afraid that any movement would trigger Usa into attacking her. Off to the side, Macy eyed Miriam as she emerged past a piece of the wreckage yet to sink. The man Miriam had gone for was now on his back, hopefully breathing, as Miriam kicked hard to drag him back to shore.
When Macy tried to get a bead on Usa’s location again, she saw nothing. The otter had sunken into the murky depths below.
“Mir,” Macy yelled. “Watch out! Usa!”
Miriam looked up, but Macy’s eyeline towards her was almost immediately broken as Usa surfaced, sliding and slinking along with a speed that Miriam could never hope to outswim. Usa dove again, but Macy knew exactly what it meant.
Both Miriam and the unconscious man disappeared beneath the water without a sound, as if they’d never existed at all.
“Mir!”
Macy took off swimming towards Miriam’s last location, giving zero thought to what she’d do once she got there. She closed the gap quickly, but as fast as Usa was capable of moving, Miriam and the man were long submerged. Macy searched desperately for a wake or a bubble, or Usa’s slick black fur. Anything to give her a new trajectory.
Nothing.
Then, with a loud splash, Miriam surfaced only about ten feet away, gasping for breath. The man was gone. She sputtered and shook her head to flush the water from her eyes before looking towards Macy.
“Shore!” Miriam yelled.
Macy nodded, needing no more insistence before breaking out into a freestyle stroke the likes of which she’d never swum before.
Usa wouldn’t hurt her. She’d gone after Miriam because of the man.
Macy listened for the splashing of Miriam’s stroke nearby. Her stronger arms had closed the distance between them as they now swam neck and neck back towards Kim, who stood on the bank yelling, waving her arms. Macy couldn’t make out everything Kim said, but the frantic gesturing told her enough: Usa was on their heels.
Usa wouldn’t hurt her.
Then Macy disappeared beneath the frigid waters of Misty Lake.
