Page 46 of Hearts on the Line (The Maverick Key #1)
Maddie
I cling to the line like it’s my tether to life because it is.
The trembling of my fingers makes my hold on the nylon precarious.
Exhaustion overwhelms me, threatening to pull me under.
Wes’s flashlight cuts through the darkness ahead, my sole focus point in this endless maze of limestone and shadow.
I force myself to concentrate on my breathing, but the clicks from my tank sound ominous.
Wes swivels, and his beam slices across the surrounding rock before settling on my face. He checks my gauge, and his expression hardens into a grim line. When his eyes meet mine again, I know I’m going to die.
I’m out of air.
My chest tightens, and panic scratches the edges of my control. Wes reaches for my arm, his grip firm.
“Stay calm. I’m going to help you.” He meets my eyes directly with the confidence of a man who doesn’t believe in failure.
“You’re doing so good, rookie. Well, I guess I can’t call you that anymore now, can I?
How about apprentice? Let’s focus. We’re going to go off comms and get out of here together.
That means we’ll have to move a little faster than we should, but it’s going to be okay.
We only need a couple of decompression stops. You can do this.”
It feels like we’re training again. I focus on his instructions.
“Maddie. I need to remove your mask so we can get you some air. Ready?”
I signal to him I understand and swallow hard, remaining silent even as my body screams. With steady, efficient movements, Wes swiftly removes my mask, and my face is instantly flooded with the icy cold water.
Blind, I feel his octopus mouthpiece in my hand as he guides it to my mouth.
My hands shake violently as I inhale from the regulator, and the first breath reaches my lungs.
Relief washes over me, but it’s fleeting.
I’m blind and no longer have a mask. I can’t possibly open my eyes.
Then Wes secures his back up scuba mask to my face, and helps me purge the water.
My eyes open, and I’m breathing. But without the full-face mask, our voice communications are gone. We’ll have to rely solely on signals.
Wes doesn’t let go of my arm. His presence is steady as he propels us forward with powerful strokes and kicks. I follow along with him as best as I can, gripping the dive line and swimming with all my strength.
Time stretches endlessly in the darkness of the underwater cave.
Each motion is excruciating and slow, the passages ahead twisting and narrowing.
The limestone walls press close, scraping against our tanks, each graze of rock amplifying the fear coursing through me.
The water is a heavy, living force pressing in from every side, intent on swallowing me whole.
Wes moves us along as quick as he can, pausing only to check on me and to coach me on. His flashlight illuminates his face, the lines of exhaustion mirroring my own. He signals. Keep going. Don’t stop.
The shared gas line tugs between us with every motion, binding us in this fight for survival. Each inhale is tenuous, as if there might not be enough air left for either of us. I force myself to match Wes’s slower, measured breaths, even as my instincts scream to gulp the air greedily.
As we continue, the water clouds with silt once more, shrinking my world to the tension of the dive line in my hand and the pull of Wes ahead.
My limbs grow heavier with each kick. My strength is fading.
It’s like I’m dragging the weight of the ocean behind me.
We stop twice to wait out time for decompression and then move forward.
Then a soft glow breaks through the water ahead. Disbelief floods through me. Moonlight.
We’ve reached the main cavern exit.
His signals grow increasingly insistent, his grip tightening as my legs grow weaker. He’s determined. My heart swells with hope, but my body betrays me. My breaths become shallow, and my vision blurs, a headache threatens to burst my skull open. As close as we are, I might not make it.
Wes doesn’t let go. He kicks harder as he pulls me forward with all his strength. I cling to him, to the glimmer of light above.
We’re in open water now, and the world expands around me. Relief washes over me, but there’s no time to savor it. The surface looms above, still so far away, the moonlight shimmering like a mirage.
My limbs tremble violently as Wes pulls me upward. His strength is the only thing keeping me moving. I fight to stay conscious and breathe. My head spins.
“You’re so close, Mads. You’ve got this. Don’t give up.” It’s Nathan’s voice, calling to me from the distance.
The water is getting brighter, the surface closer with each kick—the boat’s shadow forms above us. Muffled shouts reach me. They’re enough to push me one last time. I stretch my arms upward with all my strength. We break the surface, and my mask and regulator are pulled from me.
My fingers brush the ladder as Wes pushes me up, and several hands pull me up the rest of the way. I collapse, gasping, my chest heaving as the night air rushes into my lungs. My body shakes uncontrollably, but I’m alive. Tears blur my vision.
I close my eyes, Nathan’s voice fading into the back of my mind like a whisper. “You did it, Maddie.”