Page 118 of Haunting the Deep

“Don’t forget. Please, Ada, please don’t forget.”

I run out of the room. At the end of the hallway is Alexander I. And he’s not alone. The drowned man is with him. They look right at me, and I sprint toward the ladder.

Igrab the ladder rungs. My dress gets tangled around my feet. I scoop up the skirt and hold it between my teeth, looking over my shoulder. The drowned man and Alexander I run down the hall toward me. I climb faster, my heart in my throat.

A hand wraps around my ankle and yanks. I brace against the ladder and kick at the drowned man with my free leg. He loses his grip momentarily, trying to avoid my swinging foot. I hoist myself up to the final rung and scramble onto the upper deck.

I run through the narrow passageway and into a hall. The floors are starting to slant, and I’m headed downhill. I steal a glance behind me. The drowned man’s right on my heels, but Alexander I is lagging. I bound up a staircase, taking the steps two at a time, and into another hall. The drowned man’s shoes drum on the stairs behind me.There’s no chance of losing him when he’s this close.

I push through the door into the first-class dining room and sprint past the once-beautiful tables. I hear the door open behind me. I don’t look back. The floor is strewn with broken plates that slid off the tablecloths. It takes all my concentration to maneuver around the fallen chairs.

I reach the Grand Staircase, my adrenaline raging, pushing me up and up and up. The drowned man keeps pace, step for step.

I run for the door to the boat deck and bang it open, hurting my hands. The icy air cuts like frozen razors. My legs strain against the incline, screaming from the exertion.

There are crowds on the deck. The band plays cheery tunes that compete with the fearful yelling from the passengers. There is only one lifeboat left that I can see. Mollie is by the edge of the crowd waiting for it.

“Mollie!” I scream. “Get help!”

She turns, and I run toward her. We make eye contact, and she looks past me at the drowned man. Her eyes widen. She doesn’t move a muscle. His footsteps close in on my own.

“Mollie!” I scream again, pleading with her to do something, anything. But she just stands there, staring.

I sprint right past her.

Something crashes behind me loud and hard. I look over my shoulder, and the drowned man is lying on top of Mollie on the floor. I slide to a stop.No!She must have stepped between us and he knocked her over.

“Don’t you touch her!” I yell, running back to them.

He pushes up off of her, his eyes locked on me. Mollie gets up, too. I spot an oar leaning against the wall. I grab for it, but his hand wraps around my wrist, pulling me back.

“Stop, Denis!” Mollie screams.

For a split second I freeze and so does he.Denis? Not Mollie’s Denis? How can that be?

Mollie steps between us, yanking on his arm with all her might to get him away from me.

“Move!” he yells at her, pushing her away.

I try to pry his fingers off my arm, but he’s too strong.

“Look at me, Denis! Look at me and tell me you don’t know me!” Mollie yells.

His eyes flicker with uncertainty.

“You’remyDenis,” she says with so much emotion that he does look at her. “I ran away from me family and everyone I loved ta be with ya! They said we couldn’t be married. Me brother chased us all the way ta the harbor. Do ya remember? I need you to remember me. Please!”

His eyebrows push together like he’s struggling to concentrate. His grip loosens ever so slightly, and I pull my arm away, taking a few steps backward.

His eyes move from Mollie to me.

She grabs his face, forcing his focus back to her. “Ya couldn’t even stop ta shave,” Mollie says. “We got on this ship by sheer Irish luck. I choseyou.I chose ya over all me family and everythin’ I’ve ever known.”

The hardness in his expression melts away. “Mollie?”

And she starts crying, big heaving sobs.

He wraps his arms around her. “Don’t cry, me love. Don’t cry,” he says. But he’s crying, too. And hugging her so tightly it’s a wonder she can breathe.