Page 85 of Terminal Voyage

With my feet dangling over the ocean, I kicked and flailed. Adrenaline spiked, and a degree of clarity returned.

Vanessa looked down at me, murder in her eyes. "You just had to push it, didn't you? You couldn't leave it alone."

I held on tight, but my grip wouldn't last long.

Vanessa reveled in the moment. "You and your psychic bullshit. You know, I always thought you were full of shit. But maybe there's something to it.”

I tried to pull myself up, but Vanessa worked at peeling my fingers from the railing.

My grip tightened.

"That little bitch got pregnant,” she grumbled as she fought my fingers. “I can put up with a lot of things. I know men are going to be men. I'm willing to look the other way for a few billion dollars. But she was going to ruin our lives. I certainly wasn't going to share Declan with that whore andraise her kid,” Vanessa said, pounding at my knuckles with her fists, trying to get me to let go.

Her long raven hair dangled over the railing. I reached up and grabbed it, yanking her head down.

She groaned in agony as I pulled with all my weight. "Let go of me, bitch!”

The fiberglass hull and window were between us.

The boat pitched and rolled on the swells.

Vanessa hunched over the railing, as I pulled her head down with all my force.

She did her best to punch me, but she was in such an awkward position that it didn't do much good.

I took a few shots to the face, but they were ineffective. In my current state of adrenaline, I barely felt them.

The way the clamshell had folded out from the bulkhead, the window portion was at an angle like an overhang. There was no way to get leverage unless I got to either the forward or aft end of the terrace. Stainless steel railings would offer more things to grab onto and more leverage.

I was just close enough to the forward end of the balcony that I was able to swing my leg up and around and get a foot on the deck.

Vanessa still punched and flailed as I pinned her head down, holding onto her hair. Eventually, it would rip out. I hoped this was her real hair and not extensions.

42

With one foot on the deck, one hand on the rail, and the other pulling Vanessa’s head down to the railing, I managed to pull myself up. But I had to let go of her hair to grab onto the side rail.

Free of my grasp, she took a moment to shake it off and regroup.

Before I could climb over the side railing, she came at me with a right cross.

Her fist clocked me in the face, twisting my head aside. I managed to maintain my grip on the side railing.

I came back with a palm strike to her face. The blow knocked her head back, and blood gushed from her nose.

That infuriated her. "You fucking bitch!”

She snarled and charged again. Vanessa swung hard.

This time I ducked.

Her fist whooshed overhead.

The momentum carried her forward.

From the side, I hammered my elbow against her ear, then grabbed the back of her tank top and pulled it over her head.

While she fiddled with that, I climbed over the railing, spun around, and squared off against her.