A Shade of Doubt (A Shade of Vampire #12)(14)

I felt a sharp pain in my ankle. My eyes shot downward to see Annora pinching me.

“Hurry up,” she hissed.

Scowling, I took my time in climbing up on to the roof to make way for her. It pained me to see Caleb standing in the sun. He could barely see with the glare of the sun reflecting off the waves and bouncing into his eyes.

Annora brushed past me, almost making me lose balance and fall into the waves. I gripped hold of a pipe, pulling myself to the center of the boat. She walked up to Caleb, removing her shawl and covering his head and shoulders with it to shelter him from the sun.

“What now?” she asked.

Caleb stepped away from her and walked to the end of the vessel, staring out at the land in the distance.

“I didn’t notice it on the map… but that seems to be an island a few miles away. We need to reach it.”

He walked back toward the hatch, passing Annora and approaching me. He stopped, allowing me to climb back down before he entered in after me.

Shut the hatch on the bitch, I couldn’t help but think as Caleb lowered himself down.

As Annora turned the wheel of the hatch shut, we all stood together on the floor of the sub. “I’m going to see if there’s any way to jumpstart the engine to move us forward, just until we reach the island. If we can do that, we’ll be very, very lucky.”

He disappeared down the steps. Annora, predictably, followed him. Unlike her, I had no interest in following Caleb around like a lost puppy. I walked to the control cabin and stared at the map. Caleb was right—this island appeared to be unmarked. I gripped the back of a chair as the submarine shuddered again, the engine beginning to hum and splutter.

A few moments later, Caleb and Annora entered the room. Caleb resumed his seat behind the controls.

“It restarted. We might just make it to land…”

I watched with bated breath as Caleb urged the vessel forward. It soon became apparent that we were nearing shallower water. The sea bed, covered in rocks, boulders and multicolored flora, was beginning to emerge beneath us. Eventually the submarine hit soft sand.

We climbed back out of the submarine again. Standing on the roof, I found myself gazing out at a pristine white sand beach lined with coconut trees. Further inland, there was dense vegetation. It looked like a jungle.

“What is this place?” Annora asked.

Caleb shrugged. We slid down into the water and made our way toward the dry sand. Caleb sped up ahead and rushed beneath the shade of the trees while Annora and I followed after him.

As I turned my back on the island and looked back out at the ocean, I breathed out deeply. Great. Now we’re stranded on a desert island.

If Annora hadn’t been with us, the idea of being stranded here with Caleb wouldn’t have been so unappealing at all…

I quickened my pace to reach Caleb before Annora. She was panting already and we’d hardly traveled far at all. Apparently her powers had allowed her muscles to grow weak and lazy.

I sat down with Caleb on a fallen tree trunk, staring at her as she struggled toward us through the sand. I looked past her at the submarine moored on the beach. At least there was still a stock of food for Annora and me on the vessel if we ended up stranded here for days. As for Caleb, I had no idea what we’d feed him. If he refused to drink blood from either one of us, which I knew he would, he’d have to go hunting.

Annora collapsed as soon as she reached the shade, panting and spreading herself out on the sand.

Drama queen.

I looked out at the horizon. I didn’t need a watch to see that it was evening. The bright orange sun was descending over the ocean. We had perhaps a few hours left of sunlight.

“The submarine must have a radio?” I said.

Caleb grimaced. “It’s capable of contacting my or Stellan’s island. Nowhere else.”

“Damn it.” I stood up, kicking sand beneath my feet as I paced up and down.

The truth was, I wasn’t sure where we could head to even if the submarine was filled with limitless fuel. Even if the submarine hadn’t broken down. The Shade of course was my first choice. But after what Hermia said, I didn’t know if going there would be like riding right back into the jaws of the black witches.

My breath hitched. I suddenly remembered Micah. I’d been so wrapped up in the idea of losing my family, and the situation with Annora and Caleb, I’d totally forgotten that we’d left him behind. I turned to Caleb.

“What happened to Micah?”

He looked concerned as he shook his head. “I don’t know. I lost sight of him in the waves as we were escaping Julisse and Arielle.”

I wet my lower lip nervously. I hoped the witches hadn’t gotten hold of Micah. Or perhaps he’d made his way back to The Shade… and whatever lay in wait for him there.

“You knew those two witches?” I asked.

“I knew of them.”

Annora began to fidget in the sand, annoyed no doubt that she wasn’t getting the attention she was seeking.

Caleb stood up, leaning an elbow against a low-hanging branch and squinting at our surroundings. “At least while we’re here, it makes sense to sleep in the submarine.”

I couldn’t have agreed with Caleb more. I didn’t fancy trying to sleep out here. God knew what kind of wild animals and insects came out on this deserted island at night. Even if we built some kind of shelter up in the trees, there could be poisonous snakes and dangerous insects.