Ocean's Captive Read online

  Ocean's Captive

  D.S. Wrights

  Lilith Dark

  Copyright © 2019 D.S. Wrights & Lilith Dark

  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the expressed written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Published in the United States of America.

  Dedication

  This one is for Kate. Thank you for being amazing.

  Contents

  Dedication

  1 - Covert Operation

  2 - The Creature

  3 – Captives

  4 - Aftershock

  5 – Devil’s Advocate

  6 – Dehumanized

  7 – Blood

  8 – Turning Tides

  9 – Breathless

  About The Author

  All the Links

  Playlist

  California Dreamin’ – Sia

  Wicked Game – Ursine Vulpine

  Believer – Imagine Dragons

  Here with Me – Susie Suh, Robot Koch

  BBB – How to Destroy Angels

  Dehumanized – Disturbed

  Fury Oh Fury – Nico Vega

  Breathe - Fleurie

  Never Let Me Go – Florence + the Machine

  Breathe Me – Sia

  Until We Go Down- Ruelle

  1 - Covert Operation

  It was exactly 1:00 am. The small marina of Neptune, California was drowned in silence and darkness of the night. It was only disrupted by the glow and humming of the lanterns at the docks.

  When she had been younger, Angeline had stayed here almost every vacation with her family. They still had a small summer residence here. It was small in her parent’s opinion, but it had been years since she had been here. And now she wasn’t staying there either.

  Angie’s parents had no idea where she was right now, which was good because otherwise, they would send their head of security to capture her and drag her home, right away. The Malboury’s had plans for their only daughter: training for the Olympic swim team and going back to medical school. She had dropped out of both a few months ago.

  Angie just hadn’t been able to bear it any longer. Her parent’s expectations and their sheer ignorance for what she wanted for herself.

  Angeline had been able to appease her snobby parents by studying marine biology, but after her big brother’s graduation, they had begun to try and force her back to the plan they had laid out for her, without asking for her opinion. Angie’s family was beyond rich and above that also well-known, and her straying from what they expected was unacceptable to them.

  Now, their precious baby girl was crouching behind a big bin at the harbor, waiting for her friends to give her the signal to get going. Her sandy hair was pulled back in a tight bun that reached almost to her elbows. Her form was slender and athletic – since she had never stopped swimming – and her blue eyes looked almost black in the darkness of the night, watching the dimly lit deck of a yacht.

  Angie had been with this activist group for three months now, after Andrew, her former boyfriend had shown the white feather and returned to study marine biology. It was where they had met and discovered their passion for the creatures of the ocean and decided they couldn’t bear seeing them imprisoned or worse: sold to private collectors.

  After freeing a pair of dolphins, Angie realized this was what she wanted to do with her life. She had felt enlightened, and for the first time in her life, she felt as if she had found her purpose in life. After that, there was no holding back anymore.

  Angie put a sufficient amount of money aside without alerting her parents, but enough to drop out of school and be able to support herself. She had started with buying expensive designer clothes on the debit card her parents had given her. Only to return them in exchange for gift cards, which she then sold. But she had to stop at some point to avoid questions. However, Angie had no problem waiting tables or doing other work, where the payment was in cash. And that’s when Andrew broke things off with her.

  After freeing a pair of dolphins and an orca the operation tonight was possibly the biggest one their group had planned. Angie’s heart beat in excitement. They didn’t really know what the creature was, that was imprisoned in the huge tank at the far end of the expensive yacht, but their leader Ace assumed that it was a young whale.

  The yacht carrying the cargo was anchored at the furthermost point of the marina, where all the big private boats were located. Just near where Angie’s family yacht was moored. It had been the place where she was staying at and she’d been on the lookout for the last few days.

  Now she was crouching behind the bin which her dad used to dump the remnants of his catch after driving out into the ocean with her brother, while her mother dragged her to shopping and to do ‘girl stuff.’

  Angie was closest to their target, and it was her task to get to the huge container, open it and free the whale if possible. The rest of the group would try and distract the security detail and the guards, luring them away from the yacht. Angie had volunteered.

  They had watched the reaction of the men the night before, after they had arrived at the marina and, as far as Ace had found out, they had paid until tomorrow, which meant they could leave anytime. He had explained that the whale was going to either be a private pet or go to a lab for illegal experiments.

  Neither options were acceptable.

  Angie reminded herself to stay calm and breathe evenly. For whatever reason she wasn’t scared; she was excited, maybe nervous, and on alert. She didn’t think about the possibility of being caught. All her thoughts were circling around the freeing of a helpless creature, and preventing it from being a captive, and from being tormented. Angie couldn’t wait to watch the poor creature swim to freedom. This was the only possible outcome worth thinking about. They wouldn’t fail, the plan would pan out perfectly, simple as that.

  A loud hooting burst through the night and caught the attention of some of the yacht’s guards, who left their post to see what the fuzz was all about.

  Just as the friends had agreed on earlier today.

  This was the sign to start.

  Ace and his twin brother Aaron led the group of several young men pretending to be drunk and about to start a brawl while tottering on the pier. Those guards would need more than the few men that were moving into their direction, to bring the group of young men under control and off the pier.

  Angie stayed where she was and waited for the men, who were left on board the yacht to join their colleagues. Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw movement on the small bridge of the yacht. Her gut told her that someone was contacting support, probably the security of the marina. If those people turned up, she would never be able to free the poor animal.

  It was now or never.

  But there were still men on deck. Their attention was glued to the brawl, which had just begun at the end of the pier. Still, if Angeline could follow the plan and simply walk onto the yacht, they would see her.

  Quickly, Angie started to undress, she got rid of her sneakers, shorts, and t-shirt and carefully slid herself into the cold water next to her parent’s yacht. She knew her only chance to get to the large container at the stern of the yacht unseen was by swimming.

  And so, that is what she did.

  Even though it was summer, the water in the marina was cold. Angie tried to ignore the stinging in her muscles, and she started breast stroking towards her destination. She estimated that she would need just the same amount of time if she had sneaked toward it by land. Now she would even gain time because the stern of the yacht had a ladder, which she could use to climb on board. The floodlight
was switched off, but the lighting was strong enough for Angie to see where she was stepping.

  The container holding the precious cargo was huge, filling up almost the entire back deck of the yacht. It was standing close enough to the end of the boat so the young whale could slide right off the deck and right into the water. It was how the group had planned the rescue, just like they had done with the other animals they had freed.

  The container was covered with a huge tarpaulin, probably to avoid curiosity about the fact that a yacht was carrying something a tanker would usually hold.

  As the nuisance at the end of the pier became louder, Angie knew she was running out of time. She hastened towards the back of the large container and searched for the mechanism that would open the hatch.

  Angeline’s heart missed a beat.

  They had been wrong.

  There was no metal beneath the tarp.

  It was some sort of wooden construction.

  As she reached out, she could feel that there was indeed something smooth as glass beneath it. The cargo was a water tank. How could she get a whale out of a frigging tank?

  Maybe, it still had a latch?

  The yacht suddenly swayed slightly. Angie could hear the water inside of the tank sloshing. The whale must have noticed her. Angie wasn’t sure if anyone was still on the yacht. If there were anyone else there, they might notice her on board if the whale continued to move.

  “Hush,” she whispered urgently. “I am trying to free you. Be calm.”

  She slid under the tarpaulin and felt her way along the tank in the darkness. If someone looked at the tank, they might not see her – so she prayed. Between the broad boards that contained the tank was enough space to allow anyone looking at it without the tarp to see the creature inside it. Right now, the interior of the tank was too dark to see anything, but Angie could hear something in the water moving.

  The sound reminded her more of the dolphins than the Orca.

  Maybe the information about what this yacht was carrying was wrong?

  Angie caught herself trying to douse the sea creature inside the tank rather than trying to find a mechanism to open the container.

  Suddenly, something was off. Instinctively, Angie held her breath. At first, she had no idea why, and she slowly let out the air she had held. Even the creature inside the tank wasn’t moving anymore.

  It was silent.

  That exactly was what was wrong. There was no brawl anymore. No talking. Nothing.

  “Please!” Someone was whimpering.

  Angie’s heart started racing in her chest, as her instinct already knew what had happened.

  “Please, we were just fooling around!”

  That was Ace’s voice.

  Angie was torn between staying put and therefore remaining hidden, or to sneak a peek to find out what was going on, even though a part of her was already screaming the truth at her. She moved back towards the backside of the tank where Angie had slid beneath the tarp. But before she reached the opening, she could hear something heavy falling into the water.

  Then another thing. And another.

  Just when Angie managed to stick her head out from underneath the tarpaulin, she could see how one of her friend’s lifeless body was tossed into the water of the marina.

  Angeline couldn’t think. Her brain was working on overdrive, trying to process what she was seeing. The men who were still standing were the guards, and what they were holding looked like long dark sticks from where she was standing, batons maybe?

  The rest of her friends was still lying on the landing pier, not moving, as if all of them, were dead.

  They shot her friends. All of them.

  It had to be guns, with silencers

  Angie’s body moved because the thought of doing so had finished piecing itself together in her head. One step was all it took for her to vanish beneath the tarp. If she jumped off the boat now, the men would hear her diving into the water and maybe look for her. She would have to wait until the engine’s started.

  Desperately Angie tried to focus her mind on that task only: wait till the engine starts and then jump. You can’t help the whale. You need to save yourself. Wait till the engine starts, then jump.

  But all Angie could see in front of her eyes were the bodies lying on the pier. Every time she heard the dreadful splashing sound of one of her friends’ bodies being tossed into the water, she became more afraid.

  She knew she had to jump. But what if they shot her, too? What if they caught her because she didn’t jump? What would happen then? Her thoughts were mired in each other, as the engine started.

  It was now or never.

  Quickly, Angie inhaled three short breaths to fill her lungs, gathered strength in her limbs and leaped into a sprint. Just like always, easy-peasy.

  The last thing she expected, was to be lifted off her feet from above before she even got the chance to run out from beneath the tarp. Sharp claws dug into her flesh, piercing her skin. She couldn’t prevent herself from squealing lowly. Surprise pushed the air from Angie’s lungs so she couldn’t scream, while her legs were kicking wildly, desperately searching for the ground. But she got lifted even higher, up to the rim of the tank. Her back scratching against the wooden boards, containing it.

  Just when her instinct to scream kicked in, Angie’s mouth was covered by something that was strangely and eerily familiar to a human hand. She struggled to understand what was happening, as she was pulled over the rim of the tank and into the water inside of it. Panic froze Angie’s limbs, as she failed to fill her lungs with air before she was submerged.

  She was dragged lower, deeper into the tank, and was surrounded by darkness and the muffled sounds inside of it. Desperately Angelina kicked with her legs, fought with her hands against the claws that held her.

  The last thing she had expected was to be killed by what she had wanted to set free.

  Angie’s lungs were already screaming for air when she felt the cold ground of the tank beneath her bare feet. All the swim training had been for nothing since panic and struggle let her body quickly use up the oxygen in her blood. The instinct to open her mouth and inhale was just as painful as her body aching for air. Angie knew she would drown.

  This is how it ends? She thought. The irony…

  A thousand needles pierced her body as less and less oxygen coursed through her system. Angie had stopped fighting without noticing it. Maybe because the hand covering her mouth had vanished, or it had left her lips because she had stopped struggling. Still, something held her wrapped tightly. To her already confused senses, it felt like two strong arms.

  Whales do not have arms…

  “Hush,” something spoke in her head – a voice? A male voice even? “I am trying to save your life.”

  You’re killing me. Was all she could answer.

  Still, with all the discipline left inside of her, Angie refused to inhale, reminding herself it would be water that would fill her lungs.

  I need to breathe.

  “Just a little longer.”

  I need air.

  There was no strength left in her body to fight or even attempt to struggle. She was ready to inhale.

  Just when Angie was about to give up, a ray of light flooded the darkness of the water, flickering in front of her eyes. She literally caught her breath and choked on the water, and she started to lose consciousness.

  Angie barely noticed anything anymore. Not the muffled sounds from the outside, nor the movement in the water. Not even her own thoughts. Darkness quickly consumed her.

  2 - The Creature

  Violent choking shook her body, and water spattered all over her face, as Angie spit it out, desperately gasping for air. Her head ached badly, and her entire body hurt. However, on top of that, she was freezing. As soon as the air filled her lungs again, her teeth started chattering. Instinctively she wrapped her arms around herself, trying to warm her own body, but she could barely feel her own skin.

  “Get he
r a blanket,” Angie could hear someone bark, but she couldn’t see anything.

  The floodlights on the yacht had been switched on, blinding her. Automatically Angie brought up her left hand, shielding her eyes.

  “Hello, little stray,” spoke the male voice again, addressing her this time. “You were lucky, it tried to kill you. Otherwise, we would have shot you as well. And that would have been a waste.”

  Angie felt even colder, hearing these words, if that was even possible, as she was shaking violently.

  “So, why didn’t it kill you?” The man asked her now, hunkering down next to her so her aching eyes could see him.

  He was maybe in his forties, as the dark hair at his temples and in his scruffy beard was already turning gray. In the light his eyes looked like two pitch black orbs, mustering her.

  “Maybe it likes her,” another man outside of her visual field was suggesting, and the guy talking to her moved his glance away from Angeline.

  Automatically, she followed and turned to see what he was looking at. Curiosity and fear prevented her from feeling warmer again. Angie’s heart was hurting in her chest, as curiosity and fear fought over the right to decide what she should do. She hadn’t seen the creature yet, and maybe she shouldn’t. No matter how loud her voice of reason shouted in her head, Angie couldn’t stop herself. And while she was moving to look at the tank behind her, her eyes were adjusting to the bright light.

  Her own gasp sounded foreign to her own ears, as she saw what was swimming just inches away from her face, in the dark void of the gigantic tank she almost drowned in. If Angeline hadn’t been sitting already, she knew she would have fallen right back on her butt. She only could breath shallowly, almost as if her instinct feared all she saw was only an illusion.

  What she saw was a human-like face with features strange and yet unearthly beautiful, which seemed to lure her back towards him, seductively. Even more so his big black eyes of eternal depth, which were too unsettling and still so captivating that Angie couldn’t pull her stare away from him.