I gulped down itchy salt water, the murky gray fuzz grappling at my exhausted body. My sides throbbing from the almost 3 story fall. My mind became scattered with terrifying thoughts. Give up. Give up. But, something lurched deep in my bones. Hate. Survival. Angst. I roused myself from the deathly cold water but something grabbed at my foot. I FREAKED OUT. I lost all hope of being the heroine of my sea situation, I needed to swim. My senses swarmed with fear, I kicked at the thick mass above and below me. My arms mirrored giant claws as I tried to escape. But then I realized that I wasn’t being pulled down, I was being held up. Someone had come to save me, but who? Finally, my senses were unclogged and I felt the sweet relief of air pumping through my chest. I reached up to extract the saltwater from my eyes so I could see who had rescued me. In the act of doing this, I was hoisted up on a rubbery surface. When I opened my eyes I found that I was on an orange inflatable raft that was far too small to be out on this perilous sea. I looked around and saw my savior, Maria. I hadn’t known Maria well on the storage container ship but we had passed by each other a couple of times. Maria had worked on the ship, mainly with the heavy machines that loaded the containers in and out of the bay. She knew its entire layout. She had wavy black hair that was down to her collarbone. She was around my age but maybe was a couple of years older, probably 17 or 18.
“What happened?” I asked, disoriented.
“I’m not sure. All I know is that I was coming to collect the daily supply of water for the crew.” She started.
“But how are you at the back of the ship? They always load it at the front?” I questioned.
“That was my exact thought too but then Colin told me that I should go around the back to check and see if anything was wrong” She explained.
I was getting more and more confused by the minute! Why would Colin want to help me? I thought he was one of the most loyal employees to Ralph that the Sunny Days shipping company had to offer. He always gave me rotten looks when we worked together moving the pallots into the huge spaces. Though, I’d always had my loyalty doubts about Maria. She always seemed… unfocused. I guess my assumptions were right, because what she was doing now could get her killed. To be honest I wouldn’t have pegged Maria to be the sort to help a newly found stowaway to safety. Especially one who had just been thrown to her death.
“Let’s get you inside,” she said caringly.
As I heard the faint hum of the motor from the other side of the raft my senses started to lull into a deep sleep. I’ve been so tired from the events of that day and the three-story fall didn’t help one bit. The last thing I saw was Maria steering the boat into the unusually calm waters of the Northern Pacific Ocean.
Maria rushed over to my bedside. She said a jumble of words in a confused voice but I couldn’t make out what it was. “What happened, are you okay?” Maria asks in a frantic tone.
“I just had a terrible dream.” I explained.
“ What’s all the history with you and Ralph, why did he launch you off the ship?” Maria pressed.
“It’s a long story. ”I explained truthfully.
“It started when my mother gave birth to me in the south of wales. Before then many men had tried to court her but they had all failed. My Mom finally fell in love with one man, Max. Max would come from an upper middle class family who lived next door to her family. She and Max had grown up together and always envisioned a life together. But after Ralph found out that his One and Only Love had taken a Suitor he went into a mad rage. but Ralph was a smart man, so he plotted out his revenge carefully. He let Max marry my mom but then after they wed he captured her and took her to be his uncooperative bride. however many times my mom tried to foil his plans it did not work. Finally my mom made a deal with Ralph, if she Bears him a child then she can walk freely. Ralph took the deal but suspected something was amiss. After I was born Ralph finally told my mother that she would be freed the next morning. Frantic my mother packed up her entire life, and a little something extra. My sleeping body was lowered into her luggage as she departed. My mother was just getting into the car when Ralph noticed that the sound of the crying baby had suspiciously Towards the sound of the bags. Ralph tried to stop my mom but she kicked the door and told the taxi driver to drive away. the last thing Ralph saw was my mom’s feeding away and my little arm out the window holding A gleaming Ruby necklace. He has been searching for his lost daughter ever since. and we have been avoiding him as long as he’s been looking.
“STOP RIGHT THERE!” I heard a booming voice call to us from the balcony of the ship. we were just beneath it. As we got closer I noticed the familiar shape of the eyes. Ralph. We docked the boat. Right when my feet touched land he started racing towards me.
Was I in a dream? Ralph was right on my tail. What were they reaching for? Then I looked down at a sparkling red ruby necklace on a gold delicate chain hung just between my collarbones. The fluttering sensation went off inside of