Page 32 of Saving Scarlett
He was gone—swallowed whole by the water in a matter of seconds. Panic swelled in my heart, stealing the breath from my lungs. I couldn’t lose him. Not now, not after everything.
“Bane!” I screamed again, fighting against the current dragging me under once more.
Kicking with all my might, I propelled myself forward, dodging trees and rocks jutting from the riverbed.
A dark shape flashed in my peripheral vision, and I swung toward it with renewed hope. Bane emerged from the whitewash, his face contorted in a mask of determination. Our eyes met across the river, understanding passing between us in an instant.
The current, however, had other plans. Before I could push off toward him, it seized me again, hurtling me in the opposite direction. I reached for him, desperation crushing my chest as I watched the distance between us grow. The river had won.
Darkness loomed at the edges of my vision, exhaustion and panic threatening to overtake me. As my limbs began to fail, a single thought echoed in my mind, refusing to fade. I had to find Bane. Against all odds, I had to find him.
Through sheer force of will, I fought my way back to the surface, dragging in ragged breaths. The river stretched like a black void before me, but I would not give up. Not until he was safe in my arms once more. The current could not have him.
I would not let it.
The branch I clung to was my only lifeline in a sea of water that threatened to swallow me whole. My fingers were numb from the icy chill seeping into my bones, but I held on for dear life. Although it felt like I had been there for hours, I knew it couldn’t have been more than a few minutes. My strength was fading fast, my arms trembling from the effort to keep my head above the surface.
“Bane!”
Scanning the surface of the water, my throat was raw from screaming, the hope that he would appear only crushing me when no one came. I was alone.
A sob welled in my chest as I struggled to keep my grip on the branch. I wasn’t sure how much longer I could hold on—how much longer I could fight.
My fingers started to slip. I squeezed my eyes shut, steeling myself for the icy grip of the water to claim me once more.
Just when I was about to let go, I heard it—a shout in the distance, barely audible above the river’s roar.
“Scarlett!”
My eyes flew open as a dark figure emerged from the rapids, fighting his way toward me against the current, sending my heart soaring in my chest. Bane grabbed my arm just as my fingers lost their grip on the branch, pulling me close against him. “I’ve got you. You’re safe, Little Red. I’ve got you.”
The sob broke free and I wrapped my arms around him, clinging to him as fiercely as I had clung to that branch. He held me close, struggling to stay afloat as the icy water buffeted our exhausted bodies, but I knew he wouldn’t let me go.
Angling us toward the riverbank, he kicked with all his might against the current.
At last, his feet hit solid ground, and he dragged us onto the riverbank, collapsing beside me on the rocky shore.
For a long moment we just lay there, panting and shivering, staring up at the night sky. I wasn’t sure where our pursuers were, but I was freezing, and didn’t know if I would ever be warm again. The forest loomed dark and dense around us, shadows dancing in the dim moonlight that filtered through the treetops. Only a few feet away from us, the river rushed onward, a constant reminder of the danger we had narrowly escaped.
When I turned to look at Bane, he was already watching me, his light eyes nearly clear in the moonlight.
“You came back for me.”
Reaching toward me, he stroked my cheek. “I will always come for you.”
A tear slid down my cheek, all my insecurities flooding to the surface. “Promise?”
He brought our joined hands to his lips, kissing my knuckles. “I promise. You’re mine now, Little Red, and I protect what’s mine.”
For a moment, all I could do was stare at him, surprised at his response, but that wore off quickly and then I surged forward and kissed him. He didn’t hesitate, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me on top of him.
When at last we broke apart, breathless, he cupped the back of my head, pulling my forehead to rest against his. “I’m still not good enough for you, though.”
Unable to help myself, I laughed. “You just saved my life. Again. I think that earns you a few points.“ A cool breeze whipped past us, causing my teeth to chatter. “It-it’s freezing out here.”
Bane pressed a kiss to my damp and tangled hair. “I know. Just let me hold you for another minute.” Wrapping his arms tighter around my body, he rolled us until I was below him, pressing another kiss to my lips. “I thought I’d lost you. When I couldn’t find you in the water, I—“ His voice broke, his eyes squeezing shut.
Shifting in his arms, I reached up to cup his cheek. “But you found me … so, thank you.”