The first week had flown by and Caroline was already thinking about what was going to happen next. The professional drama was just one factor in a long line. The famous straw that broke the camel's back.

Despite all the gloom in her life, contact with Isy had sparked something: Ideas of what a future could look like.

She just let hot water from the shower run over her body and her mind wander. Without her noticing, the door to the wet room opened. A naked man with curly black hair pushed his way in and, without warning, grabbed her tightly from behind. In shock, she inhaled some of the chlorine-rich shower water and coughed, gasping and retching to get rid of it.

"Wow, sorry about that, I didn't mean to scare you," he said, amused and a little unsettled at the same time. "I just thought we might still manage a turn before you meet your friends?" He looked down at her slowly and lasciviously with a wry smile. It didn't quite have the effect he seemed to be hoping for because they were so close together.

"Okay, in case you want another “turn” at some point," she drew goose feet in the air, still panting slightly, "you'd better listen. I'm late and have to go. I'll see you tomorrow!" With that, she gently but firmly pushed him out of the shower stall.

"Mmmh, okay. It was worth a try." He grinned charmingly at her and with a, "See you tomorrow then," left the room. She heard the door to her room slam shut about thirty seconds later and turned her attention back to the hot water.

Richard was his name, she remembered. She had met him the day before and his pleasant nature had led to an spontaneous kiss and half a night of pretty good sex. They had only spent half the night together because sleeping as a couple in their small single bed was out of the question. Sometime around three o'clock, Caroline's tiredness overcame her sex drive and she kicked him out.

They hadn't talked much, but he was thirty years old and looking for the love of his life. At least that's what he had confessed to her with a deep look in her eyes. She had told him that she certainly wasn't that, but would be happy to sweeten the time until he found her. Ten minutes later, his head had been between her thighs.

While she had gripped his hair with one hand to show him clearly what she liked, the other clutched one of the metal bed rails above her head. The thought of how intensely the orgasm had flooded her body and how he penetrated her impatiently, yet slowly afterwards, made her abdomen twitch in a very pleasant way.

She arrived at dinner a few minutes late and Isy looked at her, grinning knowingly. "I didn't think we were going to see you again today.!"

"As if sex could ever stop me from eating!" In feigned indignation, she dropped into the chair next to Isy as usual and hungrily grabbed the menu. "So where are we going tonight? Have you guys made a decision yet, or were you going to wait and see how the dinner gets to us?"

At lunchtime they had been debating whether they would finally make it to the on-board disco or just bog down at the pool or a bar.

"So far we're determined to go dancing!", Daniel announced.

"Yeees, we were," Laura put in, waving the menu of the day over the table, "but there's spaghetti in a parmesan loaf here and I swear I saw them bring tiramisu over there!"

Caroline laughed with the others, knowing full well where it would lead them. She enjoyed the company, the pasta and could hardly believe how much energy this simple interaction gave her. Like the nights before, they settled into the lounge chairs on the top deck by the pool after dinner and guessed star formations. They took turns getting drinks at the bar.

As Caroline looked around for Isy, who was taking an exceptionally long time this time, her gaze narrowed and the alcohol-soaked lightness was blown away. Isy was talking to a man. He appeared to be in his early thirties and, with his short haircut, brown cloth trousers and light-coloured linen shirt, he seemed quite normal at first glance.

He was more than a head taller than the girl, smiled kindly, kept his hands to himself and behaved in an all-round exemplary manner. Caroline watched Isy closely and she too seemed to be perfectly at ease. Everything was fine. There was no need to get up and tear her away from the guy. Why then did she have this exact need with such intensity that she had to cling to her seat to stay put?

The few minutes Isy spent talking to the guy seemed like hours to her. A wave of relief washed over her as the girl made her way towards them and he was about to leave the deck. On his way to the stairs, he turned again and looked after Isy. His eyes slid past the youthful body and his gaze met Caroline's for a split second. She now knew why he was so unsympathetic to her, downright frightening.

There was something greedy, something predatory in his gaze. He had looked at Isy as if he wanted to eat her alive, and yet, as Isy reported, he had only inquired whether they knew each other from somewhere. His guess had been that she was from Santa Barbara. They had talked innocently about her background and who she was with and why she was on the ship.

Neither of them had consciously noticed him before and now he was gone. Caroline wanted to shake off the uneasy feeling that wouldn't let her out of his icy grip.

Don't be a killjoy and ruin the nice mood, she scolded herself as she was about to take Isy aside and share the worry. It's all good after all!

By three in the morning, only Isy was left on deck with her. When she yawned for the third time in quick succession, the outrageously awake girl finally took pity on her and they made their way to their cabins.

"You come to my age first!" muttered Caroline, playing the offended.

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Isy grinned and hugged her tightly. "Good night then, Granny!" she whispered to her and quickly jumped back when Caroline tried to pinch her side.

"Ah, I'll deal with your manners tomorrow!" she said, yawning profusely once more and turning towards the stairs into the belly of the ship. Isy's cabin was at the other end and so her friend continued to walk along the empty railing.

It's very deserted at this time of night, Caroline thought to herself as she slowly descended the steps. And Isy's walk is quite long. At the most, one would meet one or two people on their way to their cabins from the last open bar or disco. It would be easy to drag a young girl into a dark room unseen.

Following a sudden impulse, she ran back. She did not see Isy again when she reached the railing. Presumably she was already one deck below. She quickened her pace and thought about what she was actually doing here. On the stairs down, she always took two steps at a time in the hope of catching up with Isy, but the next two hundred feet of railing were empty.

That couldn't be, why should she have turned? Caroline decided to go to Isy's cabin, peering into every corridor on the way. Presumably the girl would open the door in complete surprise and doubt her sanity.

Across the wind, she heard a loud clang, almost as if from a small ship's bell. She looked around, startled, and peered into the corridor another metre away. Everything was deserted and the sound could have come from anywhere. She looked along the railing and spotted something unusual a few steps back. A rope, no two, attached to the bars of the railing at the very bottom. With quick steps she stepped closer, bent over the barrier, expecting nothing more than to see black foaming ocean.

The sight of a small motorboat bobbing on the waves beside the ship gave her a shock. It looked like a cross between an inflatable boat and the vessels used by the coast guard. They were in the middle of the sea. How on earth had it got here? But what took her breath away was neither the boat nor the rope ladder leading down al the way to the water. It was the sight of Isy with her eyes wide with panic and her big hand pressed over her mouth so that no sound could escape.

The guy she had spoken to a few hours ago had his arm wrapped tightly around the ladder and Isy, pressing her against the side of the ship. His eyes were fixed hatefully upwards. The shock froze Caroline for a moment and before she could think again, her reflexes took over. She climbed over the railing to get onto the ladder.

She had to get to Isy, mustn't let him get her on the boat!

She had kept her focus on the railing for only a second, but the situation had changed drastically when she looked down again. The kidnapper and Isy were not alone. A dark-clad person was standing in the boat, looking up tensely. The man on the ladder yanked Isy away from the boat wall, holding the struggling girl by only one hand, and shouted, "Catch!"

Caroline hoped she had misheard over the wind. That was at least a twenty...

She hadn't finished the thought when she heard a shrill scream and saw Isy fall. She thought she heard herself scream as well and reflexively reached out a hand in complete helplessness. It seemed to take forever, but only a split second later Isy landed in the outstretched arms of the person on the boat.

Caroline tried to see if she was moving, if she was unharmed, but her gaze lingered on the face contorted with rage as it shot towards her with improbable speed. The man catapulted himself up the rungs of the hanging ladder with so much force that he skipped one or two steps each time. It seemed as if he was flying towards her.

In a burst of common sense, Caroline swung her leg back over the railing and jumped back onto the deck. She had to call for help, mobilise someone! She took a breath, but only a short cry escaped before a hard blow hit her in the pit of the stomach. It drove all air out of her lungs and made her slump, doubled over in pain. She saw a pair of black cloth shoes step in front of her and was brutally yanked up by her hair. He wasted no time, threw her over his shoulder and swung back over the railing.

How the fuck does he do that?

The thought flashed through her mind despite the pain and panic. Carrying not only his weight but hers, he slid sideways down the rope of the ladder, slowing every few feet. Surely it should tear the damn skin on his palms!

She hit the ground with force when he dropped her. Dazed, she raised her head. She saw that the female accomplice was tying the kneeling Isy's hands behind her back. Behind the wheel of the boat she perceived another outline, but could make out neither age nor sex.

Caroline tried to struggle to her feet as she was grabbed by the front of the neck, lifted up and held over the side of the badly swaying boat. Isy's shrill scream broke off abruptly as the woman pressed a cloth over her mouth. Within seconds, the girl slumped limply to the side.

"What are you doing?" the woman wanted to know. Her voice was sharp but calm.

"I want to get rid of the redundant one."

The coldness and cruelty that dripped from his voice with every word scared her more than the ocean beneath. The water was rushing by so fast that it would only be minutes before the ship was out of sight and she would drown. She only wasted a brief thought on that, though.

How could he hold her for so long without even breathing harder? She had tried to hold a bucket of water with an outstretched arm in a game a long time ago and only managed seconds. Strong, really strong, men managed maybe a minute. She weighed a lot more than that bucket, clawed her fingernails into his arm with all her might, kicking at him, but he didn't let up or even look strained.

"Let me see!" the other kidnapper demanded.

"She's too old!" He didn't even avert his eyes from Caroline's face and seemed to be enjoying her panic, literally soaking it up.

Too old? Too old for what? Terrible thoughts flashed through her mind about what they were going to do with Isy.

"Maybe we can at least use her for the Extraction." The woman stepped closer and pulled her a little closer. Caroline's feet touched the boat. The hand on her neck stayed where it was.

Suddenly she felt a sharp pain on her arm and cried out. A blade disappeared behind the woman's back. Had she cut her? The bitch took a step back and rubbed her index and middle fingers together right in front of her face. Finally, the man's gaze broke away from her and turned to the woman. They seemed to be communicating non-verbally.

"Come on, we still have room and one more never hurts." She turned and walked back towards Isy. "If we have to get rid of her anyway, she can still be of use. It would be a shame to waste this." With the last words, she held up her hand.

The man's gaze returned to Caroline's face, his mouth twisted into a sickening grin and he tilted his head slightly as if he needed to think. He made no move to bring her into the boat.

The woman turned to the ladder and looked at him over her shoulder. "What now?"

"I'm still thinking!" he shouted back.

The hand around her neck suddenly squeezed tighter and for a brief moment Caroline was convinced he was going to snap it.

"I agree, she should make herself useful." The grin widened and the pressure increased. Only on the sides, not the front of her throat, and when Caroline's field of vision began to darken, she knew what he was doing. He was cutting off the blood supply to her brain. Like lions did, biting a zebra's neck until it collapsed unconscious so they could tear it apart.

Caroline's muscles twitched, she felt nauseous and the blackness increased from the edge of her vision. She had no strength left to hold his wrist, her arms sagging lifelessly at her sides.

What was this predator whose prey Isy and she had become? It was the last thought before the darkness fell completely over her and she sank into merciful unconsciousness.