Blood Lust
Chapter Twenty-Seven

Once again we were all together. Like a band of superhero's in a comic. We met for what felt like the final fight scene. We were ready to win the battle.

"It's so good to see all of you..." R started the speech, "It has become apparent that we must leave the Island and now is looking like a good time to me. Is everyone in?"

Everyone was in agreement. It was time to leave. I had been stuck on the Island for four years. I had no idea how long each of them had been stuck there.

I took a minute to myself to process the thought of returning home. Would my friends and family welcome me with open arms? Would they be shocked to see me walk through the door? I was tempted to stay with all of the vampires after we had escaped.

"Then it's settled. Follow me." Lee lead the way. He pulled out more flashlights and handed them out.

Lee lead the team down further into the collapsed building. The water had risen up to our ankles. I was worried the water would rise even more.

"Where are we going?" I asked. There had to be a plan.

"If we keep moving towards where the kitchens used to be, there was access door that led to the shoreline. It used to be for deliveries straight off the boats." Lee seemed focused.

The air quickly changed. I could smell the sea air as gushes of wind hit my face. The sound of seagulls echoing off in the distance became apparent. I could tell we were so close to the shore.

"Fuck." The sun had burned Lee's hand as he pushed over the kitchen doors. It hit the sand with a small thud.

I was oblivious to the fact that they could not walk in the sunlight and took a step. I felt the warmth of the sun on my skin for the first time. Another step and the warmth tickled my checks. I closed my eyes to take it all in.

"Christi." R called out to me. "Don't go too far." He warned.

I looked back at him, "What why?"

"The beaches are covered in landmines." He held out his hand for mine, still covered in the shade. I walked back to the shade of the kitchen. "That's the real secret of how no one leaves the Island. If you manage to escape the building and the Guards, you still have to escape the beaches."

The shoreline looked absolutely beautiful. It all looked so normal. Chairs littered the beach with large umbrellas. No warning signs of landmines or even bloodshed from them. Everything looked so innocent.

"Well I guess we wait till night time?" I thought out loud.

"No time. They'll catch up to us. We need to think. We need to get to that boat" Dee looked around the beach. Each of us scanned the sand.

"What about that boat?" I pointed out towards the rocks. Against them, laid a small boat. "We could use that to cover you and walk you guys across the beach."

"The question is do you think you could carry that over to us?" Dee shot back quickly. "And all the while missing every landmine?"

"Keep your feet on the rocks." Martin mentioned. As long as I stayed on the rocks and off the sand I was fine.

I pulled off my soggy slippers and began to step over the rocks. My eyes glue to the sand, looking for anything that stuck out.

The closer I got to the boat, the more it looked like a bad idea. It had seen better days. The boat had holes and it looked brittle. If I picked it up, would it crumble in my hands?

"This thing looks old." I shouted over my shoulder. My last step lead me right up to the boat. Carefully, I put my foot down on the sand. I reached out my hand and lifted the nose of the boat. To my surprise, the boat didn't turn into dust.

"Now drag it back and best as you can while staying on the rocks!" Dee shouted. They remained huddled in the shadows.

My grip wasn't as strong as it needed to be to carry the boat along the rocks. I struggled against the odd shape in my hands, but when I had tried to use the rope, the rope gave away and fell apart.

"Slow down!" Dee chanted as I struggled to drag the boat. I was getting agitated.

"Throw me something to help pull this damn thing!" I shouted back. The fumbled around in the dark until R had tossed some old fishing net. Anything was better than nothing.

I let go of the boat for a second to crawl over the rocks to pick up the old net, "This isn't going to fall apart on me is it?" I questioned as I fashioned the net into a rope and tied it around an old hook on the side of the nose. I tugged on it a few times to test before hauling it over my shoulder and finishing the race back to the shadows.

My feet were raw from climbing over the rocks, but I was glad to let them rest when I got back to the kitchen exit. I sat on a bucket I had flipped over and watched the guys try to patch the holes of the boat with some duct tape Lee had in his bag.

"I think this will do it. Christi stay a few feet behind us in case we step on a landmine." Lee said as they hoisted the boat above their heads.

"If you hit one of them? Won't you die?" I worried.

"No, it would just really hurt. Now let's go." They lowered the boat on their heads and walked into the sunlight. The boat had successfully covered them enough to block out the sun.