Michael Bray - Feed

‘You don’t know how lucky you were back there. You should be dead now.’

‘That’s enough, Liam,’ Nash said, glaring at his son. ‘Bickering isn’t going to help anyone. We need to figure out a plan.’

Tyler turned to Nash, the anger threatening to boil over. ‘You have something in mind?’

Nah frowned, one good eye refusing to focus on Tyler. ‘No, but… it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try. You really don’t remember what happened, do you?’

‘I told you. I remember hitting the water when the shark hit the boat. Everything else after is a blur.’

‘It might come back to you. Just your brain flipping the circuit breakers and maybe threw a short circuit. It’s been a tough time.’

Tyler offered no reply and looked out again at the undulating ocean. ‘What the hell are we going to do?’

The lack of answer worried Tyler, although it didn’t surprise him. It wasn’t just that their options were limited; they were non-existent. He turned to Nash, watching as he touched the edges of his leg wound.

‘We can’t just wait here to die. We have to try something. You guys know the area and these waters. We need some options.’

‘You know as much as we do. You also know what is in these waters. We can’t go in there.’

‘We can’t stay here either. With this heat and no shade, we’ll be dead within a couple of days.’

‘That’s not even the worst part. Without water, we’re fucked,’ Liam said, still defiant, still trying to be the big man. Tyler didn’t want to get into another shouting match, and so he turned away and stared at the ocean. As he watched, the immense fin resurfaced. It made its way from right to left, slow and calculating around forty feet offshore.

‘It’s back. The shark. Are you seeing this?’ Tyler said, turning to look at the other. However, neither Nash nor Liam seemed surprised.

‘We know,’ Nash said. ‘He’s stalking the edge of the shallows. It knows we’re here.’

‘Sharks don’t do that. They don’t do grudges.’

‘This isn’t a grudge. We’re in its territory. Every twenty minutes or so, he’ll swim on by just to remind us he’s still there.’

Tyler watched as the fin sank beneath the waves. ‘It can’t come any closer?’

‘No. The water here is too shallow for him. We’re safe enough.’

‘Trapped more like,’ Liam said.

Tyler sat down hard, staring at the ocean. Everything that had happened was finally starting to sink in and the gravity of their situation was becoming more and more apparent to him with every passing moment.

Despite the intense, burning heat of the day, the night brought with it cold as the sea breeze assaulted their island. With no protection from the elements, they each tried as best they could to conserve their energy. The south side of the rock, where Tyler had found the hollow, was being relentlessly smashed by waves which made sleep difficult. Nash struggled, too, moaning in pain as his leg continued to weep blood as he drifted in and out of sleep. All day, the shark had continued to sweep past their island prison, making them aware of its presence. Tyler was glad for the dark just because he couldn’t see the dorsal fin sweeping passed, first right to left, then the other way. He lay on his side, curled against the rock face, knees pulled up to try and keep warm. He drifted in and out of sleep, on the edge of consciousness. Memories drifted in and out of his mind as he ignored the hunger and thirst that was already starting to become a problem. He thought of his childhood, long-forgotten snippets of memories that were completely meaningless. He remembered playing in the street with childhood friends when the worries of adulthood were so far away. He remembered excited gift opening on Christmas morning, the security of the family unit around him bringing his troubled mind some comfort. He also dreamed of drink. Precious alcohol. Now the shock had subsided, and the monster in the water was no longer a threat, the other monster, the one that lived inside him, was raging and desperate to be fed. Telling himself there was nothing he could to about it was no help. It still thrashed and raged, demanding alcohol.

Across the island from Nash and Tyler as they struggled to sleep, Liam sat on a rock staring at them. There would be no sleep for him. Not under the circumstances. He sat and stared at his father and the stranger they had brought with them and considered the possibility that in order to survive, he may have to go to extreme lengths. There was no loyalty. No family, not now. It had become a battle for survival. Liam stared at the two other men and listened to the sound of the waves crashing against the rock. He was still there when the sun started to rise.

Tyler snapped awake. The dream had been vivid and frightening, and for a moment he lay there and let his heart slow to something akin to normal. It was early, and the sun had only just started to touch the rock that was their new home. The heat on his back was already intense and he knew the day ahead was going to be a long one. His throat was dry, and he opened and closed his mouth to try without success to generate some saliva. The dreams that had plagued him through the night had intensified, the worst of which was about the dive. He had replayed it in horrific detail in his mind as the giant shark had appeared out of the dark and changed their lives forever. Something about the dream had troubled him. There was an aspect to it which didn’t fit or seem right yet he still couldn’t place what it was. He sat up, squinting at the sun. It was a glorious morning the sky pale and cloudless. It would have been beautiful if it wasn’t for the dire circumstances. Liam was sitting on a rock, staring at him.

‘How long have you been awake?’ Tyler asked.

‘Not slept.’ The answer was robotic and without emotion.

‘Oh,’ Tyler replied, rubbing his shoulder. It had gone numb where he had been sleeping on it. He turned to Nash, who was also awake and sitting upright, ravaged leg stretched out in front of him, the wound already attracting the attention of flies.

‘You don’t need to say it. I know it’s bad.’

Tyler looked away. ‘It will be fine. We’ll get help.’

‘Do you have a plan?’ Nash replied, his voice full of hope.

Tyler shook his head. ‘No, no I was just saying. We’ll be fine.’ He turned his attention to the ocean and the spot where their boat had been. ‘Maybe it’s moved off now. I still think we can try to get out of here.’

‘He’s gone nowhere.’ Nash replied, wincing as he shifted position. ‘This is his territory. His place. We’re trapped.’

‘You don’t know that. You can’t know that. Maybe it realised it couldn’t get to us and moved off to feed elsewhere.’

‘Then why not swim for it? See what happens,’ Liam said. Despite everything that had happened to them, the arrogance was still there and was growing.

‘Maybe I will. We’ll die if we stay. At least that way we’ll have a chance.’

‘“We?” No, not we. You. We’re staying here,’ Liam snapped.

‘For what? You said so yourself, there isn’t any help coming. For whatever reason, we’re stuck here. I don’t know if you noticed, but that leg injury of your fathers is serious and not getting any better. We can’t just stay here.’

‘Then go. Swim for it. We’ll watch and see how far you get before you either drown or get eaten by that fucking shark.’

‘Enough both of you,’ Nash shouted. He was staring at them both, his face slick with sweat. ‘Stop bickering. This shouldn’t have gone down this way, we know that. All we can do is deal with what we have. We’ve got no food, no water, and no way off this rock. Maybe he’s right, maybe the two of you should try it and leave me here.’