The Beast of London: Book One of the Mina Murray series by Lauren Goffigan

Author:Lauren Goffigan [Goffigan, Lauren]
Language: eng
Format: epub

13

ADRIFT

Our boat drifted further and further away from the Demeter. Rain no longer fell from the sky, and the fading rays of the sun painted the previously gray sky with shades of deep blue and violet. The stunning beauty of the waning day was a stark contrast to the horrors we’d just witnessed, as if nature itself wanted to wipe away the memory of those monstrosities.

I sat huddled next to Abe, my gaze sweeping from the Demeter to both Arthur and Lucy’s dead bodies, which lay in the center of the boat. They both looked peaceful and serene, forever linked by death.

Abe was still as a statue, his eyes red with tears as he looked down at his friend’s body. Seward continued to row, his eyes averted from Arthur and Lucy, his mouth set in a grim line.

“This . . . this is my fault,” I said, my voice breaking, as the sting of self-loathing began to stir beneath my grief. “I should not have convinced Arthur to come with us. This—it’s my fight. I can continue on alone.”

“Nonsense. No one is responsible for Arthur’s death except for the creatures who slaughtered him,” Abe bit out harshly. “Arthur insisted on facing them. He had to know he would not survive. It is my belief that he lost the will to live the moment we realized Lucy had been infected. He told me many times that he could not bear to live without her. When a man is determined to die . . . no one can stop him.”

Though I believed Abe’s words, my guilt and grief did not lessen, and I closed my eyes against a fresh wave of tears.

“How’d this happen? How was the ship overrun by those damned creatures? It happened so quickly,” Seward spoke up, rattled. “When I woke up from my nap, Arthur and Lucy weren’t in their cabin. Lucy must’ve gotten free and Arthur went after her. I went up to the deck and those things—they were swarming.”

“The captain did mention ill crew members when we first boarded,” Abe replied. “The shipmates must have already been in the final stages of the transformation—they were most likely infected at the same time.”

“Infected shipmates on a cargo ship that makes regular stops in London? That seems too deliberate to be coincidental,” I said, trying to focus my thoughts as I wiped away my tears.

“I agree,” Abe said, somberly meeting my eyes. “I assume the captain logged every port where the ship has been docked in his journal. It could help us ascertain where the sailors were infected.”

“Bloody hell,” Seward whispered. “If vampires purposefully infected the shipmates . . .”

“Sailors are an ideal way to spread vampirism. They move from port to port, ship to ship. Think of all the great plagues that have hit Europe—many were spread across the continent by sea,” Abe replied.

We fell darkly silent as the implication of his words settled in. I desperately wanted to be wrong about an invasion, but the evidence in its favor was increasing.

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