p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; }


She woke to a clear blue sky. Heat baked her skin. The fire in her throat made her want to cry. Not heaven, possibly hell.

Sometime after waking she spied a half empty bottle of water floating in the ocean.  Miracle of miracles, she was able to pull it aboard. For five minutes she warred with herself about opening the bottle or not. Finally, after throwing off any care, she cracked open the bottle and sniffed. It smelled salt free.

One taste, that's all I need. She tipped the bottle back, afraid of what she'd find, and took a miniscule sip.

Water!

Greedy chugs followed. One and a half bottles of water still sat beside her on the yellow raft, but she was saving those. This extra bottle was a gift, one that could mean the difference between life and death.

Years ago she'd watched one of those reality shows and seen the person pee into a bottle then drink it. She'd do that even though it creeped her out. Fight or die that was her new motto. Desperation grew thick in her throat, almost choking her. The chance of survival lowered each hour. If she weren't found soon, it would all be over.

Amanda eyed the snake. Maybe a bite from the little beast would be worth it. Probably not, the venom would cause pain and she hated pain. She lowered to her elbows and watched the little animal stare at her. He was trapped, just like her. The main difference between the two was she wouldn't kill the snake if she opened the box but he would kill her, not hesitating to sink his fangs into her flesh the instant she opened the box.

When she was seven, she'd fallen off the bright yellow play structure in the park behind her house. She loved that park. Her parents would let her play for hours each afternoon. All that changed when she broke her arm. Damn monkey bars.

The pain had shocked her the most. Her mother had run from the house, thinking that she'd killed herself. The freedom and fun stopped after that. Somehow her little seven-year-old mind associated pain with loss of freedom.

Her therapist had been working with her, but the fear still persisted. Now the pain of the sunburn had numbed her body. She knew if the snake bit her, the pain would increase and the one thing she didn't want was more pain.

In a fit of rage she chunked the Plexiglas case into the ocean. Regret niggled her conscious. The poor little thing was her only friend, even though it wanted to kill her. Using her hands she paddled the raft closer. The snake hissed as she held her hand above the box. She wondered how long the snake would survive trapped in its little container. Plucking the box from the ocean, she flung it to the other side of the raft. There, now she had her friend again. Any companion was a welcome companion.

A bird cried out, cutting through the repetitive sloshing of the ocean waves. She searched for the avian, hoping it wasn't another egret. Damn migratory birds. Why couldn't it be some coastal dwelling fowl?

She saw the wings spread above but didn't know what type of bird hovered over her. Too many hours had passed since being set adrift. She felt dizzy and disoriented and she hated it.

Instead of taking in more water she rolled into a ball and tried to think of something other than the ocean. The waves were getting worse. Maybe she would die today and end this mess. The thought of dropping into the cool water, letting the waves overcome her, scared the shit out of her. The pain from torture clawed at the essence of her being. She didn't want to live like this anymore, but making the leap into the abyss was too much for now.

Copyright Sara Thacker 2011