Fire burned in my shoulder. Someone was pulling me, the grip on my wrist vise-tight. The pain in my arm stirred me back to consciousness. I groaned. The grip tightened, and the pull seemed to intensify. Then familiar darkness took me again.

Ice-cold water slapped at my face. I spluttered, turning my mouth away from the salty liquid trying to choke me. Someone cursed. There was pressure at my neck, pushing me down into the inky black water.

As my body submerged, it woke something in me—adrenaline similar to the kind that allowed mothers to lift cars to save their children. I pushed off the rocky seafloor, my shoulder screaming as I did. I clambered to my feet, my eyes stinging as I blinked the salt water out of them. The figure in front of me was only a blurry mass. I swung, aiming for the fuzzy middle, hoping to stun.

I caught ribs and flesh, and the assailant cursed. A male voice. I didn’t pause, I went for a hook-shot to the jaw, and his head snapped to the side. But the move cost me. My body, already weakened from the assault, teetered off balance. The attacker used the moment to his advantage, delivering a brutal blow to my side.

I wheezed as I tried to straighten, praying I didn’t have a broken rib or a punctured lung. A wave crashed into us both, sending more stinging salt water into my face and eyes. I straightened, steeling myself for another blow, but a deep voice from down the beach called out.

“What the hell is going on?”

The figure in front of me froze for a split second, and I tried to blink the water out of my eyes. Attempted to identify the man in front of me, but my vision wouldn’t cooperate. The man tore off, moving out of the water and in the opposite direction of the guy jogging down the beach.

The adrenaline drained out of me in a flash. My body crumpled as I fell to my knees, my head staying just above the water.

“Are you okay?”

I pushed to my feet with the help of the guy who hadn’t hesitated to help. “Thanks.”

The man guided me to the beach where I could sit. “I’d offer to call the cops, but I don’t have a phone, and I’m not sure I should leave you alone right now.”

“Hey! Are you guys okay?” Crosby’s voice broke through the night air.

“You got a phone on you?” the stranger asked.

“Yeah.”

“Call the cops.”

Crosby muttered a curse, crouching down as he pulled out his phone. “What the hell happened, Ford?”

“Someone tried to drown me.” My throat burned as I spoke, the reality of the words hitting me as I said them. Someone had tried to drown me. Panic began to lick at my veins. “Bell.” I pushed to my feet.