I was silent for a few moments, thinking about her words.

“You’re a strong person, River,” I said.

She shrugged. “As my mom would say, when life throws stuff at you, you either duck or catch.” She paused, then changed the subject. “You keep saying how you want to cure yourself of your human bloodlust, but do you have any idea how long that is going to take? Or how you’re going to do it?”

If I was honest with myself, since I’d realized that River was my responsibility, and I had offered to bring her to The Shade, I had postponed thinking in depth about my problems almost entirely. My focus had been on fulfilling my promise to River and getting her to The Shade in one piece. Once her situation was sorted, I’d be able to direct my attention to my own problems.

“I’m not sure how to answer either of those questions yet,” I replied.

She shifted in her seat. “I just… I feel like you’ve helped me so much. Is there anything that I could do to help you?”

I looked at her seriously. “River, you have helped me—have no doubt about that. You’ve helped me more than you realize.”

“It doesn’t feel like it, at least not compared to what you have done for me.”

“Well, I can’t think of a way you could solve my problem permanently. I also don’t know where my mystery might lead me, and I wouldn’t want to drag you into any more danger than you’ve already been through.”

She looked down at her feet, appearing dissatisfied by my answer. But she said, “Okay.”

After that, we were mostly silent for the next few hours, apart from a bit of small talk.

Once I felt confident to leave the submarine on autopilot, I caught River’s hand and led her toward the back of the submarine where we explored the rooms—something we hadn’t had time for until now, due to being so bent on escaping the harbor at Colombo. It was much bigger than I had estimated. There were five cabins with single beds, three toilets, a galley, and a small sitting area. River said that she wanted to take a shower, so we parted ways in the corridor. I headed to one of the bedroom cabins and sat down on the single bed, leaning against the wall.

I wasn’t sure what I was going to do for human blood now that we were in a submarine bound for the Pacific. I’d ended up finishing the blood that we had caught in barrels from the blood shower while we were still on the ship. So for now, I wasn’t craving. But sooner or later, I would start feeling the thirst again.

That had been the advantage of being in The Oasis—at least there, I never had to worry about running out of human blood. It was restocked in my fridge as if by magic the moment I began running low. Now, I had to start thinking about possibly murdering another innocent person in the near future.

I wasn’t sure how I was going to last all the way to The Shade, and then waiting for River, and then traveling back somewhere else, to wherever my next destination was. No. It was inevitable. Somehow, I would have to get human blood. Perhaps stop on a remote island and find some hospital where the patient was already dying. That was the most humane way I could think of to satisfy myself.

I brought myself back to the present. For now I was full, and I had River with me, who would hopefully stave off my cravings longer than usual.

By the time I was finished with my musings, I heard the bathroom door click next door, and River’s footsteps as she stepped out of the shower.

There was a knock at my door, and then she stepped inside. Her long hair was wrapped up in a towel, and she was wearing her black robe again.

“I was thinking how Lalia wasn’t marked with a tattoo,” River said, taking a seat next to me on the bed as she unwrapped her hair and began drying it with the towel. “Neither was Hassan or Morgan. I wonder why?”

I shrugged. “Perhaps because they’d been intended solely for, uh, consumption.”

River shuddered. “Thank God we got them out of there.” Parting her hair into three bunches, she began working it into a braid. “I also keep thinking about that vial in my bag. I-I just can’t shake the feeling that it’s something to help my brother. That dream I told you about, where I imagine having a normal conversation with him, it keeps coming back.”

“Maybe,” I said, “but would you really risk giving it to him? What if it was something else?”

She looked nervous at the thought. “Yeah, that’s what I’ve been—”

The submarine jolted, sending River flying off the bed. Before I could catch her, she’d slammed against the wall. She cursed, rubbing her head. I would’ve gone flying too had I not gripped hold of the bed to stop myself from crashing into her.

As the submarine steadied, I crouched next to her and examined her head. “Are you okay?”

“I’ll survive,” she grumbled.

I hurried out into the corridor and entered the control room. I stared through the window at the murky waters, trying to get a clue as to what had just happened. Something had obviously collided with us. But what? It must’ve been some kind of large creature—a shark, possibly even a whale. River joined me a few moments later and the two of us scanned the waters.

My heart leapt into my throat and River let out a scream as a creature shot up from beneath the submarine. A creature unlike anything I’d seen in my life.

She appeared to be a woman, with scaly green skin and matted purple hair that covered her bare chest. Her hideous face was pressed right up against the glass, her thin lips parting to reveal fangs. She slid upward against the window, glaring down at us through yellow eyes. She moved higher and her bottom half came into view—the tail of a fish.