Lyra
The sea was black, its chill biting into my skin as it pulled me under fast. I had already cut the ropes on land, so I wasn’t fully tied anymore. I needed to fight the waves and swim to safety.
My limbs felt heavy, like they didn’t belong to me, but somehow, through all my kicking and thrashing, I broke through the surface and gasped for air.
Forcing my eyes open, the ocean salt burned and stung, but the first thing I saw was the old ship.
I had seen it earlier when the guards dragged Evelyn and me outside. It looked rusted and forgotten, but it was my only chance at surviving. I swam toward it.
By the time I reached it and pulled myself onto the deck, my body was shaking from the cold. My wet clothes clung to me, my fingers were numb—but I was alive. I hadn’t given in to the tem
