Down, down Christy sank into the deep, the weights making her fall all the more rapid. Finally, she landed with a hard thud at the bottom of the lake. The shock of being underwater had paralyzed her. The darkness was closing in, and she could see no further point in resisting it.

“I don’t want to suffer anymore,” she thought as she started to slip away, “I just want the pain to end.”

She started to black out. Very distant was a noise that sounded like something coming toward her. It didn’t seem to matter. Noxen was right; she was dead anyway.

Something touched her shoulder. The gag was pulled off her mouth. Something was pushed between her lips. All of a sudden Christy found herself with a fresh flow of air. Her head started clearing. She felt the weight around her neck being lifted off. Through the water came the sound of something that sounded like, “Breathe, Christy, please breathe! We’ll get you out of here!”

Christy’s spirits rose again. She could hear more ripples through the water; more help was on the way! She took deep heavy breaths, trying as hard as she could to keep the oxygen tube between her lips.

Hissing sounds could be heard. “Hold still, Miss Bryant,” a voice could be heard saying. Warm hands tore apart the tape holding the gun to her head. Christy breathed a huge sigh of relief as she felt it float away from her temple. The tape was pulled from her eyes. About a half dozen divers were floating around her with welding torches, burning their way through the chains locked around her. A familiar sympathetic hand touched her shoulder…

“Jason,” she breathed happily. Wearing diving goggles and with an oxygen tank of his own, he put an arm around her. “You’ll be OK now,” he mouthed.

Slowly, the chains and weights fell away from Christy. Once they were all broken, the divers untied her from the chair, Jason tearing through the tape on rope on her wrists personally. Once she was finally free, he lifted her out of the chair and slowly kicked his way up to the surface with her firmly in his grasp, one of the divers right behind him to catch her if she slipped out. With a loud splash, they crested the surface of the lake. Christy blinked heavily in the bright daylight; after being in the dark for two days, she’d need time to get used to light again.

“Give her a hand!” Jason called up to someone on deck. Christy was lifted up by a strong hand onto the deck of another boat. She gasped for natural air and struggled with the realization that she’d survived. A blanket was wrapped around her. “Feeling all right, Christy?” a man asked her, “You’ve been through quite a lot.”

“I don’t know!” she was crying hard again. Through her squinted eyelids, she saw her savior climbing up onto the boat himself. “Oh Jason!” she sobbed, crawling toward him, “You saved my life! I can never thank you enough!”

“It’s all right now, Christy,” he said, hugging her close, “You’re safe now. They won’t hurt you again.”

Christy glanced over his shoulder. A large group of officers were now on board the thieves’ boat. Most of the thieves were seated against the side railing, handcuffed. Noxen himself was putting up a fight, but it was clear they’d have him in custody too. Excited sounds caused her to turn toward an island to the left, on which was a cabin amid dense trees, she could make out. Five weary figures were being lead from it. Her friends were safe.

With a cry of delight and relief, she buried her head in Jason’s chest and cried harder than she had in her life. The nightmare was over. And she was still alive.

---

“And here we are, home in the same day,” Mr. Bryant said, parking in front of his house. He turned to his daughter in the back seat and said with a warm smile, “I guess you’ve never been happier to see this house, right Christy?”

‘More than you can imagine, Dad,” Christy smiled back. Home had never seemed more inviting.

The police had been very considerate with her, realizing that she’d been through such a traumatic experience that she wouldn’t be immediately willing to give a testimonial. It wasn’t immediately necessary, as the thieves’ booty had been recovered with the hostages.

In meantime, Christy had been allowed to take a shower and a change of clothes at the police station, and then had been treated to a much-needed full-course meal. Now all she wanted to do was flop down in her bed and go to sleep for a month.

Her friends had thankfully been all right as well, although Courtney had been silent the whole time. Their families had come for them midway through the afternoon, although Dawn had argued with her parents that she wanted to see Christy home safe. Her friend now turned to her in the back seat. “Well, I’ll be over tomorrow to see how you’re doing, Christy,” she told her best friend, “You were really brave going through what you did.”

“Brave? I’d say she’s got the courage of four lions to go through all she has,” Jason piped up. Christy had insisted he spend the night, a proposition he seemed to relish.

“Oh will you stop!” she said teasingly, giving him a playful shove, “All you’ve done during this ride was compliment everything about me: I’m beautiful, I’m brave, I’m kind! You don’t know when to stop flattering me!”

“And he’s right on all accounts,” Mrs. Bryant leaned over the seat and kissed her daughter, “Well, I guess we’d better get you inside, honey.”

“Right,” Christy climbed out of the car and wobbled a bit; her legs were still a little numb. “Thank you for everything, Dawn,” she said, giving her best friend a huge hug, “You’re really the best friend anyone can wish for.”

“You’re worth it, Christy,” Dawn returned the hug, “You take care.”

With a parting smile, she walked back up the street. Christy followed her parents inside the house and upstairs to her room. “You need anything else, sweetheart?” her father asked her.

“Not really,” Christy said. She pulled down the sheet and kicked off her sneakers and socks; she was too exhausted to formally change for bed. “Listen, Mom, Dad,” she spoke up tentatively, “I had a lot of time to think over the last few days, as you might have guessed, and I’m sorry about some of the things I said lately. I’m open to having a brother now; I think once I get used to him I’ll like him.”

“Christy,” her father put her arm around her, “You’ll always be our first child, and with that you’ll hold a special place in our hearts. We wouldn’t give you up for anything. We’d forgive you for anything.”

“You’re very precious, Christy,” her mother joined the embrace, “We’ll be right here all night if you need anything else. We’ll help you get over this ordeal you’ve been through, no matter how long it takes.”

“I know,” Christy gave each of them kisses. “And one for my hero,” she said with a big smile, walking over to Jason and giving him a big kiss. The expression on his face as she pulled away hinted all his dreams had just come true. “Promise you’ll stop by regularly after tonight?” she asked him, “I think I’d like you to be a permanent part of my life, Jason.”

“Hey, anything for you, Christy,” he hugged her again.

“So I know,” she said happily.

Yawning, she crawled into bed. “Good night,” she announced, laying down and closing her eyes.

“Good night, Christy,” her mother whispered in her ear, stroking her daughter’s hair gently, “May none but the best of dreams reach you tonight.”

Christy smiled. She felt Jason take hold of her hand. Never had she felt so secure in her life. Within minutes she was sound asleep. Even then, though, neither her parents nor Jason left, content to stand guard over her and watch her sleep the first peaceful dreams she’d had in a long time.

THE END