Swimming out, she went to the back of the truck, which was completely underwater. Where was the keyhole? Which of the two keys would work? Down here in the dark and murky depths, it was all but impossible to figure out.
May found the handle more by touch than sight. She fumbled with the keys, realizing how cold her hands were. She almost dropped them as they slipped against the truck’s paintwork, and her heart almost stopped with fright.
Clinging to the keys, she tried again to get them in. This one definitely didn’t work. It must be the other one.
She managed to get it in and turned it, but the door wouldn’t budge. She was exhausted. Her shoulders burned, her muscles felt like they were bursting with pain.
But she tried again. Turned and pulled. Harder. Giving it everything she had.
Why wouldn’t it move? She needed to breathe. She needed to get back to the surface and get some air into her burning lungs.
If she didn’t breathe, she would drown. But if she did breathe, she would be too late. Moment by moment, the truck was filling with water. Lewis would drown soon.
May’s heart was pounding as she felt her limbs growing numb. She had reached her limit. She couldn’t stay down here much longer. Just now, despite her efforts, she knew that she’d gasp in a gulp of water and she, too, would drown in these unfriendly depths.
But she had to rescue Lewis. She had to.
May tugged and twisted again, this time with all her might, feeling as if her head was about to burst and her lungs might explode.
This time the door opened.
It was dark, and she couldn’t see a thing. But she could feel. She could feel the truck rocking, and moving down, deeper to the bottom.
She had to go deeper. She had to find him.
She reached out with her hands, feeling around, kicking further into the depths. Where was he? Where was he?
Her hands struck something cold and soft.
There was Lewis, slumped against the rear of the truck.
She grabbed Lewis’s arm and pulled as hard as she could. His head lolled back as she dragged him toward her.
May’s heart felt like it was going to burst as she struggled to get him out of there. But adrenaline was giving her the final surge of strength she needed.
She dragged him up and out. He was limp, unconscious, and probably already dead. May knew she was probably too late. But she had to try.
Dragging him behind her, aware that if she let go of him she would never find him again in time, May breasted the surface of the lake. She was coughing and choking now, her throat raw and her chest burning.
May gasped in a breath and coughed out the lake water in her lungs, then gulped in another breath, clutching on to Lewis’s inert body as she lunged for the pier.
Then she heard Lewis splutter as well. She heard him cough and choke. He was alive.
May pulled herself up onto the pier, dragging him by his arms.
Choking and spluttering, weak and flailing, he crawled onto the pier.
Looking up, May saw the headlights of cars nearby and heard concerned voices. Apparently, the noise of the runaway truck had alerted locals and people were coming to help.
“Are you okay? What happened here?” a man shouted. A flashlight beam bobbed as he ran down toward them.
“We need police backup. Call nine one one, please!” May shouted.
She felt her belt. Zinaida had taken her gun away, but she still had the cable tie that could be used as an emergency handcuff.
Now that she knew Lewis was able to breathe on his own, she quickly dragged his hands behind him and secured him as tightly as she could with the cable tie.
“Wait!” His voice was hoarse and ragged, but outraged. “What are you doing?”
“You’re coming in for questioning as soon as backup gets here,” May told him, through teeth now chattering with cold. “You’re wanted by local police and the FBI.”
The horror in his face told her everything she needed to know about his guilt. Still coughing and spluttering, he struggled to pull himself to his feet. May kicked out his legs from under him and he fell back onto the pier.
“You’re under arrest, and we’re not letting you out of our sight until you’re behind bars.”
They had the suspect they needed to take the trafficking case further. But the killer was gone.
They needed to embark on a full-scale manhunt immediately. Comb the area, and get the FBI involved. But May had an uneasy feeling about Zinaida. After she’d jumped out of the moving truck and left them to their fate, May didn’t know if they would ever find her again.