“Jake, please...”
Holding onto her husband like a monkey on a tree with one arm and her legs while snuggling Bailey with her other arm, Minji realized what she had to do. Past the railing was the ledge at the top of the waterfall. She’d have to risk going over the banister, avoid the people standing silently along the top, and wade through the water to one of the pools on either side of the balcony where smaller pedestals topped with decorat
ive plants stood along the raised edges.
“Jake, I love you,” Minji said, her heart breaking. “Please wake up!”
Jake’s expression didn’t alter.
“Jake! Please!”
With her heart sinking, she recognized she had no choice. There was no way for her to save her husband who outweighed her by over a hundred pounds. The baby clung to her, heels and hands digging into her skin. Minji gripped the cold metal rail and inched her body over it. Terror plucked at her mind when the sharp drop came into focus. Sickened by the sight, she hoped the rubber soles of her boots would grip the slick surface below the water.
“I love you, Jake, and I know you want me to do everything I can to take care of our girls.” She was whispering, but her voice bounced off the columns. The echo of her words sounded accusing to her ears. “I don’t know how to save you. I’m so sorry.”
The toes of her boots touched the bottom of the basin and Minji cautiously released her weight onto them while still keeping a firm hold on the rail which was slick with condensation and sweat. Bailey’s wet face burrowed into her neck as the baby blubbered with exhaustion and fear.
People blocked her way on either side. A young Asian man stood precariously near the narrow opening that led to the right side of the balcony. A cluster of young women in bathing suits blocked her way to the left. There was no way she could push past and not dislodge them. It was a terrible thing to realize that the women would fall when forced to take another step, but she couldn’t be responsible for their deaths, even to save herself and her baby. It would be difficult squeezing past the young man, but she had no choice. Minji scooted along the railing.
Great, shuddering sobs of anguish threatened to break free, but Minji knew she couldn’t unleash them until she had both of her girls safe. Concentrating on sidling along through the cold water while sliding her hand along the rail, she didn’t dare look at her husband’s emotionless face or the dizzying drop a few scant feet away.
“Hold on, Bailey,” Minji murmured.
The press of the bodies against the rail made it difficult to maintain her grip, but she was determined to reach her destination. Stealing a look at the Asian young man wearing a Hard Rock Cafe t-shirt, Minji noted the blond tips of his hair and the earring in one ear. He was so close to her, she could smell his cologne. Like her, he was just another tourist enjoying his vacation and now his mind was held captive as he stood at the precipice of the waterfall. Turning completely sideways to avoid touching him, she continued on her precarious journey. Her bottom brushed against the young man’s hand when she squeezed past him. Sucking in her breath, she tried to not tangle her feet with his.
If another attack came before she reached safety, she’d be knocked off by the people climbing over the balcony. Nearly blinded by tears, Minji glanced toward Jake. His handsome face was devoid of all emotion, life, and personality. It was his features, but none of his spark was evident in them. It was as if the essence of her husband had been stolen away, leaving an empty vessel.
The cold whisper of another attack slithered along her skin like a fine mist. She had to get out of the way of the mesmerized or be taken down with them. With one last great effort, Minji sloshed into the side pool and leaned against a pedestal with relief.
A second later, the loud clap of many feet striding forward resounded. The Asian boy and the lady sunbathers disappeared from view.
In horror, Minji watched Jake and the others along the rail scramble over the iron barrier in a confusion of limbs. Jake’s wide stride took him further than some of the others and he came to a stop at the very edge of the fall. An older woman in high heels lost her balance and fell into Jake.
Together, they plunged downward.
Chapter 4
*Cowering beside the obelisk, Minji cradled her baby to her breasts while struggling not to look downward, but she couldn’t resist the urge. The scene at the base of the waterfall filled her with despair. The dead clogged the shallow pool, their blood turning the waters red. Much to her relief, however, the bodies had formed a cushion of wet flesh that Jake had apparently struck before rolling over the lip of the fountain onto the floor.
Minji didn’t even want to consider what would have happened to Bailey if she hadn’t freed the baby in time.
Jake rested on his side, one arm twisted beneath his body. The bloody water slithered across the floor, making it difficult to discern if any of it was his. From Minji’s position, she was unable to determine if he was alive or dead. Whispering fervent prayers, she shivered in the cold, damp air. She couldn’t accept that Jake was dead. He was too strong, too vibrant to leave the world so easily.
Bailey sniffled loudly, her tear-streaked face tucked under her mother’s chin.
The courtyard and upper levels were packed with people transfixed by the unknown influence. There was no one to help her out of her predicament. The precarious position she found herself in coupled with her fear of heights twisted her gut into ugly, painful knots. Sliding around the obelisk, Minji waded through the pool feeding into the waterfall. A thorough examination of her situation revealed that she could not safely make it to the second floor via the escalator. It was too far away. Climbing back over the rail wasn’t an option either. The crush of bodies on the balcony would never allow her to pass. Pacing in a small circle, the water sloshing against her bare legs, she sorrowfully came to a conclusion. She couldn’t check on Jake or Ava until the massive crowd had exited the area. Hopefully, Ava was still tied to the planter and out of danger.
Another explosion of sound resounded through the atrium as the crowd advanced. More individuals spilled over the second floor rail and into the crowd below. The smack of flesh against flesh was the only sound that emanated from the jumpers and those they landed upon. Other than Bailey’s sobs, none uttered a sound.
Minji stepped to the edge of the platform and peered at the spot where Jake had fallen. He was tucked against the rim of the basin and out of the direct flow of the crowd, but the people who had landed on the stack of bodies had tumbled over him. One woman slowly climbed off Jake and rose upright.
Minji nearly wept with relief. If others were surviving the fall, perhaps Jake had, too. Maybe he was knocked unconscious, but alive. She would find some way of saving him. Of saving all of them.
A second later she sensed something akin to an invisible tendril slide over her body. It briefly flailed against her temple, and then surged past her.
“What the hell?”
This time when the crowd advanced, it did not halt. The human river continued seamlessly, each step in sync, echoing throughout the resort. People dropped from the upper floor, while others tumbled over the waterfall or scaled the second floor banister to fall into the throng beneath. On the escalator to the right, a group plummeted into the congregation below in a silent avalanche of bodies.