Tangled in His Obsession (Seraphina)

The black car plunged into the water, and immediately the murky pond swallowed it whole, leaving no trace of the roof in sight. By the pond’s edge, the three men stood scattered, their gazes fixed on the nearly submerged vehicle, silently waiting.

The young man in the passenger seat was clearly pissed, kicking a stone on the ground with force.

The boss heard the noise and whipped his head around, “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

“That woman promised us a billion!” the young man spat out, nearly losing his mind at the thought, “Why the hell did we have to kill her? We’re only getting a measly million out of this! A million versus a billion, can’t you do the math?”

The boss’ hand shot out, grabbing the young man by the collar, “A billion? Do you look like someone who’d ever see that kind of money? Even if you did get your hands on it, you think you’d be living to spend it?”

Fuming and unable to retaliate, the young man’s anger bubbled over, and he suddenly threw a punch at the boss’ face.

The boss hit the ground, his mouth bleeding, and after spitting out a mouthful of blood, he got up and the two scuffled viciously.

The driver, torn himself, didn’t intervene, just silently watched the pond that had swallowed the car.

Meanwhile, inside the car, Seraphina used the precious time before the cabin filled with water to desperately attempt an escape.

She first reached for the release button of the rear seat, folding it down and crawling into the trunk, trying to force open the lid to escape.

But no matter how hard she tried, the lock wouldn’t budge, the lid immovable.

Water began seeping into the trunk, and after what felt like an eternity, Seraphina gave up.

By the time she made it back into the cabin, the water had risen above the seats.

The December chill was biting, but Seraphina felt none of it.

Darkness enveloped her; she couldn’t see a thing, searching every nook and cranny of the car to no avail for something, anything, that could be of use.

against the locked doors and windows.

undone, too many people she

despite her exhaustive efforts, the doors and windows remained firmly

Seraphina struggled for breath, her eyes

was fleeting, and if this was her end, all her grievances would fade to nothingness. But to leave without a word

upset her balance, forcing her to frantically grab at anything to stay afloat. Her hand found the driver’s seat, and with a sudden realization,

as the water engulfed her completely, she

were still fighting. The driver, having had enough, was

his eyes narrowing in suspicion, and

pried open the window, a sliver of clarity returned. She clambered through and into the

stung her eyes, but she knew she couldn’t surface; to do so would mean being captured

had drained her strength, but she knew she had to

the water, a hand suddenly grabbed her

the surface in a desperate attempt to escape, but after only a gasp of air, the

of energy but couldn’t shake the grip. It seemed they

her thoughts fading, her body going limp. She stopped struggling, allowing herself to

on her ankle

sensed freedom but had no strength

someone grabbed her, shooting up through the

quiet pond was now surrounded

men on the shore, while others were dealing with

and composed, cradled

his hands, and

ashen, whether from the cold or worry, as he pressed on Seraphina’s abdomen

seemed like an eternity, Seraphina violently coughed