The Midnight Feast

Pop! The cork flew out the bottleneck of the cheap champagne and over the bow into the murky depths of the ocean. The cork could be heard hitting the calm waves with a slight splash. Travis propped on one elbow, begun to pour the sparkling yellow contents into the held out wine glass of his wife. Lisa smiled sweetly at him, her eyes sparkling in the moonlight. She looked exhausted but given the last year and half Travis was not surprised.
“There you go, sweetheart.” He said smiling back at her as he went to fill up his own glass.
“Thank you.” She mouthed in an almost inaudible whisper.
Twisting on to her back, she lay on the deck towel, wine glass in hand, gazing at the stars. Putting the bottle to one side, Travis lay there watching her in the silvery glow of moonlight. They had only started their week long yachting trip a few hours ago and he decided that she was already looking a lot better. Relaxed for want of a better word.
“Fuck work. Fuck my boss. Fuck my friends. Fuck the world.” Lisa sighed a big relief with a little chuckle. She turned to look at Travis. His eyes were slightly agape and he looked mildly shocked. “What?”
“Nothing,” He smirked. “It's just not like you to swear. In fact I don't think I have ever heard you do so”
“Right now it feels good to,” Lisa chuckled. She pushed herself up into a sitting position and took a small sip of the champagne. “Besides after the year I have just been through I deserve to be here right now. And I have a right to say what I just did.”
“Right you are. You've done yourself proud.” Travis said, leaning in and kissing her lightly on the lips.
After that sweet sentiment they both lay back on the deck and listened to the sound of the waves softly lapping against the side of the powerboat. The stars twinkled in the midnight sky with the highlighting ghostly pallor of the moon. A few minutes later Travis stood up and looked out over the starboard.
“What the hell?” He groaned, squinting his eyes trying to see past the gloom. He jogged over to the cockpit and flicked a switch.
“Whats wrong?” Lisa quizzed, shielding her eyes from the sudden retina-burning floodlight that had just blinked into life.
“Look!” Travis said soberly, pointing starboard. He was confused, that much was obvious.
Lisa did as instructed and looked in the direction in which he was pointing.
“Jesus!” She gasped, leaping to her feet and knocking her wine glass over. “Where the hell did that come from?”
Just mere inches left of the bow was a luxury yacht drifting idly in the silent waters. There were no lights on, not even the cockpit or cabin. There was no sound to identify a smoothly running engine. The whole scene seemed wrong. Or at least something did.
“Shouldn't we have heard its approach?” Lisa asked, turning to look back at Travis. She could just make out his silhouette against the floodlight.
“Hold on. Let me try the radio. See if I can reach anyone on board.” He said, picking up the receiver.
Lisa turned back and made her way over to the pulpit where she lent hastily against the guard rail and looked at the yacht. It loomed silently above her with only the slightest of motion caused by the rolling waves. A knot of tension plied itself deep in the core of her stomach. She had never been out to sea before but she knew something was just not right with this. No engine noise and no lights. If the occupants were asleep for the night they would have at least anchored, but they were not. The yacht had just simply drifted upon them. Any closer and it would have potentially capsized their powerboat or done some kind of damage. Lisa suddenly felt weak at the knees and sighed anxiously.
“I cant reach them for some reason.” Travis said, coming back up behind her a few minutes later.
“It looks suspicious.” Lisa said, frowning.
“Yeah. I think... I'm going to check it out. You stay here.” Travis said, marching aft and entering the cabin quarters. Lisa was hot on his heels.
“Are you sure? Maybe I should come with you.” She said, pulling a fluorescent orange life-jacket out from under the cabin bunk.
“No, I'd rather you stay here. Besides, I'm sure its nothing.” He said, trying to reassure her.
He'd seen too much worry etched into her face of late. He was getting weary of seeing it. He just wanted to see her smile, be her old bubbly self again. In that moment he noticed she looked a lot older than what she had done previously. Sighing inwardly, he slipped into the life-jacket that Lisa held out for him and slid a reserve flashlight into his denim jeans pocket.
“Is there anything you would like me to do?” Lisa asked, sat on the bunk, watching him. That handsome devil with the messy black crop of hair.
“Just wait here. I wont be long. I'm going to have a quick look about, see if I can find anyone.” Travis answered, doing the laces up on his boots.
“And what if you don't?” Lisa asked and then gulped in regret. That was a possibility she did not want to think about nor even consider.
“I'll come back and call the coastguard.” Travis returned with a brooding look upon his face.
“Okay.” She said, following him out of the cabin hatch.
Travis called up the anchor and started to maneuver the powerboat closer to the yacht. After a few skillful turns the powerboat was level with the yacht, side by side. Grabbing the wooden gangplank from below, he moved over to the gap in the bows guard rails. Laying it down first on the yacht's bow and then his own, he begun to traverse the crossing.
“Travis?” Lisa called out to him from behind. She wanted to tell him something. That something she had wanted to say for a long time.
“Yes?” He asked, stopping mid-stride and turning to face her.
“I want a baby.” She said with no hint of a smile.
“Well, I'd best hurry back then hadn't I?” Travis beamed, his eyes lit up like the moon. Lisa had never seen him seem... so happy. He almost seemed relieved. Maybe he was. Who knew?
“Yes, you had.” Lisa smiled, hugging herself. She was relieved to hear that answer, so much it was...unworldly. Joy and anticipation swelled in her aching heart.
“I'm sure it's nothing.” Travis shrugged, turned and carried on.
“I'll wait for you back in the cabin. Holler if you need me.” Lisa said and moved off the pulpit.
“Okay.” He said, stepping onto the yacht.
From this distance the floodlight of the powerboat was not strong enough to penetrate the midnight darkness. It seemed so thick, unnaturally so. Travis went to pull the torch out of his pocket and took a step forward. Flicking it on, he shone it around the bow. Nothing here. At least nothing of interest anyway. He moved onwards towards the mast, rotating the shaft of torchlight right to left in big sweeping circles. He found nothing as he passed the boom and coach-roof. It was only as he came to the yacht's cockpit did he find something. A discarded child's shoe. That definitely indicated that there was someone on board after all. If there was a child on board then there would definitely be an adult present too, Travis thought to himself. Taking note of the find, he opened the door that led down into the coach house.
Cautiously, he entered the narrow passageway and made his way through. There was a door in front of him, with one off to his right. Shining the torch around the area, he was in the lounge. Everything seemed to be intact. There was a used china plate on the table over in the far left corner with an unfinished meal on it. Probably just asleep and forgot to anchor, Travis thought to himself.
Moving on, he opened the door to his right and recoiled at the assaulting stench. Lavatory. Pacing back, he closed the door and went for the next one. As he grasped hold of the door handle, he found it was wet and sticky. Shining the torch onto his hand, he found it was slick with drying blood. His brain mulled over a thousand scenario's. What? How? When? Apprehensive, Travis opened the door. Shining his torch around the narrow room, he was entering a kitchen. Sweeping his torch again in a circular motion, it froze when it fell upon a middle aged man stood slumped against the kitchen work counter. The side of the man's head was bloodied, all around the cheek and jaw. Along with the blood there was a nasty gash at the corner of the mouth. He looked as if he had been in a vicious accident of some kind.
“Jesus! Are you alright?” Travis exclaimed, pacing over.
The man groaned as Travis put his hands onto the man's shoulders, trying to get him to stand up straight. The man was limp and fell forward onto Travis. Travis was caught off balance, lost his footing and fell to the floor. The injured man went down on top of him. The man had him pinned down and as Travis tried to shift his weight felt a massive bolt of pain rip through his shoulder. Another bolt of pain ripped through his neck this time, worse than the last. The pain was immobilizing. Travis could not get to his feet, nor shift his weight. It was as if his whole body had shut down. The pain continued to come in waves of grandeur until the world went black Blood gorged out of his gaping wounds, unseen....
Lisa sat on the bunk, paperback in hand, reading away. In the back of her mind, a strange worry niggled away. She put it down to the stress she had dealt with the last year and deeming the worry unnecessary, shoved it further to the back of her mind. It was nice just to be able to sit and read. A luxury she had not had the privilege of doing so for quite some time now. Quickly, Lisa glanced at her watch and gasped in surprise. In what seemed no longer than five minutes past, an hour had fled. It was a quarter past one in the morning. Lisa leaped off the bunk and power-walked to the bow.
“Travis!” She yelled and waited, impatiently.
Where the hell had he got to? She yelled his name a few more times but to no avail. That knot of tension became tighter but she knew she was being silly. He was probably in the belly of the craft and could not hear her.... or so she hoped. Returning to the cabin, Lisa donned a life-jacket, her tennis shoes, grabbed another flashlight and made her way to the gangplank. Halfway across and she froze rigid with fear. Just go back, her mind yelled at her. Go back and wait for him in the cabin. Angry at herself for being so easily scared over little or nothing, she marched on, the icy fingers of fear receding to the outreaches of her mind.
On the bow of the yacht, Lisa stood and surveyed her current surroundings through the remnant shafts of light coming from the floodlight on the powerboat. She could only just make out the coach house roof through squinted eyes and....and....what was that? There was a small huddle on the port side of the coach house roof. Flicking the torch on, Lisa shone it in the general direction of the bundle. As her eyes adjusted to the sudden aperture of yellow glowing light, in silhouette she could just make out small round shoulders and a small head. A child! Her mind yelled. A sudden surge of adrenaline coursed through Lisa's veins. Walking up to the child, she knelt down in front of it with the torch highlighting the child's face. Lisa gasped and recoiled in horror. The young girl's eyes were feral green, blood was matted to the ringlet bangs of her dirty blond hair and was soaked into her pink blouse. It was also dried onto her post-angelic face in a thick crust.
“Oh my god, what happened here? What happened to you, honey? Is your mom or dad around?” Lisa exclaimed, rubbing the girls shoulders trying to mask the rising panic in her voice. The girl did not answer, nor did she respond in any way. She looked dazed and confused. “Okay, sweetie. Let's go find mommy or daddy.” Lisa patted the girl on the shoulder and stood up.
She did not know what to think, or to do. Travis would surely have noticed her. Travis, her mind echoed. Where was he? What the hell was going on? A thousand overwhelming thoughts then fled into and through Lisa's mind, the adrenaline count soaring. Lisa spun around on her heel and was about to sprint down into the cabin when she did a double take. Travis was stood just inches away from her, arms outstretched. Paying no attention to the blood on his t-shirt she laid into his arms. At that point she shrieked in agony as searing pain tore through her knee, shot up her leg and into her spine. Twisting her head around violently, the young girl was tearing gored muscle and flesh out the back of her shin. She kicked her leg and in doing so looked up at Travis. Only then did she notice the patch of blood soaked around Travis' t-shirt.
“No!” She cried as Travis muzzled her neck and sunk his teeth deep into the flesh. Blood pumped veraciously out of a torn artery.
Lisa began to struggle. First she shoved Travis off her amidst a massive howl of agony. He slipped on some unseen thing and fell down onto his back. Next, she kicked the girl away whilst compressing her hand to her wounded neck. She could feel the warm and sticky blood sliding through her fingers like a raging torrent. The girl went flying into the mast and violently banged her head against it. She fell to the floor in shadow. Lisa turned back to look at Travis to find he was already regaining his feet. She turned to run, back to the powerboat but was lunged at by him. Travis locked his arms around her waist and they both went plunging over the side of the yacht into the cold, black midnight ocean. A cloud of blood erupted from deep beneath the frothing waves. The waves re-settled after the sudden penetration. No one came back up for air.
All was still. The yacht continued to drift through the night, painted by the ghostly visage of silver moonlight and was now accompanied by the stray powerboat. It's floodlight still shining.