Wheeling Gull Isle i'm growing and it hurts

His taunt invigorated her, and her face was determined and playful as she splashed after him, eager to catch up. It was only when the waves reached her belly did she freeze in place, water rushing around her still legs, going on without her.

Her eyes were shut; there was no way she was going to open them, not in these unfamiliar conditions. Blind as the day she was born, her body hurtled through the icy depths, careening with the current. The seconds ticked by, and her lungs were beginning to burn. Her toes skirted the bottom of the creek, raking painfully against the jagged pebbles.

Maegi's head suddenly throbbed where it had hit the stones beneath the surface of Otter Creek, and she sucked in a panicked breath, taking shaky steps backwards until she stood on dry land again, saltwater dripping from her belly. She quivered from head to toe, staring straight ahead, eyes round and fearful. She felt teeth on her neck, on her face, ripping her apart. . .

It was only a few moments later that she realized her numb lips were chanting "No. . .no. . .no. . ." in an endless mantra, gaze fixed on the waves but not seeing them. Not seeing anything but that mountain, and those faces, the ones that haunted her nightmares.