Sea Sick: A Horror Novel

“Shit!” Pain exploded in the side of Jack’s head. He pulled back from the girl and felt his ear rip clear away from his skull. He looked down at Claire and saw her chewing it between her bloodsoaked teeth. Everyone around Jack was screaming in terror, just like people had been in the High Spirits lounge. He felt like he was going to pass out.

Claire twisted and turned on the floor in front of him, bunching up onto her hands and knees, before straightening up to her full length. In many ways she looked just the same as before – a pretty young woman – but Jack could already see the wells of bloody tears forming in her eyes. She came at Jack with her arms outstretched, exactly like her boyfriend had earlier. Jack was so horrified by what was happening that by the time he even managed to consider an appropriate reaction, Claire’s teeth had already begun to sink deep into his windpipe.



Day 3

Jack awoke with a start. The fuzziness that filled his head and covered the back of his eyelids was a feeling he had not experienced for some time, yet it was vaguely familiar. The vibrations throbbing through his skull were akin to a hangover and Jack tried to remember if he’d gone for a drink after boarding the ship. Strange as it was, though, Jack remembered going to bed almost as soon as he’d been shown to his room.

Jack sat up in the bed and blinked his eyes. The room was dark. The light from the cabin’s window was blocked by the curtain dividing the bedroom from the living area. There was a cube-shaped alarm clock on the bedside table displaying the time in glowing, red numerals. It read: 1400.

Jesus! I slept for 24 hours.

Jack got up and moved around the edge of the bed, then headed over to the area near the room’s door. He fumbled for the light switch and somehow knew almost exactly where it was. The room lit up and Jack blinked his eyes for a moment as they adjusted. Once he could focus clearly, he saw that it had been his luggage crashing against the wardrobe door that had woken him. The ship must have crested a rough wave. As if to confirm his suspicions, the room tilted again and the luggage bashed against the door.

The urge to stretch took over Jack and he gave in to it, reaching his hands towards the ceiling and cracking his shoulder joints. Suddenly a sheet of darkness clouded his vision, followed by several flashes of bizarre images. It made Jack stagger briefly, almost falling to the floor. He felt tired, disorientated – almost sick. Perhaps he was coming down with a cold.

I guess I needed sleep more than I realised. One night of rest and my mind is one big mess.

He yanked aside the room-divider curtain and went over to the cabin’s porthole window. Beyond the wooden Promenade Deck was the vast expanse of the blue-green Mediterranean. The ship was currently at sea.

Something hit the window and Jack leapt backwards, startled. He sighed when it turned out to be just a seagull perching on the ledge of his porthole. The bird stared in with its beady black eyes and, bizarrely, Jack felt like he’d met the creature before. The seagull had an expression of disapproval on his face and flew away a second later.

Jack let out another yawn and decided to go for a shower. It was a strange morning so far and he wanted the hot water to help wake him up. After months of barely sleeping, finally getting some rest had left his mind muddled and confused. Once he was fully refreshed he would feel better. He was sure of it.

The small, en suite bathroom was cooler than the rest of the cabin. A breeze seemed to enter unseen from somewhere and skim across the tiles. Jack reached into the shower and twisted the knob jutting out from the wall. The shower head hissed and sprayed a freezing jet of water all over Jack. He cursed and yanked back his arm. He decided to take a leak while the water warmed up.