Chapter 171 Thank You for Still Being Alive
Alexander and Jeremy rushed towards the second floor.
The deck was on the second level—everyone evacuating would head there.
When they reached the second floor, the sight before them was overwhelming. A sea of humanity stretched as far as the eye could see.
Like a colony of ants, people poured from the first and third floor stairwells toward the second-level deck exits.
The elevators had sunk to the bottom. Some people had tried to escape through them, only to find themselves trapped inside.
Alexander scanned the crowd and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Grace!"
Everyone was focused solely on saving their own lives. No one paid him any attention.
Jeremy also pushed against the human tide, calling out, "Ms. Foster! Ms. Foster!"
Suddenly, someone ran toward them. "The Ms. Foster you're looking for—is that Number 19?"
This person was one of the "meat pigs" who'd been auctioned. Grace had rescued them all, but had only told them her surname was Foster.
He only remembered that Grace was Number 19.
Alexander whirled toward the man and grabbed his arm. "Do you know where she is?"
The man replied, "I just saw her on the first floor—don't know if she's dead or alive..."
With that, he immediately wrenched free from Alexander's grip, desperate only to escape.
Alexander and Jeremy headed for the first floor, but found they couldn't get down.
The earlier bomb blast had destroyed the cargo hold. The entire first floor and below was shrouded in black smoke.
Below the first floor, raging flames consumed everything in their path.
Meanwhile, the first floor itself presented a horrific scene.
The fire had burst the water pipes, flooding the area completely.
"Damn it..." Jeremy muttered. "The first floor's about to be completely submerged..."
Alexander moved to go down, but Jeremy grabbed him. "Mr. Hayes, it's all water down there..."
True, the water only reached halfway up, but water conducted electricity. If there was a power line down somewhere...
The water could electrocute dozens of people.
Alexander didn't hesitate. He stepped into the water with his long legs.
Looking around, he saw that everyone on the first floor had either escaped or drowned—or worse...
"Alexander?"
Suddenly, Grace's hoarse, desperate voice carried from the distance. "Alexander!"
Alexander spun toward the sound. Grace was holding the little girl, wading through water, struggling toward the first floor exit.
The water's resistance was enormous.
The little girl was short, so Grace had to wade through the water while carrying her—making progress incredibly difficult.
When Alexander spotted her, his lips curved involuntarily.
She was alive!
He'd never been so grateful for anything in his life.
"Grace..."
He immediately ran toward her.
The water gradually rose to his thighs.
At that height, it nearly reached Grace's waist.
In another three minutes, the first floor would be completely submerged.
The lights overhead suddenly flickered, then went out entirely.
Grace's heart lurched.
In the darkness, her vision was terrible—she suffered from night blindness.
The circuit breakers had been destroyed by fire and water, plunging the entire ship into pitch black.
Fear began to creep in. She couldn't see, had no sense of direction, and her movements through the water slowed as she called his name fearfully: "Alexander... Alexander..."
Then she heard the sound of churning water growing closer.
"Alexander..."
Grace called out joyfully.
His gentle voice suddenly sounded above her head: "I'm here."
Alexander didn't have time for lengthy conversation. With one arm, he scooped up the little girl and hoisted her onto his shoulder; with the other, he wrapped around Grace's waist and pulled her toward the first floor exit.
The water gradually rose to Grace's chest.
She felt her chest constrict as the water rose, making breathing difficult. Underwater, her movements became clumsy—she felt like he was practically carrying her.
Grace asked hoarsely, "Alexander, can you see?"
Alexander replied, "Yes, I can see."
Even if he couldn't, he would have remembered the route he'd taken to get here.
Two minutes later.
Alexander pulled her up the stairs.
The water had already submerged half the staircase.
When Grace felt the step beneath her feet, her heart finally settled.
Thank goodness...
Thank goodness he'd come.
Otherwise...
She and Lily would have drowned here for certain.
She'd bet correctly.
Her hero would definitely come to save her.
Perhaps it was a blessing in disguise—
The fire had burst the water pipes and nearly flooded the first floor, but it had also extinguished the flames in the cargo hold. The explosives had been soaked and rendered useless, preventing further detonations.
Alexander didn't have time for extensive conversation. Carrying the little girl in one arm and holding Grace's hand with the other, he brought them to the second floor.
The deck was now packed with people.
"Mr. Hayes!"
Jeremy, who'd been waiting to provide backup, immediately rushed over and took the little girl from Alexander's arms.
Alexander said, "We need to get out of here immediately."
Jeremy replied, "I've already called for a helicopter. We'll go straight to the observation tower."
"Right."
They immediately climbed up to the observation tower.
In the distance, a helicopter flew toward the watchtower.
Standing at this height, Grace looked down at the entire deck and realized that dense crowds of people covered it like a black mass.
The ship was about to sink.
The surrounding armed cruisers had deployed gangways for orderly evacuation.
But the gangways could only accommodate one person at a time.
Everyone wanted to be first, to escape the life-threatening danger as quickly as possible.
Some people, driven mad with desperation and fearing they'd be left behind, began pushing and shoving.
As people in front stepped onto the gangways, those behind immediately scrambled up, pushing and pulling.
Amid continuous screams, people kept falling from the gangways into the sea.
Cries, calls for help, and curses merged into a cacophony.
The ship began splitting down the middle.
Some people, not watching their footing, fell into the cracks.
Others were pushed over the railings, plummeting from great heights into the ocean.
As the ship tilted, people were caught off guard and slid off the deck, crashing into masts and rigging...
In the churning waves, people continuously fell into the sea and were swept away by the current.
From this height, falling would mean certain death—if not from drowning, then from being smashed to pieces.
The scene before them was like a vision of hell.
Grace watched in horror.
Alexander gently covered her eyes with his hand. "Don't look."
He hadn't expected Grace to save a little girl under such circumstances, but her capabilities were limited—she couldn't save everyone.
Grace couldn't bear to watch anymore either. She turned away, burying her face against his chest.
Alexander said, "You've already done wonderfully."
Grace looked up.
Alexander said, "Thank you."
Grace didn't know whether to laugh or cry, but felt somewhat puzzled. "Thank me for what?"
He was the one who'd saved her, after all.
Alexander smiled, wrapping his right arm tightly around her. "Thank you for staying alive."
He felt incredibly grateful that she was still alive.
Just moments ago, he'd had the thought that if he couldn't find her—if he'd lost her—he would rather join her at the bottom of the sea.
Grace's nose stung with emotion as she tightly wrapped her arms around his shoulders.
She'd also thought... she would die here.
If he hadn't come...
She and Lily would probably have died together in despair...