Chapter 53

Thea almost fainted. In her mind, she cursed Jake vehemently. The pregnant woman was on the verge of tears, clutching her stomach with a panicked expression. "What should I do? If I lose my baby, what's the point of living?"

Thea tried to calm her. "Don't worry. We've already called for rescue, and they should be here soon." Without hesitation, Thea removed her life jacket and handed it to the pregnant woman. "Here, put this on and go. You might have to float for a bit, but the shore isn't far. You'll be safe." The pregnant woman looked surprised. "But what about you?"

Thea shook her head. "I'll be fine. You go." She remembered that Jake and Madelyn's lifeboat had life jackets aboard. They hadn't gone far, so there was still time.

But the yacht wouldn't hold together much longer. As Thea glanced at the open sea, a wave of dizziness washed over her. The truth was, she couldn't swim.

With no choice, Thea closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and dove into the water.

Meanwhile, things weren't going well for Jake and Madelyn. They hadn't expected a problem with the lifeboat. Fortunately, there were three life jackets aboard. After hurriedly putting them on, they jumped into the water, watching someone struggling and swimming toward them in the distance.

Thea was barely afloat, relying on rudimentary swimming techniques she'd learned online. A few strokes forward, then a gulp of water. Even the short distance felt exhausting.

As she got closer, she shouted, "Life jacket! I need a life jacket!"

Jake instinctively moved to throw one, but Madelyn grabbed his arm. Clutching the spare life jacket tightly, Madelyn sobbed, "Jake, let's just go. I'm terrified."

"Don't throw that away," Madelyn pleaded. "I'm scared I'll sink. I'm really scared of dying, Jake."

Jake sighed, helpless. "Don't worry, I'm here. But Thea needs a life jacket. We should give her the extra one."

Madelyn pouted. "Ms. Rowland can swim, can't she? I think she's just trying to get on the lifeboat with us. But there's only room for two."

"For the sake of our child, can't we be selfish this once? Thea's tough; she'll be fine, right?"

Looking at Madelyn's tear-streaked face, Jake hesitated.

In the end, Jake gave in, thrusting the spare life jacket into Madelyn's arms and speeding toward the shore. "Don't worry, I'll get us out of here." Thea, still struggling in the water, couldn't believe it when…