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Prologue

South Bimini

Septe screa as the roar of thunder on a cloudless day

Vanessa Loren i and fear as deep-seated as any natural instinct see to settle into her, blood, body and soul

So jarring! It brought casual conversation to a halt, brought those seated to their feet, brought fear to all eyes It was the sound of the screa during the day’s work

The ocean breeze had been beautiful throughout the afternoon and evening; it seeently wave off the last dead heat of the day, leaving a balmy temperature behind as the sun sank in the western horizon with an astonishing palette of criold

The file of the sparse pine forest, just yards away frouides who had brought theeable, and there was little not to like about the project, especially as night fell and the last of the blazing, then pastel, shades faded into the sea, and it and the horizon see the ocean in a blur

A bonfire burned with various shades froathered around as it grew dark South Bi a small but popular fisherman’s restaurant and little more, unlike the more tourist-friendly North Bimini, where numerous shops, bars and restaurants lined as known as The King’s Highway in Alice Town

They had taken it a step further than South Bi to fil out to the southwest One with a nareatly appealed to Jay

Haunt Island

A long tio, there had been a pirate ed, and it was this very story that Vanessa had used in her script for the low-budget horror filo, Haunt Island was currently just a place where boaters cale dock and an abundance of beach Out here, tourism wasn’t plentiful--the terrain remained wild and natural, beloved by naturalists and caroup, but now they were down to ten There were Georgia Dare and Travis Glenn, the two actors playing the characters who remained alive in the script; Jay Allen, director; Barry Melkie, sound; Zoe Cally, props, costu; Bill Hinton, and Jake Magnoli, the two young production assistants/lighting/sound/gophers/wherever needed guys; their Bahauide, Lew Sanderson; and Vanessa herself, writer and backup with the cae

It was all but a wrap The historical legend filled with real horror that was sure to be a box-office hit on a shoestring budget had been all but co out of their tents to enjoy the chaainst the backdrop of the sunset and the breeze

And then the sound of the screaia Dare had

Until that moment, Vanessa Loren had enjoyed the project It was siet horror flick that actually had a plot She had written the script In addition, she and Jay were financially co to work in any capacity She was ready to do instant rewrites as needed because of the actors and the environment, and she could film underwater shots and even pitch in as second camera for many of the land shots

Jay, the director, was planning onon the success of such films as The Blair Witch Project and Paranormal State Vanessa and Jay had known each other forever, and had both gone to fil back in Miaree at the University of Mia a few investors to finance a really good low-budget flick

Luckily, she had just been nicely paid for work she had done writing and filear It had been one of the few projects she had worked on that hadn’t been rewritten by a dozen people before co to fruition--and it had been a sixty-second spot

Jay agreed with her that if they were going to do the project, an independent endeavor, it had to be done really well However, they were also looking for commercial success So the script ritten but also included the usual assortment of teen-slasher-flick characters--the jock who counted his conquests with scratches on his football hel hero, the popular slut coirl bookworm So far, two characters had been killed in the water, two had disappeared froht the evil, reborn pirates on land and sea and somehow survive until help could corounded in the Atlantic

The screa a glass of cha with Jay, Lew and Carlos They’d broken it open just a few athered to cook dinner over the fire and the caht and finish off the rest of the chane

At the screa They looked at one another in the eerie light produced by the fla toward the sound