She needed air. A flurry of bubbles escaped her mouth as she released the arm and swam to the surface. Making a desperate grab for a wheel, she climbed on top of the ruined cab. Victoria beat on it with her fist twice, then paused to listen for a response. Nothing. She tried again. Only the quiet gurgling of the water around the submerged buggy answered her.
A fit of despair swept through her. Lifting her head, she screamed at the night sky. The echoes rolled back to her from the trees. She screamed again, pounding her fist against the metal husk that had become a coffin. The cold steel shifted beneath her as she rolled onto her back. Her third scream broke down into sobs. Warm tears trickled out from beneath her eyelids and traced new tracks of wetness across her face. If only she could have brought the horses under control. If only she'd learned how to drive and swim instead of spending her time reading those silly novels, her parents would still be alive. The knowledge that the evening drive came about as a result of her refusal to marry twisted her insides with guilt until she felt like vomiting.
She didn't know how long she lay on top of her parents' tomb. When at last the storm subsided, she shivered and lifted her head.
Yellow eyes peered at her from the riverbank.
Victoria's despair vanished beneath a white-hot flame of rage. The creature stood at the water's edge, lantern eyes fixed on her. It knew exactly what it and its kin had done to her. She pulled herself into a crouching position, waiting for the monster to leap across the water. It might kill her, too, but she refused to be easy prey.
"Come, you coward!" she called, beckoning to the shadow.
The hound made no reply. Its eyes glowed large and grotesque in its dark face. Beneath them, black jaws worked in silence. Victoria returned its gaze, hands curled into fists, ready for anything. Another shadow joined the first on the riverbank, but neither one made a move toward her.
"Filthy beasts!" She rose to her full height, balancing on the wreck. "I'm right here!"
The creatures turned their heads, their eyes looking downstream. Victoria glanced in the same direction but only saw the moonlit water. Turning back to the creatures, she beckoned to them again, but whatever they saw downriver held their attention. She yelled and waved her arms. They ignored her. After a few moments, they turned and ran into the night, vanishing into the shadows along the river.
Victoria watched them go, her defiant posture deflating. Exhaustion flooded her body, and she collapsed into a sitting position atop the wreck. Her parents were dead. Those creatures had driven their buggy into the river and drowned them. The realization left her numb, as cold and unfeeling as the river beneath her. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she realized what a sight she must be, sitting on a ruined buggy in the middle of a river in naught but her wet underthings. It would certainly be the talk of Oxford if someone found her.
She put her hand against the cold metal, intending to push herself back on her feet. Her palm slipped, and she found herself lying on her side. A breath of wind made her shiver. She needed to get up, to go back into town for help, and she would. Just not yet.
"Hallo! Are you all right up there?"
Victoria's eyes snapped open. Where was she?
"Miss? Can you hear me?"
Maybe they were talking to her. It would be polite to answer. She opened her mouth to speak, but she could only produce a hoarse croak. Stiff with cold, her arms creaked in protest as she forced herself upright. Blinking away the haze of sleep, she looked around for the speaker.
There, on the riverbank: a shadow was holding a lantern in one hand. The yellow light sent a thrill of fear through her body, and her eyes snapped wide open. Her legs were under her in an instant, ready to fight, ready to run.
"You're awake," the shadow said. "Can you tell me what happened?"
Victoria swallowed. The monsters hadn't talked to her before. "Um..." she managed, her voice thin.
"I'm sorry?"
"There was an accident," she said.
"I can bloody well see that," the man said. "Are you all right?"
She felt along her own body, hands burning with the cold. "I think so. A bit chilly, though." She wrapped her arms around herself, suddenly remembering