Flood of Blood

By David Mayer

Greater Recife, on the Brazilian state of Pernambuco. In the 1970s, there was a flood that killed approximately 104 people. That calamity caused these deaths, directly or indirectly. However, this manuscript deals with five victims of a deadly shark attacks that took place in the same period.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BadPress
• Release date: Nov 9, 2023
• ISBN: 9781667446271

Book preview

FLOOD OF BLOOD

BY DAVID FERREIRA MAYER

TRANSLATED BY GUILHERME MACHADO MEIRA

Greater Recife, on the Brazilian state of Pernambuco. In the 1970s, there was a flood that killed approximately 104 people. That calamity caused these deaths, directly or indirectly. However, this manuscript deals with five victims of a deadly shark attacks that took place in the same period.

THREE DAYS BEFORE THE CAPIBARIBE RIVER FLOOD

I

On that unforgettable night, a relentless rain was drumming down on the roof of my Beetle. The car was a gift from my father when I got my bachelor's degree in journalism at the Federal University of Pernambuco. I made a lot of friends during my time there. I was a member of the academic journal and authored articles and columns. I inherited my mother's affinity for written language and my father's policeman tenacity.

My mother had passed away from lung cancer the previous year, and my old man had been living at the bottom of a bottle of cachaça, his face always flushed and tearful.

As the drizzle crashed down on the windshield, the wipers moved at full speed. Despite the moon's silver glow above the woods surrounding us, sparse rainclouds lingered across the night sky.

Won't this damn rain stop? growled my girlfriend from the passenger seat, adjusting her large square glasses.

Gabriela was a chubby girl with a playful smile that denounced her aptitude for comedy. Always ready to indulge in the most diverse adventures. A perfect partner for all hours, even if her mother didn't really approve of our partnership.

Gabi got her degree in journalism at the same time as I did. While we studied together, our romance was established amidst bar outings with our classmates, rum, healthy conversations, and Samba de Gafieira.

My adorable little car rattled before the muddy bombardment from the puddles; it heaved up and down as if we were on the high seas. What the hell was Rafael thinking, coming to such a place in rain like this? But the weed clouding his judgement spawned the best stories to share with friends, and this time, in the most horrifying way, that would still be true.

We saw two headlights turned towards the sea in the distance. It was Daniel's car. I parked the car nearby and we headed off under an umbrella. The raindrops grew smaller, and they only slid off and dampened our clothes and skin. We arrived at an abandoned beach bar. The whole structure was wooden, and the roof was made of dried palm thatch. There we found my crazy friend and his girlfriend. They were taking the rest of their clothes off, now in nothing but their underwear.

The man wearing underpants and a wide, sincere smile was Daniel, also known as Handsome by me and other close friends, because beneath the blond curls of his hair shone blue eyes and an angular face sculpted by Aphrodite herself. The girl in the red underwear was Juliana, his girlfriend. She was thin, but unlike my own scrawny figure, she had sensual curves that aroused desire in most men. Her straight hair seemed to always be perfectly ironed.

Are we interrupting something, Daniel? I smiled as I approached the lamp.

Of course not, he said as he threw his shirt on the floor. You came at the perfect time! Juliana and I are dying for a dip in the ocean.

Are you insane? It must be freezing in there. This cold and rainy weather won't help, either.

Trust me, Afrânio. When have I ever let you down? Besides, the old man let me borrow the boat. There's my bathtub with an engine, he said, pointing at an object floating up and down on the ocean. It’s gonna be great.

There's no way I'm not going, said my girlfriend, taking off her clothes and following the other two towards the water.

I sighed in defeat and began undressing. I hated displaying my skin-and-bones physique. My visible ribs, my concave stomach, the lack of muscle in my arms, my bad posture. No matter how much food I gobbled down, I remained stick-thin. I ran after them, now wearing nothing but my underpants, and felt the wet, soft sand, and the freezing waves.

The night sky was clearing out and the rain became just a memory. I watched Daniel swim with vigorous strokes and reach the small boat, then climb aboard. He turned on driving lights that lit up the surface of the black sea around us. I was the last one out of the water. We were all shivering, except for Daniel. He grabbed a little bag he brought inside his underwear, sat on a stool, and began the work of an addict. He put the weed inside a blank and rolled it. By the time Daniel was done, there were five joints lying on the floor. He offered them to everyone and lit up. We relaxed as the cold faded into the past.

I felt the boat rise and fall on the unstable ocean, and the anchor pulling and straining the rope towards the deep.

Guys, said Daniel with a dopey smile, today is my birthday, and I'm very happy to share it with you all. Can you believe that when I asked my dad for the boat, the old fool didn't even remember it? And my mom couldn't even be bothered to call me from São Paulo. She says she's too busy, her usual excuse. That's why I say it's good to be with good friends. And with a special girl like you, Juliana.

He kissed his girlfriend. My own girlfriend took the opportunity to lean closer and take shelter under my arm. I hugged her as I took a puff of the cigarette.

I'm glad we came, Afrânio, she smiled as she watched the couple on the other side of the boat exchanging caresses and kisses.

So am I, Gabi. Although I still think this is crazy, I smiled.

I felt a bump against the hull of the boat. Gabriela's muscles tensed up. I wasn't the only one imagining things.

Was that a fish?

It must've been a pretty big fish, huh? I replied, somewhat ironically.

We leaned over and looked out into the sea. Just the blackness, the waves, and the foam. Nothing unusu—

A fin.

Did you see that fin? I pointed out, half whispering, half screaming.

Gabriela strained her eyes in the direction I indicated.

I don't see anything. Are you sure it was a fin you saw? The sea is too cold for a shark to get this close to shore. At least I think so...

I did not say a word. It could have been anything.

"I'm not sure. It