Chapter 30
30
LUCA
A s the two of us turned, I was keenly aware of my gun and its holster concealed under my jacket. I could take care of this problem in a well-placed shot.
The man stood glaring at us, trying to look threatening in his polo shirt and deck shoes. Behind him, his wife clutched her phone with trembling hands, her diamonds glittering under the sunlight.
“Where’s Uncle James?” Celia’s voice cracked with perfectly manufactured panic. I’d been reaching for my weapon, but her performance made me pause. “It’s such a relief to see you! We were mugged, and Luke tried to fight back and they shot him! We just barely managed to get away.”
She threw a terrified glance over her shoulder, her acting so convincing that I felt a pulse of admiration. The couple’s eyes followed her gaze just as another gunshot echoed across the water—Royal’s men, still searching the docks. Sometimes timing really was everything.
“Who’s Uncle James? Who are you?” the man repeated, but his tone was a little softer.
Their eyes followed her gaze. Just then, there was another echo of gunfire from the shore.
Celia cringed, casting a wide-eyed glance at them. “Oh my god, are we on the wrong boat? We were meeting my Uncle James and Aunt Charlotte on his friend’s boat! I’m sorry, I got so rattled when?—”
“We’re getting out of here.” The man was already moving toward the controls, exactly as she’d planned. These comfortable people with their comfortable lives, so eager to play hero when the script was familiar enough.
“Can you call 911 to meet us? We need the police, and Luke needs an ambulance.” Her voice trembled.
“Of course,” the woman said as she moved quickly to cast off.
The next thing I knew, we were moving out of the marina toward open water.
“Thank you so much,” Celia gushed to them. “I was so scared.”
“It’s okay,” the woman said. She was already calling the police.
As I walked over to the man, he started to rise from the steering wheel, as if he had a bad feeling. But they were nice people, which made them slow to react.
I grabbed him and heaved him overboard before he could put up much of a fight. His hand snagged my jacket and ripped it, before he splashed down.
The woman let out a scream, and I crossed to her in a few quick strides. When I knocked the phone out of her hands, it sailed into the water.
“I’m sorry, ma’am. We don’t want to hurt you. But we need to get away.” I told her, before scooping her up and dropping her over the side too. Her nails raked my biceps, but she couldn’t put up much of a fight.
Then the two of them were splashing in the water and screaming, and I was taking a seat in the captain’s chair. “I always wanted to try sailing. I guess I’ll take a yacht.”
I wasn’t sure how long it would take for whatever kind of law enforcement there was for stolen boats to arrive. But we would need to ditch it soon anyway. Still, I was pretty sure we had all the chance we needed to separate ourselves from Royal and Gabriel.
Celia was glaring at me. “They were nice to us. You didn’t have to do that.”
“They did seem like good people. And they seemed like good swimmers, too, so you don’t have to feel too sorry for them.” I had to raise my voice to be heard over the engine as I opened it up. He had steered us out of the marina, and now I went full speed down the shoreline. “They have a yacht, starlight. I have a feeling they’ll be fine.”
“You think because they’re rich, it’s okay to steal from them?”
“Absolutely.” Shit, I must be losing blood faster than I realized. The world was going dark and fuzzy at the edges.
She stared at me, then shrugged. “You have an interesting perspective on the world.”
“Starlight, come over here and take the wheel.”
“You trust me to drive?”
“I trust you more than I trust myself right now,” I said, right before I fell out of the seat and sprawled across the wooden boards.
The last thing I saw was Celia’s face leaning above mine. Her soft pink lips were parted, and her brow was furrowed with concern. For me. For one unguarded moment, I saw how she really felt for me written across her face.
I reached for her as the darkness washed over me.
I woke up later and realized I was lying on something soft. She leaned over me and brushed my hair back with her hand.
“Hush, rest,” she told me softly, but I wasn’t aware I’d made much of a sound.
“We have to get somewhere Royal won’t find us—” Through my confusion, the memory of the man in the pool came back to me. I hoped to fucking hell he drowned. I should have made sure to finish him off.
He could tell her father that she had helped me. Then her father might very well try to kill her.
I started to get up, and she stopped me with her hand on my chest. “Don’t move. I got the bullet out while you were unconscious, but I’ve never stitched anyone up before. I’m not sure my work is good.”
I stared up at her in wonder. “You really are amazing.”
“I really should have let you bleed out,” she returned quickly. But then her voice softened. “Rest, Luca. Let me look out for us both for now. I’ll make sure we’re safe.”
And to my surprise, I believed her.
I trusted her.
I fell asleep.