Chapter 24
“Son of a—” Dane was interrupted by a gun blast and bullet splashing into the water nearby—but not from Ned. Roger was shooting at them now.
Chauncey spun the agile craft around and aimed straight at Roger with his own gun.
Dane turned toward Ned and knew he wouldn’t get anywhere with his Glock against whatever monstrosity Ned was carrying.
They didn’t have much time, but they were on top of their target now.
He needed to get Shana away before Ned caught up with them.
“Shoot at their guns and their engine. Keep them distracted. I’m jumping in to get Shana,” Dane said as Chauncey shot a couple of rounds into their target’s boat in a direct hit and ducked away from return fire behind the small dash and steering handles.
Dane pushed off from the side and dove deep to avoid getting hit, aiming to swim around their blind side underwater and hoping his breath would hold out. The water was colder out here and it braced him, slowing his heartbeat and clearing his mind of everything but his target: Shana.
Once Dane surfaced he saw that Roger’s watercraft had caught fire.
The fire was small, but Roger’s pal, the driver, panicked and lost control as the craft swung erratically around toward the pier in slow motion.
Dane swam hard and caught the slowing craft from behind.
He watched Roger grab for Shana, holding her by the hair and around the neck.
Shana struggled against him, which gave Dane a chance to climb aboard and surprise Roger and his driver pal.
Dane shot the gun from the driver’s hand, wounding him in the process if the scream was any indication.
The small flames from the engine lapped around the sides of the craft and Dane knew he and Shana needed to jump soon.
His blood stormed to drive his pulse to a deafening roar in his temples.
Roger held onto Shana, backing her into the controls and his pal, exactly where Dane wanted her.
He gave her a long look as she clawed at the arm around her neck and she stared back, no panic in her eyes, nothing but seething volcanic anger.
He nodded his head the smallest fraction as they watched each other.
She made her move, lunging forward to a bent position, ducking her head and pulling Roger forward with her so that Dane had a clean shot.
But Dane didn’t shoot him. He thrust forward and knocked Roger across the temple with the substantial weight of his Glock, powered by the substantial force of his anger.
Then he grabbed Shana by the arm and pulled her overboard into the water with him.
Chauncey pulled their craft around to pick them up.
Dane held onto Shana in the water. She turned her head and held on, relaxing against him.
When their watercraft was within arm’s reach, he helped Shana climb on by pushing her from behind, letting his fingers dig into the flesh of her thighs and feeling the sensual pull in spite of everything.
He followed her on board as Chauncey looked over his shoulder at the horizon.
The buzzing of Ned’s loud boat hit Dane as he got on board and sat astride the back passenger seat.
Shit. Ned was closing in and getting close to shooting range.
Dane pulled his communication device from his pocket, hoping it still worked after all the salt water, and buzzed it to life, looking for the frequency for the Coast Guard.
“Mayday. Where the hell are you? We have an emergency. Two men captive and a third in assault mode. Could really use your help about now.”
He got a response after an excruciating beat of static. “Thirty seconds out. I can see the boat headed for Vineyard Haven harbor. On it. Out.”
He kept his eye on Ned and said, “Chaunce, I hope this thing still has enough gas to get us some space and buy time. Gun it for Oak Bluffs—west.” Dane pointed and Chauncey swung it around, causing Ned to change his angle slightly, but not gaining on them much.
“What about those guys?” Shana pointed at Roger and his pal lying prone on the disabled craft while a few flames still sparked and the water lapped against them.
“We’ll have to trust the Coast Guard to round them up after they chase Ned off.”
As he spoke, Dane saw Ned look over his shoulder and knew he’d seen the Coast Guard, but then he turned back and lifted his ridiculous gun and took aim at them.
“Jump—ditch this thing,” Dane said, but didn’t wait and grabbed Shana by the arm, pulling her with him back into the water on the far side of the craft.
Chauncey didn’t react quick enough and Ned got off three shots by the time Dane pulled himself back up to get his friend.
Ned’s boat was turning and they heard the shouting from the Coast Guard bullhorn and their boat in pursuit. And gunshots.
Chauncey wasn’t moving. Shana pulled herself up behind him and hissed a swear in his ear and they both saw the blood splattered on the windshield of the craft.
Dane pulled Chauncey from his hunched position down low against the controls to find him conscious.
“Grazed. Right arm. I figured I should stay down.” Chauncey grimaced as Dane checked the wound.
It looked shallow, but he knew it must hurt like a son of a bitch.
Reaching into one of his leg pockets, Dane pulled out a square hanky-like cloth and pushed it onto the wound.
Chauncey held it in place with his opposite arm.
“The cloth is wet and salty, but it’ll have to do,” Dane said, realizing it would sting like hell.
“Guess I’m getting slow in my old age. I was a beat too long in my reaction time.” Chauncey clenched his teeth. Shana crowded over Dane’s shoulder to check on his emergency medical work.
Dane looked up to see where Ned was heading and jumped up to his feet to take the controls while Chauncey backed out of the way. Ned was heading to Oak Bluffs, and that was where they needed to be, but the Coast Guard would blow everything if they went barreling in. They’d lose Susan Whittier.
Dane gunned the engine and radioed the Coast Guard to go after the small watercraft with the two prone thugs. “We’ll give chase to the outboard speedboat.”
“You sure? Looked like he had a substantial weapon—”
“We’re sure. We’re armed.” Dane hoped to hell he had enough bullets left. Shana read his mind and grabbed Chauncey’s camera bag and pulled out another clip.
“We’ll get him. Out.” Dane shut the communicator off.
He thought fleetingly of calling Cap but needed to concentrate on keeping Ned from getting to the Tavares yacht where everyone waited.
Where they had the setup to find and free Susan Whittier and nab the bastards who took her—and who knew how many other women they’d kidnapped and sold.
By this time, Ned had all his attention on the Coast Guard boat and tried to take off. His weapon was nowhere in sight. Dane figured it was a good time to give chase in earnest.
“Hang on,” he shouted over his shoulder to Shana and Chauncey.
Shana positioned herself to hang onto the boat and Chauncey to keep him secure.
Dane tried to ignore the spike of something he felt as he turned back.
He swore he’d show his appreciation later.
When this was all over with. But right now, he had his sights on Ned and his speedboat and he was closing in.
It would be close, but they should be able to catch him before they got within sight of the Oak Bluffs Marina where the Tavares yacht waited for them.
Ned turned to shoot and Dane made an evasive maneuver with his agile little craft.
He decided he liked it as he stood and prepared to fire back once he drew within another twenty yards.
He’d have to continue to maneuver and try and make a shot with the craft all over the water.
He turned to Shana, who still held on tight to Chauncey.
“Shana, I need you to take over the controls. I need to get a shot off.”
She managed to climb over and stand with Dane and took the steering handles and the throttle. She seemed familiar with the craft. She probably lived on the water back in Sydney.
Ned turned to fire at them again. They ducked as low as they could behind the meager windshield, but Shana hung onto the control and kept them swerving back and forth along Ned’s wake. His shots all missed and he threw his gun aside and slowed his boat.
“What the hell is he doing?” Shana sounded alarmed.
“Don’t worry—he probably thinks he’s going to swamp us, but he’s actually giving me a chance to take a clean shot.
” As Dane spoke, he balanced his arm along the shield and took aim while Shana slowed and held the craft steady.
Ned turned and saw the gun aimed at him, but it was too late for him to take cover.
Dane pulled the trigger, then took aim again. Within twenty seconds he emptied his clip and Ned had either fallen or taken cover.
His boat turned in a slow endless arc with no one at the wheel. Dane signaled for Shana to cut the engine so they could approach with caution.
“I think you hit him,” she said, excitement in her voice.
“Damn. I think you’re right. I hate to say it, but I hope he’s still alive and conscious. I have some questions for him about where Susan is being kept on the boat and how many guards she has and what kind of firepower they have.”
They were twenty yards away and Dane was prepared to jump into the water again when he saw Ned struggling to a stand with his gun.
“Shit—get us out of here,” Dane shouted and swung his body around to shield Shana.
Off balance, Ned got off a burst of gunfire, most of it hitting the water, but not all. Shana gunned the engines at the same time a shot hit the engine and gas tank. A fire immediately sparked to life and Dane pulled Shana away and into the water.
“Chauncey—hit the water,” Dane shouted, but he was already overboard.
Dane turned to see Ned struggling back to the wheel.
“We have to take him out,” Shana said. Ned swung his boat back around and Dane grabbed Chauncey to take cover behind their burning craft. Shana wrestled with the camera case to find another weapon, but Ned came up on them fast.
With one arm holding the gun on them and the other reaching over the boat, he tried grabbing Shana from the water. She kicked and fought him, and that gave Dane the chance he needed to make a move.
He swam under the burning boat and when he got to the other side he used his legs to push off and surge up out of water exactly where Ned leaned over his boat with Shana at gunpoint.
Using the surprise, Dane moved with lightning speed to wield his gun at Ned, hitting him on the head with a decisive crack.
“Get in—I’ll get Chauncey.” Dane yelled to Shana, then took another breath, realizing his lungs were heaving. He swam back under the watercraft to save time. Chauncey had been hanging onto their burning boat, but he’d lost blood and wouldn’t last.
That was Dane’s thought as he swam down searching through the dark water for Chauncey’s legs.
Then a mind-splitting explosion hit him, forcing him deep down in a tumble until he became totally disoriented.
His ears rang and his lungs burned as he tried to figure out which way was up in the dark deep water.