Chapter 26
Davina squinted against a bright flashlight as the van door opened. She was lying next to Ben, who was coughing up blood at an alarming rate, much of it seeping into her blouse and wetting the skin beneath.
“Give me your feet,” barked the man, and she twisted her torso to do as she was told.
Using a knife, he cut the rope that bound her ankles together.
“You try to run, and I’ll shoot you.” He hauled her up and out of the van, setting her beside his sidekick.
She winced as the first man yanked Ben out of the van, the severity of his injuries making even the slightest movement difficult.
“Go,” said the first man, gesturing into the darkness with his gun, and she blindly headed in that direction. His flashlight illuminated only a few feet in front of her, the air strangely hazy with an acrid, swampy tang.
Ben stumbled beside her and fell to the ground. “Get up!” snapped the smaller man, kicking him in the side.
“Don’t kick him, you imbecile! How’s he going to walk?”
Davina squinted into the haze, barely able to make out the shape of something looming just out of range. A foghorn sounded nearby. Ben got back to his feet, and they slowly resumed their march. The hull of a ship materialized from the thick evening air.
“Get off my ship,” called the big man, shining his light to the top of the boat, though it wasn’t strong enough for her to see what was up there.
“Let them go,” came the reply, Zach’s voice as clear and familiar to her as a ringing bell, and her already beleaguered nervous system ramped up again.
The smaller man yelled, “Only after you get off the boat!”
“As soon as we set foot on that ladder, you’re going to shoot us,” called Zach.
“It seems we’re at an impasse.”
Davina turned to see who was speaking, a man’s voice from out of the darkness. The sound of dress shoes clicked on the pavement, and a silver-haired man appeared as if from nowhere.
“I want my boat,” the old man said. “And you want your family. Isn’t that right, Moto?
That’s what they call you, I know.” He walked closer to the ship, his voice carrying on the humid night air.
“I know all about you. I know about HERO Force. I know about your son, Wyatt. I know you are a man with much to live for, not the least of which is this woman, here.” He gestured to Davina, and she felt dizzy with fear.
From the corner of her eye, she saw Ben sway, and she turned to catch him as he went down, his weight pulling them both toward the ground.
Two pops sounded in quick succession, the men who’d held them captive suddenly dropping, darkness spreading across their chests as the smell of blood tinged the air.
The old man fired a gun at the ship. Davina screamed, though she could no longer see Zach on the vessel’s deck, and she hoped he had managed to escape.
The old man headed toward her, grabbing her by the hair and pulling her to a stand, an unconscious Ben rolling to the pavement.
The man held his gun to her head. “Get off my ship, now!” he bellowed.
She stared at the spot where she’d last seen him, waiting for him to materialize. Seconds ticked by, then what seemed like minutes.
“You leave me no choice,” shouted the man. “I will start with your brother.” He aimed the weapon at Ben’s head. Davina screamed.
“Wait!” yelled Zach. “We’re right here. In the water.” He and Razorback swam for a ladder on the side of the berth. “You can have your damn ship. Just let them go.” Moto got out first, the men soaking wet, their empty hands in the air.
“You stupid fools. Do you really think I would let you live?” The man lowered his weapon to fire on the men, just as Sloan looped a wire over his neck and pulled it tight.
Davina ran toward Moto, when suddenly a fireball exploded below the water, lifting up the ship and throwing it back down with a thunderous boom.
Flames shot out of the top deck, as DeRegina’s body twitched in the throes of death and Davina was wrapped tightly in Zach’s arms.