Chapter 10
Arthur knew Rex had been on the roof the entire time and with the window open, Arthur had to believe Rex had heard everything.
Now all he had to do was get out of the zip tie restraints and beat the shit out of the asshole that had made him bleed.
Then there was Ferro. It would take a fucking miracle to keep Arthur from taking the knife Ferro held to Maren’s neck and jabbing it into Ferro’s heart a half dozen times, watching his face as his life slowly faded into the abyss.
That asshole had taken away one woman he’d loved.
No fucking way would Arthur allow history to repeat itself.
The goon that had cuffed him now gripped his biceps and yanked him toward the door.
“Where are you taking me?”
“To your demise,” Ferro said.
Arthur didn’t fight it. He hated leaving Maren and her mother in the office, but right now, he had no choice.
Ferro wouldn’t bat an eyelash at ordering one of his men to put a bullet in Arthur’s head and that wouldn’t help Maren one bit.
Besides, Arthur didn’t feel like dying today.
Once outside, he scanned the area.
Fuck.
Kent, Buddy, and Duncan were on their knees, hands in the air, on the dock in front of Arthur’s boat.
Arthur glanced up and over his shoulder. Rex stood on the roof, hands in the air, Ferro’s hired help pressing a gun in his back.
Rex raised his hand in front of his chest and quickly pointed toward the Intracoastal, then held up five fingers, made a fist, and held up three.
Backup was eight minutes out.
All Arthur had to do was remain cool for the longest eight minutes of his life.
The goon pushed Arthur toward the dock.
“So, what’s the plan?” Arthur asked.
“You’re going to die, that’s the plan,” the goon said.
“How?”
“Shut the fuck up before I hit you again.”
“Don’t you think it’s only fair?—”
Smack!
Arthur’s head jerked to the side when the goon’s fist landed on his cheek.
“Motherfucker.”
“Keep talking, asshole, and I’ll keep using you as a punching bag.”
Well, that took up maybe forty-five seconds.
The sound of Rex dragging his feet echoed behind Arthur. He wanted to turn around and tell Rex to pick his fucking feet up. It drove Arthur nuts when Rex was too lazy to walk like a normal person.
The dragging got louder.
“Jesus, Rex. Walk much?”
“I’ll walk however I like, especially when you might get me killed, jackass.”
“You’re not dead, yet,” Arthur said as his feet hit the dock, eyeing his other buddies as their captors loaded them onto his boat.
Down to five minutes.
Arthur cleared his mind. He hated not knowing other people’s plans, and right now, all he knew was that Maren’s life was in someone else’s hands.
He stopped in front of his boat slip and blinked, letting the reality of the situation sink in.
He smiled.
Kent, Duncan, Buddy, and the two men he thought had been Ferro’s goons had turned out to be Hawke and Garth, who all held assault rifles.
The goon holding Arthur’s biceps held his weapon up.
“I’d put that down if I were you,” Kent said, pointing his gun to Rex’s yacht. “We’ve got this place surrounded.”
“Now help our buddies onto the boat and hand over your weapons,” Buddy said.
Arthur didn’t wait for any help. “Get this shit off me.” He jumped onto the bow, holding his hands out. Duncan quickly cut through the tie, handing him a weapon.
“Hold that for one second.” He grabbed the goon that had hit him. “Payback is a bitch.” He clenched his right hand into a tight fist and jabbed the asshole in the nose.
Rex caught the goon before he fell backward into the water.
“And you.” Arthur pointed at Rex. “You said eight minutes out.”
Rex shrugged. “I didn’t know they were here already.”
“We got a problem,” Kent said, pointing toward the office. “They know we’re here.”
Arthur stepped onto the dock and sucked in a deep breath.
Ferro hid behind Maren and her mother as they made their way toward Gretchen’s sport SUV. Ferro held a gun to Maren’s temple.
“Does anyone have a clean shot?” Arthur yelled.
“We’re firefighters, not snipers,” Rex said, his weapon raised. Of all of them, Rex was probably the best shot. “Not going to happen, but I can blow out the tire?—”
Bang!
“Fuck me.” Rex groaned, dropping to his knees, clutching his thigh. “Arthur, you’re gonna pay for this.”
“I didn’t shoot you.” Arthur took off running, weaving between the boats as Ferro took a couple of potshots.
A few shots rang out from behind him as one of his buddies blew out two tires. The sound of boots hitting wood echoed. His heart thumped against his chest in a painful beat. The only man not accounted for was Jefferson, a thought that disturbed him as he ran out onto the open pavement, waiting for Jefferson to appear from the main building, gun at the ready.
Arthur clutched his weapon with one hand, digging into his pockets for his keys. They couldn’t have gotten too far ahead, but if they made it to the first intersection, he’d have to guess their direction.
He’d barely shut the truck door when he rammed the gear shift into drive and punched the gas, fishtailing. Off in the distance, he heard sirens.
Taking the turn onto the main road, he saw Gretchen’s car make the left turn at the first light. He slammed the gas pedal, banging his fist on the center of the wheel as he passed two cars. Red lights flashed a few miles down the road.
He took the corner, the wheels on the right side of his pickup lifting slightly off the ground. No sooner did he straighten out, gaining control of the vehicle, than he saw the sport SUV spinning out of control.
Crash!
It slammed into a tree, sending it into the air before flipping it upside down.
Arthur’s heart dropped to his gut as he raced toward the car. A spark sizzled and crackled as flames erupted. He snagged his fire extinguisher and doused what he could. Kneeling beside the car, careful not to get glass stuck in his knees, he peered inside.
“Arthur,” Gretchen moaned, her body hanging from the front seat, her seat belt holding her in place.
“I need to get you out of here.” Arthur saw Ferro crawling from the driver’s side. Nothing he could about him right now.
Tires screeched behind him as a police car pulled to the side of the road. He glanced over his shoulder to see Rusty leap from the vehicle.
“Get Ferro.” Arthur turned his attention to the back seat. His chest tightened, squeezing out all the air in his lungs. Maren lay on the roof of the car, her body twisted, and blood tinged her clothes.
“Help Maren.”
“I will, but let’s get you out of here first. Do you hurt anywhere?”
She shook her head, her hands fisting his shirt. “My daughter.”
“Ferro is secure,” Rusty said, taking the fire extinguisher. “Ambulance is ten minutes out. Fire engine six.”
He had no idea the extent of Maren’s injuries, but it didn’t look good. He blinked, forcing himself to focus on getting them out.
“Hold on to my shoulders, okay?” He reached around Gretchen’s body, grabbing hold of the seat belt.
Flames continued to flicker, and the smell of gas once again filled his nostrils.
“Tuck your head into my shoulder. I’m going to release this on the count of three and you’ll fall, but I’m going to catch you. One, two, three.” He tugged at the metal clasp. Her body plunged into his arms as she gripped his shoulders.
Black smoke filled the sky as he ran toward his truck, setting her gently in the passenger seat.
“Oh my God,” Gretchen whispered.
“Stay right here, don’t move.”
Arthur’s pulse soared out of control. He climbed into the back seat, feeling Maren’s body for any broken bones.
She moaned, rolling her head.
“Maren, sweetheart, can you hear me?” he asked. Nothing appeared to be broken, but again, there was no way of knowing what kind of damage had been done internally.
He pressed his fingers against her wrist. Her pulse was slow and weak.
“Maren, honey. Wake up.” He reached down, lifting her eyelid. He swallowed. Hard.
“Arthur, you’ve got to get her out of there now. This tank is about empty, and the fire is kicking up.”
He slid his arms under her body, ignoring the searing pain of glass ripping through his skin. He coughed as the black, oily smoke filled his lungs. Careful not to jostle her too much, he inched his way out of the vehicle just as the fire engine rolled down the street.
“Maren!” her mother called as she hopped out of the truck. “Is she okay?”
Arthur turned his body, protecting Maren’s. “I need to keep her as still as possible.” Tears stung the corners of his eyes. With each rise of her chest, a faint gurgling sound filtered from her lips.
“Why? What’s wrong with my little one?”
He held Maren in his arms, his lips pressed against her forehead. Her skin was cold and clammy to the touch.
Firemen shouted in the background. The spray from the hoses floated down on him like the mist from a car wash. The paramedics rolled out the gurney.
“I think she has a punctured lung,” he said as he stretched her out on the backboard. “I hear gurgling. Her pulse is weak. She’s cold, clammy, and unresponsive.”
“What?” Gretchen cried out, reaching for her daughter.
“Step back, ma’am,” the paramedic said, pushing the gurney toward the ambulance.
“That’s my daughter,” Gretchen said.
“Let them do their jobs,” Arthur said, raising his arm to wrap it around Gretchen, but he thought better of it when he saw all the blood.
Another paramedic approached them. “I think we need to take a look at both of you.”
“Start with her.” Arthur sighed.
“I want to be with my daughter,” Gretchen protested.
The paramedic pointed toward the first ambulance. “They are transporting her to the hospital now. Let us check you over, assess any injuries, and we’ll make sure we keep you updated on your daughter’s condition.”
“Arthur?”
He squeezed her shoulder. “Let them take you to the hospital. I’ll be along shortly.”
Arthur wiped his eyes as he marched across the road where paramedics were attending to Ferro.
Arthur bent over Ferro and grabbed him by the shirt. “You’re a fucking piece of shit.”
“Let go of me,” Ferro said.
Arthur released one hand and fisted the other one.
Crack!
The first swing hit Ferro on the cheekbone.
Smash!
The second landed square on Ferro’s nose.
“Might want to have that nose checked out. Looks broken.”
“That was uncalled for,” Rusty said.
“Yeah, but it felt really fucking fantastic.”