Chapter 50
FIFTY
The cold wind, rain and sea spray in her face was exhilarating.
Eve was high on elation and endorphins as she steered the boat from the shelter of Dead Man’s Island behind them and sped toward her unsuspecting target. Lachlan McCaffrey had no idea he was about to die, but Maddy knew it. And that made this so much better.
Beneath that heady rush of triumph, grief swelled. A dark, rising tide that threatened to drown her.
She pushed it down deep. Because she had to settle the score. Once she’d taken her revenge, she could rest. Use the money to realize their dream of living on a tiny Greek island without any more worries.
Except she would be doing it alone.
I’m so close now, Elliot. This one’s for you.
She had an exit plan in place. “Friends” ready to pick her up as soon as she alerted them once this was over. But first she was going to make Maddy watch her man die.
Eve hadn’t been there to see Elliot die, but she’d imagined it a thousand times, and each time the pain was unbearable. The bullets punching through his skull. Splattering blood and brain matter on the concrete walls of the cell Maddy had been in.
Sucking in a bracing breath, she clamped her jaw tight.
She would kill Lachlan McCaffrey, wait a few minutes to maximize Maddy’s emotional suffering, and only then would she inflict the physical suffering.
Put a few bullets in non-lethal places and dump her overboard to drown or bleed out, whichever happened first. Fish food.
Her portion of the money was secure in her offshore account. Her partner’s share was safe in his. Her escape vehicle was waiting nearby.
It was almost over now, and there was nothing Maddy could do to save either of them.
Maddy braced herself with a hand on the edge of the boat as Eve turned them hard away from the shelter of the island and headed out into the rough strait. She huddled near the stern with her arms wrapped around her body, shivering so hard her muscles felt bruised and her teeth chattered.
But worse than her physical discomfort and dread as she waited for Eve to pull that trigger was the terror of knowing that Lachlan was about to die because of her.
Through the fear and disbelief, the molten anger deep inside began to grow. Hotter and hotter until it suffused her whole body and made her heart pound. Eve continued to divide her attention between Maddy and the water ahead of them, intent on intercepting Lachlan and detonating the bomb.
She pushed to her knees. Froze when Eve suddenly focused on her and readjusted her aim. Then Eve faced forward suddenly, and Maddy followed her gaze.
A familiar dark orange and black boat was speeding toward them, leaving a white wake behind it.
Lachlan.
He was coming for her. Had no idea the danger he was in. And there was no way to warn him.
A new level of urgency hit Maddy, fueled by the fear and forged into pure steel by the rage. She wasn’t going to let Eve do this. She had to stop it. Had to save him, even if it meant sacrificing herself to do it.
She didn’t know how Eve planned to detonate the bomb, but she guessed she had only a few minutes before shit got real.
Maddy got to the balls of her feet, balancing her weight. She let the rage and determination take hold, engulfing her so fast and hard she barely felt the cold, muscles locked and ready to spring.
She waited until Eve was distracted. Kept her eyes on that pistol as she planned her move, the angle she would have to attack at to avoid getting shot. She tensed, vision narrowed to Eve’s hand gripping the weapon.
Eve picked up her phone.
Now!
Maddy struck like a coiled snake, launching herself at Eve with all her strength. She grabbed Eve’s wrist with both hands, their bodies colliding a heartbeat later.