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John gives me a nod, and Tao smiles widely as I pass him. “Tell Sadie she’s welcome to lose to me in poker any time,” he calls.
I only wave a hand as I disembark, a man on a mission now, Jake and Hunter right on my heels, the dogs now running ahead. They circle back when Hunter whistles, then fall into step beside Hunter.
“Are you guys going to follow me the whole way?” I ask, not bothering to turn around. I don’t need to when I can practically feel them breathing down my neck as I stride across the dock.
“Maybe,” Jake says. “Hey—isn’t that Sadie?”
I blink, slowing down as I realize Sadie is coming toward me on the dock with just the same speed and intention, which makes my chest warm. I don’t even care that German and Daniels are trailing fifty yards behind her like her stupid government shadows.
I grin as Hunter bumps into me from behind.
“Are you just going to stop and let her come to you?” he demands.
“No,” I say, giving him a big shove backward. “And maybe you two should just stay here.”
I pick up the pace, hustling across the mostly empty dock toward Sadie. She looks fierce and beautiful, her hair a little wild and windblown—just the way I like it.
Though I suspect she may apologize for sneaking off my boat, I can also see a fire in her eyes that tells me she might have a few choice words for me too.
Good. I wouldn’t have it any other way.
We’re about two boat lengths away when she passes a man sitting on an overturned bucket, reading a newspaper that covers his face, a tackle box at his feet. A man I wouldn’t have noticed had he not tossed the newspaper aside and hopped up just as Sadie passed.
Some instinctive part of me sounds an alarm even before I see German and Daniels take off at a sprint, before the man grabs Sadie in one hand, pulling a dark object from the tackle box with the other.
A gun.
Sadie starts to thrash, but then the man presses the gun under her chin, and she goes completely still. So do I. German and Daniels keep running, as the man turns, looking between the agents on one side and me, Jake, and Hunter on the other.
“Everyone stop moving now,” he says.
I’m already frozen, panic and adrenaline warring within me as I stare helplessly at Sadie.
She’s practically limp, eyes wide and her hands hanging by her sides. I can see her fingers trembling as her fists clench and unclench.
My brain is leaping all over the place, touching on and casting aside possible solutions. Nothing I can think of wouldn’t put Sadie at greater risk. It’s also hard to think at all when she’s being held at gunpoint.
This is totally surreal and yet acutely visceral. Every breath seems weighted, every moment lasting a lifetime.
I have to assume this guy is willing to use his weapon. And he’s currently trapped between my friends and me and two agents, both with hands on their guns. Which seems like it will only escalate things.
Behind me, one of Hunter’s dogs growls softly. I wish they were trained guard dogs, not simply loyal rescues. I’d happily set either of them loose if I thought it would help.
“Here’s how this is going to work,” the man says.
His voice has the slightest accent, though I can’t pinpoint it. I find myself memorizing every detail I can. The thin, white scar on his cheek. The dark eyebrows and lined forehead. The silver ring on the hand holding the gun.
“You two are going to toss your guns in the water,” he says, calmly, like this is something he does every day. He fixes German with a look. “Now.”
As German and Daniels slowly reach for their weapons, the man turns slightly so his back is more to us, keeping Sadie like a shield between him and the agents.
I take the smallest step forward, then another, glad I know this dock well enough to know where it will creak. I only hope when the man turns back, he doesn’t notice I’m a few feet closer
“Ben,” Hunter warns, in an almost inaudible whisper.
I ignore him, taking one more step before the man says, “Now, you go in too. That’s right—just step right off the dock and stay down there.”
German and Daniels jump in the water, leaving a clear path for the man to leave with Sadie. I take one more big step. The man turns back, and I freeze.
