Page 53 of Twister

Twister turned to the dark hole of the hatch. There was no light inside, which meant either Neil was in trouble or he’d gotten snagged. He turned on his headlamp and swam inside, first going into the back to check the crew quarters.

Neil wasn’t there, so he turned around, preparing to swim back to the hatch and into the forward part of the sub. Something stirred the hair on the back of his neck, a warning sign that he never ignored. He turned just in time to see Neil come at him with a knife. It sunk into his shoulder, and pain shot through him, blossoming into excruciating as Neil’s knife hit bone, and he inhaled as his teeth clenched around his regulator. Neil pulled out the knife, dripping with his blood, his arm swinging back, and the six-inch blade headed for Twister’s heart. Twister jerked to the side and the knife hit his collarbone. With an enraged snarl, Neil swung at him and hit a stunning blow with the knife handle against his temple, and Twister slammed his head against a bulkhead and immediately blacked out.

Sadie waited anxiously,already having reported the problem topside. Neil emerged from the hatch, quickly swimming to her, but her eyes were glued to the hole in the sub. Where was Twister?

Neil swam to her. “Where is he?” The eerily calm yet calculated look in his eyes sparked a sense of unease deep inside her stomach.

He brought up his dive knife, red curling from the blade, and her heart almost stopped as realization hit her in a stunning blow. Was thatblood?

“Drop your dive knife, remove your umbilical, and switch to your reserve tanks,” he ordered, grabbing her arm in a tight vise, and she noticed that his umbilical wasn’t attached to his yellow helmet anymore. They couldn’t hear him topside, and the alarm would be spreading up there. She stared at him, trying to understand what was happening. “Do it now!” He set the knifeagainst her breast, just above her heart—the bastard. Just a little pressure and she was a dead woman. There was no way to help Twister if that happened.

She pulled the knife from her sheath and let it drop, then reached up and unseated the coupling, then switched to her reserve tanks just as her dive master’s voice asking her what was happening got cut off. They would be scrambling up top, protocol kicking in. Divers would be getting in the water. But she suspected whatever bad thing that happened had already happened to Twister. Her only hope was that he was still alive and the good guys would get to them before it was too late.

Satisfied, he tightened his grip, a wholly sexual smile curving the corners of his mouth. “There. Now we have privacy.”

“What have you done?” This was insane. “Where is Twister?”

“He won’t be bothering us from now on.”

She stiffened. “What do you mean? Where is he?” she asked, trying not to panic, like it was a casual question, not one of survival, and failing miserably.

He shrugged nonchalantly like Twister’s life was nothing to him. “He was in my way. Just like I had to get rid of Dagger.” He chuckled. “All it took was a small bead in his hose. Every time he breathed in, it would get stuck, but when he breathed out, he was fine. I can’t have him interfering, but I have no beef with him.” He looked back at the sub, his face twisted with anger. “You always have guys in my way, Sadie,” he said as if he was chastising a child.

She gave him an incredulous look, the fact dawning on her that he was nuts. “What? What are you talking about?”

“You love me. It’s so clear, and I love you. I have for a long time. First there was Dylan, and you were confused, then you broke up with him and everything was great, until you started with those guys in Hawaii.” His bitter words broadsided her, and it was clear to her that he was caught up in some delusional mindgame of his own. “But I took care of them, too, just like I did with Dylan and David. They started arguing with each other all over again, then David said that he wanted you, and that set Dylan off. I lured David out and stashed him on a secluded beach, pretending that he went AWOL. It was me who threw that rock and me who tried to get you to go with me, but I’m sure you were confused.”

“Not in the slightest.”

He whipped the knife up and waved it in her face. “I fixed all your problems, including Twister.” He ranted angrily, his mouth twisting with resentment. “He was the worst one. I tried to kill him with the rock, then shot him, but he was stubborn. He’ll die in the dark down there, giving us time to get away.” His rage over Twister’s refusal to die was tangible. “Then we can be together.”

It was chilling how normal he sounded, as if everything he said he believed. His dark gaze raked down the length of her, not bothering to disguise the fact that he wanted her. His meaning was clear, and as frantic as her heart was beating beneath her chest, she refused to panic or allow him to bully her into going with him.

“I have everything planned.” His smile was pure evil.

Oh, stars. She couldn’t believe this was happening to her and she had dragged Twister into her mess. Neil didn’t know what love was. He barely knew her, and she had no interest in getting to know him at all.

She moved to the right to go around him and bolted for the hatch that looked so far away, but he countered the move and blocked the way with his body. His stare turned hot and predatory.

“Neil, that’s never going to happen. We’re in the Navy. You can’t just kidnap me and swim away from our responsibilities. They will come after us, and you'll be arrested and go to jail. Doyou want that!” she cried, asserting a firm, confident tone to her voice despite the fear nearly strangling her.

“Shut up.” His hand tightened around her arm in a crushing, bruising hold. He might look gangly, but he was muscular.You’re coming with me one way or another.”

No.

The one word was very clear in her mind. She wasn’t going anywhere with him, and she had to be as brave as her great-grandfather, who had perished with eighty-four of his crew. She didn’t care what it took, but she was not going with him on this delusional escapade. She was going to make her stand right here. She’d rather die fighting for her life, and for Twister where theKittiwakehad made its last stand, where Twister had a chance, than be kidnapped, raped, and probably end up dead anyway.

Oh, hell, yeah, she was going to fight for her life and for Twister’s—with everything she had, right here because that was what was required of her. Her life with Twister in it. No doubt at all in her mind.

Her head was clear, her choices limited, her decision made.

What did she have to lose?Every-damn-thing.

“No,” she said, her voice barely audible, then louder and stronger. “No fucking way.” She struggled against him to get away, but he was so much stronger than she was, and he managed to subdue her much too easily, a quiet kind of fury brewing within him.

Her words didn’t affect him at all. He was too caught up in his own madness to care. “You are going to be mine,” he said, menacing and ominous. “I’ve waited for you to come to your senses…for years. I’ve watched you with all those other guys, knowing that you loved me. Only me. I’m tired of waiting, Sadie.”

“Don’t do this, Neil,” she said, doing and saying whatever it took to change his mind. Because right now, she had no leverage that could save them other than her words.

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