Page 115 of Hard Luck (Blackstone House)

“Get down!” I shouted as loudly as I dared, and either he didn’t hear me or he thought he knew best, because he ran along what was left of the jetty, waving.

My gun was still on board theCrosswind. Cole had my knife. When we got back to the US, the first thing I’d be doing was sending him on a survival course. Not a “gut a fish, light a fire” survival course, a counterterrorism course. The kind that taught you how not to start a new career as a hostage.

Because that was surely what was about to happen.

There were six men on the boat, and at least one of them had a gun, something AK-47-ish slung across his back. Not a rescue party, then. Guns were controlled in San Gallicano, and nobody got a semi-automatic rifle without strict checks. There was only one range in the country where folks were allowed to shoot them.

Watch or go?

Watch or go?

I needed a picture of what was happening, but I was also a sitting duck up here, and there was a chance they’d seen me when I called out. If the men stuck together, I’d have a challenge on my hands, but if they split up…

The temptation to run down to the harbour was almost overwhelming, and that was why feelings were dangerous. Acting without thinking could be a death sentence.

If they shot Cole right away, I wouldn’t get there in time.

If they decided to bundle him onto the boat, I might make it, but it would still be six against one.

If they’d seen me, they’d most likely keep him as a bargaining chip until they’d caught both of us. They’d split up and search until they found me.

I almost grinned. See? When you thought things through, the answers were obvious.

“Hey!” I screamed at the top of my voice as the boat drew to a stop alongside Cole. “Help! Up here! We got shipwrecked!”

Two men jumped onto the jetty, and now Cole was backing away. He recognised the danger, and my heart lurched because this wasn’t his world; it was mine. Even from here, I could see the fear etched across his face when he turned to look at me.

“Run!” he yelled as one of the motherfuckers aimed a pistol at his head.

Oh, I planned to run, but not very far. The other four men scrambled out of the boat and jogged toward the path that led up the hill, clearly familiar with the island. Keeping low, I hurried to the fire escape. Hell, I needed to lose this cast, but I couldn’t cut the zip ties without a knife, and Cole had the knife.

When I hit the ground, I’d already considered my options. If the enemy knew the island well, if they knew the barracks building, they’d head around the back to the fire escape. If they weren’t familiar with the entrances and exits, they’d venture inside. When they didn’t find me, they’d try the forest that covered the north of the island. That was the obvious place for a panicked woman to run.

But I wouldn’t be there.

Instead, I schlepped down the twisting path toward the harbour, then slipped into the brush a hundred yards later. Just in time. Running footsteps approached, and I counted as they passed. One, Two, Three… Where was Four?

I heard wheezing. Oh. Somebody hadn’t been to the gym.

I waited. Wow, he really was in bad shape.

As he passed, I booted him in the jaw with my cast, and he dropped like a stone.

Boom.

I quickly dragged him off the trail and checked his pockets. No gun. How on earth did he expect me to cooperate? Cigarettes, matches, a broken phone, a few crumpled bills. No weapon at all. What did he even think he was doing here? I picked up a decent-sized rock and gave him a skull fracture to think about. He wouldn’t be getting up any time soon.

One down, five to go.

These men were obviously up to no good, but they were also clearly stupid. A smart gang of poachers or whatever would have tucked their guns into a locker, rocked up at the jetty, expressed sympathy, dropped the two castaways back to civilisation, and accepted the accolades that followed.Thenthey’d have gotten back to their criming.

But these idiots? Man, they’d made a big mistake.

So far, I didn’t know much about them—their background, their motives, their reason for being here were all a mystery—but I’d learned one thing. They had no clue how to move around quietly. Something that I’d become quite adept at, although even I couldn’t get far in this tangle of greenery.

I tucked myself behind a sturdy tree trunk and listened. And listened. And listened. It didn’t take long for the next fool to come crashing toward me. Fortunately, he didn’t have a gun in his hand. Unfortunately, I went in for a kick at the same time as a spider dropped from the canopy above, and he ducked out of the way. Rather than connecting with his jaw as I intended, the blow from my cast glanced off his shoulder, and he stumbled forward.

No matter.

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