Page 49 of Austen

Declan was glancing askance at Hunter as if they had some sort of secret communication going.She wanted to lean into him and say, “Don’t worry, Steinbeck is here,” but that was probably a bad idea.She took his hand and gave him a smile.“It’s going to be okay,” she said softly.

“Stop talking!”said the thug.

“I’m not talking!I’m just, you know, trying to stay calm—reminding everybodyto stay calm, okay?I mean, calmness is what we need here.No matter what happens, stay calm.”

She got a few eyebrow raises from the crew and the chef.

“Stop babbling,” the thug said.

“I don’t babble!”

He stepped toward her, but Declan stood up.

Oh.

A moment passed, and clearly, Declan didn’t care if he got hit again.

The man stepped back and Declan sat down.Squeezed her hand.Her heart thundered, and maybe her breathing had hitched up just a little.

She shot a look at the sliding doors.Please don’t be locked.What if the thugs didn’t go for Stein’s distraction?She spotted a dolphin statue on one of the consoles.It looked made of brass.That could work—she could pick it up and throw it.

“Stay still.”Funny, it wasn’t her voice but her instructor from Hawaii when he taught her how to face a shark in the water.“Stay still; keep eye contact; don’t run away.”Well, maybe two out of three was the right answer here.

She’d never been great at not running away.

Popping.Then fire lit up the night sky.Flames glistened on the water, bright and sudden.

“Oy!”One of the thugs jumped up and ran to the sliding-glass door.He opened it and stepped out, looking up.Another flare burst into the air, followed by gunshots.

Steinbeck.

The first man ran back in and shouted something in Russian.Then he took off, which just left one against many.Although hedidhave a gun, so there was that.

She glanced at the dolphin statue, trying to decide if she could grab it with a leap, and then the door to the galley broke open.A shot fired, and the thug dropped.She looked over, expecting to see Steinbeck, but no.

Belle, the steward, charged in, wearing her white uniform.

“Run!”Belle shouted.

Hunter had already leaped up, along with Elise, and Declan gripped her hand, heading for the sliding door.

“Get to the boat!”Austen pointed to the swim deck, and Camille, Jermaine, the engineer, and the big blond Swede ran past her.Hunter and Elise came next, Hunter gripping his wife’s hand.

Declan pushed her ahead of him.“Go!”

She scrambled down to the deck even as the Swede stood on the swim platform, holding the line, helping people to the ladder.Shots fired from the bow, and Austen turned, searching for Steinbeck.Oh please, God, don’t let him get killed.

Camille boarded the boat, and then Jermaine, and behind him Raphael.Hunter practically flung his wife up the ladder before leaping for the boat himself.But around the side of the ship charged two of the Russians, including the one who had gone to the stern.

Austen just barely made it to the swim deck before bullets tore through the cushions in the back of the boat.Declan pushed her to the ground, then braced his body over hers.

Belle landed beside them, crouching low, shooting back in intervals.

Someone had started the trawler engine, and Ivek leaped onto the ladder, the rope untied from the yacht.

What?No!“Wait for us!”

“Come on, come on!”Raphael leaned over the edge, arms out.“Hurry up!”

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