Page 99 of An Epic Voyage
Chapter Thirty
Griffin’s trainingkicked in when the bullets started flying.He took out one of Abdullahi’s bodyguards and added to the count in Abdullahi’s torso.Indigo had dropped, taking Van Houten with her.With the other men firing at each other, she’d probably saved Van Houten’s life.Zisk and Garcia were both dead.
Once everyone was down and the shooting stopped, he went to her.She was jerking Van Houten to his feet.
Movement out of the corner of his eye had him yelling, “Indigo!”
Griffin fired at Abdullahi at the same time Abdullahi aimed at Van Houten and pulled the trigger.
“No!”
The next thing he knew, Indigo slammed into him, and they went flying out of the open sliding glass doors and over the balcony railing.Heat scorched him as the boat went up in a giant fireball.They’d barely made it out in time.He gripped her tightly as they plunged into the deep blue depths of the Atlantic Ocean.
Griffin waited for their descent to stop before kicking for the surface, bringing Indigo with him.He gasped for air as he treaded water.The yacht was engulfed in flames, with burning pieces raining down on them.
“We need to get away from here.”
Indigo disappeared.“Indigo?”Griffin grabbed her and lifted her head above the water.Her eyes were closed.Oh, no.Keeping his arm beneath her neck so she didn’t go under again, he kicked them away from the inferno.
An engine roared to life.Jordy was piloting the speedboat toward them.He dropped the anchor and killed the motor.Abdullahi’s scientist tossed a ladder over the side.Griffin grabbed it and put Indigo over his shoulder to climb inside.
“What happened to her?”Jordy asked.
“I don’t know.”
Griffin placed her gently on the padded bench.
“Let me see.I’m a doctor.”The man elbowed Griffin out of the way to get to her.
That’s when Griffin noticed the hole in her dress at the same time the doctor announced, “She’s been shot.”
#
It had taken hours, but Jackson and Evangeline were tracking Abdullahi’s helicopter.The president had dispatched a military Black Hawk helicopter to transport them from Van Houten Island, and they were headed to the designated coordinates.
Evangeline rode copilot while Jackson was strapped into a jump seat by the open side door.They were with two Navy Air Rescue members.
“There.”Evangeline pointed out the window.
“I see it,” Jackson confirmed through the headset.
“There’s already a helicopter on the landing pad,” the pilot informed them.
“We’ll have to—”
The rest of Jackson’s sentence was cut off when the boat exploded into a giant fireball.
No, no, no.That had been Evangeline’s last hope.Emotion lodged in her throat, and she couldn’t breathe.
