“Sure I did. You could have stayed at home.”
“Please, Mark. I couldn’t let anyone die.”
“Who said anything about dying?”
She closed her eyes. What had he said? “You said you would use him for target practice.”
Mark laughed. “Yeah, I did. I should punish Kim for your tardiness.”
Anger spiked. He’d set her up to fail. Getting there in twenty minutes was impossible. She bit her tongue to stop lashing out at him. Placate, don’t antagonise. She swallowed and lowered her voice. “Please, Mark,” she begged. “I’m sorry. I’m not as fast as you.” She used the tone he liked, that made her sound cowed.
“Kim has chains on his ankles,” Mark said. “If I push him overboard, do you think he’ll sink?”
Chains? Terror blocked her throat. She pushed the boat faster, the roar making it difficult to hear the phone. “That wasn’t part of the agreement. We were going to trade.”
“Maybe I’ll push him in and come to you.”
She wouldn’t ever win against him. “No! I’m here now.” She cleared the point. Nothing. No boat as far as she could see. “Where are you?” She slowed to hear his reply.
Mark’s chuckle chilled her bones. “About a kilometre offshore.”
She retched as she stared towards the dark horizon, empty of everything except ocean. Bastard. “I can’t. Please, Mark. Don’t make me do it.”
“You don’t have to. I can leave Kim here.”
“How do I know you’re really out there?”
“Are you calling me a liar?”
She gritted her teeth and wiped the rain off her face. “No.”
“Kim will tell you where we are.” A scuffle, then Kim’s voice.
“Alyse, don’t come. Call the police.”
Tears pricked her eyes.
Kim grunted and Mark growled, “Tell her where we are, or I’ll shoot you.”
“No.”
The gun shot made Alyse shriek. Kim yelled in pain and Mark came back on the line. “Better hurry or he might bleed to death.” Mark hung up.
Alyse’s hands shook. She couldn’t do this alone. Kim needed medical help, he might already be dying. Mark wouldn’t get away with this. She dialled triple zero and told the operator she needed police and ambulance. “My name is Alyse Wilson. My ex, Mark Patton is wanted by the police. He’s kidnapped my friend and taken him on a boat about a kilometre out from Old Man’s Blowhole. He just shot my friend, and he’s demanding I trade myself for Kim.”
“Where are you?”
“I’m at the blowhole, about to head out to meet them.”
“Ma’am, I don’t advise that. I’ve notified the police and ambulance. It’s best if you let them deal with it.”
“I can’t. Please tell them to hurry. I’m turning on my EPIRB now so they can find me.” She prayed they were already on the way. She tucked her phone into her bra and switched on the EPIRB. Determination swept over her as she opened the throttle. Kim couldn’t die. She loved him. She wouldn’t let Mark take him away. The ocean wouldn’t take another loved one from her.
She pushed the dinghy as hard as it would go, crashing down over waves, jolting off the seat, but her terror of losing Kim dulled her fear of the ocean.
Was Kim bleeding out? Was he already dead?
She scanned the horizon. A lump over there. She changed course. After Kim was on board, she’d head back to the blowholes. It was the closest car access for an ambulance.
So how could she overpower Mark, disarm him and get an injured Kim to safety?
Maybe if she tucked the flare gun in the back of her life jacket and faced Mark, Kim could grab it.
But what if he was restrained, or unconscious? There was nowhere else to hide it. She placed the gun in her lap. Until she saw where Mark was, where Kim was, she’d have to play it by ear. Mark was already angry, and he’d be simmering over all the wrongs she’d done him.
Would begging help? He always liked it when she begged.
Her phone rang.
She slowed, her heart racing. “Hello?”
“Alyse, it’s Sergeant Zanetti. Where are you?”
“About half a kilometre south of Old Man’s Blowholes.”
“Can you see Mark or Kim?”
“The boat’s about six hundred metres away,” she said. “Where are you?”
“On our way. Stay there until we arrive.”
She shook her head. “I can’t. Mark will kill Kim if he sees the police.”
“We have a hostage negotiator on board,” Lincoln said.
Alyse laughed. “That won’t help.”
“Alyse, please. Don’t put yourself in danger. We’re trained to handle this.”
She wished it would help. “You don’t know Mark like I do. I’m Kim’s best chance.” The truth of the words resonated. She’d had years of studying Mark, interpreting his every mood, his every twitch. She would have a split second warning before Mark made his move. It might be enough. “I’ve activated an EPIRB, Sergeant. You should be able to find us.” She hung up.
She would distract Mark long enough for the police to arrive.
She tucked the phone back into her bra and accelerated again. As she drew closer, she recognised Richard’s blue boat with The Vale painted on the side. Only Mark was on the deck. Her heart stopped. Had he already thrown Kim overboard?
She scanned the water nearby. Nothing.
She stopped about five metres away. “Where’s Kim?”
Mark hauled Kim to his feet one-handed, the gun in his other hand. “Right here.”
Kim’s face was pale, and he shivered in only a T-shirt, his blood-stained jumper tied in a tourniquet around his left thigh. “Don’t come any closer, Alyse.”
She didn’t need to fake her horror. If the bullet wound didn’t kill him, hypothermia would. Act fast.
Mark studied her, assessing, waiting. She had to get him on her side. Somehow. Play to his beliefs. Make him feel important.
Though the words hurt, she scowled at Kim. “You let Mark beat you?” She let the disbelief flood her tone. “Did you put up any fight?”
Hurt flashed across Kim’s face and his mouth dropped open. She ignored it.
Mark laughed. “Nope. He was weak as piss. He followed my every command.”
Laughing was good. The tension in Mark’s shoulders was replaced by a puffed-up chest.
Work with it.
Alyse bit her lip. “Maybe I was wrong.” She pulled alongside the boat and threw Kim the rope. “I was so scared. You hurt me.” Her eyes stayed on Mark’s and she wiped the rain from her face as if wiping a tear. He shifted, unsure. Behind him a life jacket hung over each seat and on the dash was another EPIRB and flare gun. Thank you, Richard.
Mark smiled, smug satisfaction on his face. “I knew you’d come back. I could have killed you yesterday when I shot at you, but you made Kim sleep on the floor.”
She wanted to be sick. He’d been watching them on the cameras in her room. Thank God they’d discovered them and removed his access.
“You shouldn’t have lied to me,” he continued.
Alyse didn’t correct him, didn’t look at Kim. “I’m so sorry.” She thought about how she would feel if Kim died and tears sprang to her eyes. “Will you forgive me?”
Mark still pointed the gun at Kim, but he relaxed his hold. She wouldn’t be fast enough to use the flare gun on her lap. She fell forward as a wave rocked the boat and let the gun fall off. Carefully she climbed to her feet. “Can I please come aboard?” She waited for his nod before climbing onto Richard’s boat. Get between Mark and Kim.
Mark hesitated and then shook his head. “You’re weak, Alyse. Are you going to run back to him the next time we fight, the next time you’re scared?”
Did he seriously believe he would get away from the police?
Kim grabbed her arm. “What are you doing? You can’t go back to him.”
Her heart ached that Kim believed her act.
&
nbsp; “Shut up,” Mark yelled. “It’s your fault it’s come to this.”
Damn it. He was getting mad. Alyse stumbled and fell against Kim. “Trust me,” she whispered. “Get to the dinghy.”
His hands tightened on her arms.
She stepped back and prayed the chains on Kim’s ankles weren’t too heavy—though he still held the dinghy tow line too. “You’re right. He’s weak. We don’t need him.” She pushed Kim hard in the chest. His eyes widened as he flailed backwards and fell over the side into the water.
Mark gaped at her.
Now. She grabbed the life jacket which hung over the passenger seat and flung it towards Kim who struggled to stay afloat. He lunged for it as she picked up the flare gun on the dash and spun around pointing it at Mark’s chest, her heart pounding. “Drop the gun.”
“You lied to me.” He swung the gun towards her, his eyes dead.
Her breath caught.
This was it. He would kill her. She closed her eyes and squeezed the trigger.
Chapter 21
Kim heard two shots almost simultaneously and then glass shattered. His heart stopped as he gripped the side of the dinghy and twisted. Mark stood at the back, clutching something smoking on his chest. A flare. With a scream of pain, Mark dived into the water.
Where was Alyse?
The chains made it difficult to swim and the salt in his bullet wound stung beyond belief, but determination buoyed Kim as he hauled himself into the dinghy and started the engine. “Alyse!” Heart pounding, he brought the boat alongside and cut the engine. She was curled in a ball, her red hair over her face blocking her expression. “Alyse.” Fear punched him in the gut.
She had to be alive.
He climbed back into the boat and pulled Alyse up. “Aly, talk to me.” He swept back her hair. “Are you hurt? Did you get shot?”
She groaned. “I think so.” She held her arm, and he pulled away her hand, examining her. The bullet had burned her skin, but not pierced her. The windscreen had shattered.
Relief swept through him. “You’re OK.”
She flung her arms around Kim. “So are you.” She shook.
He hugged her, breathing in her sweet scent. She was really here, safe. She’d come all this way, by herself, in a boat. Mark’s yells pierced his consciousness. The water had probably done little to soothe the chemical burn of the flare. “Aly, we need to call for help. Can you stand for me?”
She nodded and pulled herself to her feet. “The police are on their way.”
Kim helped her onto a seat. Though he had no desire to help Mark, leaving him to drown wasn’t an option. He threw the other life jacket to Mark and then picked up the gun. He held it pointing downward. “Do you know how to remove the bullets?”
Alyse shook her head and then pointed. “The police are coming.”
The Marine Rescue boat sped towards them. Kim smiled. He was tempted to meet them halfway, but Mark might really be hurt. The man had hold of the life jacket and was swimming towards the boat, pain and fury on his face. Kim lifted the gun, pointing it to the right of Mark. “You can stay in the water until the police arrive.”
Behind Mark a movement caught Kim’s eye. A fin.
Fuck.
“Shark,” Alyse said.
Mark’s eyes widened and he twisted around. “Where?”
“Behind you.” Kim scanned the choppy water for another glimpse. The blood from his bullet wound must have attracted it. He couldn’t leave Mark in the water with a shark. He handed Alyse the gun. The police were almost there.
Mark kicked hard and reached the ladder as the fin came to the surface only metres away, circling the boat. The Great White was about five metres long. Kim reached out to help Mark up, but a glint in Mark’s eye made him step back, away from the ladder. Mark hauled himself aboard, his chest bleeding and shirt blackened.
Alyse held the gun steady, aiming at Mark. “Don’t come any closer.”
Mark raised his hands as the boat arrived, Lincoln behind the wheel and several officers on board, all aiming their guns at them.
“Drop your weapon,” one of them called. He didn’t look familiar to Kim, so he must be from Albany.
“Not until Mark’s detained,” Alyse said, her voice steady.
“Lincoln, there’s a Great White circling,” Kim said. “Be careful with the transfer.” He hugged himself and shivered, the wind icy cold.
“Are you both all right?” Lincoln asked.
Kim nodded. His leg hurt, but the bleeding had slowed. “We could do with the thermal blankets.” His teeth chattered.
The officers ordered Mark to board the Marine Rescue boat. He hesitated long enough for Kim to think he wouldn’t give in, but then he moved across. Alyse sighed and lowered the gun. An officer read Mark his rights while Adam climbed onto The Vale. He took the gun from Alyse, and removed the bullets, then handed them both a blanket. Kim sat on one chair, his head a little light and pulled Alyse into his arms, wrapping a blanket around her shoulders. “Thank you for saving me.”
She kissed him. “I’m sorry for what I said—”
“It’s fine, I understand why you said it.”
“What happened to your leg?” Adam asked.
“Mark shot me.”
“There’s an ambulance waiting at the boat ramp,” Adam said.
Alyse wrapped the other blanket around Kim’s shoulders and he leaned into her, drawing warmth from her body. She was fine, they both were, and Mark would go to jail for a very long time. “Can we go now?” Alyse asked. “Kim’s freezing.”
“Give me a second.” Adam had a brief conversation with Lincoln and came back. “Yeah. We’ll need to interview you both when we get to shore.”
Kim was fine with that.
Adam put the boat into gear.
They were going home.
***
Less than an hour later, the ambulance doors opened, and Kim was wheeled into the emergency room at Blackbridge Hospital. Alyse followed him inside where he was surrounded by family. Lincoln must have called them. She hung back, not wanting to get in the way as the nurse, Fleur took over from the paramedics and wheeled Kim out the back. Mai whirled to Alyse and Adam. “What happened?”
Exhaustion flooded Alyse and she sank into the nearest chair, clutching the thermal blanket around her shoulders. Kim was safe. The doctors would take care of him. He’d be fine.
“Alyse?”
She blinked and looked into the expectant faces of Kim’s parents and sisters. “Mark shot him in the leg.”
Mai shook her head. “How did he end up on the ocean?”
“I don’t know. He went into town to get some things and then Mark called me to say he had Kim.” Her chest tightened at the memory.
One of Kim’s sisters spoke. “Mark must have been waiting in the granny flat. I thought Kim was acting weird. I should have known something was up.”
Her father hugged her. “Don’t blame yourself.”
Alyse nodded. “Mark had a gun.”
“So what did Mark want with him?” Mai asked.
“He wanted to trade Kim for me. I had to meet him off Old Man’s Blowhole.”
“I thought you were terrified of boats,” Mai said.
Alyse shivered, pulling the blanket tighter around her shoulders. “Mark didn’t give me a choice. If I didn’t go, he was going to kill Kim.”
“Thank you.” Kim’s mother hugged her and then stepped back. “You’re wet. You need to get into some dry clothes before you catch cold.” She walked to the triage counter and asked for some scrubs for Alyse.
Tears pricked Alyse’s eyes. “I’m sorry. If it weren’t for me, Kim wouldn’t be injured.”
Mr On sat next to her, put an arm around her shoulders. “Nonsense. If it weren’t for you, Kim would be dead.”
She leaned into him.
The exterior doors opened and Zamira and Jeremy rushed in. Zamira made a beeline for Alyse. “Are you OK?” She hugged Alyse. “I was so scared.”
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“Kim’s going into surgery now,” she said. “Mark shot him because I took too long.”
“And Mark?” Jeremy asked.
“I shot him with a flare gun,” Alyse said. “The police have arrested him.” He couldn’t hurt her anymore.
Mai whooped. “You go, girl.” Her enthusiasm made Alyse smile but she could still smell Mark’s skin burning as the flare hit him. She was lucky she hadn’t killed him, but he’d twisted at the last moment.
Fleur came out with some scrubs. “Kim’s in surgery now. He should be out in an hour. Why don’t you all get a coffee?” She turned to Alyse. “Can you come with me?”
Adam helped her to her feet, and they followed Fleur out the back into a cubicle. Fleur handed Alyse the scrubs. “Get changed and then I’ll get the doctor to examine you.” Fleur shut the curtain behind her and spoke quietly to Adam.
Alyse’s body felt like lead. She peeled off her wet clothes, leaving them in a pile on the floor while she dried herself and dressed in the yellow scrubs. Her phone was a little damp, and she dried it off. There was no one to call. The police would inform the Pattons. She opened the curtain and the nurse entered.
“Any injuries?” Fleur asked, getting the blood pressure cuff. “Did you hit your head at all?”
“No. Mark didn’t touch me.” And he wouldn’t ever again. She winced as Fleur placed the cuff right on the bullet graze.
“What’s wrong?”
“Mark shot at me, but it just grazed the skin.”
“Let me look at it.” She continued examining Alyse and then said, “The doctor should be here soon.”
It didn’t take long for the doctor to check her and discharge her.
“We’d like to ask you some questions now,” Adam said.
Alyse hesitated. She didn’t want to leave the hospital until she knew how Kim was.
“I can take you home so you can get into some warm clothes,” Adam continued.
Kim’s family would want to see him first. She might as well answer the million questions from the police while she waited. “OK.”
She followed Adam out of the hospital and Jeremy and Zamira gave them a lift home.
***
Kim woke to see Fleur peering down at him. “Wake up, sleepy head.” She smiled.
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