Jill looked out the window, unable to see any indication of how Malloy had arrived or if anyone was with him. She noticed the boat tied to the dock and turned away from the window. If she could get to the boat . . .
Crossing the hall, Jill opened the door to the hidden stairwell and quietly climbed down to the bottom. She opened the door leading to the garage and looked around. She crossed to the far side of the garage, finding the door leading into the backyard.
Stepping outside, she kept her body against the wall so that she wouldn’t be visible through the living room windows. She surveyed the yard, calculating how she could make it to the dock without being seen from the house.
Thinking of her many games of hide-and-seek growing up, Jill stepped into the shrubbery along the wall between CJ’s house and the one next door. She heard movement in the front yard, and hid just as a man came through the gate on the far side of the backyard. Quietly, she moved deeper behind a shrub and listened as the man circled the yard. He stopped just a few feet from her, and Jill was afraid he could hear the pounding of her heart. Finally, he moved back toward the other side of the yard, and her fear lessened slightly.
She breathed a sigh of relief when she heard the unidentified man move back into the front yard. Carefully, she scooted along the wall, hiding behind palm trees and greenery. Finally, she came to the water’s edge and wondered how she would make it across the yard to the boat.
Realizing that she would be completely exposed to the house if she ran across the yard, Jill squatted down and slipped into the water. She swam to the dock, then alongside of it until she reached the boat. With a prayer in her heart, she grabbed the top rung of the short ladder on the back of the boat.
Silently, she counted to three and then swung herself up into the boat and dropped down onto the deck. Staying on her hands and knees, she moved to the front of the boat and found just what she was looking for. Less than a minute later, she had the Coast Guard on the radio, and her fingers trembled around the gun she had found in the glove box.
* * *
His heart racing, Doug made the call for back-up. His tires squealed as he took a corner too fast, but his voice remained steady as he relayed the address to the local police and proceeded to provide details.
“Our suspect is armed and dangerous and has at least one hostage.” Doug’s stomach knotted as he considered that CJ might not be the only one in danger. He couldn’t even consider the possibility that the woman he was going to marry in just a few days could be in peril. He didn’t know if he could remain levelheaded if he thought about it, so he clung to the hope that Jill would stay hidden.
Doug didn’t dare look at Matt, seated on the passenger side of the car. He had already warned Matt that he had to stay out of sight when they got to the house, and he could only hope Matt would listen. Since Matt wasn’t trained to deal with armed criminals—and since he would do anything for CJ—he might be reckless and do something to endanger them all.
Doug cut off a van as he swerved through downtown traffic. He ignored the annoyed gesture from the other driver, praying that he wasn’t too late.
* * *
“What’s taking her so long?” Malloy asked impatiently as he paced across the living room to the hall.
CJ started to make excuses, but one glance at Malloy’s face changed her mind. He looked like a caged animal, edgily pacing back and forth. Terrified, CJ watched Malloy look down the hall and then turn back to her, his right hand gripping his gun tighter and his eyes narrowing as he checked his watch. His cockiness had subsided over the past few minutes, agitation rapidly replacing it. CJ could sense him losing control, and she was beginning to think she liked the cocky version of Malloy over the frustrated man pacing in front of her.
Tension vibrated through the room, and CJ tried to ignore the throbbing in her temples and the nausea settling in her stomach. More than once she wondered if she could just be having a bad dream. Malloy was supposed to be dead—he couldn’t really be here. She was supposed to be safe now.
So many times she had feared for her life. Over and over again she had faced the threats, the danger, the countless people who had wanted her dead. Each time the Lord had spared her life. Could she really have come this far only to have it end like this? Never before had she been so afraid, so helpless, and she knew she couldn’t survive the day alone. Her mind raced, variations of the same words running over and over in her head. Please, Father, let me get out of this alive. Please keep Matt and Jill and Doug safe.
CJ sucked in her breath when Malloy turned to her again, closing the distance between them. With a wave of his gun, he grabbed her arm. “Come on.”
CJ’s body went rigid at his touch, another wave of nausea hitting her hard. Malloy tightened his grip on her arm, pulling her toward the stairs. She stumbled, but Malloy continued forward. “I’m tired of waiting. I know those diamonds are here.”
“My closet was a mess. She probably couldn’t find it,” she stuttered, hoping to stall him.
Malloy shoved CJ in front of him, and they made their way up the stairs and approached the bedroom door. “Open it.”
CJ moved as slowly as she could while still trying to look natural. She should be safe by now, she thought. Nearly five minutes had passed since Jill had disappeared into the bedroom. As long as Jill remembered which door led to the hidden stairway, she should have had plenty of time to get out and make her way through the garage.
Now if she could just stall Malloy until help arrived. CJ blinked back the tears that formed in her eyes. She tried to push aside the realization that the man behind her had every intention of killing her.
The moment CJ turned the doorknob, Malloy pushed the door open and shoved her into the bedroom. He walked around the empty room, and then moved to the bathroom and the closet. He looked inside and then trained the gun on CJ again. “Where is she?”
“I don’t know.” CJ’s eyes darted to the bedroom door. If she ran, would he shoot her? Or was she better off trying to stall him in hopes that help would arrive soon?
“Where is she?” Malloy repeated. As he looked at CJ, pure evil exuded from him. His jaw clenched as he grabbed her hair, pulling her closer to him. A scream pierced the air, one of shock and fear. Her scream. CJ trembled, breathing rapidly as complete terror took over her psyche. As he pressed the gun to CJ’s temple, Malloy spoke in a deep, even tone. “I’m going to ask you one last time. Where are the diamonds?”
CJ gasped for breath, barely able to form words. “I hid them.” She faltered, waving in the general direction of the bedroom door. “Downstairs.”
She could feel the cold steel of the gun barrel against her skin, her pulse increasing beneath it. Malloy’s hand clenched her hair tighter and she bit back another scream. She could almost hear him considering if he should just shoot her now and find the diamonds himself.
“You won’t find them without me,” CJ said quickly. “I’ll get them for you.”
“No more stalling.” Malloy’s voice was clipped and impatient.
His hand still fisted in her hair, Malloy pulled CJ back toward the stairs as she wondered if help would ever arrive.
* * *
Matt clenched and unclenched his hands as Doug drove as quickly as traffic would allow. They were passing the beach near his and CJ’s new house when they turned the corner to find a wall of cars blocking the street.
“This can’t be happening!” Matt looked at Doug desperately. He didn’t want to think about the danger CJ was in, but he couldn’t think of anything else. Each minute, each second that passed by might make the difference of whether she lived or died. He blinked hard as he felt his eyes water at the thought of life without her. He couldn’t accept that idea—wouldn’t accept it.
“The police should already be there by now,” Doug offered, lifting his cell phone to his ear.
His body already vibrating with adrenaline, Matt saw the look on Doug’s face as he listened to the person on the other end, and it d
id nothing to calm Matt down. He felt like everything was closing in on him, and he wanted to just get out and start running. They were still a couple of miles away from CJ, and there was no way to be sure if they went on foot they would get there faster.
Doug flipped the phone closed, cranked the wheel, and forced the car to jump the embankment to the other side of the street. “There’s an accident blocking the entrance to your neighborhood.”
“What aren’t you telling me?” Matt asked as Doug pulled the car into a parking lot next to the marina.
“A cement truck didn’t hear the sirens and ran through the intersection just as two police cars were turning into your neighborhood. The cops aren’t in the greatest shape, and none of their buddies is going to make it to your house anytime soon with the road blocked,” Doug explained. “All of the Coast Guard boats in the area responded to a bad boat wreck, and it’s going to be at least ten minutes before any of them get there.”
The car screeched to a stop at the marina. Instinctively, Matt scrambled out and followed Doug onto the long wooden dock. Boats swayed gently in the current, only a few people in sight on the quiet weekday afternoon. To their right a good-sized yacht was occupied by an elderly couple sitting on the deck. Without a second glance, Doug made a beeline for a man walking toward them. The man was long and lean, probably in his late thirties, and he bore a classic anchor tattoo on his arm. To Matt, the man’s flat-top haircut and the tattoo suggested he had been a Navy man.
Doug raised a hand in greeting as they approached. “Hey, is one of these boats yours?”
“Yeah, that one.” The man pointed at a speed boat, beaming with pride. “She isn’t that big, but she’s fast.”
“Great. I need to borrow it.”
The man stepped back, pure shock on his face. “What?”
Doug flashed his badge as he spoke. “It’s a police emergency.” He dug out a business card and handed it to him.
“You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Matt stepped forward, impatience simmering. “He isn’t kidding. It’s a matter of life and death.”
“Look, I’d be happy to help you, but I just redid the steering controls. It’ll take a few minutes to show you how to operate the boat,” the man told him. Seeing the frustration radiating from Doug and Matt, he added, “I’ll be happy to take you wherever you want to go.”
“You’ve got to be kidding.” Doug shook his head impatiently.
The man just shrugged and shook his head.
Matt knew Doug was at the end of his rope. With a deep breath, he laid a hand on Doug’s arm. “Doug, we don’t have time to waste.”
Doug’s teeth were clenched as he nodded to the boat. “Let’s go, but you both had better keep your heads down.”
Thirty seconds later Doug and Matt were on the boat and headed out to sea with Butch, a former Navy mechanic who now made his living repairing yachts. He just nodded casually when Doug told him where they were going.
By the time Butch turned the boat into the channel leading into Matt’s neighborhood, Doug was already on the radio trying to contact Jill. With a little help from the Coast Guard, he finally found the right frequency.
Doug’s rigid stance relaxed slightly when Jill’s voice came over the radio in a hushed tone.
“Doug?” she whispered. “Be careful. There’s someone in the backyard.”
Aware that they were on an open frequency, Doug kept his response brief. “Just stay down. I’ll take care of it.”
“Please hurry,” Jill started. Suddenly, she shrieked and a gunshot sounded. The radio dropped out of Doug’s hand, swinging by its cord as the connection was lost.
Chapter 26
CJ yelped with pain as Malloy yanked on her hair to force her down the stairs. Just as they reached the landing, she heard a gunshot outside. Her heart sank as she thought about Jill and the possibility of Matt and Doug arriving as well.
Malloy let out a distorted laugh. “Sounds like my associate located your friend.”
She gasped for air, guilt overwhelming her as she thought of Jill possibly being injured—or worse—because of her. CJ’s legs and arms felt like jelly, her body moving forward only because Malloy continued to drag her with him. A second gunshot sounded.
Think, CJ ordered herself. Help should have been here by now.
Her eyes landed on the coat closet, and she knew that she had to at least try to get away. She might still be able to help whomever Malloy’s thug was shooting at outside. “I hid the diamonds in one of the guest rooms,” CJ ventured, pointing down the hall.
Malloy released her hair and gave her a shove into the hall in front of him. “Which one?”
“This one.” CJ walked through the bedroom’s open door ahead of him. “In the back of the closet.”
“Get them,” he growled, making a point to train the gun on her.
She pulled open the door and stepped into the closet. She squatted down, grateful that some of Matt’s things cluttered the floor so she could give the appearance of searching. Edging deeper into the closet, CJ glanced back to see that Malloy was still standing near the middle of the bedroom.
With a silent prayer and a rush of adrenaline, she reached up, wrapped her fingers around the doorknob of the adjoining closet, and burst out into the hallway. She sprinted toward the kitchen with her eyes focused on the door leading to the garage. The shout behind her didn’t slow her down, nor did the approaching footsteps. Then a gunshot echoed through the house and stopped her cold.
* * *
Matt stepped forward and gripped the side of the boat with both hands as they turned the corner near his and CJ’s house. No one had moved for a few seconds after they heard the gunshot through the radio, then Doug had leaned over and increased the boat’s speed himself, ignoring Butch’s annoyed stare.
The house came into view even as Matt tried to focus on what they could do to save CJ and Jill. The dock near the house was in full view from the windows on the back of the house. “Doug, they’re going to see us coming.”
Doug nodded. “Which is why we’re going to pull up to the dock next door.” He pointed at the little dock that belonged to Matt’s next-door neighbor.
Butch cut the boat’s speed and turned the wheel to edge in where Doug had indicated. “Do you want me to wait for you?”
Doug started to say no, but movement in the yard caught his eye. Before he could respond, Butch tied off the boat with a single line. With a nod of approval, Doug drew his weapon and turned to Matt. “I want you to stay here with Butch.”
“You know better than that,” Matt answered as another gunshot vibrated through the quiet neighborhood.
Matt leaped from the boat and sprinted along the neighbor’s yard toward his own. Doug sent Butch a look and ordered him to stay down before Doug jumped up to follow Matt. Both men slowed briefly to scale the wrought-iron fence that separated the two yards, and before Doug could stop him, Matt headed straight across the open yard for the back door.
Hearing movement behind him, Doug turned back toward the water. His jaw dropped when he saw Jill standing in the boat, holding a gun with both hands. In his surprise and relief, he didn’t notice the movement in the bushes along the wall. Matt had only taken six or seven steps when Jill shot across the yard to help ward off the threat that Doug and Matt had yet to see.
Another gunshot sounded at the same time, but Matt never broke stride. Doug immediately switched back to cop mode and aimed his weapon toward the bushes. He squeezed off a round to cover Matt, shouting at Jill to get down.
She didn’t have to be told twice.
* * *
CJ barely had time to blink as Malloy lunged toward her. She had dropped to the floor when a bullet splintered the garage door she had been attempting to open. Shaking, she tried to get her feet underneath her so she could stand, but all she managed to do was push herself along the floor until her back was up against the wall.
Malloy reached down and squeezed one hand around
her throat. “You stupid girl!”
CJ grabbed his arm with both of her hands and opened her mouth in an attempt to breathe. As his fingers squeezed tighter, her eyes grew huge with panic, her pulse racing.
Suddenly, Malloy loosened his hold just enough for her to gasp for air. “Now, are you ready to cooperate?”
CJ nodded emphatically, and Malloy released his grip on her throat.
“The diamonds are here, in the kitchen.”
“Where?”
“In one of the drawers.” CJ slowly pulled herself up, her breathing quick and shallow. Fear consumed her—fear for her life, for her husband, and for her friends. The scene almost seemed unreal, as though she was watching a television show—a show about someone else. Still a little dazed, CJ opened one drawer to find the diamonds weren’t there. “It was one of these over here.” She slid open a second drawer and looked down at the bag of diamonds inside.
He’s going to kill me, she thought now. As soon as he sees them, he’s going to kill me.
She didn’t notice the sound at the door as she reached into the drawer. In a sudden move, she grabbed the bag of gems and hurled it at Malloy. The sudden motion caught him off guard, giving CJ a chance to dart toward the door. Before she could reach it, Matt burst through it. He swung a baseball bat with all of his might, a look of utter fury on his face. The bat connected with Malloy’s shoulder, knocking him forward as he cried out in pain.
The diamonds dropped to the floor and Malloy’s gun clattered onto the kitchen counter. Malloy reached for it, his fingers wrapping around the handle just as Matt dropped the baseball bat and grabbed him from behind. The gun tumbled out of sight onto one of the kitchen stools as Malloy twisted free and turned to face Matt.
Malloy’s eyes glinted with challenge, and he glanced at CJ, who was now trapped in the corner of the kitchen. He then looked back to Matt, apparently pleased that CJ couldn’t get out of the kitchen without getting by him. “Even if you get past me, my friend outside isn’t going to let you out of here alive.”
The Deep End Page 20