“Nobody wins me,” Avalyn snapped at him.
Ramsey arched an eyebrow at her. “You have no control here, Miss Shaman. I suggest you shut that pretty mouth.”
“Don’t talk to her like that,” Bridger ground out.
Ramsey laughed. “I can see that you two haven’t figured out yet that I’m in charge. I guess the eight automatic weapons pointed at your heart isn’t proof enough. How about the fact that we’re in the middle of the Caribbean Sea with no help in sight and both of your phones have been shattered and sunk in the sea?” He smiled. “But soon enough you’ll feel real fear and you’ll know who’s in charge.”
Bridger had felt more fear since the man had dragged Avalyn out onto the deck than he had his entire life. No death-defying stunt was as terrifying as the woman he loved being in this psycho’s power. The scariest part was that Bridger had no clue what Ramsey’s plan might be.
Ramsey must be bipolar or something to be acting so insane. Bridger prayed the Ramsey he thought he knew would show up, start laughing, and explain he’d just wanted to get their reactions, scare them for a minute. As he looked into Ramsey’s eyes, he had the sinking feeling that his prayers wouldn’t be answered.
The mercenaries stood quietly next to Avalyn for a few moments. No one said anything to her or tried to touch her again. Two more men walked past them with huge weapons in their hands. They didn’t so much as glance at Avalyn as they walked out the wide glass doors at the rear of the gathering area. Avalyn saw more men out there and could hear voices, but she couldn’t make out the words. One lone man had his back to her, but she could’ve sworn it was Bridger. Oh my, she was grasping at hope right now. Bridger wouldn’t be here with these criminals.
A few seconds later, two of the men grasped her arms and tugged her toward the glass door; the third man picked up the anchor and struggled behind them. The men on the back deck all spun to face her as they exited the cabin, and she gasped. It was Bridger. Bridger was here! He would protect her. Hope fluttered in her chest, but then it sank. Could Bridger be one of them?
“Ramsey, no!” Bridger yelled, hurrying toward her.
Guns cocked all around him, one man shoving his weapon into Bridger’s chest, stopping him in his tracks.
Avalyn glared at the man she thought she loved. “You’re involved in this?” Fear made her throat dry and scratchy. Bridger wouldn’t let them drown her in the ocean, would he?
Bridger shook his head, holding his hands up. “Ava, I …”
“Ah, this is beautiful.” Another man clapped his hands a few times. “I hoped I would find the woman Bridger Hawk loved desperately, and it appears I’ve chosen correctly.”
Bridger blinked at her, and then his lips turned up in a smirk and he laughed. What was the jerk laughing about? “So, what, this is some fun publicity stunt?” He looked to the man who was clearly in charge. Ramsey. She’d seen him in Bridger’s YouTube videos before; they always bantered and competed. The man reeked of too much sun-tanning and too much money. “We should get a lot of attention and new followers,” Bridger continued. “Maybe even some new sponsors with Avalyn Shaman involved.”
“I refuse to be part of your stupid publicity stunt,” Avalyn said. A publicity stunt sounded better than being drowned, though. Her heart was shredding inside her. Bridger! The man she’d thought she loved would use her for a publicity stunt? “And if you wanted the woman he loved, you should’ve kidnapped Britney Nolan, not me.”
Bridger simply stared at her.
Ramsey’s eyes widened. “The supermodel? Yeah, she would’ve been a lot of fun.” He strolled up to Avalyn and walked a circle around her, his eyes traveling over her body in her T-shirt and yoga pants. The clothes she’d been traveling in. She wanted to scream that she wasn’t some bimbo to eye like a snack. “No. I think you’ll be the perfect motivator for our boy here. I’ve watched him. Whenever anyone mentions Avalyn Shaman, he lights up like a Christmas tree.”
Avalyn’s heart started pounding fast for other reasons. Bridger had made his intentions pretty clear last week, but the thought of him “loving her desperately” made her want to throw herself into his arms. No. He was a playboy jerk, and this just confirmed it. Using her and her name for publicity, putting her in this horrible situation for more followers? What a slime.
Ramsey sneered. “And I need him to have the proper motivation to make this stunt work. I’ll have so many people following my YouTube Channel, I’ll be more famous than any of the Hawk brothers.” He ran his hand down her cheek. Avalyn flinched away from him.
“Don’t touch her!” Bridger yelled. He started forward again. A man stepped in his path and pushed his gun into Bridger’s chest.
“No,” Avalyn breathed. Maybe Bridger was a pawn in this too. She should’ve been terrified, not hopeful, that Bridger wasn’t one of them.
“Where do you want me to shoot him, sir?”
Ramsey smiled. “We can’t kill him … yet. But a bullet in his arm would slow him down and help me win the competition.” Ramsey sauntered away from Avalyn and up to Bridger. “And I think you’ll want to win this competition. The winner each round … gets to spend the night with Avalyn Shaman.”
“Nobody wins me,” Avalyn shot at him, horror racing through her. She would never be with a man like Ramsey. The mere thought made her want to throw herself off the yacht and take her chances with the sharks. Instead, she stood straighter and glared at him, pretending he was a politician trying to tell her she couldn’t help children because of their stupid and ever-present red tape.
Ramsey arched an eyebrow at her. “You have no control here, Miss Shaman. I suggest you shut that pretty mouth.”
Avalyn strained against the men holding her.
“Don’t talk to her like that,” Bridger ground out.
Ramsey laughed. “I can see that you two haven’t figured out yet that I’m in charge. I guess the eight automatic weapons pointed at your heart isn’t proof enough. How about the fact that we’re in the middle of the Caribbean Sea with no help in sight and both of your phones have been shattered and sunk in the sea?” He smiled. “But soon enough you’ll feel real fear and you’ll know who’s in charge.”
Avalyn couldn’t imagine what more fear she could feel. Already she was close to hysterics, passing out, or hyperventilating. How had she gotten involved in this nightmare? Was it just because this Ramsey guy thought Bridger loved her, or was there something deeper? Bridger may have wanted her, but he didn’t love her. She wasn’t sure Bridger Hawk was capable of real love. Sadly, that was the least of her concerns at the moment.
The thugs manhandled her toward the back deck of the boat. The yacht wasn’t moving, so at least she wouldn’t be sucked into a motor when they pushed her overboard, but the hope of swimming with her arms secured behind her back and an anchor tied to her ankle were pretty much shot. Please help me, Lord, she pled in her mind.
Bridger hurried after them. “Ramsey, don’t do this,” he demanded. The men stopped at the edge, and Bridger reached for her. He got pushed back by the wrong end of an assault rifle. He held up his hands and beseeched the men. “She’s innocent. Please don’t do this.”
Ramsey approached them on the back deck, sauntering along like they were walking on the beach.
“Ramsey.” Bridger turned to him, holding out his hands. “Come on, man, we’re friends.”
“Best of friends.” Ramsey grinned.
Avalyn’s stomach dropped. Ramsey was Bridger’s friend? What kind of monster had his thugs point guns at his friend?
“Don’t do this to her,” Bridger begged.
She had never seen Bridger beg, for anything. Even as a child or young teen, she’d seen his brothers teasing, sometimes torturing him, and he’d just smirk and yell at them to bring it on. Her heart twisted and expanded toward him at this moment. She was going to die and Bridger would do anything to protect her. Sadly, with all the armed men and the psychotic Ramsey, protecting her might be impossible.
“Come on, man. I’ll do any publicity stunt. I’ll lose to make you look good. Anything you want.” Bridger’s voice dropped low. “Please don’t hurt her.”
Ramsey grinned. “I knew I’d found the perfect woman. Let the games begin.”
Then he shoved Avalyn into the water.
“Ava!” Bridger yelled.
Avalyn’s instinct was to scream, but luckily she clamped her mouth tight and held her breath. She flailed, but the anchor on her ankle dragged her down fast. Pressure built in her head until she thought it would explode. She tried not to breathe in and speed her demise.
She stopped descending suddenly. The anchor must have hit the bottom of the ocean. She’d done free dives and scuba dives many times, and the instructor always claimed that if you slowly blew bubbles out, you could hold your breath longer. She tried, she really tried, but darkness edged in on her vision and the need to breathe in was all-consuming. She prayed to the Lord above for a miracle as she struggled to push the rope off with her other foot and somehow contort her body to get her hands to her ankle and free herself.
Bridger. Would he come for her? Could he save her?
Chapter Eight
“Ava!” Bridger screamed as Avalyn was shoved off the boat deck and quickly sank in the clear, blue water. Ramsey had gone insane! Bridger ripped off his shirt and kicked off his shoes.
Arms grabbed him from behind and held tight. “Calm down, man,” said Ramsey’s voice. “You’ve got to give her time to sink.”
Bridger elbowed the guy holding him and was rewarded with his elbow making contact with his fleshy nose, a scream, and one of his arms was released. The guy holding his other arm clung tight. Ramsey was grinning and cameras were rolling. Bridger was going to kill Ramsey … right after he rescued Avalyn.
“You gotta say your line or we can’t let you go after her,” Ramsey said.
Bridger’s eyes narrowed. He didn’t care about his stupid line, but he growled, “What’s a challenge, and where do I find it?” Then he reached out and grabbed Ramsey, slamming him into the man clinging to Bridger’s arm. They both howled in pain, and finally Bridger was free.
He dove into the water, angling his body straight down. The water was so clear he could see Avalyn probably forty feet down on the ocean bed. At least Ramsey had anchored at a shallow spot so Bridger had a chance of saving her. He’d covered maybe half of the distance when he saw a dark shadow approaching. Ramsey was diving much faster than Bridger was, holding on to a heavy rock.
Bridger angled toward him, knocking his former friend off course and ripping the stone from his hands. He dropped much quicker now, his ears popping and his head close to exploding. He had gone deeper on a free dive, but forty feet was plenty to feel the pressure and pain, though thankfully without the risk of the bends when you surfaced.
At least Bridger would be the first one to reach her, so there was no risk of Ramsey claiming he got to stay with Avalyn tonight. What a nasty jerk to even put that on the table. Bridger would protect her virtue, if he could get her out of the water before they both died. He dropped the rock to the side, horror slicing through him as he saw that Avalyn had passed out. Please don’t let her die, he begged his Father above.
He tugged at the rope on her ankle, working the knot frantically. It was too tight, pulled even tighter by her being dragged to the ocean floor and the water sealing it in place. No! He grabbed the rock he’d dropped and tried to chisel through the rope with the sharp edge. He was running out of oxygen and his lungs felt like they were being crushed. He blew out bubbles slowly. Please, Lord. Help me!
A shadow blotted out the sunlight above. Bridger glared up at Ramsey. If the man didn’t help Bridger save Avalyn, he was going to kill him with his bare hands and hope they posted it on YouTube.
Ramsey held out a knife. Bridger ripped it from him and quickly cut through the rope tying Avalyn’s ankle to the anchor. As soon as it gave, he released the knife, pulled Avalyn into his arms, and kicked for the surface. There was no time for any kind of slow ascent. He’d built up a tolerance for dives like this and would be fine, but what would it do to Avalyn? Her body was horribly limp. He could see Ramsey out of his peripheral vision and two other bodies as well, both in full scuba gear with camera equipment. If they’d had men down there, why didn’t they help? Ramsey was truly insane.
Bridger’s head burst through the surface. He was twenty yards from the yacht, and he dragged her that direction. Ramsey surfaced and helped him. Men reached down and lifted her onto the back of the platform. A man started CPR immediately.
Bridger launched himself onto the boat. He pushed at the man’s shoulder. “Let me,” he demanded.
The man glared up at him. “I’m a trained paramedic.”
“Oh.” Bridger fell back and waited with bated breath. The sun beat down on him, drying the water on his skin. Despite the tropical heat, he was chilled to the bone.
Ramsey climbed up onto the platform, also eyeing Avalyn with apprehension. Bridger couldn’t wait to take him out; he didn’t care how many weapons were aimed at them. He’d use Ramsey’s body as a shield from the bullets as he pummeled him with his fists. But first he had to know Avalyn was okay. She lay there motionless as the man kept breathing into her nose and mouth. Please, Lord, please. Bridger was a religious person and had good communication with the Lord above, but he couldn’t ever remember praying so diligently.
He met Ramsey’s gaze across Avalyn’s unresponsive body. Ramsey’s eyes were full of remorse and concern. Bridger didn’t care. Ramsey had better be praying Avalyn lived, or Bridger would drown him. The weapons couldn’t stop him under the water.
The only sounds were the water lapping against the boat and the paramedic’s movements as he finished chest compressions and went back to rescue breathing.
With a sudden gurgle, Avalyn threw up sea water.
Bridger’s breath rushed out of him. She was alive! The paramedic pushed her onto her side, and she heaved out another rush of water before just lying there, trembling.
Bridger wanted to swoop her up and get her far away from this nightmare, from these men who would have killed her for a publicity stunt. He stormed toward Ramsey. “You could’ve killed her!”
An arm encircled his throat and a gun was shoved into his abdomen. Another man came at him from the other side with another gun aimed at his chest. Bridger wanted to throw them off and pummel Ramsey, but he’d be no help to Avalyn if he was dead.
“You were the one who could’ve killed her.” Ramsey stalked toward him. “I have this all planned out. She will be perfectly safe if you’ll stop going off half-cocked.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You would’ve had your own weight and knife to get to her and to cut her free if you didn’t freak out and go all rogue! It was supposed to be a level competition.”
“This woman is not the object of your crazy competition.” He gestured to Avalyn. She looked so fragile and innocent, curled on her side. He’d never seen Avalyn helpless, and it tore at him. He wanted her to sit up and put them all in their place with her usual commanding and inspiring presence. The paramedic guy wrapped a blanket over her abdomen and legs and talked quietly to her. Avalyn’s eyes were closed, but he could see her shoulders shaking.
“I’m afraid she is.” Ramsey glared at him. “You have yourself to blame for endangering her today. This will be a fun competition, if you’ll just trust me.”
Trust him? “Give me that knife now; I know just where I’ll put it.” Bridger struggled to free himself from the men pinning him between them. The guns were jammed harder into his abdomen.
Ramsey laughed, but it was shaky. Was he really committed to going through with his insane plan after seeing Avalyn almost die? “Come on, my friend. Calm down. You won’t be any help to her if I give them permission to fire.”
Ramsey was no friend of his. Bridger didn’t know if they’d truly shoot him if he fought, but it took all of his strength to stand down.
How could he get Avalyn away from all of this? Maybe if they were posting the videos each day, Creed would be able to find them, track their progress, search out Ramsey’s money trail, something.
“Tomorrow you need to slow down and listen to instructions, not fight your way through like you do with everything. This is a friendly competition, man. Make it fun.” Ramsey winked as if they were competing at the world surf championship and it was all good fun.
“No tomorrow, Ramsey. You have your crazy video. Use it however you want, and let us go.”
Ramsey smiled patiently, spreading his hands. “I’m afraid that’s not going to happen. I’ve got days and days of events planned out. And in case you have any high hopes that one of your big brothers will save you, know that I’m not going to start posting the videos until the competition is over and you two are stored away at a secure facility.” His eyes gleamed. “If you survive.” He clapped his hands. “Now. I’m exhausted. Would you like to join me for dinner, or would you like to have your dinner in Miss Shaman’s suite with her?”
Bridger drew in a ragged breath. He saw no way to fight ten armed men and escape in the middle of the ocean. “We’ll eat alone,” he muttered.
“Ah, I’d choose the same. Enjoy your night with her, Bridge. Tomorrow night she might be mine.” Ramsey walked away, chuckling.
Bridger’s jaw clenched. He would never let Ramsey have his way with Avalyn. He’d die first.
The men released him, and he hurried to Avalyn. She sat up as he approached, and the blanket slid down on her shoulders. Her clothes and hair were plastered to her. “Bridger?” she whispered, gazing up at him with her beautiful dark eyes, looking much too uncertain and afraid.
His chest tightened. He’d almost lost her today. How could he get her far away from Ramsey? He couldn’t imagine the gauntlet of activities Ramsey had planned. The man claimed he wouldn’t hurt Avalyn, but she could’ve easily died today, and doing any of the extreme sports they usually did could result in death or serious injury. Especially if she was tied up.
Hawk Brothers Romance Collection Page 47