know what you’re doing. I don’t want to hurt your aunt—Sandy there likes her a whole lot. But this is a pretty desperate situation you’ve caused for us. Tell your aunt to get her pretty rump on the boat so I don’t have to kill her, and help us get out of here!”
Beth wasn’t even sure that Brad cut her on purpose, but the knife moved against her throat, and she choked out a small sound of pain.
Amber jumped like a rabbit and did as she’d been told. Sandy stepped up to the rail as Brad prodded Beth forward, forcing her to either step or fall onto the deck.
Once they were all on board, he grabbed Beth by the hair, dragging her down to the small cabin. “If you hurt Amber in any way, I swear I’ll kill you,” she said, her voice shaking despite the bravado of the words. She didn’t consider herself a particularly brave person, but she had discovered a deep-seated maternal instinct. She would fight to her last breath for her niece.
KEITH GOT CLOSE ENOUGH to see the knife at Beth’s throat before the boat headed out. He swore, weighing his options. If cornered, they might kill one of their hostages, as a warning to back off.
He reached for his cell phone; it was gone. He’d lost it in the scuffle out front. Swearing silently beneath his breath, he started to move again, kicking off his shoes as he ran to the end of the pier, then dived into the water. He surfaced, then paused briefly to reconnoiter.
The boat was just moving within the speed limit of the law and following good boating etiquette. They were obviously trying not to be noticed. That was his first piece of luck. He swam hard.
His second piece of luck came when he realized that they’d been in a hurry and careless of the lines. One was trailing in the water. He caught hold of it just as the boat began to increase its speed. He strained to pull himself up closer, fighting to clear the motor. As the boat began to scud across the water, he held on for dear life.
“TIE HER UP!” Brad shouted to Sandy.
“You are not going to—” Beth began. She stopped. The knife again. She swallowed hard. “I’ll do anything if you’ll just let her go,” she said quietly.
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