Page 141 of Kai
“Yeah, I didn’t think so.” The merc smirked and waved hisgun. “Ass to the railing or I’ll open her up. Now!”
“Slow it down, dude.” Kai backed away slowly, one step at a time, showing his empty hands. “If you hurt her—”
“It will be your fucking fault,” the merc snapped. He only calmed down once Kai stood against the gunwales on the opposite side of the deck. “That’s better. Good Marine,” he added in an infuriatingly condescending tone before he clucked in my ear. “Now, now, dearest Cersi. That move was very naughty. You can fight me later while I fuck you raw.”
I glared at the beast. It was my rotten luck to be the object of his sick fixation.
Kai’s nostrils expanded with silent fury, but trapped by Levine’s gun, he stood still against the railing. The darkness of a moonless night contrasted with his ashen face. The bandage glared white on his chest, but it was also spotted with red.
I trapped a sob in my throat. He had to be in so much pain.
Waves swelled behind him, rocking the boat, although perhaps not as violently as before. Flashes of distant lightning framed Kai’s form, outlining his body’s powerful lines. With his feet planted apart and his hands fisted, his limbs swelled with elegant muscle. He was ready to fight, if only he got the chance.
Thunder rumbled in the distance, a warning of death approaching.
“The wind is about to change.” Kai announced as the patter of rain tapped on the fiberglass roof above our heads. “The boat is adrift. If I don’t act, she will capsize.”
“Trying to trick me again?” The merc tsked. “You’re good and you’ve had a good run. Hell, you almost got me when no one else—not even Li—succeeded. But this time around, I hold all the cards.” He nudged his head toward me. “The sea is calming down some. Plus, a dead man doesn’t need to worry about the wind. From now on, it’s all smooth sailing… for me.”
He laughed at his own joke. God, how I wanted to punch him in the face.
“Think of all the wonderful ports of call we’ll visit together, Cersi.” The merc nipped at my earlobe, taunting me, provoking Kai. “You can enjoy the scenery from your berth, tied up and spread-eagle on my bed.”
Kai’s knuckles went white around his fist. I gritted my teeth. The smug merc let out another cackle. He was having a ball, so sure he’d won.
I had a good idea of what would happen next.
Fighting to slow down my breathing, I closed my eyes and imagined myself on the mat facing the most important match of my life. Squashed against Levine’s front, my hands were tied behind my back and numb to boot. I’d always been a fierce competitor, and yet, despite all my trophies, this seemed like a match I couldn’t win.
If you lose, Kai dies, I reminded myself.Find a way, Astor.
Across the deck, Kai’s gaze connected with mine. He understood the lack of options we faced. Without words, we spoke to each other from soul to soul. My heart broke. There were so many stories that remained untold between us, so many moments of happiness we’d have to forfeit.
A ferocious determination lit up his eyes. His message was clear. Kai would die so that I could free myself from Levine the moment he attacked. This was Kai’s plan, and I loved him for it. But it wasn’tmyplan.
“I think it’s time you went home,” Levine said to Kai. “And by home, I mean the bottom of the ocean.”
“Don’t!” My eyes burned with tears—fucking tears when I needed to be strong! “I have lots of money, and I’ll do anything you want if you let him live. Anything!”
“You’ll do anything I want anyway,” Levine ground out.“Your boyfriend here is a very dangerous man, and the only other person in the world who knows I’m alive.”
“He won’t say anything,” I said, desperate. “He’ll swear it. He keeps his oaths!”
“It’s okay, Sorceress.” Kai flashed me the placid grin that had endeared him to me early on. “Remember. We honor our losses by living our best lives.”
“No, Kai, please,” I whimpered as the night sky wept a torrent of tears, and the rain tamed the ocean with a chorus of splatters.
“Bro, that was smooth.” Levine let out a morbid chuckle and braced his legs apart as he steadied himself to deliver the killing shot. “You make a dashing Prince Charming. Think of this as your heroic end. You die, so that she can live… to serve me.”
His finger tightened over the trigger.
Serenitylurched, spun halfway, and pitched several times before she went dead in the water. The sails lost the wind, the rig flapped in the night, and the boat was at the mercy of the elements. Levine staggered to keep his balance. The backs of his legs hit the gunwales.
He let go of the knife.
It clattered against the side of the boat and disappeared in the water as he braced on his hand to keep from going overboard. Fighting to stay on deck, he loosened his hold on me. It was a minimal shift, a tiny give in his brutal clutch. It lasted less than a second, but it was the break I needed.
I bent forward, and using all the momentum I could muster, threw my head back.
