Page 49 of Walk on the Wilde Side
"Zander!" I scream again, hoping to bring him fully out of his stupor. It's a rookie mistake—in my defense, I'm not used to being kidnapped—because it brings their attention my direction.
"She's untied," Chug says angrily. "Who the fuck tied her hands? Doesn't matter. Get her back on that chair."
At least three of the men start making their way toward me. I climb up on the railing. "All of you can fuck off," I say and dive into the water. I burst up from the ice-cold water with a shocked gasp. The salt water feels like fire on my cut cheek and wrists. A wave splashes my face. I suck in water and cough and sputter but keep my eyes on Zander. His massive form sinks lower, then his head pops up, and he gasps for air. He's struggling to tread water. His hands are tied, and the relentless, angry waves keep rolling over him.
I make my way over to him. He struggles for a second, thinking he's been caught by one of the kidnappers. He pulls free of my grasp and is flailing around like crazy. He's only just regained consciousness, and he's struggling to gain his bearings in the turbulent water.
"Zander, it's me. It's Nev," I say loudly.
His gaze lands on me. A wave washes over both of us. I lose sight of him for a second, then he reappears.
"Nev," he says, confused. It's obvious he has a concussion. "What the fuck? Why are we—" He's kicking his legs hard to keep his head above water. He tries to free his hands and yells out in pain, forgetting his dislocated shoulder. His gaze lifts and lands on the boat behind us. The crew have lined up along the railing as if they're watching a movie. "Gun!" Zander yells. He yanks hard on his hands. The shoulder slumps lower, and the pain is causing him to lose consciousness again. I glance around and spot the wave runner he arrived on.
"Hey, Dolly, who should I shoot first?" Chug asks as he leans over the railing with his gun.
"Zander, you need to relax. I'm a trained lifeguard, remember?" I ask.
He smiles. "Can't ever forget. You and that red swimsuit, fuuck." His eyes drift shut. I take hold of him from behind. Chug fires the gun. The bullet hits far enough away that I'm sure he's only trying to scare us, and it's working. I've never dragged anyone the size of Zander out of the water. My legs are cold enough to make the task harder, but I manage to get back to the wave runner.
Zander looks around. "Oh hey, I just remembered I rented that thing. Good for me."
It's not easy holding him in the water. I struggle to get his hands untied. The rope is thick, and my fingers are numb, but the cold is also working in my favor. The icy water has made Zander's hands contract in size. With some effort I slide the rope off.
Zander is finally gaining his bearings. He pulls his hands free. It takes a little work to get him up on the watercraft with only one working arm. The right one hangs limply at his side as he offers me the left. He pulls me up in front of him. "Think you're going to have to drive, Nevvie."
Chug and his crew have fired up the engine on the Knotty Girl. They're still watching us as Chug climbs up into the wheelhouse. He turns the boat toward open sea and sends smoke and a thick wake our direction. I'm relieved to see the back of them.
Zander wraps his good arm around my waist and rests his chin on my shoulder. "My dad's right. You really are a guardian angel, Nev."
twenty-three
Zander
I have no choice but to go to the emergency room even though it's the last place I want to go. My right arm is hanging a good three inches below my left. I took a blow to the head, and admittedly, my first few minutes in the water I was sure I was stuck in a weird dream where my arms didn't work, and the ocean was trying to swallow me as a beautiful mermaid tried to save me from the black depths below. When I came to fully, I realized the weird dream was mostly true. My bound hands made treading water nearly impossible, which I'm sure was the goal of my attackers. The ocean was trying to swallow me up. Not because it was a monstrous, menacing creature but because that's what happens to anyone who can't tread water well enough to keep their head above the surface. And a beautiful mermaid came to my rescue, only she wasn't wearing a tail, just a concerned look and a cut on her cheek that reminded me I didn't hurt her kidnappers nearly bad enough. I went out there to rescue her but I failed. If she hadn't jumped in after me, I would have drowned, and I couldn't let myself think what might have happened to Nev.
Kinsley and Indi wait while Nev finishes giving her statement to the marina police. They'll drive her to the hospital. Jameson helps me into his truck. He drove down after my last text, and Ernie filled him in on what was happening. Ronan and Colin came along in case there were some heads to smash. Unfortunately, the heads were all out at sea. The U.S. Coast Guard were alerted to look out for Chug's boat. I'm sure they'll be bringing the whole fucking crew back to shore soon and, hopefully, to jail. The one person who didn't suffer any consequences yet was Hoffman, but his time was coming. I would see to that personally.
I lean back against the seat and close my eyes. I'm wet and cold, and my head feels as if someone is pounding it with a rubber mallet.
"Bro, your shoulder looks like mine did after I dove out of the hayloft," Ronan says. "They'll pop that sucker right back in, and it'll be as good as new … almost."
Colin leans forward. "How'd you let 'em get the drop on you, Z? Never seen you come out of battle this chewed up."
"There were, I don't know, seven of them, and one of them was a giant. I'm not saying he was giant. He was a literal giant, like off the fucking beanstalk or something like that."
"Ah, see, that makes sense," Colin says. "Ronan thought maybe you were losing your edge, you know, being over thirty now and all that. They say it all goes downhill fast after the big 3-0."
I don't have to open my eyes or look back to know that Ronan has given Colin a hard knuckle rap. "Shit, you fucker," Colin mutters as he sits back.
"What are you saying shit like that for?" Ronan asks. "Can't you see the old guy is suffering? Good thing Nev was there to save you." Ronan says with a laugh. "There you were going out to the boat to save her, and she plucked you out of the water instead."
I finally open my eyes. It's still a dark, cloudy day, but even the muted daylight hurts my head. I look at Jameson without lifting my head off the seat. "You had to bring the children along?"
"They were hoping we'd see some action," Jameson admits.
"Yeah, we thought we'd get to break some heads. Instead, the only head that got broken was yours," Ronan says. Colin has already wised up and shut up, but it always takes Ronan a lot longer to catch on.
"Seriously, Ro?" Jameson looks up at him in the mirror.
