“It’s a really rare find,” she whispered. “Maybe our luck’s starting to change.”
From across the lake rose the burr of a boat engine.
57
Tyler lowered the binoculars and exhaled slowly.
The job was done. Had to be.
He had seen the mini-jet adrift, no movement visible on board. Had seen the other boat stop alongside. Had seen the pilot, probably Blair, check out the jet boat and then speed south, in the direction of the Kent estate.
The Sharkeys would hardly be leaving the area if Robinson and the Kent girl were still alive.
Slowly he unclipped his transceiver and talked on channel one. “Blair, Gage-confirm your kills.”
A pause. Then Blair’s voice, half obscured by engine roar.
“The only one killed is Gage, God damn it!”
Cain and Lilith heard the sizzle of radio chatter as the van swung out of the woods onto Skylark Drive.
“She shot him,” Blair went on, his voice chewed ragged by hysteria. “She shot Gage, that rookie bitch.”
The transmission was fading in and out as the road twisted. Cain stopped the van and keyed the talk button on his ProCom.
“Blair. Get it under control.”
“Control” That single word was packed tight with grief and anger and contemptuous disbelief. “Screw you, Cain. I don’t give a shit about control. Only thing I care about is Robinson.”
“Blair-“
“I’m doing her. Swear to God, I’m taking her out!”
“Blair” Cain said. “Blair”
No response.
“Get down, get down!”
Ally hunkered in the pit. Trish slid after her, spirals of lightheadedness swimming like moonbeams in her brain. She tried to chase them away as she huddled with the girl, listening tensely as the boat droned nearer.
When it was close, she risked a peek over the rim.
The FireStar surged toward the shallows, then veered east and flashed into profile, paralleling the shoreline.
Pilot at the helm. The seat beside him-empty Or was there a slumped figure, one arm trailing in the water, the head lolling
She remembered how the man in the port seat had stopped firing abruptly. She’d thought he was reloading.
No. She’d hit him. Perhaps even killed him.
“Robinson!”
The pilot. His scream thin and ragged. Did he see her No, impossible. He was shouting in the direction of the island, that was all.
“I’m coming for you! You should’ve let me drown!”
The sentry at the dock.
Flash-card image in her mind: a reddened face, a glare of distilled hatred.
Her heart worked harder. A new rush of dizziness washed over her. She tightened her grip on the pistol.
“Big mistake, Robinson!” He was still screaming, the cries etched raw by his damaged throat. “Big mistake!”
The boat plowed out of sight, circling east.
“Which one is that” Ally asked in a hush.
Trish licked her lips, so terribly dry. “The guy who loaned me the belt.”
“Oh.” Ally swallowed. “Sounds like he wants it back.”
In the idling van Cain repeated Blair’s name, knowing it was useless.
Tyler’s voice, shaken and distant: “He switched off, boss. He’s at the island. Robinson and the girl must’ve jumped ship.”
Cain started driving again, holding the radio in one hand and steering with the other. “You in the picnic area”
“Yeah. I’ll be in position if they come ashore. You send Mrs. Kent to a better place”
“She got a phone call from the governor.”
“That’s real disappointing.”
“Also real temporary. We’ll do her when we’re done backing you up.”
A snort. “I don’t need your help. I can handle the rookie.”
Lilith grabbed her own radio. “Like you handled her when you put her in the lake”
“Hey, fuck you-“
“She should be dead by now, okay You had your chance. Now it’s our turn.”
Cain caught Lilith’s gaze in the glow of the dashboard. He shook his head curtly.
Internal dissension was not what they needed now.
Discipline. Stability. Teamwork.
“Keep it together,” he mouthed to Lilith, too low to be heard over the air.
Lips pursed, she turned away.
“We’re all getting a little hot,” Cain said into his radio. “Need to cool off, take it easy, right”
“Right.” Tyler was agitated, but Cain knew he was a pro. He would swallow the insult.
“We’ll be there soon. Maybe you won’t need us. Maybe Blair will whack Robinson and save all of us the trouble. If not, she’ll have a regular welcoming committee ready to greet her when she makes landfall.”
“Hell, boss”-Tyler tried for humor-“you just want a chance to smoke the Mouseketeer yourself.”
Cain had to smile. “You got that right.”
58
“Where are they going” Ally peered in the direction of the fading engine noise.
“Circling around,” Trish said, the words coining with curious slowness. “I think only the pilot is a threat. The other one looked … hurt.”
“One’s enough. What did he mean, you should’ve let him drown”
“I-uh-I kind of saved his life.”
“Saved his life”
“CPR. Mouth-to-mouth.”
“Are you crazy” Ally bit her lip. “Sorry.”
“I’m sorry too. I didn’t think it would work out … like this.” Trish cleared her throat. “Can you loosen the tourniquet for me”
“So soon”
“I … I can’t feel my leg anymore.”
“Oh, God.”
She fumbled at the knot, finally got it undone.
“Am I bleeding” Trish asked.
Ally gently explored the area around the wound. “Not much. A lot less than before.”
“Good.”
“I didn’t think it would stop this fast.”
“It was venous blood, not arterial. That sort of wound can heal pretty quickly if you …” Trish paused as if losing her concentration, then shook her head. “If you keep the pressure on,” she finished.
Ally frowned. “What’s the matter”
