Bound To Love (23 page)

The pain was intense, and Tempest moaned. He propped her up on the bench seat, and reached for a cloth from the galley sink, wiping the blood from her eye.

Paul’s voice was dark and dangerous. ‘Be quiet.’

He walked to Skye and pulled her up too, dragging her next to Tempest. Then pulled the tape from her mouth. Skye cried out, tears running down her face. There was no softening of Paul’s expression. No sympathy. Cold fear trickled down Tempest’s spine. He saw them as less than human. She had to change that.

Her voice was low, unthreatening. ‘Please, Paul. Can we have some water?’

Paul blinked, then his dark eyes focused on her. ‘I’m not a monster.’ He filled a cup and held it to her mouth. She drank greedily, knowing that it might be hours before she got another chance. He refilled the cup and did the same to Skye.

‘Please don’t hurt us,’ Skye pleaded.

Paul laughed. ‘I have no intention of hurting you. Right now if they catch up to me they’ve got me on kidnapping, that’s all. I have no interest in sparking a manhunt for murder.’ He leant back against the side of the boat. ‘I had to take you. Forrester had a team there to capture me, and I had no intention of being taken.’

‘How did you know?’ Tempest asked tentatively. Paul seemed to be working alone.

‘I know Jake. He’d never let the woman he loves walk into danger alone. He was probably lying in wait, watching for me. Wasn’t he?’

Tempest nodded. There seemed little point in denying it. Now they were out in the middle of the ocean, heading God knows where. They needed a way to get out of here, and her mind was totally blank.

‘I’d like to stay and chat, ladies. But I have a job to do.’ Paul stood. ‘Behave yourselves. I don’t want to hurt you, but I’ve no problem tossing you over the side if you cause me any problems.’ A smile laced with menace stretched across his face, leaving Tempest in no doubt that he meant it.

With a quick dash up the stairs, he was gone.

‘If he’d meant to kill us, he would have done it by now.’ Tempest whispered to Skye. ‘Are you OK?’

‘A bit bruised, he brought me down here in the back of a car.’ Skye grimaced. ‘With my mouth taped.’

Tempest wished she could put her arms around her sister. Skye hated confined spaces. She’d suffered from claustrophobia since she was a little kid, it must have been truly horrible for her. She angled her body closer to Skye’s. They couldn’t even hold hands.

A clattering on the steps again, then Paul strode past them, dark intent in his eyes. Something long and hard glittered in his hand. A knife! He walked past them and squatted down, pulling at a hatch on the floor.

‘What are you doing?’ Skye gasped.

The sound of the engine filled the cabin, drowning her words. Tempest could smell the acrid smell of diesel and brackish water. Panic rose and overwhelmed her in a frantic wave.

Paul didn’t answer, didn’t even glance their direction, totally intent on the task at hand. The blade flashed as he leaned in, then he started sawing at something. He jerked back away from a hissing cloud of steam.

‘Paul!’ Tempest’s scream died away as he shot her a glance laced with venom, brandishing the knife her direction.

‘Bye, ladies.’ He darted back up the stairs, leaving them totally, terrifyingly alone.

****

Jake’s voice was laced with frustration. ‘Can’t this heap go any faster?’

He pushed a hand through his hair. Daniel was at the bow, staring out for any sign of the craft. They needed to get around the headland. Then they’d be able to see where Paul’s boat was. The minutes ticked away like hours and Jake’s whole body burned with tension.

Daniel pointed. ‘There!’

The yacht bobbed on the waves, the sky above them beginning to darken into night. They’d been watching along the coastline, but the little craft was headed straight out to sea. Jake’s heart clenched. He swung the wheel, altering their course to match. Daniel was on the radio, relaying details to Smith.
Where the hell was the police launch?
The two yachts were evenly matched for speed, and even though they could see them, there was no possibility of catching up the distance. Not unless Paul’s yacht slowed, and there seemed no possibility of that.

‘The police boat is there, they’re in pursuit,’ Daniel reported, his jaw clenched.

Jake fingered the golden globe around his neck. Tension wrapped tightly around his gut. They couldn’t see anyone above decks at this distance and anyway Tempest and Skye would be in the cabin. Paul would have tied them up. They could be hurt. If Paul realised Jake and Daniel were in pursuit, he could dump them over the side. They wouldn’t last long in this cold water. By the time they caught up with the craft it could all be too late.

He swore viciously. This yacht was just too slow. If only they’d been able to find a faster craft. He pulled in a deep breath and forced clouding emotion from his mind. There was no point going down that road. They’d commandeered the only boat available, and were the closest vessel, it would just have to be enough.

Jake’s mobile rang. He pulled it from his pocket, and glanced at the unfamiliar number.

‘Hi, Jake. How are you holding up?’

Jake’s eyes widened in shock. He glanced at Daniel and clamped the phone to his ear.

He kept his voice deliberately calm; Paul was after revenge and there was no point in antagonizing him. ‘I want to talk to Tempest.’

‘Not yet.’

Jake clenched his jaw at the effort it took not to shout. ‘I did what you asked, Paul.’

Paul’s voice was cold. ‘No, Jake, you didn’t. You delivered the money, but you tried to trap me. I knew you wouldn’t let her go in unprotected, you’re as easy to read as a trashy paperback.’

‘If you hurt them…’ Words failed him as Jake pictured Tempest hurt or worse.

‘Do you miss her?’

Paul’s voice was warm, cloying, and Jake’s knuckles went white as he gripped the phone. Yes, he missed her. His heart thudded in his chest and his stomach clenched. He needed Tempest the way his body had to have food and water. He wouldn’t survive losing her. He dragged in a lungful of air. Closed his eyes tight, and fought for calm. There was no way he could let Paul know. Paul had to think she meant nothing special to him. Only then would he consider releasing her.

‘Tempest’s family miss her. She and Skye are not involved in this. Let me talk to her, just to make sure she’s OK.’

‘Yeah, you’d like that wouldn’t you? Sorry, mate.’

The line went dead, and Jake stared at it, disbelieving. A mobile number displayed on the screen, and he pressed the button and listened for a moment before yelling in anger and frustration as the phone went straight to voicemail.

Daniel pointed out to sea. ‘Smoke!’ A black plume of smoke poured from the boat’s cabin.

‘It’s slowing!’ Jake shouted. His heart leaped. With the boat ahead slowing the distance behind them was shrinking.

‘Steer.’

He handed the wheel to Daniel, and ran downstairs into the cabin. He was going to have to board that boat. And he knew better than to go without a weapon. Jake pulled open drawers, and rummaged in the small stow-away cupboards below deck, searching for anything that might be of use. The galley had a selection of knives. He stared at them for a split second before rejecting them as an option. He didn’t want to kill Paul, just put him out of action. And diving onto the deck with a knife might very well result in an injury. A complication he didn’t have time for.

He found a heavy Maglight torch. He picked it up, checked that it was working, then balanced the heavy weight in his hands. It would do. A blow from the large torch would be enough to render a man unconscious, if necessary. He snatched a flare gun and a handful of flares and a couple of lifejackets. There was a life preserver ring on deck, mounted next to the wheel with a strong rope attached.

Black, acrid smoke was pouring from the vessel now. The bow was angled downwards. They were taking on water. He needed to get Tempest and Skye out of there.
Now
.

‘Here.’ He dumped down the flares and jackets next to Daniel. Fastened the torch securely in his belt. ‘You need to get me close enough to jump across.’

‘I’m going.’ Daniel’s brow creased with a frown. ‘That’s my wife in there.’

‘One of us needs to stay here, Daniel. And you’ve more experience with boats than I have. I might have to get them into the water, and you’ll be better able to get nearer.’

Daniel scowled. Then nodded.

‘Get me closer,’ Jake urged.

The yacht was listing. The sound of the engine becoming an irregular stutter, then faded to silence. Daniel slowed their engine as they drifted closer… closer…

‘Now!’ At Daniel’s shout, Jake leapt down on to the deck.

The surface was slick with water, and Jake’s feet slipped as he grabbed at the iron cables, grappling for purchase. The wind whipped his hair into his face, and he had to steady himself for a moment. Then he pulled the torch from his belt, resting the long barrel on his shoulder, and made his way across the wet deck to the hatch.

His eyes stung in the black smoke as he hurried down the ladder.

‘Jake!’ Tempest cried.

Relief flooded Jake at the sound of her voice. ‘Where’s Paul?’ If she’d seen him, Paul could too. The hairs on the back of Jake’s neck stood to attention, and he braced himself for attack.

‘He’s gone. Over here!’

There were two shapes in the darkness, propped against something. Jake’s feet sloshed through water. The yacht was going down. He had mere minutes to get to them. His heart pounded in his chest as he reached them, slinging an arm around Tempest and pulling her up to him. She was bound hand and foot.

‘Lean against the wall.’ He steadied her against the side of the cabin then reached for Skye.

‘We’ve got to get out of here,’ Jake said, wishing he’d brought the damn knife after all. With both girls unable to hold onto him, it was going to make it almost impossible to get them out.

‘Lean as close to me as you can,’ he warned, as he wound his arms around both waists, and pulled them up through the hatch, out of the suffocating darkness. Skye’s entire body was jerking as she coughed and struggled for breath. The yacht was angled right into the waves now, waves sloshing over the bow.

‘We’re going in,’ Jake shouted. He pulled them to the stern, and jumped as far away from the boat as he could.

Jake clamped his mouth tight shut as the cold shock of the water enveloped his body. His arms burned with the effort of holding on to his precious charges. The water swirled with powerful eddies, pulling back towards the sinking yacht.

Jake struggled to keep the women’s heads above water.

‘The mast!’ Tempest screamed.

Fear chilled Jake’s heart as he looked up at the mast and saw it waver, then start to fall directly towards them. He couldn’t move quickly enough, holding both of them, and the mast’s trajectory would hit Tempest if he didn’t act instantly. Jake shoved her away with all his might, and the heavy wood crashed into the boiling sea where she’d been.

Panic engulfed Jake as his eyes frantically scanned the water for her.

Nothing
.

Skye was screaming, and another noise broke through his consciousness. Shouting. Daniel was shouting. A head broke through the black water, and Jake struck out towards it, still gripping Skye tightly. With a Herculean effort, he grabbed at Tempest’s shoulders, forcing her face up out of the water. Tempest spluttered, then her gaze locked with his. She was alive.

Jake’s legs pumped in the water with the effort of swimming for all of them. His gaze swept around, finally alighting on the boat, with Daniel gripping the life preserver.

‘OK, Dan!’ Jake shouted, and Daniel threw the ring towards the little group. Jake grabbed at it, and the air filled with noise as a helicopter hovered overhead, and a rescue diver jumped into the water, swimming powerfully towards them. At what seemed like the same moment, a police launch swept in a large circle on the periphery.

Jake clutched Tempest tight as the diver secured Skye in the life preserver, and Daniel pulled her in to the yacht. His intuition had been proved right. If they’d waited… ice flowed through his veins as he contemplated the scene that would have met their eyes. Empty sea. With Tempest and Skye trapped in the cabin, fathoms beneath.

****

Tempest couldn’t stop the shudders that ran through her body as Officer Smith cut through her bonds. Not until Jake had wrapped a blanket around her shoulders and pulled her close in a trembling embrace, that is.

‘Paul?’ Smith questioned her gently.

The words stuttered out. ‘He… He left.’

‘The inflatable was gone,’ Jake added. ‘He must have locked the wheel and made for land.’

Smith spoke rapidly into his radio, passing on the news. The helicopter swung away to the coastline. ‘We’ll pick him up. It’s just a matter of time,’ Smith said, the set of his jaw determined.

Tempest leaned against Jake’s chest, feeling his body warm her through the sodden clothes. His large hand stroked over her hair, then tilted her face up to his.

‘I failed you,’ he whispered. ‘I should have suspected he’d change the meet point, I should…’

She wove her fingers into his hair, pulled his mouth down to hers. ‘None of that matters,’ she muttered huskily. ‘Shut up and kiss me.’

Chapter Fifteen

It was only three days since Jake had rescued them from the yacht, but it felt like forever to Tempest. Paul hadn’t got far. Smith had reported that they’d picked him up on the motorway mere hours after the rescue. The silver Audi with a memorable bumper sticker proclaiming ‘Don’t follow me – I’m lost too!’ had sparked a memory in the policeman driving in his squad car behind it, and he’d run it through the stolen vehicles list, scoring an instant hit.

Tempest pushed open her front door. The sun’s heat warmed her face and there was a lazy buzzing of bees in the air; they’d built a hive in the roof, travelling in and out through a hairline crack nearby. She started up the garden path, then stopped, caught in memories for a moment. Sinking down on the stone seat draped with the old English roses that Skye loved, she breathed in their fragrance with her memories. Her heart ached with missing him. She missed everything about him, the dimples that came out when he smiled, the eyebrows that wiggled when she was trying to talk to him seriously; his arms around her at night. Skye had been so overprotective in the last few days, she’d send out a search party if Tempest didn’t turn up for tea as she’d promised.