[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
in the moonlight, something like metal. Could it be a telescope? There was a light on in Canton's
living room. There was a figure silhouetted against the curtains. The glint flashed again. Her heart
jumped. What if it was a gun, trained on Canton?
She never thought of consequences. Without a thought for her own safety, she darted up to the front of
the Rourke home and then rushed out from the side of it toward the man, yelling as she went.
The man was surprised, as she expected, but he reacted much too quickly. He raised an arm and
motioned. Before Janine could slow her steps, before she even realized what was coming, two men
shot out of the darkness with a sheet. It went over her head and around her. There was a sharp blow to
her head, and after the pain came oblivion.
SHE WOKE UP WITH A SPLITTING headache and nausea. The floor rocked under her, and her bed
was unusually hard. She opened her eyes and rolled over, right onto the hard floor. As she righted
herself, she saw where she was. This wasn't her house. It was a boat, a big cabin cruiser, and the dark
man who'd been stalking the children was suddenly there, yelling furiously at his two shorter, darker
companions. They seemed to be pleading with him, their hands raised in supplication. He wasn't
responding. He shouted at them even more.
She groaned involuntarily and they looked toward her menacingly. She knew then, at once, that if she
didn't keep her head, she was going to die, right here. The tall, dark man had a pistol tucked into his
belt, and his hand suddenly rested on it.
She closed her eyes and pretended to be unconscious. If he knew that she saw and recognized him, she
had little doubt that she'd be a goner. A minute later, she was tossed onto the bunk and rolled over. Her
hands were tied firmly behind her.
"No es la muchacha Rourke, idiotas! Es una mujer—es el otra, la vecina," the tall man raged at them.
She didn't understand Spanish, but the words "Rourke girl" and "not" were fairly familiar after two
weeks in Mexico. They thought she was Karie! They'd meant to kidnap Karie, and because she'd run
out from the Rourke house, in the darkness they'd mistaken her for Karie. They'd got the wrong
person. God in heaven, they were after Karie!
The child's life might depend on her now. If they were willing to go to these lengths, to kidnapping at
gunpoint, to get Karie, they were deadly serious about what they meant to do. A potential witness,
Janine might become expendable any minute. She had to get away, she had to warn Canton and Karie.
The reason behind the kidnapping wasn't important right now, but warning them was.
She pretended to sleep. The men stood over her, talking quickly. The tall one muttered something that
sounded ominous and his companions agreed with whatever he'd said and followed him up on deck.
The noise of a motor sounded, but not loudly enough to be that of the cabin cruiser itself. This was a
big, expensive ship. Obviously there was a small launch used for getting to and from shore. There
was money behind this attempted kidnapping. The question was, whose, and what did they stand to
profit by it?
Canton had no money, at least, not yet. Perhaps he had a trust or a Swiss bank account about which no
one knew anything.
Her heart raced madly as she relaxed her arms and wrists. She'd deliberately tensed them while she
was being bound, an old trick her karate teacher had taught her. Now the bonds were much looser than
they would have been. It would take time and concentration to get them off, but she had a chance. God
willing, she'd get free. Then she could worry about how to escape. If the boat was close to shore, she
could probably swim it. If there was no riptide, that was. A riptide might carry her miles off course.
And if it were possible to swim to shore, why was a launch needed by her captors?
She couldn't waste time worrying about that, she decided. First things first. She'd get loose. Then she'd
figure out how to get off the ship.
All she needed now was luck and a little time.
CHAPTER EIGHT
THE ROPES WERE TIED SECURELY. After several minutes of twisting and turning and contorting,
she couldn't manage to loosen them even enough to get a finger free, much less an entire hand.
It was like one of her books, she thought with dark humor, but by this point, her heroine would be
free and giving her captors hell.
Janine hated reality.
There was the sound of the launch returning, and suddenly she knew real fear. The man had a gun. He
was impatient, and angry that the kidnapping had gone awry. He might shoot her. It might be the only
way for him.
She thought about her parents and Kurt. She thought about Canton. Death had never been a
preoccupation of hers, but now she couldn't escape it. She might die here, in her nightgown, without
ever having the chance to say goodbye to the people she loved most. And almost that bad was the [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
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in the moonlight, something like metal. Could it be a telescope? There was a light on in Canton's
living room. There was a figure silhouetted against the curtains. The glint flashed again. Her heart
jumped. What if it was a gun, trained on Canton?
She never thought of consequences. Without a thought for her own safety, she darted up to the front of
the Rourke home and then rushed out from the side of it toward the man, yelling as she went.
The man was surprised, as she expected, but he reacted much too quickly. He raised an arm and
motioned. Before Janine could slow her steps, before she even realized what was coming, two men
shot out of the darkness with a sheet. It went over her head and around her. There was a sharp blow to
her head, and after the pain came oblivion.
SHE WOKE UP WITH A SPLITTING headache and nausea. The floor rocked under her, and her bed
was unusually hard. She opened her eyes and rolled over, right onto the hard floor. As she righted
herself, she saw where she was. This wasn't her house. It was a boat, a big cabin cruiser, and the dark
man who'd been stalking the children was suddenly there, yelling furiously at his two shorter, darker
companions. They seemed to be pleading with him, their hands raised in supplication. He wasn't
responding. He shouted at them even more.
She groaned involuntarily and they looked toward her menacingly. She knew then, at once, that if she
didn't keep her head, she was going to die, right here. The tall, dark man had a pistol tucked into his
belt, and his hand suddenly rested on it.
She closed her eyes and pretended to be unconscious. If he knew that she saw and recognized him, she
had little doubt that she'd be a goner. A minute later, she was tossed onto the bunk and rolled over. Her
hands were tied firmly behind her.
"No es la muchacha Rourke, idiotas! Es una mujer—es el otra, la vecina," the tall man raged at them.
She didn't understand Spanish, but the words "Rourke girl" and "not" were fairly familiar after two
weeks in Mexico. They thought she was Karie! They'd meant to kidnap Karie, and because she'd run
out from the Rourke house, in the darkness they'd mistaken her for Karie. They'd got the wrong
person. God in heaven, they were after Karie!
The child's life might depend on her now. If they were willing to go to these lengths, to kidnapping at
gunpoint, to get Karie, they were deadly serious about what they meant to do. A potential witness,
Janine might become expendable any minute. She had to get away, she had to warn Canton and Karie.
The reason behind the kidnapping wasn't important right now, but warning them was.
She pretended to sleep. The men stood over her, talking quickly. The tall one muttered something that
sounded ominous and his companions agreed with whatever he'd said and followed him up on deck.
The noise of a motor sounded, but not loudly enough to be that of the cabin cruiser itself. This was a
big, expensive ship. Obviously there was a small launch used for getting to and from shore. There
was money behind this attempted kidnapping. The question was, whose, and what did they stand to
profit by it?
Canton had no money, at least, not yet. Perhaps he had a trust or a Swiss bank account about which no
one knew anything.
Her heart raced madly as she relaxed her arms and wrists. She'd deliberately tensed them while she
was being bound, an old trick her karate teacher had taught her. Now the bonds were much looser than
they would have been. It would take time and concentration to get them off, but she had a chance. God
willing, she'd get free. Then she could worry about how to escape. If the boat was close to shore, she
could probably swim it. If there was no riptide, that was. A riptide might carry her miles off course.
And if it were possible to swim to shore, why was a launch needed by her captors?
She couldn't waste time worrying about that, she decided. First things first. She'd get loose. Then she'd
figure out how to get off the ship.
All she needed now was luck and a little time.
CHAPTER EIGHT
THE ROPES WERE TIED SECURELY. After several minutes of twisting and turning and contorting,
she couldn't manage to loosen them even enough to get a finger free, much less an entire hand.
It was like one of her books, she thought with dark humor, but by this point, her heroine would be
free and giving her captors hell.
Janine hated reality.
There was the sound of the launch returning, and suddenly she knew real fear. The man had a gun. He
was impatient, and angry that the kidnapping had gone awry. He might shoot her. It might be the only
way for him.
She thought about her parents and Kurt. She thought about Canton. Death had never been a
preoccupation of hers, but now she couldn't escape it. She might die here, in her nightgown, without
ever having the chance to say goodbye to the people she loved most. And almost that bad was the [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]