Lancelot's Lady (32 page)

"
No.
"

"
So what is your name?
"

He looked over his shoulder, his beady eyes staring into her soul.
"
You know what they say in the movies. If I tell you, I
'
ll have to kill you.
"

She shuddered.

The man grinned, then resumed steering the boat.

"
How much money do you think JT will give you?
"
she asked.
"
For me, I mean.
"

"
Whatever amount I ask him for.
"

"
You
'
re pretty sure of yourself.
"

"
No, I
'
m just sure of Lance.
"

Rhianna absorbed this for a moment.

"
Did he really have a relapse?
"
she asked.

The man shrugged.
"
Who knows?
"

"
So he
'
s not in the hospital,
"
she said, relieved.
"
That
'
s good.
"

She flicked a look behind them. The white dot of a boat she
'
d seen earlier was now hugging the shores of the northern islands. It almost looked larger, closer.

Someone please find me.

She batted away a tear and bit her bottom lip to keep it from trembling. She refused to cry. Her captor would take too much pleasure if she did.

She thought about Jonathan. She should
'
ve told him how she felt. If another opportunity presented itself, she would. She
'
d shout it to the world.

Jonathan, I love you.

In her mind, she created a scen
ario where Charles Duke was captured and she was set free. Jonathan would come running to her, relieved she was okay. He
'
d hold her and tell her that everything would be all right. Then he
'
d tell her that he loved her too.

It was a wonderful dream―until re
ality set in.

Jonathan was miles away on Angelina
'
s Isle, waiting for a boat that would never come. He had no idea the danger she was in. So unlike the gallant heroes and white knights of enchanted fairy tales, Sir Lancelot wasn
'
t going to come to her rescue on his trusty steed.

She
'
d have to escape on her own.

Charles Duke―or whoever he was―let out a grunt.

"
There
'
s the mainland,
"
he said.
"
It won
'
t be long now.
"

"
Where are we going exactly? Do you have a house here?
"

The man pointed the gun at her.
"
We
'
ll be taking a short trip by plane. I
'
ll have to warn you,
if you try anything at all, I
'
ll go back to Angelina
'
s Isle and put a bullet in Lance Junior
'
s head. One in his daughter
'
s head too.
"
He cocked his head to one side.
"
I never did meet her. How old is the young lady?
"

When Charles licked his lips, Rhianna cringed.
"
She
'
s just a baby.
"

The disappointment on the man
'
s face was evident.

She gazed into the water. The temptation to jump in was overwhelming, but she knew she
'
d never make it to shore. She wasn
'
t that strong of a swimmer. Besides, Charles would catch up to her and drag her back onboard anyway. Or worse, he
'
d run the boat over her and she
'
d be butchered by the propeller.

As the shoreline came into view, she searched for the marina. If they landed there, she
'
d look for Roland and Denny. Surely one of them would help her.

The docks came into view and she held her breath.

"
Shit,
"
Charles Duke said.

Rhianna
'
s hopes soared.
"
What
'
s wrong?
"

"
Nothing.
"

As the man steered the boat away from the marina, Rhianna caught sight of flashing lights and men in black uniforms. Some of them waved frantically.

Rhianna took a breath and jumped from the seat.
"
Help! I need help!
"

Without warning, something slammed against the back of her head. She collapsed to the deck of the boat. Moaning, she touched the back of her head.
"
You shot me?
"

Charles hovered over her, one hand on the wheel.
"
I will next time.
"
He hefted the gun in his hand.

A wave of dizziness washed over her and she closed her eyes. When she opened them she saw that Charles was preoccupied by the police on the beach. He kept the boat at a safe distance from shore.

Something made Rhianna glance over her shoulder. When she did, she bit back a gasp.

A boat was speeding toward them.

Please let that be the police.

As the boat approached, she saw two men aboard. One of them was Jonathan.

Her heart raced.
He
'
s coming for me.

Now all she had to do was make sure Charles kept his focus on the beach.

"
What
'
s that up ahead?
"
she asked, moving closer to the man.

"
I don
'
t know,
"
he snapped.
"
Do I look like a goddamn tour guide?
"

"
No. Sorry.
"

The boat veered toward a cove, and she saw a row of small planes parked near a runway and terminal.

"
Is that where we
'
re going?
"
she asked, terrified.
"
Are we flying somewhere?
"

"
I told you. We
'
re taking a little trip to a very safe place.
"

Rhianna flicked a covert look over her shoulder. Jonathan was so close now that she saw him hold up a hand and bring a finger to his lips. She gave a nod and turned back to Charles. She had to keep the man distracted to cover up the sounds of the approaching craft.

"
Are we flying somewhere hot and sunny?
"
She gave Charles a false smile.
"
With beaches? Because I really love beaches. And hotels. I once went to Mexico and sipped margaritas with those cute little umbrellas in them on the beach. Have you ever been to Mexico? Maybe we could go there.
"

The Mexico bit was a lie. The only time she
'
d left the United States was when she flew to the Bahamas.

Was that only weeks ago?

She rambled on about anything she could think of, knowing her prayers had been answered. Her knight in shining armor was on his way.

Chapter 32

Jonathan sucked in a deep breath.
"
There she is.
"

When Rhianna glanced at him, he motioned for her to be quiet. The closer they could get to Misty
'
s Dream, the better.

"
Roland said Duke has a gun,
"
he said to Denny.
"
I
'
ll need some kind of weapon.
"

"
I have some small tools.
"

"
I don
'
t think I
'
d get close enough to use one.
"

Denny scratched his head, then he smiled.
"
I don
'
t have a gun with bullets, but I do have something almost as good.
"
He unlatched a small metal door and handed Jonathan a bright orange flare gun.
"
It
'
s an Orion, breech loaded, 12 gauge. It should do the trick.
"

Jonathan nodded, then gazed across the water.

Misty
'
s Dream was only twenty yards away.

The thought of Duke laying a finger on Rhianna made Jonathan
'
s blood boil. If the man was lucky, Jonathan would let him live.

Fifteen yards.

He could see the fear in Rhianna
'
s expression, even though she was doing her best to distract Duke.

Ten yards and closing.

As Denny
'
s boat neared Misty
'
s Dream, Jonathan stood ready, the flare gun in his hand.

"
Move alongside them,
"
he said to Denny.

Rhianna watched surreptitiously and he waved at her to move to the back of the boat. As she inched away, Duke grabbed her arm.

"
Duke!
"
Jonathan yelled, their boats nearly touching.
"
Let her go!
"

Charles Duke scowled and pushed the lever. As the boat sped up, so did Denny
'
s. They were neck in neck, and Jonathan knew there was only one thing he could do.

When the two boats met within inches, he leapt forward. He hit the side of the boat, the flare gun skittering out of his hand and across the deck of Misty
'
s Dream. He clung to the side of the boat, his feet bouncing hard on the surface of the water.

Rhianna moved toward him.

"
No!
"
he tried to warn her.

Helpless, he watched Duke
'
s gun come down hard between Rhianna
'
s shoulder blades. Down she went, but not before she sent Jonathan a silent plea.
Help me,
her expression said. Then he watched as she crumpled to the deck.

"
Rhianna!
"
Jonathan shouted.

He scrambled over the side and into the boat. When he scrambled to his feet, the boat had slowed and Duke had the gun trained on him. The bastard was grinning.

"
So…you
'
re JT
'
s son, huh?
"

Jonathan said nothing.

"
Tell your buddy to back off,
"
Duke warned.
"
Or I
'
ll put a bullet in the lovely Rhianna
'
s head.
"
He turned the gun on Rhianna, who wasn
'
t moving.

Jonathan motioned for Denny to move back.

"
You bastard,
"
he seethed, turning back to Duke.
"
If you
'
ve hurt her, I
'
ll―
"

"
You
'
ll what? Kill me? Kind of hard to do when I
'
m the one holding the gun, don
'
t you think?
"

"
I don
'
t know what you had planned, but you
'
re not taking Rhianna anywhere. The Coast Guard is on its way and the police have been notified.
"

Duke scowled.
"
Yes, I noticed. You
'
re a very meddlesome fellow.
"

Jonathan tried a different tactic.
"
Let me take Rhianna and you can go where you want. I can even get you money, if that
'
s what you
'
re after.
"

"
I don
'
t think so. In fact, I think I
'
ll shoot you and dump you overboard.
"
He aimed the gun at Jonathan and smiled.
"
Say bye-bye.
"

Before Jonathan had time to move, he heard a loud popping sound. Charles Duke
'
s suit jacket immediately went up in flames. Stunned, the man dropped the gun. With a look of confusion, he staggered backwards. For a split second he was balanced at the very edge of the boat. Then he tumbled backwards into the water.

Rhianna, though dazed, had found the flare gun.

"
Oh God,
"
she moaned.
"
Did I kill him?
"

Jonathan flew into action. Reaching her side, he helped her to the seat.
"
You
'
re safe now.
"

"
What about that man?
"
she cried.

Jonathan shut down the engine, then peered over the side. Duke was floating face down in the water a few yards behind the boat. He watched as Denny pulled up alongside the man
'
s body and dragged him aboard. A minute later, Denny glanced at Jonathan and shook his head.

"
He got what he deserved,
"
Jonathan said.

Rhianna
'
s eyes widened.
"
He was going to shoot you.
"

"
Yeah, but he didn
'
t.
"

She let out a sob.
"
I thought he
'
d kill
us both. You have no idea what he had planned for me. He was going to―
"

He pressed a finger against her lips.
"
Shh…no more talk about him. You
'
re safe, Rhianna. That
'
s all that matters.
"

The terrified look in her eyes was more than he could bear.

He kissed
her. Softly.

While Denny securely tied Misty
'
s Dream to his boat, Jonathan pulled Rhianna closer. Her arms slid up to his neck and she pressed her body against him. She was shaking.

"
I would
'
ve died if anything happened to you,
"
he murmured against her lips.

She sighed and curled into his arms.
"
I was praying you
'
d rescue me, but I thought you
'
d bought into his lies.
"

Jonathan shook his head.
"
I didn
'
t like him the second he showed up on my doorstep.
"

Her eyes caught his.
"
But how did you know I was in danger?
"

"
Roland.
"
When she gave him a puzzled look, he said,
"
The bastard knocked Roland out on the island and left him in the bushes. When he came to, Roland found me and told me Duke had a gun.
"

"
His name
'
s not Duke.
"

"
Who was he?
"

"
He didn
'
t say. But he knows your father.
"

"
How?
"

"
I
'
m not sure exactly. He said he was going to blackmail your father. He figured JT would pay a lot to get me back.
"

"
If JT hadn
'
t, I would have.
"

"
Really?
"
She stared up at him, her green eyes pooling with unshed tears.
"
Why?
"

"
Why do you think?
"

Rhianna shrugged.
"
I don
'
t know.
"

"
Because I love you, silly,
"
he said, kissing her thoroughly. When he broke for air, he gazed into her eyes.
"
I was an idiot. I should
'
ve told you before you left.
"

"
Say it again,
"
she whispered.

"
I love you, Rhianna McLeod. I love you and I want to wake up with you every morning for the rest of my life.
"

The smile she gave him was almost blinding.
"
I love you too, Jonathan Tyler Lance.
"

He pulled away.
"
I
'
m coming back with you.
"

"
To Miami? Charles lied. Your father didn
'
t relapse.
"

Jonathan breathed a sigh of relief.
"
That
'
s good. But we
'
re still going back to Miami. I need to see him. I have to try to make things right. Before he…
"

She kissed him.
"
Take whatever time you
'
re given.
"

Rhianna was right. No matter how much time JT had left, Jonathan wanted to spend some of it with his father. Misty needed to see her grandfather, connect with him. And Rhianna needed to know the truth about her mother.

There
'
s no future together until we know the truth.