wrath of the Sea Queen (185 page)

"
Like it or not, my boy, you have to look at things as they stand.  You seem to be ignoring one very important fact.
"

"What?"

"
C
a
eli is still pregnant, and you are still going to be a dad,
"
Ben smiled.

Vin
stared
directly at Ben
, momentarily
speechless
, and then
t
he
realization dawned on him
.

"
Of course!  Just because Salma made me understand the risks and the likely scenario, doesn't mean it
is inevitable
.  I
ha
ve been talking like it has
already happened
.  This is actually good news
that I have to share with
C
a
eli
.
"

Vin realized that he had been so focused on the dangers and the negative
aspects
that he completely dismissed the positive.
  A
long
with that
understanding
, Vin
suddenly
knew with complete certainty that C
a
eli would be happy
when she heard
the news.  He did not have to worry about her reaction.  She would
n
o
t even give a second thought to any risk involved.  She would see the good news as exactly that.

"
Ah! 
Now you're thinking clearly again.  Take this.  It is guaranteed to make her feel better. 
Let's g
o take care of your wife and child.  I
wi
ll talk to Salma and see if she has any
additional
ideas
about C
a
eli's strange
internal
injuries
and chang
ing
eye color
.
"

Vin was
encouraged
by
and grateful for
Ben's
wise words once again
.
  His spirit
lifted
, but
, unfortunately,
it only last
ed
for a brief moment
.

"
Vin
,
help!  W
here are you?
"

Lorrie and Scott watched from their hiding place in the
corner
room
of
the attic
.  She knew how to get in and out of her childhood home without being seen and where to hide so that they could watch without being spotted. 
This was going to be their starting point for the real mission.  They brought supplies with them that they would leave here
overnight.  Lorrie would look suspicious if she tried to carry
them
in with her tomorrow morning.

They
watched
the
red
truck pull up in front of the hotel
with its headlights turned off. 
Two men in ski masks got out, each carrying a handgun and a roll of duct tape.  They crept along the back side of the hotel
, huddling close to the building to help mitigate the strong wind and steady rain.  They moved along
until they found the room on the corner, next to the lounge.  This is where the doctor's niece was staying, and they
were
not, under any circumstances,
to
intrude on her.  The doctor
should
be in the room on the opposite side of the lounge. 

As the
men
crept
by the
porch of the
niece's room, the two masked trespassers spotted Dr. Erickson within and silently slipped inside
the unlocked
sliding
door
.  Finding the two ladies alone, they easily restrained the injured niece
who was
already lying on the floor
.  Then they bound
the doctor’s hands
,
put a piece of tape over her mouth
, and a gun to her head
.

"
Vin,
help!  W
here are you?
"  C
a
eli called for Vin
without alerting the two men
.

"
I'm h
eading to the room now.  What's wrong?
"

"
Please h
urry, but don't come in
un
til I say
.
"

In a few
hurried
steps, Vin placed the tray on a hall table near the door.
 

"Something's wrong, Ben.  Don't go in yet," Vin explained why he was s
e
tting the tray down.  He reached out and grabbed hold of Ben's upper arm so that he
, too,
could hear what C
a
eli was saying.

"
We're here, C
a
eli.  What's going on?
"

"
Two men snuck in from the porch
. 
They came for Salma. 
Don't let them know you're
out
there.  If you rush in, they migh
t shoot her.
"

"Shoot her
!
  Vin, I'm not waiting out here
for
something
to
happen to
Salma
."  Ben made a move toward the door, but Vin interposed himself before he reached it. 

"No, Ben," Vin said in a harsh whisper.

"We can't stand out here and do nothing," Ben replied in
quiet
frustration.  When it came to Salma,
Ben
was as protective of
his new wife
as Vin was of C
a
eli.

"We're going to do something, but you need to trust C
a
eli.  I'm sure they have no idea that she is feeding us information.  Let her do that."

"
Vin, take Ben
through the lounge
.  They are heading
ou
t
side
.  You can catch them off guard.
"

Ben and Vin took off running toward the lounge so they could rush outside and head off the intruders.  Meanwhile, the two men
h
auled Salma
toward the sliding door
without
much fuss
.

"
Hang on
, Salma. 
T
he guys are
coming
.
"

Th
e
men
tugged Salma
ou
t of the room
as they
bragged to
each other abou
t how good they were and how easy it
had been
to
snatch
the doctor.  As they marched Salma at gunpoint away from the room, they excitedly discussed how famous they would become when they
got the credit for
convincing
the
doctor
to
public
ly re
nounce
her work
. 

The couple in the attic
continued to
watch, expecting
some measure of
trouble
before long
.  The
unreliable
men
went
into the wrong room.  But,
to their
surprise
,
the two
men
emerged
several
minutes later
with a third person in tow
.  N
o alarm
sounded
. 
Although t
hey
were making good time,
they
were
not
quite
fast enough.  Another vehicle sped up to the hotel and several armed men in military uniforms jumped out.
  The
two
men
and their hostage
were quickly surrounded by military men from the front and
by
two men exiting the hotel from behind.
 

The storm surges and strong winds were beginning to threaten the buildings closest to the shore.  Most islanders
had
already moved to shelter further inland. 
Near Apela's hotel was o
ne of the few places where the weather
was still comparatively mild
.  For some reason, the effects of the storm were largely bypassing that small section of the island.  The colonel, having helped in many such disasters, knew this
respite
would
n
o
t last long.  He needed to get the people out of there before it was to
o late.  Once the storm hit
, they would not only feel its effects, they would be completely exposed to its core.
  They would get hit the worst. 
Colonel Franks and
a few men from
his team were working their way toward Apela's hotel to collect the owner and his guests when Jeremy
met them on the road
.