Movement in the water past the end of the houseboat caught Holly’s eye.
A pirogue floated silently in the shadow of the houseboat, captained by Holly’s cousin Lissette.
She stared at Holly, her eyes round and wary.
When she started toward the dock, Holly gave a small shake of her head and mouthed the word, “No.”
Lissette pushed back into the shadows and waited.
Once the man had secured Simon’s ankles, he shoved Simon hard.
With his hands and his ankles bound behind him, Simon had no way to balance. He fell onto his side.
“Leave him alone!” Holly cried.
“Oh, we will,” the guy holding her hair said, his tone low and dangerous. “We’ll leave him alone...in the water.”
“No!” Holly lurched forward, the hand in her hair keeping her from getting any closer to Simon.
The guy who’d secured his wrists and ankles grabbed under Simon’s arms and dragged him to the edge of the dock.
“Don’t do it,” Holly said. “I’ll do anything. Just don’t do this.” Tears welled in her eyes. “Please, don’t hurt him.”
“Come on, bitch.” The man holding her hair in his fist pulled her toward the other side of the dock, where a boat was tied to a piling.
Holly glanced back. “No! Simon!”
The other man tried to roll Simon into the water.
Simon drew his legs in and jettisoned them out, catching the man in the chest and sending him over the edge of the dock. A loud splash sounded.
Moments later, the guy came up cursing. “Son of a bitch.” He climbed up a nearby ladder, stomped over to where Simon struggled, but he finally managed to sit up.
His tormentor waited until Simon was upright, then he plowed into him, shoving as hard as he could, pushing him over the edge.
“No!” Holly cried out. “He’ll die!”
The man who’d pushed him in turned with a malevolent smile. “That’s the idea.” He pulled another zip tie out of his wet back pocket and advanced on Holly. He yanked her arms behind her back and slapped the zip tie on her wrists.
His boss shoved his weapon into the waistband of his jeans and then stepped into the boat.
At that moment, Holly could see the man who’d held her at gunpoint. “Gunnar Resznik.”
“And you’re Holly Gautier. Get in the boat.”
She lifted her chin but didn’t move. “Why?”
“Because you’re coming with us,” Gunnar said.
“No.”
The man behind her grabbed her around the middle and dropped her into the boat. She fell forward, landing on her knees, almost face-planting against a bench.
After the second man got into the boat, Gunnar started the engine, spun it around and blasted out into the bayou.
Holly struggled to see over the side of the boat where Simon had gone into the water. His wrists had been bound behind his back and his ankles cinched together. He wouldn’t have much time to figure out how to get to the surface.
Holly’s heart ached. She maneuvered to her knees and tried to throw herself overboard.
