She had seen Rhys and Colin appear across the way, but they had all promised to allow Finch to take the lead.
Despite his promises, they made sure there was a backup plan. She hadn’t seen any sign of Finch or his men yet, but she trusted Rhys and Colin to watch the other door. She looked over her shoulder to find Tommy trailing behind her. He gave her a slight nod, telling her that he was with her.
Tommy caught up to Ada as she crouched near the shoreline while Sharpe told the men to stop moving.
“Where’s Finch?” she asked him desperately.
“Haven’t seen him,” Tommy said. “He promised Jonny he’d be here, but....” He shrugged his shoulders.
“It was all timed perfectly,” she said, hating the desperation growing within her. “Do you think Sharpe would actually…”
Sharpe lifted the gun again.
“Who wants to go first?” he asked with a smirk.
“Leave Jonny be,” Will demanded. “He didn’t do anything.”
“You’ve done your time, Will,” Jonny said. “Let him go, Sharpe. He’ll be no threat to you any longer.”
“As touching as your sentiments might be, the two of you must think I’m an idiot,” Sharpe said with a snort. “You’rebothgoing in the river. If you’re not going to choose who goes first, then I will. Oldest first, I think, how does that sound, Jonny?”
He lifted the pistol, and Ada knew, with everything in her heart, that he was about to pull the trigger.
In one swift motion, she stood, raised her pistol, drew back the hammer, and fired.
Jonny flinched as the crack rent the air, but it wasn’t him crying out in pain — it was Sharpe, blood spurting from his pistol hand.
“What the?—”
Ada froze as Sharpe looked across the crates, finding her standing there, pistol smoking.
“You!” he shouted, his face darkening with rage. Before he could command his thugs to come toward her, however, the dock was suddenly swarming with men.
“Gideon Sharpe! Stop right there. Drop all your weapons!”
Finch. Finally.
He had been only a minute late, but that minute could have changed everything.
Ada sank to the ground next to Tommy, who had reached up to pull her down shortly after Sharpe had seen her.
“Are you all right?” he asked, and she realized then that she was shaking.
“I think so,” she said. “Jonny’s not hurt, is he?”
“Appears to be fine,” Tommy said. “There’s Rhys and Colin. You want to watch the action?”
She nodded, and he pulled her up to sit on a crate, one arm around her back, supporting her, which she was grateful for as she thought it was likely she might fall off if he let her go.
The moment the Tate brothers were cut free, however, Jonny was storming across the docks. He didn’t even look at Tommy as he reached down and picked Ada up off the crate, holding her against him so tightly that she nearly couldn’t breathe.
She didn’t care — for she was hugging him back just as tightly.
“I thought he was going to kill you,” she said, her face cradled into his neck.
“So did I,” he admitted grimly. “If it hadn’t been for you?—”
“Don’t say it.”
