Kimo moved on, continuing her search, widening the space between them and the other dive team.
A movement out of the corner of Rex’s eyes drew his attention. He turned just as a turtle rose from the ocean floor and swam for the surface.
Caught in the moment, his gaze followed the turtle upward.
A strange humming sound made him look for the source.
Kimo searched the reef several feet ahead of him.
He hurried to close the distance, his gaze sweeping the water around them, looking for the hum that grew steadily louder.
Then he saw it.
A diver sped toward him using a propulsion vehicle. He held onto the device with one hand and aimed a speargun with the other.
Rex kicked hard to come up beside Kimo. He shoved her toward a crevice in between reef rocks as the approaching diver fired the speargun.
The spear sliced through the water, headed directly for Rex and Kimo.
He pushed her down and dove after her.
The spear crashed into the rock where a moment before Kimo had been.
Knowing the gun couldn’t be reloaded very fast, Rex tapped his watch, sending the message Need Help Now. He didn’t wait for a response. Instead, he swam up as the man with the propulsion vehicle passed over them, turned around and paused to reload.
Rex wasn’t giving him a chance to shoot again. He swam, pushing as hard and fast as he could, and catching the attacker before he could fit the spear into the weapon. Rex grabbed the gun, yanked it from the man’s hands and flung it away.
A knife flashed past Rex’s face.
He ducked, grabbed his knife and thrust it toward the other man, slicing into his arm.
The man jerked backward, blood coloring the water around him.
When Rex shot a glance over his shoulder toward Kimo, his heart skipped a beat. She had come out of the rocks and was swimming toward him.
Behind her, another man approached with a propulsion vehicle, aiming directly for her. Unlike his predecessor, he wasn’t carrying a speargun, which was Kimo’s saving grace.
Kimo must have heard the hum of the approaching propulsion vehicle. She turned in time to see the incoming threat and quickly retreated, ducking low behind the rocks, disappearing completely.
Rex kicked hard, swimming for her, angry at himself for ignoring his own rule to stay within three feet of her. He prayed he’d reach her before the man with the DPV.
His prayer wasn’t answered.
Before he was within ten feet of Kimo, the man on the DPV reached her location first and slowed to a stop.
Kimo shot upward, slamming the crowbar into the man’s gut.
The attacker spun away. He seemed to regroup and then renewed his attack, charging Kimo as she hovered over the reef, backpaddling desperately to swim back into the relative cover of the rocks while moving further away from the attacker and Rex.
The other diver went after Kimo, dropping behind the reef, out of Rex’s sight.
Rex’s heart sputtered, and he pushed harder. He cleared the rocks in time to see the man with his hands around Kimo’s throat.
She kicked and swung her arms at the man, trying to free herself from his grip. When her hand landed on his face mask, she grabbed it and yanked it off his face.
The attacker released one hand from Kimo’s throat and reached for the mask in her hand.
She flung it into the rocks of the reef and used that moment to shove him backward into Rex.
