Kara appeared in the doorway, barefoot, calm, as if she’d been expecting this. “Well,” she snarked, smooth and cutting, “so much for your little coup.”
I glared at her. “You knew this could happen.”
She lifted one brow. “Obviously ARCHEON is going to take back control of the yacht, idiot. Did you really think it was going to be that easy?”
The captain stared at her as if she’d insulted God. I almost laughed—almost.
“ARCHEON builds redundancies into everything they touch,” she went on. “You didn’t really think you could hijack one of their toys and just sail off into the sunset, did you?”
“They can’t have total control.”
“They don’t need total control,” she said. “Just enough to make sure you don’t get ideas above your station.” She folded her arms. “We’ve got about ten minutes, maybe fifteen, before they’re close enough to send a drone or a retrieval team.”
“Then we’re not going to be here when they arrive,” I said.
Her eyes widened as realization hit. “You’re not serious.”
I stripped off my jacket and stepped out of my shoes. “Completely.”
“Dmitri—”
“I told you I don’t ask twice.”
The captain stammered, “Sir, we’re more than three miles from shore!”
“Then it’s a long swim.”
I turned to Kara. “You can stay and explain yourself to ARCHEON, or you can come with me.”
For a second, I saw the fight in her eyes, then she cursed under her breath and stalked toward me. “You’re insane.”
“Efficient,” I reminded her. “And adaptable.”
We reached the starboard railing. The sea below was a deep, endless blue. Kara looked down and exhaled, muttering something I pretended not to understand.
I climbed onto the rail, felt the wind whip against my face, and glanced back at her. “On three,” I said.
She scowled. “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”
“Probably more than I should.”
“One,” she said.
“Two,” I countered.
She didn’t wait for three.
She dove, slicing into the water in a flash of motion. I followed half a heartbeat later. The shock of hitting the water was like a jolt of electricity, stealing my breath away. Salt stung my throat, my eyes. I surfaced in time to see her already swimming ahead, her strokes strong, quick, and perfectly capable.
Of course she’d be a good swimmer.
“Keep up, old man!” she called over her shoulder, voice carrying over the waves.
I couldn’t help it. I laughed, the sound startlingly unfamiliar in my throat. Then I pushed harder.
TheErebusloomed above us, already turning back toward the coast, her engines humming as she slid away. The sea widened between us and the yacht, between us and everything ARCHEON thought it controlled.
It was a long swim. My muscles burned, lungs tight with salt and effort, but the rhythm steadied me. Kara’s dark head broke the surface ahead of me, the curve of her shoulders catching the light. Every few strokes she glanced back, checking that I was still behind her, and every time our eyes met, something fierce and stubborn passed between us.
