Except, she remained in the vehicle. She pointed to the floorboard. He suspected her foot had somehow gotten stuck, so he maneuvered until he could find the problem. And there it was. Her foot was zip-tied to the pedal. Fury rolled through him as he tugged out his pocketknife.
Cole dove into the space that grew darker by the second as the vehicle continued sinking. He couldn’t see athing, but he felt the tie, secured it away from her ankle as best he could, and cut, then he pulled the plastic away. Her body instantly floated free and upward in the space. Heart pounding, running out of air, he grabbed her hand. Noting someone else was in the back seat that he hadn’t seen before, he shoved her forward and up toward the surface, but she tugged him toward her. Shook her head. The other passenger was gone.
And he and Jo would be too if they didn’t get to the surface. The cold worked against his body, making his limbs numb as he kicked and swam toward the light. Breaching the surface, hauling Jo up alongside him, he drew in a long breath.
Jo sucked in air too. Treading water, she glanced around them, then zeroed in on him, giving him a brief questioning look that he could read only too well. Why his sudden appearance?
After all, he hadn’t seen her in months. But he would answer her questions later. Right now, they were in survival mode.
Together they bobbed on the surface, the rough chop during this spring storm that tried to drown them. He’d get them through this. He fought the aggressive waves that pummeled him, draining his strength. Jo’s too. Puget Sound waters were rough today, and the temperature was always too cold.
Now for the second rescue.
Kicking to stay afloat, he turned in every direction, searching for the ferry. There. Finally stopping, the vessel floated nearby. An orange life ring had been tossed out, and Cole and Jo swam for it. They finally made it and held on while they waited for the rescue boat.
Finally, rescuers pulled Cole and Jo from the water and transported them back to the ferry.
Aboard the MVChimacum, they sat inside the upper deck, blankets wrapped around them both. Cole held Jo in his arms. He tried to ignore the fear-spiked adrenaline still pumping through his veins and instead simply be grateful for this moment.
She was here.
He was here.
I almost lostyou...
He wanted to kiss her blue lips and put some color back into them as well as her pale face. But that would be totally selfish. He might have kissed her before, back when they spent time together, but he doubted she’d want that from him now. Even if she wanted him to show her just how much he missed her, they had an audience. A public display of affection wasn’t happening. Standing around, far and wide, ferry patrons watched them, zooming in with their cell phone cameras, no doubt. Mumbling and questioning what had just happened.
A car had rolled off the ferry and into the water. That’s what. While that wasn’teversupposed to happen, this wouldn’t be the first time, though maybe not on this particular ferry. Cole didn’t know.
Hedidknow that this had been no accident.
Jo told theChimacumcaptain that she’d witnessed a murder, and the killer was responsible for stashing her in the vehicle, along with the body of the murder victim, and sending the vehicle into the water—as if no one would notice? Dropping her overboard along with the body, attached to some kind of anchor, might have been a better way to hide his crimes, but he’d chosen to ... what? Make a statement?
Two crew members had been found bound and gagged. At least they hadn’t been murdered. But they hadn’t seen the man’s face. Neither had Jo. How was that possible?
Cole was just glad he’d made the decision to come after Jo and that he’d been there at the right moment to pull her from the cold depths of Puget Sound.
The ferry master had contacted the Seattle PD Harbor Patrol, who requested theChimacumreturn to the ferry terminal in Seattle, to the utter displeasure of all the patrons who needed to get to Bremerton. But the authorities would need to question and investigate. Regardless of who had jurisdiction, law enforcement would get the man who’d done this. Except Cole had a feeling the killer would slip through the noose before it could close around his throat. Either he was a complete idiot, or he had planned it all out and wouldn’t have murdered someone on a ferry with no plan for escape. Next to him, Jo shifted, drawing his focus back to her.
Questions, accusation, rose in her big golden-brown eyes. He suspected she wouldn’t soon overcome the shock of witnessing a murder and then almost being killed herself in a dramatic and horrific way. After nearly drowning, she must have questions about whyhewas the one to rescue her.
He had questions too. Answers wouldn’t come until the dive team recovered the murder victim’s body. Still, he suspected the question burning through her right now had nothing to do with that.
Explaining his reasons for being here would be ... complicated. As he looked at her, he had so much he wanted to say, to explain. His chest ached with the need to get back what he’d left behind in Hidden Bay.
Jo Cattrel.
But he hadn’t walked away by choice. The threat of criminal charges and the manipulation of the truth had been held over him to coerce him into participating in a classified, covert mission.
So what was he supposed to tell her when he called her from DC?
It’s me,not you?
The other, equally painful truth of it was that Jo had already been through so much, and he was a mess. He had no business falling for her. Making promises he feared he couldn’t keep. But how did he tell her that? It sounded lame, even to his own thoughts. The two of them together were headed for massive heartbreak.
“What are you doing here?” she asked. “Why were you on the same ferry I was on?”
I wasn’t.“I’ll explain all that later. I’m just glad you’re alive. Let’s focus on that right now.” And keeping her that way.
