She screamed again, hysterically kicking away from him, her arms and legs flailing frantically in her effort to escape his grasp. She managed two strokes, hissing in pain as her hair was grabbed from behind and she was once again plunged beneath the water.
She struggled, using her fingernails to gouge and scratch, her feet to kick. She needed air. Her lungs burned painfully and the need to gasp was overwhelming. She kicked again, grunting as her foot found his groin and caused him to loosen his grasp on her hair. It was all she needed. She twisted out of his grasp and broke the surface of the water, gasping deeply, taking in painful gulps of air.
She was aware of the sound of a boat. She also heard a sound like an enraged bull behind her, and before she had a chance to react, she was dragged downward yet again. This time, her struggles were slower, less frantic as exhaustion overtook her. Tony was dead, and she was tired…so tired. She could see tiny bubbles escaping her lips and floating upward to the surface, but she felt no panic. Instead, she quit struggling altogether. A curious sense of well-being swept over her.It’s not so bad,she thought with a sense of surprise.It’s not so bad to drown.
Suddenly the arms that had been holding her down in the water were gone, and she rose easily to the top of the water. She rolled over on her back and it was then that the pain struck her. She choked and gagged, her lungs burning as fresh air flowed into her lungs.
She was vaguely aware of a pair of strong arms reaching beneath her and lifting her up into a boat. So, they had won after all, she thought tiredly. They had managed to kill Tony and now they would take the necklace from her and then they would kill her.
As a warm blanket was placed around her shivering body, she frowned in confusion. Why were they being so nice to her? Why give a blanket to a woman they were going to kill? She opened her eyes and found herself looking into the face of a clean-cut, blond-haired man. “Cliff?” she croaked hopefully.
He nodded and gave her a reassuring grin. “Don’t worry, you’re safe now.”
“Tony…” Tears spurted to her eyes as she tried to find the words to tell Cliff that his friend was dead, that Tony had made the ultimate sacrifice for the safety of his country.
Cliff’s grin widened. “Yeah, he was really something else, wasn’t he? I didn’t even know Pandolinni could swim. But he cut through the water like a torpedo when he saw that fellow going after you.”
“But…I thought…” Libby stared at Cliff in shock, his words causing a pleasurable tingle to begin flowing through her body. Tony was alive…he was alive! “Where is he?”
Cliff pointed to the shore near the grocery store. The area was crawling with uniformed officers, and it was easy to see that Cliff had the situation completely under control. Among the men handcuffed and in custody, Libby recognized the burly, dark-haired man and the albino. She sobbed with pleasure as she saw Tony standing at the edge of the lake, his gaze directed on her as the small motorboat carried her to the shore.
“Tony!” Before the boat even docked, she jumped out and into his arms.
For a moment they stood, as if all alone in the world, holding each other close. “Oh, God, Tony…I thought—I didn’t see you and I…”
“Shh.” Tony pulled her closer into his arms and stroked her hair. “And when I saw that madman swimming after you…I thought—” His voice broke off as he saw Cliff approaching them. “I told you there was a beautiful blonde,” he told him with a grin, releasing his hold on Libby.
“Yeah, although you neglected to mention that you had most of the members of the New Republic of Man itching to kill you.” Cliff grinned good-naturedly at Tony. “It’s a good thing I know your tendency to underestimate the danger you’re in. I brought a small army with me to help you out of this sticky situation.” He turned at the approach of two other men. “Tony…these are two friends of mine. I don’t think names are really important.”
“We would like to have the necklace,” one of the men said softly, his blank gaze on Libby and the jewelry around her neck.
She looked at Tony for confirmation. When he nodded his assent, she slowly unfastened the necklace from around her neck and handed it to the tall, distinguished man who’d requested it. “It’s on the back,” she explained.
He took it gingerly, eyeing the back of the locket with interest. “Hopefully the water didn’t hurt it,” he said, carefully removing the dark chip and holding it in the palm of his hand.
For the first time, Libby noticed the other man had a small laptop computer opened and readied. She watched curiously as he bent over it now, calling up the formula on the screen.
“Is this some kind of a joke?” One of the men glared first at Libby, then at Tony.
“What do you mean?” Tony asked, looking bewildered.
“This formula won’t work.”
“Did the water ruin the chip?” Libby asked curiously.
“No, the chip is fine. But the formula is bogus.”
Tony’s frown deepened as Libby returned his look of bewilderment. “I don’t understand!” she exclaimed. “What’s wrong with it?”
“It would be impossible to create this particular formula. Our present technology simply isn’t capable. It’s based on the theory of a disbursement of human cells, a feat science has yet to accomplish.” He shut off the computer and shook his head. “It’s not worth the cost of the chip.”
Libby stared at him in horror. All the danger, all the life-threatening situations they had been in…and it had all been for a formula that wouldn’t, couldn’t work.
Tony sighed in wonderment. “Jasper Higgens apparently went off the deep end when his wife died. I wonder if he really believed it would work.” He shook his head slowly.
The tall man sighed and held out the necklace to Libby. “This is yours. The man who owned it is dead and legally it belongs to you.”
Libby hesitated, then took the necklace.
