Total pages in book: 56
Estimated words: 53081 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 265(@200wpm)___ 212(@250wpm)___ 177(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 53081 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 265(@200wpm)___ 212(@250wpm)___ 177(@300wpm)
Caesar reached for the deck to drag himself out of the water. Each time he hit the jutting spear, pain burst through his leg. The sound of the motor brought his head up as the deck vibrated under his hands.
“Help me up!” he yelled to Mindy.
She never turned her head. Throwing the boat into drive, she jetted forward, knocking Caesar away from the side of his boat and wrenching the metal bolt running through his leg. When he resurfaced, groaning with pain, he stared as the back of his boat roared away.
The black-clad divers surfaced around him. Three held spear guns at the ready while two removed their respirators to scoff at Caesar. The nearest one spoke, “Never trust a woman, especially one after treasure.”
Caesar stared into his vivid green eyes, trying to memorize everything about him. If he got out of here alive...
“What do we do with him?” the other asked.
“Bleeding like that, the sharks will take care of him,” the second man said.
Caesar looked toward where he knew the shore should be and couldn’t see it. Healthy, he might have maintained his energy level to reach the sand. In pain and bleeding more with each flutter of his feet to stay afloat, he didn’t have a chance.
“I run a boat service. I don’t know her,” Caesar said, trying to make himself sound totally used.
“You ran a boat…” A glug followed those words as one of two men without their breathing gear in place was suddenly jerked under the water.
Everyone looked down. A black substance blossomed through the water, shielding everyone’s view from the area under the surface. The thrashing under the water spread it quickly.
“What the hell?” the other diver who could talk asked.
A second later, the diver next to him disappeared, pulled abruptly under the water. A few seconds later, a gurgle of oxygen rose to the surface, suggesting that his oxygen line had been cut as the waves churned around them.
One of the three still remaining launched himself forward to swim back to the boat. He made it only a few strokes before he disappeared under the waves with a sudden jolt.
“That can’t be a shark!” the bare-mouthed man shouted. “We have to get out of this black stuff. You can’t see what’s coming.”
He turned to swim the opposite way. Two strokes away from reaching clear water, a visible hand reached up to drag the man under the water. Caesar heard two splashes and turned back to see the last two divers disappear into the murk.
His heart pounded so hard that Caesar could hear it. He remained where he was, trying not to move more than was necessary to keep his head above the water. He grabbed for his knife in his waistbelt and wrapped his fingers tightly around it as he prepared to fight for his life.
A man popped up in front of him, making him lurch backward and hold the knife out between them.
“Whoa, big guy. We’re not after you. These smugglers have a date with the authorities. I have this for you.”
He handed Caesar a gold coin with a swirl around the edges.
“What the fuck is this?”
“That’s your marker. It will be called in someday when it’s your turn to save someone from danger. Keep it safe.”
Caesar understood immediately by the man’s carefully crafted words. “I’ll return the favor as you have today.”
“Oh, I repaid my marker a long time ago. Now, I’m here simply to help people on their worst days. Come on. Let’s get you on board before the sharks start circling your wound.”
An hour later, he was dropped off at the shore with a burner phone, a heavily bandaged leg, and a coin. No boat, no girl, no explanations. Calling for a ride, Caesar vowed he’d make sense of this mess.
Chapter One
Caesar scanned the faces of the would-be scuba divers as they approached the Danger Bluff boat. It was too engrained in him to stop scrutinizing those who signed up to head out into the ocean with him. He’d been out on the sea with someone who’d had nefarious plans. He’d survived that incident only with Kingsley’s help.
Today’s group appeared to be nothing more than tourists taking a vacation excursion to go snorkeling or diving. He judged most to be inexperienced. Of course, he hadn’t picked up on any clues that Mindy was something other than the fun-loving flirt she had appeared to be. Caesar hoped his ability to pick up on clues was better than it had been that fateful day.
A quick motion on the path grabbed his attention as he jumped off the boat to give the group orientation. Isla Callas. Dressed in a vivid pink shirt with khaki shorts and flip-flops, she would have caught his attention anyway. Having just seen her appear on Magnus’s screens, Caesar watched her approach with a laser-like focus.