A lightbulb went on in Tabitha’s head. She immediately knew what he’d been going to say, and a warm glow filled her chest despite the dire circumstances.
She and Spencer had gotten so close in the last couple days, there was no mistaking it. They’d actually formed their pivotal connection even before they’d left the Atlaua.
But Spencer was clearly having trouble finding his voice.
With five, maybe six more seconds before she was incommunicado, Tabitha sucked in a breath and boldly spoke the words first.
“I hear you, Spencer, and love you, too.”
She received a heartfelt, but shaky laugh over the air. “Thank God one of us had the guts to say it first. I love you so much, Tabitha. Please be safe and come back to me.”
That was the last she heard before her earpiece stopped working.
The final seconds of the swim were easy. The dive down would be even easier since she was fully equipped. As soon as she got her mask and regulator in place, Tabitha went flat on her belly in the water and took a quick look below.
The sea wasn’t clear, the murk made visibility difficult, but despite that, she spotted the dreaded box right away.
It was shaped like a large coffin.
Bastard.
Tabitha quickly propelled herself downward, adjusting her buoyancy compensator as she went, with only one thought inmind. Get Sheila out of the box before whatever oxygen Ghillie had provided, ran out.
She’d just reached the wooden container, her hand out to lift the lid, when she was swiftly and unexpectedly hit in the back from behind.
The blow took her off guard, but luckily for her, her long-practiced martial arts training kicked in. She rolled with the blow, floated a few feet away, then used her fins to put even more distance between herself and her attacker before she spun in place for a confrontation.
Ghillie.
There was no mistaking it was him, and there was also no misjudging the evil smile on his face as he grinned around his regulator. His plans for her weren’t good.
He kept his eyes pinned to hers as he drew a hand across his throat in a gesture that to most divers meant they were out of air.
In this case, Tabitha knew better.
Ghillie was obviously and gleefully signaling to Tabitha that she wasn’t long for this world.
Like hell.
He lunged.
She grabbed for her inflatable signal.
He got to her first, and pinned her arms to her sides so she couldn’t deploy it.
Tabitha fought hard, but Ghillie was too strong.
Things weren’t looking good.
CHAPTER 32
Spencer’s brotherswere still in his ear, even though Tabitha was not.
“This guy’s nowhere to be seen,” Julian said with certainty. “I promise you. If he was lurking nearby, I would have spotted him. Which either means he left the area and is coming back later for his money, or…”
“…he’s underwater, waiting to ambush Tabitha,” Spencer finished with a growl. “Does this mean all cautions are off and I can go help her, Mace?” he asked with a hitch in his voice.
Mason was calling the shots, and his brother had previously suggested they needed to give things enough time to unravel so that they’d know what they were up against.
