I locked desperate eyes on Graham's brown ones and pleaded with him to save us. I was met with indifference that shook me to the core.
"Do as he says."
I shook my head back and forth but it was no use. Graham was already pushing me toward the boat.
"Trust me," he whispered in my ear before lifting me up like I weighed nothing and practically tossing me into the black boat.
I realized in that moment that I should've listened to Graham the first time. I would soon learn how big of a mistake I made by flagging down that boat.
CHAPTER THREE
Graham
I knew when I saw the way the men were dressed on the zodiac that they weren't here to rescue us. Convincing Sarah of that hadn't worked out in my favor.
Kidnapping was more like it and that was exactly what was happening. We were being kidnapped in the middle of the ocean.
"Sit!" the man who appeared to be the leader of the ragtag group barked at us.
I tried to place the accent but it wasn't one I’d heard before and I had done a lot of traveling both in the Army and for Blackguard Security.
The race across the ocean was both silent and tense. I didn't mind the lack of talking, it helped me concentrate and formulate a plan, but I could feel the unease pouring out of Sarah. For a woman who couldn't shut up since she woke up in the water, I could imagine the silence was killing her.
When we finally made it to a small ship, I knew my suspicions were correct.
Pirates.
One of the men on the zodiac pulled it alongside the ship next to where a rope ladder hung down.
"Climb." The leader waved his gun in our direction.
"You go first." I placed my hand on Sarah's lower back and guided her across the zodiac. "I'll be right behind you."
Sarah spun around and pierced me with wide eyes. "You expect me to go up there?" she hissed.
"We don't have a choice." I glanced toward the gun that was now pointed straight at Sarah. She followed my line of sight and gasped. The reality of our situation was finally sinking in.
With shoulders slumped forward and dejection written all over her face, Sarah started the slow climb up the shaky ladder.
Testing the additional weight of me on there with her, I decided it was sturdy enough to hold both of us. I moved at a much faster clip until I was right behind her to provide emotional support.
"You're doing great. Keep going."
Reassurance wasn't something I would normally do. It was a waste of time in my opinion. A person shouldn't depend on someone else to tell them how good they were doing. They should be able to recognize that themselves.
But in this case I could see the anxiety pouring off Sarah in waves. If I had to guess, she’d never been in this type of situation and didn't know how to handle it. I, on the other hand, had been taken prisoner before and it was no walk in the park. The last thing I wanted was for Sarah to know what that felt like.
"Are you sure this thing can hold us?" Sarah's voice was nothing more than a whisper as one hand slowly reached for the next rung.
"So far, so good. The faster you climb, the quicker it's over."
Four rungs left. I half listened as Sarah mumbled to herself. I couldn't pick up what she was saying but I could only guess it wasn't good. Nothing about our situation was good.
As she got to the top, another man in all black yanked her over the side of the ship, Sarah yelped in response. My protective instincts went into overdrive as I yelled up, "Careful with her!"
The man laughed and I recognized my mistake instantly. They now knew that to get me to do anything, all they had to do was shove Sarah around and I would come to her rescue. I bit down the curse that threatened to escape.
Fuck these guys for getting me to show my weakness early on. When I got to the top, I shook off the help and climbed over the side on my own. I kept my expression neutral despite the grip another man had on Sarah's upper arm.
