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When the leader was standing before them again, he had a gun in hand and was smiling at Edward. This felt really fucking bad.
“We have decided that this spare has no use so we will be getting rid of you now,” the man announced with a chuckle.
Daniel drew in a breath and opened his mouth to argue that Edward was absolutely necessary, but the words never made it past his lips. Edward jumped up and slammed the heel of his palm into the man’s throat before grabbing the wrist holding the gun. He jerked the man around, using his body as a shield while wrenching the gun free. It all happened in a flash, and Daniel was left wondering how the fuck he managed to get free of his ropes when it never looked like he’d once moved his arms or hands.
“Daniel, run!” Edward shouted.
Gunfire exploded around him. Daniel pushed to his feet but stayed bent low. He looked over at Kevin, intending to tell the man to run with him, but Kevin’s hands were also free. He’d picked up the steel chair and was wielding it like a baseball bat at their captors. Who the hell were these two that they didn’t hesitate in such a situation?
Pushing down the questions screaming through his brain, Daniel scurried over to the far side of the warehouse where several crates were stacked high enough for him to hide behind. He hated leaving Edward to fight off their attackers, but he wasn’t any use to anyone until he got his hands untied.
The muscles in his legs ached and burned as he crab-walked behind the crates, searching for a knife or something sharp enough to cut through the ropes. The gunshots had quieted, turning into grunts and the smack of flesh hitting flesh.
And then it was quiet.
Daniel froze, his heart pounding so hard, it felt like a jackhammer against his sternum. Had Edward won? Was he still alive? What if the pirates won the fight? Should he try to make a run for it outside of the warehouse? There was an open doorway not too far away, but it would mean breaking free of the cover he’d found. And once he was out the door, the docks wouldn’t offer much cover to hide behind. With his hands still tied behind his back, he wasn’t a threat to anyone.
“Daniel? Where are you?” Edward’s voice echoed through the warehouse.
Relief nearly choked Daniel. He leaned his head against the crate and closed his eyes, drawing in a deep breath to settle his nerves. When Edward shouted again, Daniel opened his eyes and stood. “I’m here.” His voice cracked and Daniel cleared his throat before repeating the call.
Edward appeared a second later. A bruise forming on his jaw and he was splattered with blood, but he looked fine otherwise.
“Are you okay?” Daniel demanded.
“Yeah,” Edward breathed. “What about you?”
“Fine. Can you untie me?”
Edward grunted and motioned for Daniel to turn around. He felt several tugs on the rope, pinching his wrists before the rope went slack and fell away. Pain immediately shot through his arms and shoulders as he moved his hands away from his back. Circulation returned, blood flowing up and down his arms while abused muscles complained. Daniel let out a little groan as he slowly lifted his arms, stretching them above his head.
“The pirates?” he asked hesitantly as he turned to face Edward.
“Dead.”
Edward started back to where they’d been held, and Daniel followed. As they came around the last crate, all six men were spread out across the floor, pools of blood already forming under them and spreading across the floor. They looked as if they’d been shot or stabbed.
It was on the tip of Daniel’s tongue to ask if Kevin had gotten away during the scuffle, but Edward stopped right next to the man’s still form. His breath caught in his throat as he stared at his double. It looked as if he’d taken a bullet in the back and it had gone straight through his heart. Edward stood over him a second, looking incredibly pissed.
“Did you know him?” Daniel asked.
“No, but this really fucks things up.”
“What do you mean?”
“Later.”
Edward kneeled down and started going through Kevin’s pockets. Daniel took an unsteady step backward, unable to understand what he was seeing. Was…was Edward robbing the dead? That didn’t make any sense. He watched wordlessly when Edward came up empty-handed as he moved over to the leader of the gang. He searched the man and gave a little cry of triumph when he came up with a little keycard holder from the Fairmont. It seemed a fair guess that the pirate leader took it off Kevin, because Daniel’s own room key had gone down with the boat.
Luckily, he’d only packed a small stash of cash, his room key, lube, and a few condoms in his backpack. He was overjoyed that he’d decided to leave his smartphone in the room rather than bring it along. Their morning excursion out on the boat was supposed to be about relaxation and fun. But it ended in death and more questions than Daniel knew what to do with.
