Page 67 of Wild Escape

"Oh, you're going to cooperate. I have no doubt about that.”

I tied her boat up in a slip, escorted her ashore, then marched her into the station.

Jack followed with the money.

"What exactly are we doing here?” Daphne asked.

"Something I should have done from the beginning," I said.

We got her fixed up with an ankle bracelet. This time, if she ran off, she wouldn't get far.

The device wasn't pretty, but on Daphne, nothing looked bad.

“In case you get any funny ideas about tampering with it or cutting it off," I said. “That's a felony. You're in enough trouble as it is.”

"You’ll get no trouble from me," she assured.

I'm not sure how she managed to say it with a straight face. Daphne was a good liar.

We left the station, then I helped her aboard the Raptor.

“What about Shelby’s boat?”

“Tell her she can come pick it up from the station any time,” I said with a grin. Would make an arrest easy.

Daphne knew what was in store for Shelby. “Look, it’s not her fault. I forced her to help me. You can’t arrest her.”

“Aiding and abetting a fugitive.”

“Come on, what would you do for your best friend in that situation?”

“I wouldn’t be in that situation because my best friend isn’t a thief.”

She scowled at me.

We cruised back to the marina at Diver Down, tied off in a slip, then transferred the gear ashore.

Daphne's eyes rounded when I escorted her to the Avventura. We crossed the passerelle, and Buddy barked and bounced at the salon door, excited to meet our new guest.

"This is your boat?”

I nodded.

"You guys are definitely on the take." Her eyes narrowed at me with an epiphany. "Are you just playing hardball? Do you want a share of the dagger? Is that what this is all about?”

"No. That is not what this is all about.”

I pulled open the salon door, and Buddy pounced. I tried to hold him back, but I had my hands full of gear.

Daphne knelt down and tried to love on the little guy, but with her hands cuffed behind her back, she couldn't pet him. She got a face full of slobber. Buddy loved it, and I think she did too. He could melt anybody's heart.

I escorted Daphne into the salon.

She took in the opulent appointments. “Nice digs.”

"I've got your monitoring bracelet set to a defined radius. I will get text alerts if you leave the authorized zone."

"What's the authorized zone?"