Page 79 of The Sailor

Marit stepped back involuntarily, but she needn’t have worried. He couldn’t reach the edge. He then stupidly tried to scramble up the side, much as she had earlier, but he was too out of control, too out of breath, too heavy, too desperate. By clawing at the sides, all he managed to do was rain dirt down on top of him. He was actually widening the hole with his desperate attempts to climb out.

If he was smart, he’d use the boards that had fallen into the hole to help himself get out. But Lucas Pearson definitely wasn’t a smart man.

He continued to swear at her, to describe all the despicable things he was going to do when he got his hands on her. Marit stood at the top of the hole, staring down at the man who would definitely kill her at his first opportunity, and tried to think about her next steps. She was afraid to leave, in case he managed to get himself out.

There were still a few boards lying on the ground; if it looked like he was going to reach the top of the hole, she could always bash him in the head to make him fall again. That option wasn’t one she liked, as the thought of hitting him made her kind of queasy. But at this point, it was keep him where he was or die. And she kind of liked breathing, thank you very much.

He still had the keys to the boat in his pocket, so he was correct when he’d taunted her by saying she couldn’t leave the island. But staying up here meant she couldn’t signal any boats that might happen to go by. The last thing she wanted was to spend the night listening to Lucas’s threats, but she was too afraid to take her eyes off him.

So it looked as if she’d be staying right where she was.

Someone would notice Lucas’s boat at some point . . . she hoped.

She could probably risk heading back to shore to see if he had any emergency rations stored aboard that she could eat. But as soon as she had the thought, she mentally shook her head.

No. She had an irrational fear that the second she turned her back on Lucas, he’d somehow levitate out of that hole and come after her again. And he wouldn’t be so easy to trick a second time.

Being on top of this hill wasn’t ideal. The wind had picked up, and now that her adrenaline was waning, she was feeling the chill more than she had before. She needed to hunker down, wait for someone to find them. It could be twenty minutes or twenty days. She had no idea. But someone would find them. Of that she was sure.

Zach was out there. He knew she was missing, and he wouldn’t stop until he found her. Even if everyone else thought she’d run, could no longer deal with the harassment, wanted to make a fresh start elsewhere, as she’d done in the recent past when she’d left Portland, Zach would know she wouldn’t just up and leave. Not when she’d left him that morning happy and content and with plans for the upcoming holidays.

Marit picked up a few boards and arranged them together so she could sit on something other than the ground. She made sure to keep the heaviest one within arm’s reach, just in case she needed to protect herself.

Lucas hadn’t stopped threatening her. But at least now she couldn’t see his desperate and wild attempts to climb out of the hole that he himself had dug. He’d done a little too good a job of making it escape-proof. At least for someone his size. He hadn’t considered that her smaller height and weight would work to her advantage.

Sighing, Marit huddled in on herself, semirelaxing for the first time since waking on the bottom of the Men At Work.

Lucas was an asshole, yes. A misogynistic good ol’ boy and a spoiled brat. But he also, unfortunately, wasn’t the only one of his kind out there. Men who would go to any extremes possible to protect what they believed were their “rights.” Their right to catch whatever lobsters they wanted and pick and choose which rules to follow. Plenty of men who thought women should stay home and let men do all the work.

Marit just wanted to make a living doing something she loved, the same way everyone else did. Being on the water made her feel at home. The repetitive motions of hauling pots, banding lobsters, rebaiting the pots, and throwing them back overboard were soothing to her. Her mind could wander if she wished, or she could simply be in the moment with the water and the work.

Suddenly exhausted, and sore as hell, Marit put her hands over her ears and closed her eyes, wanting just a moment of silence. Of course, her hands didn’t completely block out Lucas’s continued threats, but they were muted. She’d take it.

“Please find me, Zach. Soon,” she whispered, wanting nothing more than to be in his arms, safe, warm. She was proud of herself for dealing with the situation she’d found herself in. But now that she was safe—well, relatively safe, as long as Lucas was in that hole—all she wanted was to give control of everything to the man she loved. He, and his family, would make everything all right again. He’d deal with Lucas and make sure he wasn’t ever a threat again.