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“This guy works for the mob. I mean, I did, too. Kind of. By accident.”
“How do you accidentally work for the mob?” Emile screeches. The boat takes a wave a little too hard, slamming us back down and making me fall to my knees.
“By being a baker for a donut shop that’s a money laundering front!”
Emile shakes his head. “Unbelievable.”
“That guy? That’s Hudson Judge. He’s a hitman who tried to kill me. Alright? And that guy who comes by, my cousin? He’s a government agent. They have me in witness protection because –”
Another gunshot. This one hits the boat, making Emile spout a long line of expletives in response.
“Come on! Work on your aim, asshole!”
“So, yeah! That’s my story! And I’m really, really sorry!”
“Sorry isn’t enough,” Emile snaps back. “Who are you really? I’m guessing your name isn’t actually Clarissa. What else was a lie? Does your grandma even make pierogies?”
“My real name…” I bite my lip, not knowing how much is okay to say now. I’m either going to die right here on this boat, or somehow survive. And then what?
There’s no way they’ll let me stay here now. I’ll probably get moved around again, given a new name and identity. I’ll have to start this lying game from the beginning. Again.
How many times will I have to do this? Is it even worth it?
There’s no use keeping anything from Emile. If anyone deserves the truth now, it’s him.
“My name is Shauna. I’m just a baker who was too nice to the cops who ate there. And I ended up living next to an extremely attractive and wonderful neighbor who’s too good for me!”
“Flattery isn’t going to get us out of this,” Emile says. But his lip has quirked into a barely hidden smile. “But I may know what will.”
Emile takes a sudden, hard right turn that throws me on my side. We bounce over waves, taking them faster and faster, while bullets continue to fly overhead.
“You said your cousin is actually a government agent?” Emile yells.
“Yeah. Todd. He’s a U.S. Marshall.”
Emile shakes his head. “They didn’t exactly send their best and brightest, did they? Hang on!”
I do so, grabbing the chair Emile is sitting on and praying he knows what he’s about to do. The boat comes to a sudden slow down, spins around, and kicks back off. And in mere moments, I hear a loud and terrifying crash that sends me into a ball on the boat’s floor.
Emile lets out a long shout of victory as we once again slow down. I slowly stand on my shaking legs to view the scene. Hudson’s boat is in pieces on a pile of rocks. It’s a gruesome sight, but one that’s noticeably absent of bodies.
“Did you bait them into crashing?” I ask.
Emile smirks and gets the boat moving again. “They should stick to dry land. Or at least learn how the water works before trying to do business on it.”
I breathe a sigh of relief as we make our way to the city docks. There are a few flashing police cars already there to greet us. Some of them are piling into a boat. The scene is chaos, between swarming officers and onlookers.
I've barely stepped onto the dock when a car comes speeding up. I have to jump back so it doesn't run over my toes. The driver slams on the brakes, screeching to a stop so abrupt that the car shakes.
Two people hop out and hurry toward me. One is male, one female, and I can instinctively place them as agents even before I see their badges glinting in the sunlight. It must be something about the way they carry themselves that reminds me of Marshal Todd, something I guess they're taught way back when in the academy.
They start barking orders even as they zip in my direction. The flurry of words and activity makes my head spin, and it takes me a moment to realize they aren't even talking to me. The orders are for the cops, who scatter to process the scene. The ones in the boat take off, heading to examine the wreckage of Hudson’s boat.
“Your boys are that way,” Emile says, pointing towards the rocks. “But if they’re even half the hitmen they think they are, they’re long gone by now.”
The man nods and takes me by the arm. He’s leading me to an unmarked police car with zero explanation, or even a moment to say goodbye. I know once I get in there that I’m never coming back. These are my last moments in Aura Creek. Whether I like it or not.
I look over my shoulder in an attempt to say goodbye to Emile. He looks forlornly at me, then turns his head towards the bay.
