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“Koa, check it just to make sure,” instructed Dane.
Koa took off at a jog.
Dane pulled out his cell but then thought the better of it. “Anyone got a sat phone?”
Cain went to his vehicle and came back with one. Dane took it and dialed. “This is Chief Petty Officer Dane Landry. I need the location of a boat namedLucky Lady.” He provided as many details as he had to the dispatcher. “I need that location ASAP.” He gave the dispatcher the sat phone number and hung up.
“What are you thinking?” Cain asked.
“TheWallyis out there somewhere along with a few other boats. There’s a chance someone will see it ping on their radar. I’m thinking we ask Sinclair to ask his friends at Pearl to see if they can come up with something, too.”
Cain jabbed a number into his cell. “Finn, yeah, I know it’s the middle of the night there. Find me a satellite over Oahu. Specifically, the ocean off the east side of the island. I need to find a small fishing boat. And you might want to wake up the Admiral. A CGIS agent is being held hostage by Neil Ainsley—” Cain’s jaw ticked, clearly annoyed by an interruption. “Yes, that Ainsley, Deputy Director Cross’s assistant. We believe he is behind the motherboard theft.” Cain hung up. “Someone will find them, and then we’ll be on our way.”
“Waiting is the worst,” Cass said, “but we might as well suit up while we wait.” She went around to the back of the SUV and opened the hatch. “Come get your gear.”
The next few minutes were spent quietly dressing in tactical gear and adding a lot more weapons. They were going fully loaded and red hot.
“This is what Casper’s boat looks like.” Jace pulled the picture up on a laptop they had in the back of the SUV.
The fishing boat was a thirty-footer, designed with an elevated fly bridge to make spotting large sport fish easier. For several minutes they tossed around boarding strategies, trying to figure out if there was a way to get on board without anyone seeing them, but unless they had a whole lot more time and scuba gear the possibility was zilch.
“We’re just going to have to go right at him and hope he’s distracted.” Cain shot Dane a look. “Mac is smart, she’ll understand what’s going on and help if she can.”
“Agreed,” Dane said.
There wasn’t another option. He was just gonna make damn sure he was front and center on the RHIB so he could be the first one on Casper’s boat.
He looked at Cass. “Bring the sniper rifle.”
She looked at him, eyebrows raised. “That’s a hard shot. At sea on the waves at any amount of distance?” She shook her head. “I could hit Mac.”
Fucking adrenaline. He needed it to stop pulsing through him. His gut was a knotted, tarry ball of tension. “I know, but we may not have much in the way of options.” Dane wasn’t fooling himself. Cain had been right. He needed to look at this as if Mac was a total stranger, and not the woman he wanted in his bed for the rest of his life. Her odds were not looking good right now. Anything they could do to up those chances had to be done.
“I agree with Dane. Take the rifle,” Cain ordered. “You’re the best shot with it, Cass. We may need it out there.”
Cass’s lips went into a hard line. “Okay.” She pulled out the case that held her sniper rifle and set it on the ground beside her.
The sound of a boat engine reached their ears. As a cohesive unit, they sped to the end of the dock. Sinclair pulled up on the RHIB.
“Thank God,” Dane said as they all jumped on board.
“Any idea where we’re headed?” Sinclair asked. He was wearing full tactical gear and had a machine gun hanging around his shoulders.
Dane studied him. “You’ve done this before and not just with NCIS.”
Sinclair nodded. “Former Marine Force RECON.”
“Well, shit. That might’ve been nice to know.”
He shrugged. “Again. Undercover. And it didn’t come up since we met.”
“Glad to have you with us.”
The sat phone buzzed. Cain answered. He yelled out a heading to the Petty Officer driving the boat.
The petty officer steered the boat into open water, then shoved the throttle into a wide open position. The bow lifted and Dane braced himself on the rigid orange hull. The night was calm, the sea was flat, and the RHIB practically flew across the water. The great big ops clock in Dane’s head was ticking faster. It was all down to timing now.
CHAPTERTWENTY-FOUR
