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Kneeling next to the prone form, I put my hand on her arm, only for her to flinch back. “Ma’am, are you okay? My name is—”
“Archer,” a pained whisper interrupted me.
I was wearing my full tactical gear, which included a mask. It would be hard to recognize me. Confused who would know me by my voice alone, I brushed the silky strands off her face and froze at who was lying in front of me. “Thea.”
It came out strangled, my brain unable to comprehend her bruised and bloodied face.
“You mind giving me a hand up?” Her voice already sounded stronger and more like the woman I’d known most of my life.
Unsure where to touch her, since her whole body was one big bruise, I settled on her shoulders, sitting her up.
She groaned but didn’t protest, just gritted her teeth, ignoring the lonely tear tracking down her cheek.
She lifted her gaze, and our eyes met. A barely contained fire raced through my blood upon looking at her familiar moss-green eyes. Or eye, rather, since one was almost swollen shut. Even bruised and battered she was the most beautiful woman I’d ever seen. And the one I could never have.
My hands tightened on her at the sight, and she groaned in pain. Immediately loosening my hold, I grimaced. “Shit, sorry.”
Holding on to my arm, she pulled herself up to standing only to double over with a grimace, pressing her hand to her middle. She took a few deep breaths while I stood frozen. I’d never felt so helpless.
What is Thea doing on a boat in the middle of the ocean?
Righting herself, she focused her attention back on me. “Why are you here?”
“I’m working for Locked Security. And since we were the closest team, you got us.” I couldn’t take my eyes off her, the surprise of seeing her making it hard to hide my feelings. “Can you tell me where your husband is? We were told that both of you are on board.”
The reminder that she was now married doused the fire in my veins with a large bucket of ice.
Startling at my now-harsh voice, she grimaced. “He’s not on board. Everyone who was is in this room right now.”
I frowned, my hands forming fists to stop myself from reaching out to her whenever she groaned in pain. “Why would port authorities think there was one extra passenger?”
“Just a mistake. He didn’t join us for the trip.”
My teammates interrupted whatever reply I had.
“Good job, newbie,” Chase said, slapping me on the back, assessing the room. “But we’re missing a hostage.”
Turning away from Thea, who was now with Devon, our team’s medic, I shook my head. “Everyone’s accounted for. Apparently the husband wasn’t on board.”
Frowning, Chase narrowed his eyes. “Our intel is never wrong. Carter hacked into the port authority server himself. The husband was logged as one of the passengers.”
Cracking my neck, one of many bad habits I’d picked up after coming back to the States, I sighed. “She says he wasn’t on board. But we should get him on the line to make sure he’s safe.”
His eyes stayed on my face for a few more seconds before Chase turned to Thea. “Mrs. Barlowe, do you mind calling your husband so we can confirm he’s safe?”
Thea held out her hand, the only sign that she’d heard him, and he handed her his satellite phone. She dialed a number from memory, then put the phone to her ear. Her hair had always been gorgeous, but now it was even longer, falling down her back in thick waves. She’d filled out, her new curves suiting her.
“Hey, honey,” she said when a muted voice sounded on the other end. “There was an incident on the yacht.”
The other person yelled, cutting off anything else she wanted to say. “I’m fine,” she eventually cut in. “But the guys from Locked Security want to speak to you to make sure you’re okay. Since you’re on the manifesto.”
Her voice dropped at the last part, and I wondered what was going on here.Why would her husband pretend to be on the boat?
Thea handed the phone to Devon, who briefly spoke to William, then hit the Off button. “Okay, let’s get you to a hospital.”
Holding up her hand when Devon took her elbow to guide her out, she turned back. “What about the yacht?”
Looking at the three crew members, I weighed our options. We could anchor the boat here and hope nobody made off with it, or we could persuade the crew to get it to the closest harbor.
