James’s lips twitched. “Always busting my chops, woman.”
Mercy cupped his face in her hands. “Yes, you needed a kick up the butt.”
“I love you, Merc.”
“I love you too, you stubborn man.”
A cough from the doorway had them both looking that way to see Beth watching them with a soft look in her eyes.
“Sorry, I didn’t want to interrupt, but I thought we could talk.”
“Not interrupting anything. I was just adjusting your brother’s expectations of himself.”
Beth moved into the room and sat beside him, leaning into his shoulder. “Yeah, he’s a pain in the butt.”
“What did you want to talk about, brat?”
“I have a diary, well, more of a book really, with a list of who the Henchmen are in bed with. Their associates.”
Mercy perked up, her adrenaline spiking with interest at this information. “Should we wait until we can share with the whole team?”
“Makes sense, but where’s the book?”
“Miles has it in his apartment, here in Daytona.”
“Who is Miles to you, Beth?”
Beth looked at the hands in her lap as she picked at a cuticle on her finger. “He was a friend who helped me, and then he became more.”
“You trust him?”
Beth nodded. “With my life. He loves me, James. Really loves me, not like Scorpion loved me like a toy or a thing he owned until I was no longer useful, but like you love Mercy.”
Mercy felt her heart thud in her chest to hear it from someone else. It made everything more real somehow as a lock clicked into place, securing how she felt about him too.
“Why did you leave Abbie with me?”
“I was certain you’d do everything you could to keep her safe.”
“I failed.”
“No, he has inside help. He has cops, FBI, judges, and rich, powerful people on his payroll. It was wrong of me to disappear and leave you with no information, but I was so confused and scared I didn’t know what to do.”
“Yeah, we’re finding that out.”
“Miles tried to convince me to come home, and we were going to call when we hit land.”
“It was clever to stay out on the water,” Mercy offered, and Beth gave her a smile of thanks. “Do you know about the organ sales?” Mercy asked gently.
Beth gave a sharp dip of her head. “Yes, I was going to become the next victim, although not for profit this time.”
“Oh?”
“Scorpion’s mother has a bad heart. He’s a pig, but he’s also a momma’s boy. Everyone thinks his father ran the MC, but that’s bullshit, his mother is the true power behind it all and Scorpion is just the face. She has the same heart condition that killed her daughter, and yours truly is a match.”
“Did they test you?”
“It came out when I was pregnant with Abbie. I was six months pregnant when I heard Scorpion talking with Rao, his brother-in-law. He said I was a match and would provide a heart as soon as I delivered, and his child had been given a clean bill of health.”
“So Abbie doesn’t have it?”
“No, thank god, she was clear. I had her tested after I had her at the hospital.”
“Wow, so it’s not for money, you’re a live donor.”
Beth pursed her lips. “Apparently so.”
“We won’t let that happen, Beth.” Mercy gripped her hand as Miles popped his head in the now crowded room.
His eyes moved to Beth in question. “Everything okay?”
“Yes, just catching up on what happened.”
Mercy’s phone rang, and she saw it was Nick. “Yep?”
Mercy’s back snapped straight as she listened, and James stood, his body going on alert as did Miles and Beth.
“Yeah, stay safe, and we’ll contact you.”
She hung up and looked at James. “The Henchmen are at the marina.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
James ran up to the helm, with Mercy on his heels to warn Ray of the impending danger waiting for them at the marina. Bethany and Miles quickly followed him.
“Ray, we have a problem.”
The older man lost his smile at the words. “What’s going on.”
“We can’t head to the marina. You know the guys we’re trying to avoid? They’re waiting for us.”
Ray gaped. “We’re about thirty minutes from shore. Where do you want me to go?”
“Kill the engines, it will give us time to come up with a plan.”
Ray shut everything off until they were drifting. There were a few boats in the distance, and the Daytona Beach’s coastline started to show over the horizon.
Bethany gripped Miles’s hand, trembling. “They’re never going to let me go, ever.”
Miles kissed her brow. “Easy, Beth. Maybe I can call my captain and get him to pick us up.”
James dismissed the idea. “I’m pretty sure they’re looking at all the boats coming in. It would put your crew and all the passengers in too much danger. We need to avoid casualties at all cost. Ray, what other options do we have?”
“With what’s left in the tank, we could attempt to reach Ponce Inlet, but depending on the wind and tide, we may run out of fuel at the wrong time.”
Miles winced. “I’d try to avoid running out of fuel. If those criminals have fingers in every pie, there’s a chance they know people around here, including those in charge of the marina or towboats. I wouldn’t be surprised if they weren’t looking for Ray’s vessel in other marinas, including Ponce Inlet.”
James looked around. “And with the size of the hull, we can’t dock anywhere else. And I’d rather not involve anybody else.”
Ray lit up. “I have a dinghy! It would be a tight fit, but the four of you will fit. The water is calm which plays to your advantage.”
Mercy touched Ray’s shoulder. “No way, Ray. If you return to Daytona without us, they’ll know something is up, and we don’t know how they’ll react. If we use your dinghy, you’re coming with us.”
The captain smiled. “I can’t let the boat drift like that. Other boats will alert the marina, and they’ll send the police to check it out. If you wanted to stay under the radar, it would be an epic fail.”
It was clear that the Henchmen would need that too, and an idea came to him. “And if we do the exact opposite? Bring so much attention to us that it distracts the Henchmen and allows us to pass by undetected?”
Mercy arched an eyebrow. “Why do I think that I’m gonna love and hate this idea of yours?”
This lovely lady of his knew him too well, and he winked at her before turning to Ray. “How much is your boat worth, Ray?”
The captain blinked, and James was sure he wouldn’t appreciate where he was going.
“Why do you want to know, son?”
“Because I’m ready to promise you the value of your boat when it was shiny new if you’ll allow me to burn it down.” It was difficult to determine if the silence on the deck was due to surprise or an impending mutiny. “What I mean is, what happens if there’s a fire on a boat?”