Then suddenly, the man grabbed Kenzie’s shoulders and threw her across him and into Ryker and Granger. She was still tangled in their legs when she heard the sound of a gun.
“Dammit!” Ryker cursed as he plucked her from the tangled heap she was in and set her on her feet.
The man had rolled to the side of the boat, grabbed the gun he’d lost during the fight, but Dare fired first.
“Now I don’t know who is after me and I have to get a new boat,” Ryker said with frustration.
“I’m sure you can get your boat fixed, Ryker. And we’ll find out who’s behind it,” Kenzie said as she placed her hand on his back to soothe him.
“He’s not going to get it fixed, so don’t bother asking him to,” Darcy said as she struggled not to laugh.
Kenzie looked to Ryker. “What is she talking about?”
Ryker cleared his throat and dropped his head down a little so he could whisper.
“What? I can’t hear you,” Kenzie whispered back, but louder.
“Death cooties,” Ryker said, just loud enough for her to hear, but surely she hadn’t heard that right.
“I’m sorry. Did you say death cooties?”
Darcy was now doubled over laughing and Granger was struggling not to as well.
The other deputy held out his fist and gave Ryker a fist bump. “You can’t wash death cooties out. I got your back.” Then he turned to Kenzie and held out his hand. “Kordell King. Everyone calls me Kord.”
“Kenzie Carys. Thanks for getting here so quickly.”
“Thanks to Reverend Winston for ringing the church bells,” Kord said, gesturing to the man who had just boarded the boat.
Reverend Winston had smooth umber skin and looked to be in his mid-forties. His hair had soft coils on the top of his head and the sides were shaved. He also had the most comforting smile she’d ever seen.
“I’m so sorry this had to be your welcome to our sleepy town. If it makes you feel better, we haven’t rung the bells to signal a water attack since the Civil War. I’m surprised everyone remembers what it means.”
“They still teach it in civics class,” Gator told him. “Come on, y’all. Let’s get the weapons back to the church.”
“The church has weapons?” she asked Reverend Winston.
“Yes. They were all given to us by the town’s founders and we still use them today to defend our town.”
Of course they did. Kenzie didn’t really know what to say so Reverend Winston just smiled at her and then turned to say a word over the deceased.
“I’ve called it into Charleston,” Dare, an ATF agent and Harper’s husband, said, joining them. “They’re sending the coroner. Sorry about that.”
“You saved one of us from getting shot. Let’s see if I can get an ID on his fingerprints,” Granger said even as Ryker snapped a picture of him.
“Dare, did you get a picture of the other guy?” Ryker asked.
“Yeah, I’ll text it to you,” Dare said. “You sending it to your guy?”
“Yup. He’ll get info to us sooner than any fingerprints.”
“Who is your guy?” Kenzie asked, feeling like she was suddenly living in a prime-time television police drama instead of real life. No one was freaking out about the dead bodies or the shoot-out. Plus, she still had the vision of Turtle paddling the kayak with a dagger between his teeth to deal with.
“Granger, let me know if you find anything. I’ll let you know what my guy finds. Everyone!” Ryker called out. “After you put the weapons back, meet at Harper’s. Drinks and dinner are on me. Thank you for coming to save us.”
“You mean that, Ryker?” Gator asked.
“Did he say he’d pay for our drinks?” the guy who must be Skeeter yelled from his pirate ship.
Ryker smiled and everyone froze and stared in surprise. In fact, they looked more worried at that than when the men were attacking her and Ryker. “Yes. I’ll pay for your drinks, Skeeter. And for dinner. I have good friends who would try to sink an attacking boat with a cannon. Y’all deserve more than just drinks and dinner, but it’s what I can do right now.”
“Aw, shucks,” Skeeter said. Even from a hundred feet away, she saw his cheeks had turned red.
“This is because of you,” Granger whispered. “Thank you for bringing my friend back.”
“He never should have left. It wasn’t his fault,” Kenzie whispered back.
Granger’s eyes showed his surprise. “He told you about Christabelle?”
“Yes. He told me everything. Thank you for being a good friend to him that night. It must have been hard for all of you to go through,” Kenzie said as she placed her hand on his arm.
Granger couldn’t seem to find any words, so he just nodded and she let him walk off.
“Tinsley, can you give Kenzie and me a lift while the guys finish up here?” Harper called out.
Ryker gave her a little smile and a nod as if to tell her it was a good idea. “I’ll meet you at Harper’s in just a minute.”
Kenzie leaned over and placed a kiss on his cheek. “Thank you for keeping me safe.”
“Easy to do when you were so calm under fire. I told you I would never hurt you or let anyone else hurt you either.”
“I know, Ryker. I have complete faith in you. I’ll see you in a minute.”
Kenzie and Harper jumped down onto Tinsley’s boat. Nothing was said until the boat was back at the marina.
“He told her about Christabelle,” Harper said with a flat tone to Tinsley.
Tinsley’s head whipped around. It would have been comical except the situation was anything but. “He did?”
Kenzie nodded.
“He’s smiling again. He drove the pickup. You’re bringing him back,” Tinsley said, tears streaming down her cheeks. “I tried everything I could to prevent the darkness from swallowing him, but the love of a good woman is what finally did it.”
“Tinsley was the only one he’d allow to visit him after that night,” Harper explained. “He hasn’t talked about it since he testified. That’s how important you are to him. So, if you hurt him and send him back into the shadows, I’ll kill you myself.”
Tinsley rolled her eyes. “Harper. Don’t be so melodramatic. But, seriously, we’ll make your life a living hell if you hurt him.”
“I thought it was always the men who got threatened?” Kenzie said with surprise.
“Ryker has been through hell and we love you for bringing him out of it,” Tinsley said as she patted Kenzie’s hand. “But I don’t care if you are the closest thing to an angel on this Earth, I’ll come after you with everything I have if you break his heart.”
“I took him to Christabelle’s House today. I’m trying to mend his heart, not break it. I promise. I love your cousin very much,” Kenzie told them.
“Good,” Harper said and then paused. “But what’s Christabelle’s House?”
Kenzie told them about it as they walked out of the marina and up to Main Street.
“I wonder if they’d let me volunteer to teach some art classes?” Tinsley asked as they opened the door to Harper’s bar.