Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

W averly had her eyes closed as the warm breeze ruffled the umbrella stuck in the sand beside her. The sound of waves lapping on the powder-white sand had lulled her to sleep. The book she'd been reading laid on her lap, untouched for the last half hour.

Her sister's ringtone stirred Waverly from her nap. She reached into her beach bag and pulled it out. "Hey, Lark. Are you done with classes?"

"I'm done for the day and thought I would check in on my big sis. How is the vacation going?" Lark asked.

"Dreamy. I don't know if I've ever been this relaxed." Waverly picked up the empty glass and caught the eye of one of the resort's waitstaff. She shook the glass and the waiter took off to get her another frozen drink.

"Tell me everything you've done so I can live vicariously through you."

"Ha. That's a first. Normally, I'm living through your spring break and summer trips."

"And not taking your own." Lark paused. "I know you paid for them so I could have the experiences, and that left you unable to take your own trips. I don't think I ever thanked you as I should have. You always sacrificed for me. I was too blind to realize it when I was younger."

"Oh, Lark, I was happy to give you those trips. Seeing you happy makes me happy."

"Well, no more. Now we both can take vacations. Tell me all about yours. Have you met a guy? Had hot sex on the beach?"

"Lark!" Waverly gasped. Her little sister had never talked about sex before but maybe it was because Waverly was more like a mother than a sister, but now they'd found that sisterly love again. "No man, except Jose."

"Love those J men: Jose, Johnnie, Jack, Jim, and Jameson."

Waverly giggled and shook her head. "You're nineteen. You're too young to know the Js."

"I'm in college, duh. I see those men every weekend. And before you slip into mother mode, I'm always careful. Now, tell me what else you've been up to."

Waverly accepted the drink from the waiter and tipped him before turning back to Lark. "I went paddleboarding yesterday. It was a lot of fun. I'm even starting to get a tan and I'm halfway through the book you lent me. Tonight, I'm going on a sunset cruise. The resort has its own private boat to take guests out. We will have champagne and lobster and watch the sunset."

"How romantic. Maybe the captain is sexy and single and makes you scream Arrrgh!"

Waverly almost spat out her drink. "You're killing me, Lark! But maybe it's more like Ahoy!"

Lark giggled right along with Waverly. "Whatever, as long as you're yelling something pleasurable. Call me tomorrow with all the details. Love you, sis."

"I love you too." Waverly hung up as she heard a group of girls calling to her sister. Lark was happy in college. She was the complete opposite of Waverly. She was outgoing and could make friends with anyone. Waverly had a little more trouble with that. It was slightly awkward for her to be on vacation by herself at a romantic resort, but she was channeling her sister and putting herself out there. Even if "out there" only consisted of drinks at the bar after dinner. Honestly, she was proud of herself. And she was late! She needed to get ready for her sunset cruise.

"Just you tonight?" the sexy deckhand asked as he helped Waverly onto the boat. She'd heard that a lot. But that's what she got for going to a romantic resort on her own. "Just me."

"Then let me show you to the best view, Miss..."

"Davenport."

He smiled at her, snagged a glass of champagne, and led her to the other end of the boat. "This is my favorite place to see the sunset," he said, handing her the glass of champagne. "Plus, you have your own chair to view it from. Let me know if you need anything ."

Waverly glanced around at the couples already canoodling. "There's a very high probability that I'll need more champagne."

"I'll get right on that."

Waverly thought about what Lark had told her, but he seemed too young. Anyone younger than her made her think of taking care of him like she'd done for her sister. No, she needed someone a little older. Someone confident in who he was and what he was. Not what he did but what kind of man he was. She knew she was a nerd. She owned it. She was confident in herself and her abilities to be said nerd. She liked numbers. She liked logic. She liked when the math added up and the results were visible.

The math didn't add up with this young man. He was young. He was flirting with all the single women and some not-so-single ones. He might have confidence in who he was, but he didn't know what he was yet.

The boat pushed away from the dock and Waverly stopped thinking about the deckhand. She only thought of him when he reappeared twenty minutes later with a fresh glass of champagne. "We will have dinner after the sun sets. Let me know if you need anything before then."

Waverly nodded but then went back to the sunset. How the sun changed colors and grew richer, deeper, and softer as it sunk towards the horizon. How rays of sunshine became more distinct. How they reflected off the water. There was science and math to all of it, but tonight, Waverly just enjoyed the show.

Dinner was delicious as they anchored far enough from shore to be able to see the whole island lit up with lights. The champagne and the lobster were the perfect toppings to the perfect night.

The sound of speedboat engines disrupted the night though.

"What the hell?" the cute deckhand muttered a second before he was hit with a beanbag shot. The deckhand stumbled back, hit the table, and crashed to the ground.

Waverly screamed when the sound of gunfire erupted. It sounded as if they emptied an entire AR-15 into the side of the boat. The top of the boat was absolute chaos as several people tried to escape, but escape to where? They were on a boat out in the ocean. Sure, they could try to swim to shore, but it was night, the current was strong, and the waves were only a couple of feet. While that wasn't big for a boat, it was nearly impossible for the average person to swim. Add in that it was close to a mile from a shore that was more rock than sand. It all equaled her having a better chance of staying on the boat and hoping this was just a robbery.

A group of men in black, with masks covering their faces and guns in hand, jumped onto the boat. They were yelling and the passengers were screaming. One of the men fired his gun up into the air.

"Silence!" he yelled. The screams turned to whimpers. "Everyone stand up and get in line."

Waverly stood and tried to hide herself behind the other guests as they lined up. Her heart was pounding, her breathing was shallow and quick, and all she wanted was to see her sister again. She'd do anything she had to in order to get back to Lark.

"This is what is going to happen. You are going to get off the boat and into our speedboats. Eight people per boat. Before getting off, you will put all your wallets, purses, watches, rings, other jewelry, and your shoes into the bags we will be holding. You will unlock your phones and hand them over. Try to pull anything, and we'll shoot you. Your body may eventually float up on shore. Well, if the sharks don't get it first." The leader smirked. His white teeth flashed in the moonlight.

Waverly could tell he was Latino from his accent, but that's all. He was a little taller than she was but much more muscled. She could also tell, even as he seemed somewhat relaxed, he wasn't messing around.

"Why are you doing this?" the captain asked. "Just take our valuables and leave us here."

The leader cocked his head at the captain and made a tsk-tsking sound. "Captain. Don't devalue yourself like that. Your life is just as valuable as the gold ring you're wearing. Probably more so based on the resort you work for."

Hostages.

Waverly almost fell down when her knees buckled. They were going to be taken and ransomed. But to who? The resort?

"Let's see how much each of your families really value you. Now, get in."

Lark! She didn't have any money to pay these men. She was a college student and she didn't have access to Waverly's bank accounts. Would she know to go to Garvey and ask for a loan?

Waverly's body was numb as she moved through the process of going through the line. She cried as she took off her mother's ring and placed it in the bag. She cried harder when she handed over her phone and knew Lark's life would never be the same after tonight. Neither would hers. What if Lark couldn't pay? What would happen to Waverly?

The boats sped away. Waverly's body ached as it bounced over the waves. To keep her thoughts from spiraling, she counted. She watched the stars and counted. Math would tell her where she was or at least how far from land she was.

Three thousand, four hundred and twenty-seven seconds later, the boat ran ashore. There were no lights on the island. There was a dock, but it was so battered that parts of it were broken and submerged in the water. The beach was narrow, and within minutes they were walking single file through thick vegetation.

People were crying. There were some curses and cries of pain as their bare feet stepped on sharp things in the dark. The island was clearly undeveloped. There was no town or hope of rescue here. Instead, after twenty minutes of slow walking, they came to a clearing. Inside the clearing were several battered buildings.

The cement walls were mostly intact, but the thatched roofs were partially caved in or completely missing. Windows were shattered and had been boarded up recently. The wood coverings were new and not weathered. It looked as if it was supposed to be a small boutique hotel on a private island but had most likely been hit by a hurricane.

People were shoved into the buildings, doors were locked, and they were left screaming alone in the darkness inside.

Panic began to claw at her throat. Everyone around her had someone to lean on, but not her. She was alone and had to keep it together. She had to save herself. Waverly just didn't know how.

"Where's your man?" one of the masked men asked, grabbing her arm hard enough to leave a bruise.

"I don't have one," Waverly said, upset that her voice wasn't stronger. She barely got the words out.

"I can change that, guapa ." Waverly cringed as his hand reached around and squeezed her ass.

" No la toques. Ponla en mi casa ," the leader snapped.

The man removed his hand from her ass and Waverly could finally breath, but she knew enough Spanish to know where she was going. She was being put in the leader's house.

"No, please," she begged as the man dragged her off.

The leader ignored her as he issued orders to his men. Waverly was shoved into the least damaged building. Maybe she could get out? But then she was shoved into the bathroom. The door was closed, and she heard the sound of a chair being wedged under the handle.

Waverly was relieved she was alone, but there was going to be no escape. The window was broken, but it was also six feet up, ran the length of the bathroom, and was way too narrow to get through.

"I need a weapon," she muttered to herself.

Waverly looked around the room and felt the tears and panic begin to win out. There was shelving but no cabinet doors. There was a sink but no piping. There was a tub but no curtain rod she would wield. Her last hope, the toilet, had no lid nor a tank. There wasn't even a mirror she could break and use the glass. She was defenseless.

Waverly's back hit the wall and she slid down to the dirty tile floor. She lowered her head to her knees and cried. The sounds of the men screaming and of women crying filled the night until, finally, footsteps in her own prison sounded.

Waverly looked up as the chair was removed from the door and it opened. Everything in her said to run. But there was nowhere to go. The leader was no longer hiding his face with a mask. Logic and true crime shows told her this wasn't good. He was going to kill her.

His bronzed skin seemed to glow from what little sunlight was now beginning to leak through the broken windows and the cracks in the roof. Tattoos covered his neck and arms and in his hands were her things.

He looked down at her wallet and then back at her. "Waverly Davenport of Charleston, South Carolina." He didn't ask, he stated. It was then she realized he had her phone pointed at her. Then he pressed a button and put her phone down. He tossed her a protein bar and a bottle of water. "Thank you for such an organized phone. Your sister was easy to find. Now, you better hope she can come up with the money to pay your ransom."

"Wait!" Waverly yelled as he left the room. She bolted up from the floor and ran at him. She saw the dirty knife in his hand too late. She tried to stop her forward momentum, but he lashed out with the knife, slicing her upper arm. Waverly screamed out in pain, falling backward in her rush to get away from him. The door was closed. She crawled forward and banged on it, screaming, "She's a student. She doesn't have any money! I can get you money. Please! Come back! I can get you money."

It was then she realized her hand was bleeding from banging on the door. That wasn't the only part of her bleeding. Her arm was bleeding as well.

Defeated, Waverly slid back down the wall. As much as she wanted to chug all the water, she tore her dress and used a little water to clean her wounds and then bandage them. She took a small sip of water and a bite of the protein bar. She didn't know how long she was going to be here and she certainly didn't know if they were going to give her any more food or water. Now was the time to think about survival. She would do anything to get back to Lark, even if it meant doing nothing, the hardest thing of all to do right now.