Chapter 9

The bright orange dome had shrunk to a small line above the rooftops. The local firefighters had quickly gotten the blaze under control. A faint burning scent was carried by the light breeze blowing from the west.

Alexis couldn't tear her gaze away from the sky above Sunset Key. She rubbed her hands up and down her arms, suddenly cold, even though the night was unseasonably warm for November.

Seb wrapped an arm around her shoulders and said nothing as the light flickered a few times and died, like a burned-out light bulb.

"They must have had someone watching the ferry." Alexis had thought they'd outsmarted the men chasing her when they had docked at Sunset Key.

"It had to be the guy from the coffeehouse. He went back, located the catamaran, and set it on fire."

"We can't be certain Lane didn't have a couple more guys working with him," Alexis said, believing Seb was making a lot of assumptions.

"One of the guys who followed me said there were four on the team. He also loaned me his cell phone. It was a burner bought for the job. There were only three contacts."

Alexis thought it was wiser not to ask how Seb had convinced the guy to loan him his cell phone.

"Change of plan," he said, turning away from Sunset Key and the catamaran.

"The naval air base." It was their only option.

"We're going to steal a sailboat."

"You're joking, right?"

"Consider it a rental without the paperwork." Seb said, as they headed in the opposite direction to Sunset Key. "We'll borrow a boat from one of the rental places on the other side of the island. The plan isn't perfect, but we can adjust as we go."

"We can't just waltz in and take a boat. There'll be security cameras, at least one security guard, maybe even guard dogs…" Alexis started to list the things that could go wrong.

Seb interrupted her, "I've borrowed other things that required more thought and a lot more effort."

His definition of borrow and hers were distinctively different. Before Alexis could point that out, his cell phone rang.

"Did the fire spread beyond the catamaran?" He silently mouthed no as he listened, and Alexis sighed in relief. "We're headed in that direction right now. Give us ten minutes."

"Give us ten minutes for what?" she asked, still worried about the change in plans. Seb may be comfortable facing down a snarling German Shepherd, but she was more of a cat person.

"We're meeting Daphney at Higgs Beach. It's close to the boat rental place I have in mind." He pointed to her high heels. "We'll need to pick up the pace. While Lane and the two guys from Duval Street are out of the picture, the guy in the coffeehouse could enlist help. The sooner we're off the island, the better."

Alexis couldn't argue with that. While she wasn't keen on Seb's plan, stealing a boat wasn't something the guys after her would expect. She ignored the long mental list she'd compiled of everything that could go wrong. This might be their only shot at sneaking out of Key West.

"Did she say why she wants to meet us?" Alexis kicked off her heels. They were slowing her down.

She bent to pick them up and froze. The rhinestones on one stiletto didn't twinkle in the moonlight. The slender heel was coated in a dull reddish-brown—Agent Lane's blood.

"You would have fared worse than him," Seb said and picked up the shoes. "Alexis, look at me."

Alexis turned to face him. Logically, she knew the man would live, which wasn't what he had planned for her. But she couldn't shake the image of the blood spreading across his pants. There'd been so much blood.

A wave of acid welled up in her stomach and she closed her eyes. She was not going to throw up. Her stomach churned more, and she felt faint. Seb's steadying arms gently wrapped around her.

"Give it a few minutes and you'll be fine." His voice was calm, soothing. "Take a few slow breaths."

"I'm sorry," Alexis whispered once the nausea had passed and opened her eyes.

"There's nothing to be sorry about," Seb said, stepping back. "Everyone's entitled to a weak moment."

Alexis couldn't imagine Seb having a weak moment. The guy seemed indestructible.

"So why are we meeting Daphney?" Alexis asked, as Seb helped her up.

"Maxwell has a plan to get us off the island."

While Alexis didn't like the idea of the Powells being further involved in her problems, if Maxwell's plan didn't involve an angry German Shepherd or Dobermann, she was in.

She looked at the shoes in Seb's hands. Daphney would be upset when she saw them. She'd chosen them to cheer her up, and now they were ruined.

Alexis stopped and looked at the outdoor shower on the other side of the children's park to their left.

"Shoe." She held out her hand, and Seb passed her the bloodied high heel. "I'll be right back."

Alexis ran across the sand to the shower, turned the handle, and held the shoe under the steady stream of water. Hopefully, Daphney wouldn't notice the small stubborn spot that remained. A couple of minutes later, she was holding onto Seb as she wiggled her foot into the wet high heel.

"Thanks," Alexis said, straightening up, and then they continued down the sidewalk to meet up with Daphney.

Higgs Beach wasn't the deserted stretch of sand that Alexis had expected. The full moon lit up the white sand and several couples were wandering along the water's edge. People walked down the long pier, dark silhouettes against the moonlight. A few homeless people dotted the beach. Daphney was seated at a picnic bench that gave her a clear view of her surroundings along the walkway, edging the white sand.

"You better have a good reason for being here," Seb said, as they joined her. He took the seat across from Daphney, and Alexis sat beside her. "The guys we're dealing with are dangerous. It's not safe for you to be wandering the streets alone this late at night."

"I'm not alone. Our neighbor's son and wife are with me. They're the couple sitting on the sand snuggling to the right of us. He's a cop in LA." Daphney brushed off his concern like she would a mosquito. "I'm sorry about the catamaran. Maxwell saw someone on the boat and thought it might be you. The guy took off when he saw Maxwell, but the fire had already caught. Maxwell and our neighbors kept it from spreading to the dock until the firefighters arrived."

"I don't care about the catamaran. It can be replaced." The deep lines etched into Seb's forehead relaxed. "What's important is no one was hurt, and the fire was confined to the boat."

"The two of you need to be on your way. Dan…" Daphney tilted her head slightly toward the couple. "Thought he lost the guy following us, but I'm sure he's wandering around, hoping to spot us."

"Daphney," Alexis reached out and touched the woman's hand. "I appreciate what you're doing, but you shouldn't have taken the risk."

"Nonsense, dear." Daphney smiled, brushing off Alexis's comment like a second pesky mosquito. "The last-minute change of plans with your FBI friend didn't sit right with Maxwell. He figured you may need another way off the island. Once you left, he had Dan's father drop in and borrow our sailboat for a late-night fishing trip. He's the man hanging out by the pier. He anchored our dinghy underneath it. I've got the GPS coordinates to the boat. It's about a mile out."

Alexis stared at Daphney, dumbfounded.

Seb chuckled. "Dad had said he never scoffed at Maxwell's gut feeling."

"I packed some clothes for you, dear." Daphney patted the duffel bag beside her. "Maxwell moved your scuba gear to the sailboat, along with your clothes, Seb."

"Seb?" Alexis touched his hand. His attention was focused on something further along the beach.

His eyes followed a guy walking across the beach to the water. It was the guy from the coffeehouse.

Daphney turned slightly and followed her gaze. She inhaled a sharp breath. "That's the man who was following me."

"We can't let him see us leave Key West." Seb shifted his gaze to Daphney. "The security cameras on Sunset Key and the marina should have caught him. You and Dan can claim to have recognized the guy when you call the police. Then Dan can have credit for the collar."

"What are you going to do, Seb?" Daphney asked. The smile on her face faded and a tense, grim expression took its place.

His eyes moved back to the man walking along the beach. "Deal with the guy." The intensity of his gaze contradicted his calm voice.

"I've got this," Alexis said and stood, not giving herself a chance to back out. "He doesn't know we've spotted him. It's me he wants, so he'll follow me into the restroom, thinking you'll wait here for me to return. It'll only take a few seconds for you to reach me."

"Alexis…"

She didn't give him time to finish the sentence. She walked away.

Her heart pounded in her ears as she sauntered to the restroom, taking her time so the guy would notice. They'd talk first. He'd want to know where she'd stashed the algae sample and the USB drive. Seb would arrive well before she was in any danger.

The automatic lights flickered to life, lighting up the restroom's stark white surfaces. The sharp scent of disinfectant hung in the air. It'd just been cleaned. An abandoned wet towel lay on the long counter top between two sinks.

Alexis walked over to a sink and looked at her pale reflection in the mirror, unsure of what to do.

The guy from the coffeehouse walked in before she could give it more thought. He flicked open a knife and glanced down at her feet. "You'll need to take those off. I'd like to avoid an accident."

He must have spoken with Agent Lane.

"What do you want?" Alexis asked, slipping off the high heels and wondering why Seb wasn't right behind the guy.

"You have something that belongs to my employer. He wants it back." When he took a step toward her, Alexis backed up.

The counter top pressed against her. She placed her hand on the smooth surface to keep her balance, and her fingers brushed against the wet towel.

"You'll tell me where it is, and then we'll have some fun."

"Fun." This guy thought this was fun. "Let me tell you something. I'm tired of having fun." She heard the shrillness of her voice, and the guy took a step back.

Alexis heard Seb's deep voice outside the restroom's entrance. What was he waiting for?

The guy twirled the knife in his hand. He was going to impress her with tricks before he killed her!?

She'd had enough.

Alexis grabbed the wet towel off the counter, spun it to create a whip, and snapped it on his thigh. "How's this for fun?"

The next flick hit his arm and the next one hit his face.

Alexis knew exactly how much fun this was. She'd been the person at the receiving end of the towel in the junior high locker room. Until she'd mastered the skill and paid the girls back.

He swiped the knife at her, and the towel slapped at his knife hand. The knife clattered on the tile floor.

"Bitch," he snarled. "I'll make you pay."

"I thought you wanted to have fun, asshole." She flicked the towel again, hitting his eye.

He howled as she snatched a shoe off the floor and smashed the mirror with her shoe. Glass rained onto the countertop as he turned away from her.

Alexis grabbed a long shard of glass with the end of the towel as he bent over and reached for the knife. "Oh, no you don't."

She thrust the makeshift dagger into his shoulder and dragged it down his back.

The guy shrieked, and blood spilled down his back onto the shoe beside him.

"Son of a bitch! You've ruined my shoe!" Alexis screamed and stabbed him again.

He screamed and Alexis fisted the back of his t-shirt with her free hand. She was done with these guys. "You tell Daphney her granddaughter's designer shoes are ruined!" she yelled as she dragged him out of the restroom.

"Alexis?"

She stared at Seb, the man sobbing beside her forgotten. Seb's t-shirt was ripped. Blood dripped from his lip. Dan's clothes didn't look any better, and he was going to have a real shiner on his left eye. The six teens moaning on the ground looked worse.

"I ran into a problem," Seb said, staring at her. He tilted his head toward Dan. "He helped me out."

"You let a bunch of sixteen-year-olds beat you up?"

"Fifteen," a boy said as he picked himself up off the ground.

"I believe he's supposed to be your collar." Alexis dragged the bloodied man over to Dan, then walked to the garbage can beside the restroom's concrete wall. She dropped the towel and the broken piece of mirror inside before turning to the teens. "Don't you boys have school tomorrow?"

"Uh, yeah," a kid said and swiped at his bloody nose. One eye had already closed shut. "We should probably go home."

The boys scrambled to their feet.

"Nice meeting you, ma'am," a kid said as they hobbled away.

"Honey, are you going to be okay?" Seb asked, staring at her.

"I had another moment. I need to get my shoes."