Chapter 3

CHAPTER

THREE

Maddie's arms flailed as she tried to fight the ocean and get back to the surface.

But it was no use. She was no match for the mighty Pacific.

She would become another vacation statistic.

No, don't think like that. Keep trying. You're stronger than this.

That was right. She couldn't give up. She couldn't give in without a fight.

As a second wind hit her, she fought to get to the surface and draw in a breath.

To survive.

Finally, she managed to resurface.

But her arms felt as if weighted ropes were attached. For every inch she swam closer to shore, the current pulled her back nearly a foot.

The ocean pulled her under again.

This was it. She was done. She couldn't fight anymore.

Just then, arms swooped beneath her.

As her face rose above the surface, water spurted from her mouth. Her lungs gurgled.

Through blurry eyes, a man appeared in the darkness above her.

The man murmured something. Maybe, "It's going to be okay. I'll get you out of here."

Between the ocean and the water jostling in her ears, she couldn't be sure.

She coughed more, desperate to dispel the saltwater from her body.

Waves still pummeled her, though not as violently now. Instead, her body rocked back and forth with the waves as the man carried her to shore.

Could anyone survive these waves?

Or would both she and her savior become a vacation statistic?

And what about the man she'd tried to save? Where was he now?

Finally, the rocking stopped.

Everything went still as her body splayed against something wet and grainy.

Sand.

She coughed again, and water spurted from her mouth.

Maddie didn't have time to recover. She needed to tell the man who'd saved her about the other man in the ocean.

She forced herself to sit up, still wheezing and breathless. She raised a shaky arm and pointed toward the rocks jutting from the water. "A man . . . out there . . . needs . . . help."

Her vision cleared in time for her to see her rescuer's eyes widen with alarm. "Someone else is in the ocean?"

Maddie nodded before having another coughing fit.

"Stay with her," the man lifted his head and muttered.

A woman dropped to her knees beside her and grasped Maddie's hand. "It's going to be okay. You're going to be fine. Paramedics are on the way."

Paramedics? That meant the police might come also.

The cops were the last people Maddie wanted to see.

But she didn't have the strength to argue.

Besides, all she could think about was that man.

The guy drowning in the ocean was the one who'd wanted to meet her, wasn't he? And he'd said something about murder.

She assumed he'd been talking about himself.

But what if . . . what if he was talking about her?

She'd felt lately as if death was stalking her.

Maddie coughed again, more water gushing out. The woman beside her pounded on her back.

She'd come so close to losing her life. Thank God that this man had seen her when he did. That he'd been a good swimmer. That she hadn't swallowed too much water.

"My name is Adrienne." The woman beside her patted Maddie's back again. "The man who pulled you out is my boyfriend, Brody. I'm so glad you're okay. I know that had to be scary."

Maddie hardly heard the woman. Instead, her gaze searched the dark water. "Is Brody okay?"

"He's a great swimmer. He was a surfing champion before he had to grow up and get a real job. He should be fine."

That made Maddie feel a little better. But the ocean had claimed some of the best, and the waves on the south shore were especially dangerous.

More commotion sounded near the water.

"What's happening?" Maddie blinked, trying to figure out what was going on. But her vision was still blurry.

"Brody . . . he's pulling someone out of the water."

Maddie's heart beat harder. "Is the man alive?"

"I . . . I don't know. Was he alive when you saw him? Let me see if I can get an update for you. Can I leave you alone?"

"Yes, of course. Please, go. I'm fine." Maddie leaned back on her palms, still trying to steady her breathing.

Adrienne ran toward Brody, sand flying behind her feet.

As she left, another woman appeared beside Maddie. Maybe she was one of the spectators who'd gathered. Everyone seemed to materialize from nowhere, but Maddie wasn't complaining.

She'd be dead right now if Brody hadn't seen her. She felt certain of it.

"I thought you shouldn't be alone," the woman muttered.

That was kind of her. "Thank you."

Maddie turned back to the scene. The sun was beginning to rise beyond the cliffs, smearing pinks and oranges in the sky—and allowing her to see a little more.

She watched as Brody and Adrienne leaned over the man, trying to revive him. Another man joined them.

"Do you think he's dead?" Maddie's voice cracked as she asked the question.

"I . . . I don't know. I'm better with computer things than I am with medical things. But they're still doing CPR."

Four paramedics rushed through the shrubs and onto the scene, a stretcher between them.

Maddie tried to stand.

When her jelly-like legs started to collapse on her, the woman beside her grabbed her arm. "I can help."

With the stranger by her side, Maddie managed to find her balance. Together, the two of them crept closer to the man who'd been pulled from the water. She wanted to get a better look at his face.

But it was still dim outside, and too many people stood around him.

Maddie prayed the man survived. But in her gut, she knew the prognosis wasn't good.

As she paused near the group, someone beside her did a double take.

It was the man who'd saved her, she realized.

"Brody, right? Thank you." Maddie's voice sounded raw as she turned toward him. "You saved me."

"I'm glad I got here when I did."

Gratitude filled her. This man had risked his life to help her. He was truly a hero.

She continued to watch as the paramedics worked on the man sprawled on the beach, but she knew their efforts were futile.

The man from the ocean was dead.

Now the police would come. They'd probably want to question her.

A knot grew in her stomach.

The police were the last people she wanted to speak with.

One day, she knew her past would resurface. That people would find out the truth.

When they did, life as Maddie knew it would be over.

Several seconds later, Maddie turned as she heard someone in the distance calling her name. "Madison . . . are you okay?"

She recognized the deep voice right away.

Josh. He was one of the only people who called her Madison. He said it sounded more sophisticated than Maddie, the name she preferred.

She should be relieved to hear her fiancé's voice, but she wasn't.

Could it be because she wondered if he was trying to kill her?

The thought still startled her. But she couldn't deny the truth in the question.

Weird things had been happening over the past couple of weeks. The gas leak in her apartment. If she'd flipped on a light switch . . . she shuddered, not wanting to think about that scenario.

Josh had worked on her hot water tank. Had he purposefully nicked the gas line?

Then her tire had blown out while she was driving to a charity event in the Hamptons. Thankfully, she'd managed to pull to the side of the road in time. Again, Josh had just checked out the pressure in her tires the night before.

Maddie suddenly felt like she was part of one of those Final Destination movies. Especially when she coupled those facts with the reality that she'd almost been killed three months prior.

Then there was what happened today in the ocean . . .

Maddie knew the thoughts were ridiculous. Death wasn't chasing after her. But she couldn't deny her worries either.

As Josh paused on the sand beside her, his handsome face came into view. "What were you even doing out here at this time of the morning?"

She swallowed hard, not ready to tell him about the text. "I just wanted some fresh air and to maybe catch the sunrise. I couldn't sleep."

When she'd first met him, she'd thought he looked like Josh Lucas from the actor's Sweet Home Alabama days. Yes, she did have an affection for romcoms and thrillers from the nineties and early two thousands.

She and her Poppy had spent hours watching their favorite movies together after he'd become bedridden, and she often thought of people by how they resembled actors or actresses from those movies. Weird quirk, yes. But she'd done it for so long that it was a habit now.

Her Josh had the same sandy blond hair and classic good looks as Josh Lucas. Except her Josh was more refined. He had the perfect barely there beard. Every hair was in place. His clothes were expensive and chosen by a stylist. He was the consummate businessman.

"I'd gone to grab some coffee when I heard there was an incident at the beach. Then you didn't answer your phone." Josh studied her face, concern in his gaze. "I had a bad feeling and rushed right down."

"I'm fine," Maddie insisted. "A man in the ocean needed help and?—"

"You thought you could help him?" he interrupted, the concern in his voice replaced with a snort.

She gritted her teeth.

Josh was famous for interrupting people. Not just her, but his employees also.

Maddie found it disrespectful. When she'd brought up the subject once, Josh had laughed it off. He'd said life was too short to waste time with drawn-out conversations when he could just get right to the point. He had the gift of forgetting about the oyster in order to get to the pearl—his words.

She swallowed hard, trying to push down her resentment. "I couldn't just stand there and do nothing."

His eyes flickered with judgment. "Who is the guy anyway? Do you even know him?"

"No . . . I don't know who he is. Or . . . was." Her throat burned as she made the correction.

"He didn't survive?"

"I don't think so." She glanced back and saw that paramedics had stopped CPR and now stood in a circle around the man.

She'd tried to help. She'd almost lost her life by doing so.

But it looked like it was all for nothing.

Heaviness pressed on her at the thought.