“Well, your job and mine don’t jibe,” he retorted, his face growing red.
Lace couldn’t believe they were even having this conversation. She tried to remain calm. “What you’re doing is against the law, and I’m obligated to report it.”
“Not if you’re dead.” His eyes took on an evil cast as he closed the remaining few feet between them.
Dead? What is he…?
The captain grabbed her upper arm and wrestled her aft. Toward the transom where large fish were sometimes dragged aboard. And it…
Oh my god, it’s wide open.
He was going to fucking throw her overboard.
Lace screamed as he dragged her across the deck, but it was fruitless. He had at least a hundred pounds and a good foot in height on her, so she was no match for his strength.
She glanced behind the irate captain, and saw the rest of the crew simply standing there. Doing nothing to help.
“You’re all going to let this happen?” she cried out. “This is murder, you know. You’ll all be found complicit.”
Zach alone must have finally reached the limit of his perfidy, because he pulled away from the pack and ran toward the captain, grabbing his arm.
“You have to stop,” Zach yelled.
“Boy, I’m warning you,” the captain snarled. “You interfere now and you’ll be joining her.”
“It’s wrong,” Zach shouted, pale but undeterred. “Let her go.”
The captain loosened his grip on Lace for one second, elbowing Zach hard in the ribs and sending him to the deck.
The captain bellowed at him. “I’ll deal with you, later.”
Lace had managed to take a few steps away, but the captain was able to latch back onto her.
Zach wasn’t giving up, though. He grabbed the captain’s leg, trying to hold him in place, but the evil skipper merely dragged them all aft.
Lace struggled. Zach scrabbled at a brass hatch closure and held on to slow them down..
The captain gave one huge tug to loosen the young man, and…
Momentum sent the three of them teetering on the edge of the transom.
Fuck.
Lace knew the odds of her going over were high, so she did the only thing she could think of. She lashed her arms around the captain’s midsection, and hung onto him with everything she had.
If she was hitting the water, so was he.
The captain whipped out with his free hand and managed to smack Zach in the face.
The blow sent the young man skidding backward on the slick deck just as an unexpected wave hit the hull, sending the captain off balance and…
Lace felt them falling.
Shit.
They landed in the cold blue, hard.
But Lace had trained for this.