Off the Deep End

by R. Jayne Revere

  She crawled ahead and peered in. Aaron stood below her, glanced around and up to her. He motioned for her to come down. She scooted forward and swung her legs over the edge. A deep breath. She pushed herself off and dropped.

  Aaron caught her at the waist and lowered her to her feet. “Okay, let’s get them and get back. Ammo?”

  Alex pointed to the small closet. “Bottom. Pink purse,” she whispered, almost giggling, partly from stress, partly because of her own choice of concealment. Who would ever look in a pink handbag for ammo?

  He headed to the closet and she to the dresser. The bottom drawer issued a minute squeak as she eased it open to remove her other two pistols from a hidden bag. She stood and turned toward the bed, almost crashing into Aaron, who had come up behind her.

  “Where’s the rest?” he whispered.

  “Here,” she replied and moved past him, plopped her handguns onto the blanket, and reached under the mattress. She’d just stowed some there the night before to be within easy reach.

  As she retrieved the three boxes, it occurred to her what he’d just asked. Along with knowing she had multiple weapons? The implications of these questions sank in. How did he know? She hadn’t told him. Her back remained to him and she clenched her jaw. He couldn’t be that deceitful… could he? All their shared time and conversations, getting to know each other. Hurt vised her chest. Was all that worthless? Did she really know him at all? A sick heat snaked its way up to redden her face. He had spoken on more than one occasion about using charm and deception in his earlier work. Had he just been playing with her all this time? She turned and eyed him, her focus fierce. “How did you know there were more?”

  “It’s my business to know. Besides, I checked,” he replied offhanded as he took a box from her, picked up one of the pistols, and began loading the mag.

  Her mouth dropped open, but she couldn’t come up with words.

  He froze. With a muffled curse at himself and a deep sigh, he turned to face her. “Look, when we do a job, we don’t need any wild cards. When I first saw you carry, I could tell you didn’t want anyone to know. And…” He shrugged. “For whatever reason, I thought there might be more. So I checked.”

  “You went through my room?” Alex forced herself to keep to a loud whisper. Did you have fun with that? She held her tongue, biting back the urge to curse or scream at him, suddenly glad it had been him and not one of the others. “I would have told you if you’d asked!”

  “Would you have?” Aaron shot back. “Besides”—he went back to loading, now jamming rounds into the mag—“it doesn’t matter right now. You can be pissed at me later.”

  “Uh, yeah, it matters a lot.” Alex moved over to stand in front of him, put a hand on his to stop him loading and force him to look at her. “This”—she gestured around at her room—“this may not matter in this very moment, in this particular situation.” She swallowed hard against mixed emotions, needing truth. “But I need to know I can trust you. That my family can trust you. That matters.”

  “Okay. I should’ve asked and I’m sorry about that. But with what I do, there’s no room for mistakes. No room for missing things. It was just a safety precaution on my part.” He took hold of her shoulders, and his look softened. “Trust me. You can. I will do absolutely everything in my power to get you and your family and everyone on this bucket out of this mess alive and well. That’s why we’re here, in case it went bad.” He resumed loading but kept a sympathetic gaze on her. “I don’t know what else I can do or say to prove it to you.”

  Alex searched his face. His answer seemed forthright. It wasn’t like she’d revealed her stash after the initial safety briefing either. And he’d never given her reason to mistrust him before. His skilled fingers poked round after round into the magazine, and his gaze never wavered from hers. The shroud around her heart began to unravel.

  Finally accepting the sincerity and apology in his eyes, Alex spoke with conviction. “That’s twice now you’ve told me to trust you. Just do what you just said.”

  With recovered weapons and ammo stowed in a duffel, they headed back to the center of the room. Thank God Alex seemed to have accepted his apology. Besides, I checked? Really Donovan? Dammit! Why the hell did that have to slip out? And he’d had no time to explain it with any kind of tact. Though early on in the voyage, he should have owned up to his search of her quarters long before this. He just hadn’t figured out how and therefore let it slide. Would she find him creepy now? Dishonest? His gut twisted at the possible consequences of his secretive actions. Violation of privacy had never been his intention. Would she understand that? Fuck. That look she’d had on her face, those accusing eyes had crushed his heart, that sincere questioning, more than any words or demanding tone could convey. She’d made clear he’d breached her trust and that it went way beyond her room. She really had suspected his loyalty overall—something he didn’t need in this predicament and the last thing he ever wished her to doubt.

  Aaron tossed the bag up into the ventilation shaft and turned to Alex. “Ready?” he asked as he grabbed her at the waist.

  “Yeah,” she replied and bent her knees to jump.

  Voices and footfalls. Aaron let go of her, put a finger to his lips, and pulled his pistol. The sounds grew louder. A door slammed. Commotion in the next chamber. Jimmy and Will’s room. Back in the passageway outside.

  Aaron scanned the room and indicated for Alex to follow him. While collecting ammo, he’d noticed the small closet concealed another door at the rear off to one side, likely an access panel for mechanicals. A narrow opening large enough to step through, there should be enough room for them both to hide inside. Hopefully.

  He shoved clothing aside, carefully and quietly turned the latch. A quick check. He motioned for her to enter, eased the closet door shut, and backed in behind her. Before closing the panel hatch after him, he reached out and pulled the clothes back toward it, taking a pair of pants and hooking the hanger through the ventilation slats. A leg would cover the handle from the closet side. If the pirates searched the closet, with the handle being concealed, hopefully they wouldn’t recognize the ingress and look further. He peered out through the small slats, pistol held ready.

  The cramped space was the size of a small broom closet. Alex pressed tight against his back, and Aaron could feel her chin against his shoulder, probably trying to see what she could through the slats, which wasn’t much. The voices outside grew louder, and the door to the sleeping compartment opened. Aaron glanced over his shoulder to see a look of panic in Alex’s wide eyes. He moved his free hand back to take hold of one of hers and squeezed.

  Aaron felt a jolt of fired electricity ascending from their laced fingers. There was an immediate flex of muscles up the length of his arm where it lay in contact against her body. Stronger than the now-normal tingling of their casual touches, even more than the sensation when he’d pulled her from the deck during the ballgame. He was at a loss as to what it was, but he’d never felt such a thing with anyone else. Regardless, the warm, pulsating ripple remained, a solacing reprieve in the crisis.

  Alex squeezed back, and her eyes met his. They both turned their attention back to the ventilation slats, closet, and compartment beyond.

  Boorish voices. Shuffling feet. Items crashing to the floor. An angry voice, a heated discussion. Silence, and the closet door opened. Alex’s body went rigid against Aaron’s back, and he squeezed her hand again.

  A man rifled through clothing, kicking aside shoes and a bag. He crouched down, grabbed the bag and dumped it, then slammed it to the floor, unsatisfied with its contents. He stood again, scanning the inside of the closet, and paused. Beady eyes fixed on the back wall.

  Had the pirate spied the door that concealed them? Too long to just be curious. Shit. Aaron tensed, readying.

  The intruder whirled and stomped out, slamming the closet door behind him with a ferocious bang. Voices continued in the room, murmurs, a few chuckles. Abrupt silence. The men hadn’t le
ft, and Aaron’s mind flashed to the missing ventilation grate in the ceiling. Had they noticed it?

  Seconds later the men spoke to one another. A bawdy laugh at something said, and they exited the room.

  Alex let out a breath she’d been holding almost since they’d entered the closet as the firmness of Aaron’s back muscles relinquished their tension against her chest and abdomen. Her eyes closed as her body relaxed in mirror to his. She opened them again to find his reassuring gaze on her. She shook her head and rested her forehead down against his shoulder as he gave her hand another comforting squeeze.

  They stayed still and quiet, nestled together in the tiny access as the pirates ransacked the next room down and moved on. Soon no voices or footsteps reached their ears. Abiding in the lull a while longer, Aaron holstered his weapon.

  Alex maintained confidence in her own abilities and in the man beside her, but this little incident had shaken her more than she wanted to admit. Behind the barriers of a closed door and a language she didn’t understand, the arrogance in the harsh voices spoke to men with devious desires. Used to getting what they wanted, enjoying whatever cost that might exact. The danger now upon her family and new comrades boded far worse than she’d allowed any imaginings to venture.

  Dammit, this is not a time for tears! Her body seized up again, and her teeth clamped against the welling tightness in her throat.

  Aaron squirmed around to face her and took her shoulders in his hands. “Hey,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. When she lowered her lashes, he moved a finger under her chin, bringing her face up to his so they were eye to eye. “You know, if you wanted to get me alone in a dark closet, you didn’t have to wait on this bunch of yahoos to make that happen.”

  Alex shuddered and bit her lower lip as she tried to keep her composure. The sharp transition from nearly being discovered by killers to Aaron’s playful remarks threw her. Is he seriously flirting with me right now? Now? Were their close quarters affecting him as much as they were her? Or was he just playing to make her feel better and alleviate her fear?

  Her damp eyes lit with laughter at his choice of tactics. If only she could come up with some witty comeback to that, but coherent words refused to form in her mind. He certainly knew how to defuse the frightful aspect of their situation. His blue-green irises were mere inches in front of her, his pupils dilated in the dark, his warm breath on her face.

  Oh God. She couldn’t maintain the eye contact. Any longer and she’d either cry or kiss him. All remaining doubt from earlier fled. She looked away and melted into his arms, now not because of confined spaces. Would he mind? Almost in answer, his arms encircled and tightened about her. Tension released from her body again.

  “Well, this still wouldn’t’ve been my first choice of how to get you in a secluded place”—he gave her a quick wink—“but… you know you really need to get better at this.”

  Her lips brushed the side of his neck as she tucked her head in and stifled giggles, her cheek now snuggled under his ear. That charged touch raced through her. She felt his face expand in a grin and he squeezed his arms even tighter about her. He has to feel that too! He has to! She sighed against his overwarm skin as he cuddled her and rubbed her back. Did she just feel him tremble a little?

  “C’mon. Your brother’s probably worried himself sick by now.” He removed an arm from her and grasped the handle of the hatch. Slow and careful, he opened the door.

  She lifted her chin from his shoulder and looked back into his shining eyes. He let out a sigh and grinned at her, then led her by the hand into the main closet and back out into the room.

  “What happened? Are you guys okay?” Worry from their extended absence showed heavy on Jimmy’s features as Aaron and Alex reappeared at the vent opening through which they’d left.

  “Had a close call.” Aaron handed Mario a pistol and ammo.

  Alex nodded at her brother in confirmation.

  When Aaron offered Jimmy a pistol, he refused it. Aaron shrugged and tucked it and the ammo for it in his own pockets.

  Will scooted over to Alex and hugged her.

  Alex ruffled her nephew’s hair and kissed him on top of his head. “It’s okay, bud.”

  Aaron gathered everyone close and gave a quick and efficient explanation of the plan. They would all meet up with Les and Shane, and while he and his teammates executed some kind of diversion, the family would be taken to the launch area where a stowed transport skiff waited. With any luck, the protection team—with some help from the captain and crew—would then be able to overpower their attackers.

  Aaron led Jimmy, his family, and Mario out to reconnect with Les and Shane. In the time he’d been gone, the situation with the other crew members had seen rapid deterioration. Remaining forced on their knees, they formed a disjointed row, all now bloodied and bruised. Caesar, the first mate, looked to have sustained the worst of it so far, likely an attempt to get their captain to talk.

  “We have waited enough! We grow tired of this stalling! Five minutes and we start killing!” The pirate snatched the shirt collar of a crew member, dragged him forward as he floundered on hands and knees, and jammed a pistol to his head. “I know you can see this! Five minutes! No more!”

  Les leaned in close to Aaron, the sniper’s brow deeply furrowed. “Somebody’s gotta get out there or they’re dead!”

  “I know,” Aaron agreed.

  This disturbing turn of events, not unexpected at this point, would still prove tough to solve. Just how did their attackers know so much of the objective of this mission? That remained to be discovered. Add the additional fact that they were informed about Aaron and his crew. No one had previous knowledge they were to be on board except one person. And that person would never put his family in jeopardy.

  Aaron stole a glance at Alex as she bent down to help her brother reassure Will. Dammit. Why did this all have to go to hell now… “I’ll go,” he told Les. “You’re a better shot with that rifle. Just make sure you got me covered too. Just like the Christensen job.”

  Les cringed and nodded, giving Aaron a dubious side-squint. “Aye, as that was such a smashing success.”

  “Hey, we got the assets out. We lived. Your point?”

  Les could only shake his head at Aaron’s smart-ass smirk. “And you spent the next week in infirmary if I remember correctly. What about McGregor Cross?”

  “That one was an experience, wasn’t it?” Aaron replied. Yet another job that had served to solidify his nickname. “Yeah, but no time. Half these guys are scared of something, the other half are just itchin’ to kill. It’s goin’ down now.”

  “You’re right,” Les responded.

  Aaron knew Les didn’t like it, but the Christensen scenario would play best for shutting down the pirates’ actions in the short term. Les laid a hand on Aaron’s shoulder, squeezed, and started for the ruined bridge where his rifle lay stowed.

  “Okay. You got it. But that’s bullshit on the shootin’ man. And you’re still bloody nuts. Just give me a good distraction and I’ll cover everybody.” Les winked and disappeared toward the bridge.

  “Shane, get them down and out of sight,” Aaron instructed. “Go for the launch. If this goes bad, get ’em outta here.”

  Shane saluted Aaron. “You got it, boss. Trust me.”

  Alex’s breath caught in her throat. That overheard conversation and what it meant froze her in place as she stood. The diversion was him? Going out there? A chill prickled her skin, and she shifted her awareness back to him.

  Aaron glanced over in the direction of the forward deck, one hand rubbing the back of his neck as he tilted his head to crack it. His shoulders and chest expanded and fell in a heavy sigh. This was his job, and she’d spent enough time with him, listening to his narratives, to know the risks involved. But still.

  She stepped over and took hold of his arm. “You’re not seriously doing that, are you?”

  He cocked his head at her as he holstered his pistol. “Yeah.”


  “But why? Can’t he just pick them off from up there?” She waved toward the direction of the bridge and Les.

  “Not quite that simple. We gotta get their attention off the crew right now. Stop them from killing them. Because they will. And Bear might initially get a couple of good shots off… but eventually the gunners over there will pin him down. This way,” Aaron said and checked around the corner before turning back to her, “it’ll keep those guys busy. It’s the art of diversion. Their attention will be focused out there, on the deck. On me. With that distraction, it’ll give you guys time to get away. And by the time anyone actually realizes what’s really happening, he should have the ship’s gunners down and then hopefully check these goons before they do too much damage to me. At least that’s the plan anyway.”

  “You’re takin’ an awful big fuckin’ chance, man,” Shane told him. “Sounds like a damn suicide mission to me.”

  “Well, what other choice have we got? Tell me that?” Aaron shot back at Shane’s irksome remark. “We gotta do something now.”

  “Are you crazy?” Alex exclaimed. She didn’t much care any longer what any of them thought.

  “Not like I’ve never been accused of that before.” Aaron half chuckled the remark as he knelt next to Shane and passed him some ammo, his extra mags, and a second pistol.

  His half-hearted humor was not reassuring in the least.

  “We do call him Psycho for a reason, sweetheart,” Shane added. “If it’s crazy and dangerous, he’s all in, balls in.”

  “You’re not helping, man. That’s enough.” Aaron side-eyed Shane as they finished swapping ammo.

  “What the hell, dude. It’s the truth, and you know it!” Shane snapped back. “And to think you actually question the way I do shit.”