Storm Warning (Assassin In Paradise Book 2)

by Jack Stroke

  Ted’s eyes pinned Amber to her seat.

  “You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?”

  “I can’t say that I do.”

  “She was the light of my life. My beautiful little girl. I should have never let her get involved with all this ugliness. But you can’t protect them from life. You have to let them fly.”

  “She was in the family business too, was she? Selling umbrellas?”

  Ted smiled, although it failed to reach his eyes.

  “Ha. You’re funny. She was in charge of the drug shipment. A large amount of heroin. Last I heard she was on her boat, in this very bay, and suddenly she simply disappeared. She and all of her crew and the boat and my drugs. But I guess you don’t know anything about that either?”

  Joan’s eyes stayed attached to Amber, struggling to make sense of what she was hearing.

  “No, nothing.”

  “Wrong answer.”

  Ted placed his gun down on the deck, swapping it for the straight razor. He ran the blade down Joan’s forearm. All without a flicker of emotion. Joan screamed from under her gag.

  Involuntarily, Amber launched forward. Nothing she could do though. Being chained to the rail severely limited her movement.

  “Relax, Amber. That’s just a scratch. But there will be worse in a minute if you’re not honest with me.”

  When Amber said nothing, Ted raised the blade for a second cut.

  “Okay, okay,” Amber said. “Ava was your daughter?”

  “Correct.”

  “Are you sure you don’t mean granddaughter?”

  “Does that surprise you?”

  “That you’re her father? A little bit. When you mentioned your daughter I was picturing someone my age. You seem…”

  “Too old to be Ava’s father? I heard that a lot as she was growing up. I was blessed to have her late in life. Tell me what happened to her.”

  Amber considered her response. The wrong answer would likely be trouble for Joan. Then again, so could the truth.

  “She died. But it was extremely quick and painless.”

  While Ted clearly expected as much, the confirmation of his daughter’s death took its toll. He staggered slightly. “What happened?”

  “Ted…”

  “What happened?!”

  “She was threatening to kill Ben. Gun to his head. Obviously, I couldn’t let that happen. You can understand that.”

  “Can I? I can understand that you killed my little girl?”

  Amber kept her voice soft, aiming not to enrage him further. “You can understand I couldn’t let Ben be killed.”

  Everything went quiet. The gentle slap of the waves against the hull the only sound.

  Joan glanced from Amber to Ted, wondering what would happen now. Amber didn’t know for sure, but she did know one thing. It wouldn’t be good.

  “My daughter was everything and you have taken her away from me.”

  “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry I caused you that pain.”

  He stared at Amber with cold eyes.

  “You took the most precious and valuable thing from me and so, I am going to do the same to you. Right before your very eyes. I am going to chop Joan into tiny, little pieces, while she is still breathing of course, and you are going to watch.”

  The straight razor twinkled under the boat’s lights.

  ”It will be anything but quick and painless. You will feel every single cut. Every single slice and you will be powerless to do anything about it.”

  Amber gulped. This wasn’t promising. What’s worse, she had little idea what she could do to stop it.

  71

  “Ted, stop this,” Amber said, attempting to engage and get him talking as much as anything else. “Let Joan go. She did nothing wrong. This is between you and me.”

  Ted swung the straight razor about casually.

  “You aren’t listening to me, Amber. The whole point is to make you suffer. The only way I can effectively do that is to make Joan suffer. Don’t worry. I will make you suffer physically too, after Joan. Your death won’t be quick or painless either.” He pointed the blade at Amber. “But something tells me it’s her pain that will hurt you the most.”

  Amber battled her emotions. Getting upset wouldn’t help. She divided her thoughts into two. One side focused on keeping Ted talking. If he was talking, he wasn’t slicing. The other side computed her options.

  “This will do nothing for Ava, Ted. It won’t bring her back.”

  “Oh, thanks for that. Because I’m a complete idiot and thought cutting up Joan might somehow magically bring my daughter back to life.”

  The problem for Amber was her options were despairingly sparse. She was confident she could slip her hand out of the cuff at least, but there wasn’t a lot of point without some sort of distraction. She couldn’t do it with Ted watching. Even if she did, he still had the knife. If she got free and rushed him, he could easily slice Joan’s throat before she made it to him.

  Complicating things was the familiar look in Ted’s eyes. A look Amber had witnessed before. The lights had gone out. There was no bargaining or bringing Ted back. He was on the precipice with no intention of returning.

  One way or another, this was his last stand.

  “So, Amber. I am going to throw this back to you. What part of Joan would you like me to slice off first?”

  “Excuse me?”

  “Your choice. I’ll start small. A little finger maybe? An eyelid? Or should I cut out an eye?”

  He moved the blade slowly in front of Joan’s terrified face.

  “Ava wouldn’t want this,” Amber said. “She wouldn’t want you to hurt Joan.”

  “Don’t pretend you knew my daughter.” His tone was emotionless. Dispassionate.

  A dash of movement caught Amber’s eye. Behind Joan, Ben climbed aboard the boat. He had done well, managing to stay completely silent, both in the swim-up and now making his way on board.

  Amber did her best to monitor his progress without looking at him or reacting to his presence. She wasn’t sure exactly what he would do, but again, it was better than nothing.

  “Come on, Amber. Make a decision or I will slice open Joan’s eyeball.”

  He rested the blade between her eyes.

  “A toe,” Amber said. It put Ted in the most vulnerable position.

  Joan’s eyes went wide, a look of betrayal aimed squarely at Amber. She began thrusting around in her seat.

  “A toe it is.”

  Ted leaned forward to grab Joan’s thrashing foot. With it in his grip, he raised the blade.

  Aware he had to move fast, Ben propelled himself properly onto the deck.

  Unfortunately, he slipped at the last second. He lost his grip and almost fell flat on his face. He overcorrected and tumbled backwards from the boat. A considerable splash rang out as he hit the water.

  The noise caused Ted to spin around.

  Amber wrenched her hand out of the cuff. It was tight, ripping a fair amount of skin off as her wrist passed through. But she got it off.

  She launched out of her seat, but not quickly enough. Ted recovered far too fast, spry for his age. He scooped up the Beretta with his left hand, pointing at Amber while holding the straight razor to Joan’s neck with his right.

  “No.”

  Amber scrambled to an abrupt stop, the barrel of the Beretta between her eyes.

  “Move one more muscle and I will slit Joan’s throat.”

  It was of no use. Even if she got the gun off him, he still had the blade. Ted might want to torture Joan with Amber watching, but Amber had no doubt he would settle for slicing her open. She raised her hands.

  “Okay. Okay.”

  Ted clocked Amber hard across her eye with the barrel of the gun.

  Amber’s spirits plummeted. They’d had one good shot at this, she and Ben, and they blew it.

  If there was a way out of this mess now, Amber couldn’t see it.

  72

  Bl
ood trickled down around Amber’s eyes.

  “Go sit back down,” Ted instructed.

  There was no sign the dramatic turn of events had rattled the old bloke in the slightest. He didn’t take his eyes from Amber, or the blade from Joan’s neck. Ice evidently ran through those old veins. A far cry from the loveable grandpa figure she’d believed him to be.

  “You in the water. Come aboard. Join the party.”

  For a moment, nothing happened. However, there was little point in Ben pretending. Ted knew they weren’t alone.

  Somewhat sheepishly, Ben appeared. He climbed aboard the boat.

  “Well, well. Young Ben. Try anything stupid and your grandmother dies instantly.”

  Ben jumped onto deck, dripping everywhere.

  “Take a seat with Amber,” Ted ordered.

  Hands raised, Ben did as he was told. When he was seated, Ted retrieved a key from his pocket.

  “Now, how are we going to do this?”

  He thought for a moment before tossing the key to Ben. “Cuff yourself together.” He stuck the knife in Joan’s neck, making her flinch. “And properly this time.”

  Ben unlocked the handcuff from the rail. He snapped it around his right hand. Amber did the same to her left.

  “Nope, not like that” Ted said, shaking his head. “Try again.”

  Amber and Ben stared back blankly.

  “I mean, loop the chain over the rail. I don’t want the pair of you charging at me together.”

  Ben glanced at Amber. Not a lot they could do.

  “Now,” Ted said.

  Ben uncuffed himself, looped the chain over the rail and did himself back up again. This new arrangement severely restricted their movement. Ben tossed the key back to Ted. He put it down on the table beside him.

  “That’s better. This has worked out well.” He placed the Beretta down on the table. “Now you will get to watch two people you love die horribly, Amber.”

  Ted appeared to be enjoying himself too much.

  “What’s next? Is Megan going to try and make a dramatic rescue too?”

  “You never know,” Ben said, keeping his cool as usual. “Strange things are afoot.”

  The phrasing struck Amber as odd. Afoot wasn’t the sort of term Ben would generally use. As he said it he kicked Amber, just lightly, trying not to be noticeable. More of a tap really.

  “Ben, your mum couldn’t rescue her way out of a paper bag.”

  “Leave Mum out of this,” Ben said, kicking Amber a second time. It took longer than it should for Amber to realise he was trying to tell her something. Afoot. Kicking. Was there was something at her feet? Or near them?

  Amber felt around with her heel. There was definitely something there. Under the bench seat. How was she supposed to get it? Even if Ted wasn’t watching, there was no way to reach that far while cuffed like this.

  “Your mum,” Ted said, shaking his head, “is a decidedly unpleasant person.”

  “Oh, well,” Ben said, giving Amber a small nod. “At least she’s got flair.”

  “Flair?”

  Everything happened at once.

  73

  Amber twigged to what Ben meant. She had to move fast, in case Ted did too.

  It wasn’t clear if Joan was on the same page as Ben and Amber, or if she’d had enough and was defending her daughter. Either way she lashed out, kicking up her leg. The unexpected blow knocked the knife from Ted’s hand, sending it flying.

  “You stupid woman,” Ted said, retrieving the blade.

  At the same moment Ben dove backwards, contorting himself under the rail of the boat.

  His movement freed up Amber just enough. Stretching as far as she could against the cuffs, Amber pitched forward. With her free hand she snatched at what was strapped under her seat. From what Ben had said she assumed she would find a flare under there. Instead, she removed the flare gun. Even better.

  “Hey, Ted.”

  He turned. Amber fired.

  The flare struck him square in the chest, knocking him backwards. She fired again. Force of habit. One in the chest, one in the head. This one made a mess of his face, sending him tumbling over the rail. There was a tremendous splash as he hit the water.

  Then quiet.

  No one said anything for a few moments. Ben recovered first.

  “Joan, are you all right?”

  The old lady nodded, even if she still looked a terrified mess. Ben had to awkwardly squeeze his entire body under the rail and climb his way back over to allow him and Amber to be able to move.

  Amber retrieved the key. She undid both cuffs.

  Ben used Ted’s blade to cut Joan free. Amber tore off the gag as gently as she could.

  “Sorry, Joan.”

  The tape pulled at the old lady’s skin as it came away.

  “My toe, Amber? Really?”

  “What?”

  “Why did you tell Ted he could cut off my toe?”

  “I… I didn’t. He told me to pick a body part.”

  Joan shook her head.

  “Fine. What should I have said?”

  “I don’t know, but certainly not my toe. I don’t like anyone touching my feet.”

  Ben stepped over to the hull. “Hey… Where’s he gone?”

  The light from the boat only lit so far, dropping quickly to an inky black. One of the flares fizzled away in the water. No sign of the other, or of Ted’s body.

  “Is there a chance… He couldn’t…” Ben said.

  “No,” Amber said. “He’s definitely dead.”

  Even if they couldn’t see the body, he had taken a flare to the head and one to the chest. There was no way he had survived that.

  Joan stood, watching both of them oddly. They would have some explaining to do, but not right now.

  “Is there a first aid kit around?” Ben asked. After a quick search, they located one in the cabin. Ben attended to Joan’s arm.

  “We have to get rid of the boat,” Amber told them. “If we leave it here, someone will ask questions.”

  “Right. What do we do?”

  “Send it out to sea,” Joan said.

  Made sense to Amber. While Ben assisted Joan into the rowboat, Amber went to the cockpit and fired up the engine. Should she jam something in the wheel to make sure the boat continued to move straight? There was no easy way to do it. She pumped the throttle and sent the boat on its way. That would have to be sufficient. Amber jumped over the edge and swum back to the rowboat.

  As she climbed on, Joan clicked her tongue.

  “I can’t believe you told him he could cut off my toe,” Joan said, making it clear Amber was never going to hear the end of that.

  74

  Amber would have liked the opportunity to talk things through with Ben before chatting with Joan. A chance to get their story straight or at the very least to figure out what they might say. The opportunity never presented itself.

  Maybe that was the wrong attitude anyway. Was that old Amber? Trying to control everything Amber? Was this just winging things the way she was supposed to approach life now?

  Back on dry land, the trio headed to the owner’s cottage. Megan wasn’t around. Joan offered them a hot drink. Both Ben and Amber suggested she sit, telling her they’d make it instead. Joan said no. She needed to be doing something. Something normal.

  “Who was this Ava girl?” Joan asked suddenly, breaking the few minutes of silence. “The one Ted was so upset about?”

  “She was… Ted’s daughter,” Amber said.

  “Yes, I got that part, thank you,” she said as she added about a million marshmallows to Ben’s drink.

  Ben and Amber glanced at one another.

  “A young woman,” Amber said. “About Ben’s age.”

  “Okay.”

  “She was selling drugs. Heroin.”

  Honesty seemed like the best policy at this point. Amber wasn’t sure how far that would go. She guessed it depended on precisely what Joan wanted to know.

&nbs
p; “I was, you know, seeing her,” Ben said. “For a while.”

  “You were dating a drug dealer?”

  “Smuggler. Not on purpose. I had no idea she was smuggling drugs.”

  Joan considered this. “Good. And she threatened to kill you?”

  “At one stage. Yes.”

  Joan nodded. She carried over the hot chocolate for Ben and a tea for herself. Amber waited for more questions. None came. She seemed satisfied.

  “I’m sorry, Joan.”

  “About my toe?”

  “About Ted. I know you liked him…”

  Joan clicked her tongue. “I didn’t like him, Amber. You’re as bad as Megan. We were friends. At least, I thought he and I were friends. But clearly I had no idea who he really was.” She sipped her drink. “If you want to be sorry about anything, you should be sorry for telling him to chop off my toe.”

  Amber nodded, not arguing. There didn’t seem to be much point.

  75

  Amber left Joan and Ben to it. She figured Ben was probably a better person to chat to Joan than her. Returning to her cabin, she was surprised to see the gash on her forehead. Amber had completely forgotten about being hit with the Beretta. She washed up and collapsed into one of the cabin chairs.

  She still hadn’t moved when Ben appeared at her door an hour later.

  “How is Joan doing?”

  “Weirdly fine. She’s gone to bed somehow. I couldn’t go to bed now even if I wanted to.”

  Amber remained seated as Ben paced.

  “Do you want a seat?”

  “I… I don’t think I can.” He screwed up his face. “Why do I feel… you know, it’s over. When it was happening, I was okay. I mean, I was worried and whatever, but not as much… Why am I more worried now?”

  “The adrenaline’s going. It takes a while to leave your system. It’s why you feel exhausted but not sleepy.”

  He nodded.

  “Did she ask anything else?”

  “Joan? Nah. Seemed to be taking it all in her stride. If anything, she seems embarrassed Ted fooled her. Shouldn’t she be full of adrenaline?”