Page 232 of Boyfriend of the Hour

“This way.” Carrick gestured toward a door at the end.

But I stopped near the one right before it. The one to the room where Mike still was.

“Stop,” I said.

Both brothers faced me like I was crazy.

“Joni, we have to go now,” Nathan said.

“It’s Mike. He’s in there. I can’t leave him. We have to bring him with us.”

“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” Carrick mumbled. “Should we rescue every fuckin’ person on the boat? The feds are going to take them in about fifteen minutes anyway if they stay within U.S. waters”

“Well, therearesix other girls about to be sold like cattle, so maybe them too,” I snapped. “But we could start with my brother, who is probably going to die if we don’t save him.” I folded my arms.

Nathan just threw Carrick a look like he should know better, then looked at the door.

Carrick sighed. “On three.”

Nathan nodded. “One. Two?—”

The flimsy door was no match for the two linebacker-sized bodies hurled at it. The lock gave almost immediately, and we all tumbled into the room where Mike was still curled on the couch, looking even more battered than before.

He startled away, one eye now completely shut. “Lea?”

“No, Mike, it’s Joni. And Nathan. And his brother. Come on, we’re getting out of here.”

“Going where?” Mike said bitterly. “I’m pretty sure we’re on a boat. I’ve been fuckin’ seasick for hours.”

“Ahoy, there,” Carrick snapped. “We’re docked outside of Atlantic City for another, oh, five minutes, so we’re taking you and Joni to jump off the back, where some very nice people are waiting with very nice oxygen that will allow us all to swim to shore undetected. Think you can handle it?”

Mike coughed. A bit of blood came out.

“Fuck,” said Carrick.

I turned to Nathan. “Why is he doing that?”

Nathan shook his head. “It could be a lot of things. Trauma to the throat, nose, chest, punctured lung?—”

“Doc!” Carrick snapped. “We need to move. Can he go?”

Nathan looked at me. “I don’t know.”

“Just go.” Mike looked pale, like he wanted to pass out again. “I’ll be fine.”

We all knew that was a lie.

“Think of Lea and the kids,” I told him. “If you stay here, it’s a death sentence. They’re going to kill you. Ares said so.”

At the mention of my sister and their children, one last bit of life gleamed in Mike’s eyes.

“All right,” he said, shoving off the couch so he could stumble toward us. “Let’s go.”

He allowed Nathan to sling Mike’s arm over his shoulder and tow him toward the entrance. I followed Carrick toward the back door, which we opened quietly, conscious of the sounds of men partying on the deck above.

“All right,” Carrick said in a voice that could barely be heard over the party. “Joni, you go first. The divers are waiting just under the surface.”

“I don’t think so.”