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Chapter Forty-Four

I would have to practise sprinting if I stayed in Witchlight Cove; that was the thought running through my head as my legs pounded the ground for the second time in less than two hours. Stamina alone wasn’t good enough; I needed to improve my speed.

Thankfully my body seemed to know what was required of it this time. The boat was pulling away from the dock but only slowly, the gap between the land and the vessel growing inch by inch.

By the time I reached the end of the pier, it was three feet away. That was a jump I could make – at least, I hoped I could. Before I had a chance to second-guess myself I bent my knees, pushed off the ground and flew toward the boat.

‘Gotcha!’ Yanni’s hand grabbed mine as she pulled me up in one swift jerk. ‘Talk about cutting it fine!’

‘Where is he?’ I asked, breathlessly.

‘On the bridge,’ Yanni said. ‘And he’s got silver bullets in that gun,’ she added grimly.

‘I know. Jennifer said.’

‘We need to get the gun if we can,’ she continued. ‘I’d bet my pension that’s the murder weapon he used on Toby. We don’t want to lose it in the water.’

‘We’ve got support in the water if we need it,’ I confirmed.

Yanni raised an eyebrow. ‘Really? Of the selkie variety, I assume?’

‘This isn’t the time, Yanni,’ I muttered. ‘We need to stop Gilbert and make sure no one else gets hurt. How are we going to do this?’

‘Well, I’m pretty sure he knows I’m here but I doubt he’s seen you. I’ll keep him distracted while you cuff him.’

‘I don’t like the idea of you being the target,’ I said. ‘Not when he has silver bullets.’

‘Have you got a better idea?’ she asked pointedly and crossed her arms.

As a matter of fact, I hadn’t. I was all out of ideas and I was running on adrenaline and panic. Maybe if my head had been clearer I could have come up with something smart, but part of my mind was still with Maddie, hoping I hadn’t made an horrific mistake leaving her with Jacobson.

The next few minutes, when Gilbert was having to focus on steering the boat away from the jetty, were probably our best chance of getting him.

‘Fine. But you need to keep a good distance from him, okay?’ I said. ‘Just make some noise and keep out of his line of fire.’

‘Surprisingly enough, that was part of my plan,’ she sassed.

Given how infrequently murderers popped up in Witchlight Cove, I should have been surprised at how calm Yanni seemed. Her composure was impressive, but that was the reason people trusted her to oversee disputes between the magical sects: she didn’t flinch under pressure.

‘The bridge is on this level,’ she whispered to me. ‘I’ll go down a deck – it’ll make it harder for him to get a clear shot.’

‘Okay. I’ll go around this side.’

Without another word, Yanni transformed into the majestic black bear I remembered from childhood. When I was a kid, I’d thought her colossal size made her invincible but now, impressive as she looked, she seemed heartbreakingly vulnerable. One silver bullet and she’d be gone .

I watched as she clambered down to the lower deck, making as much noise as possible to draw Gilbert’s attention. Then something silver-grey in the water caught my eye: a sleek, glinting figure was diving beneath the waves, its shimmering skin matching the jacket Fraser had worn earlier. There could have been a thousand seals in the sea, but I knew from that moment on I’d always be able to pick him out.

‘GRRAAWWRR!’ Yanni’s roar reverberated from below as she went into full animal mode, distracting Gilbert with her considerable might. It was working, too. A shot rang out as the boat swayed beneath me. I needed to act before one of those bullets hit her.

As I moved forward, I tried to stay steady on my feet. Fraser hadn’t been joking – this was nothing like dry land. Yanni’s movements were rocking the vessel as she tried to unsettle Gilbert; unfortunately they were unsettling me, too. Add to that his lack of control as he tried to shoot Yanni and steer at the same time, and it was like being high up on a fairground ride.

Knowing that every second’s delay could be fatal, I grabbed the rail with my left hand and edged forward.

‘I’ll kill you! Don’t think I won’t!’ Gilbert screamed. ‘I’ve lost too much to give up now! ’

When I was close enough to peer through the glass into the bridge, I stopped to see what I had to deal with. My breath caught in my lungs. We’d been right about the money: open crates filled with cash were piled high. And while I didn’t know how many silver bullets Gilbert had in that gun of his, he wasn’t slowing his shots at Yanni.

With my heart pounding, I waited for his back to turn then broke through the glass. My only weapon was my fists, but they were what I’d been trained to use. The edge of my palm slammed into the back of Gilbert’s neck, sending him stumbling – but he held on to the gun.

‘Yanni, stay back!’ I shouted, in case she got any ideas.

‘Get off me, you bitch!’ Gilbert snarled, spinning to face me. His body writhed unnaturally, slippery and ungraspable like an eel’s. So that was what he was – an eel shifter.

I tried to reason with him. ‘This is over, Gilbert. There’s no way out. Drop the gun and at least give yourself a chance in court.’

‘This is mine!’ he bellowed. ‘I’m owed this! It’s my inheritance! He wanted to give it all away!’

I tried to tighten my grip on his neck but I couldn’t hold him, so I drove my knee into his groin instead. He howled and the gun finally slipped from his hands and rolled toward the edge of the deck .

‘Yanni! He’s disarmed!’ I shouted. The gun teetered, millimetres from plunging into the sea. ‘Fraser!’ I yelled. ‘Grab the gun! We can’t lose it in the water!’

‘Got it!’ his voice called from below.

Beside me Gilbert was whimpering, doubled over in pain. ‘It’s over, Gilbert,’ I said.

‘Damn right it is.’ Yanni shifted back to human form beside me. ‘We’re turning this boat around and heading home.’

As she took charge of Gilbert, I moved to the edge to check that Fraser had retrieved the gun. When I reached the railing, Gilbert spoke again, his voice laced with malice. ‘You may have got rid of my silver bullets,’ he sneered, ‘but I hear bog-standard ones work perfectly well on witches. Let’s see, shall we?’

I froze as I tried to make sense of his words. A moment later his hand flicked to his waistband and I saw the flash of metal in his hand. Oh fuck! He had another gun!

Yanni lunged towards him, but I knew she would be too late.

I stared down the barrel of the gun, the muzzle flashed and then pain consumed me.