Page 129 of Stone Coast

I didn’t want to answer, but I knew the call wasn’t random. Through my scope, I watched Gavin with the phone to his ear.

After a few rings, I disengaged, pulled the phone from my pocket, and answered.

Gavin said, “Before you follow through with your plan, you should know a sniper has a sight picture on you, and you’re dead if you so much as flinch.”

I looked at my chest to see an unsettling red dot hovering over my heart.

"Now that we’re on the same page," Gavin continued, "meet us aboard the Silent Catch. Unarmed. Leave your weapons on the rooftop. Don't make any calls or texts. We’re monitoring your communications. I'd hate for something tohappen to Olivia. She’s so full of life. It would be a shame to cut that short.”

Needless to say, this situation didn't turn out as planned.

I set the rifle down with a careful gesture, unholstered the 9mm pistol, and set it on the gritty asphalt roof. With slow, deliberate movements, I climbed to my feet, keeping my hands in the air.

“Stay where you are until we are aboard,” Gavin said.

I stood there, the red dot on my chest as they marched Olivia down the dock and boarded the rust bucket. They disappeared below deck.

Gavin said. “We’ll see you shortly.”

He ended the call.

The red dot followed me all the way to the access hatch.

I flipped it open, climbed the ladder down to the fourth floor, then took the dark stairs back down to ground level. I stepped outside, walked across the grounds, and climbed the chain-link fence, then moved to the dock.

The red dot followed.

I looked up at the sniper atop the neighboring building and waved.

The barrel followed me as I moved across the dock and climbed the gangway to board the Silent Catch. The faded blue trawler was bubbling with a patina of rust. The red antifouling paint on the hull was now a distressed shade of pink. The Arctic white superstructure was bubbling and yellowed. The remnants of fish guts had permeated everyaspect of the deck. The pungent aroma was permanent. The briny air swirled, and the boat creaked and groaned as it shifted with the gentle waves that lapped against the hull.

As I stepped inside the superstructure, more memories came flooding back. This wasn’t my first time aboard this boat. If I wasn't careful, it would be my last.

I took the centerline companionway below deck.

A flashlight spotted my eyes.

“Glad you could join us,” Ross said.

Gavin emerged from the shadows behind me with a pistol aimed at my head.

“Where’s Olivia?”

“She’s safe,” Ross assured.

“Let her go.”

“All in good time,” Ross assured. “First, let’s have that conversation you wanted.”

68

"It seems we’re back where we started," Ross said. “You about to blow the whistle, and me trying to keep you quiet."

"You have to admit, it's kind of funny,” I said. "You run an elite, off-the-books hit squad, yet you couldn't take me out.”

"I wanted it to look like an accident. Then, when you had an empty head, I thought maybe the problem was solved.”

"Sorry to piss on your parade, but I'm shutting you down."