The Ocean Dark

31

Angie and Dwyer sat on the walkway, leaning against the railing, eating breakfast in the shade. The plastic jug of orange juice sat between them and Angie held the container of French toast and bacon. A voice inside her wanted to scream, but she squashed the urge. If she panicked, her fate would be entirely out of her hands.

“Cold French toast is disgusting,” Dwyer said, holding a triangular slice up on his fork and biting into it.

“And yet you’re eating it.”

“I’m hungry,” he said with a shrug.

Dwyer picked up the orange juice and took a swig. Sharing the bottle with him didn’t trouble her. They had shared far more than that. Her relationship with Dwyer had been all about the sex, and the fact that she thought he was cute and fun to be around. Now, though, sitting here and deceiving him, planning for her own future without taking his into account at all, she realized she had been lying to herself. She felt something for Tom Dwyer. Not love, exactly, but a connection.

But Angie had been telling herself there were no strings attached for so long that she knew she could pretend for a little while longer that she didn’t care. Long enough to do what had to be done.

“Hey,” Dwyer said. “You okay?”

“Is that a joke?”

Dwyer smiled. “Maybe ‘okay’ is the wrong word. But I know that look, angel. What’s on your mind?”

Angie tilted her head toward the door to the rec room. “Him. What are you all doing, Tom? What are you going to do with him?”

He looked almost hurt. “Nothing. Not me, anyway. With the captain ashore, Miguel’s in charge. I’m fourth down the line after Suarez, love, but nobody’s talking about doing worse to our guest than he’s already gotten. Captain Rio’s got a plan.”

“You promise?”

Dwyer narrowed his eyes. “Why do you give a shit, all of a sudden?”

Angie’s heart raced, wishing she could read his mind. “Why do I care if you guys kill a federal agent?” she whispered, glancing again at the rec room door. “I don’t want any part of that.”

“Neither do I, sweetheart. But we are part of this. Don’t let yourself think otherwise. Nobody wants things to go that far, and if we’re lucky and the captain’s careful, it won’t. But whatever happens, we’re all a part of it.”

Dwyer dropped his fork into the plastic container in her hand. Angie couldn’t tell if he was angry or just as frightened as she was, but their conversation had obviously touched a nerve.

“I’ve got to get back up top. Suarez needs to get some sleep.”

Angie nodded wordlessly and set down the container. She turned to gaze out at the ocean, letting Dwyer feel the distance he’d just put between them. As she’d hoped, it gave him pause, and he crouched by her and put a hand on her shoulder.

“Hey,” he said, fingertips touching her chin, turning her to face him. “I know you’re scared. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”

Something shifted in her then. Sex meant very little to her, but revealing her vulnerability was different. Dwyer liked that she seemed afraid, that she needed him, and Angie nursed a sudden resentment. But she couldn’t let him see how much it pissed her off, thinking that she needed anyone to take care of her.

“Anton is going to take over for me in a couple of hours,” she said. “Can I come up and see you?”

The Irishman’s eyes lit up. Much as he had liked her oil-stained tough-girl exterior, he couldn’t hide how much he relished this new facet of her. He smiled softly, and caressed her face again.

“Soon as you can,” he said, kissing her forehead. “Don’t worry. You’ve nothing to fear.”

Right, she thought. You’ll see to that.

Any guilt she might have felt evaporated as she watched him hurry along the walkway to the stairs. His boots clanged on the metal steps as he ascended toward the wheelhouse, and Angie let disdain replace her fear. If they really didn’t plan to kill Josh, chances were good the PLB hadn’t been destroyed or thrown overboard. They’d need to put it back where they’d gotten it at some point. Which meant they had it stashed somewhere. She supposed it might be in Miguel’s cabin — at least while he was sleeping — but she thought the captain’s quarters more likely, and the wheelhouse itself the most likely of all.

The clock was ticking, but Anton would come to replace her soon enough, and since they weren’t ready to kill Josh, she could afford the extra time. As soon as she had the opportunity, she’d find the beacon and trigger it. The FBI would show up and the Rio brothers would go to jail, along with those most loyal to them. Like Dwyer.

If the cost of Angie taking care of herself was Dwyer ending up in prison, she could live with that.

I’m not going to let anything happen to you. You’ve nothing to fear, she thought, his words echoing in her mind. Asshole. She had everything to fear. And there wasn’t a damn thing Dwyer could do about it.