turn, Dirk’s elbows struck him high in the back, knocking him forward. Cradling his gun, the man had no chance to catch his balance. His knees jammed against the rail, and he toppled over the side.
Dirk bounced back and tried to regain his footing, then felt a glancing blow to his chest. He looked up and grinned at the second man, whose punch had slid across his slick wetsuit. Dirk recognized his opponent. It was the same man he’d crashed into with the Vespa in Assiut. The gunman now wore a sling on his right arm, but cast it aside to throw a cross punch.
Dirk sidestepped the jab, the man leaped forward. He clasped Dirk, pinning his arms and trying to shove him overboard.
Inches away, the boat’s twin outboards let out a wail. The unseen pilot in the wheelhouse had thrown the throttles forward.
The deck rose beneath their feet as the props dug in. Clinched together and unable to grab for balance, both men tumbled backward onto one of the engines’ housings. Dirk landed alongside the other man and could feel them both sliding off the cowl.
Dirk reached out with a foot and caught the lip of the transom, holding himself for just a second. The other man kept sliding and grabbed for Dirk. Their combined weight was too much, and Dirk lost his hold. The delay allowed him to twist atop the other man as they slid off the motor housing.
The twin propellers were spinning at better than 6000 rpm when they fell into the water and the gunman’s back struck the blades. Dirk felt a slight bounce, then the man’s grip went limp as they submerged into red-tinted water. When the engines’ roar receded, he pushed the lifeless body away and surfaced.
A few yards away, the other gunman struggled to tread water. He’d lost his rifle and seemed less concerned with Dirk than with staying afloat.
In the distance, the cabin cruiser turned a tight arc and looped back toward them. Dirk watched for it to slow and pick up the other man, who began yelling and waving his arms. Instead, it kept its speed and barreled directly toward Dirk.
As the boat’s sharp prow approached, Dirk bent his torso and tried to dive. But his buoyant wetsuit interfered. Without his fins, he struggled to stay underwater. As the hull drew near, Dirk turned and swam toward the gunman, kicking and flailing as hard as he could.
The boat’s pilot briefly lost sight of him, then tried to correct course a fraction too late. The boat roared past Dirk, missing his legs by inches. Dirk stopped and surfaced, tracking the boat as it ran out a short distance and began to turn.
A hand clasped his shoulder, and he turned to find the floundering gunman grasping for support. It was the bearded driver from Assiut.
“Help me,” he gasped. “I’m drowning.”
The man was in a full panic, thrashing and kicking while he clung to Dirk’s back.
As Dirk struggled to free himself, he kept one eye on the cabin cruiser. It had completed its turn and was barreling back toward them.
Entangled with the gunman, Dirk had no chance to dive clear. He needed to break free. He flung an elbow backward and struck the man hard in the ribs. Desperation raged in the gunman’s eyes. Dirk thrust his arms skyward to break the man’s grip, but the gunman’s fingers were embedded in his wetsuit like a vulture’s claws. The roar of the boat thundered in Dirk’s ears. He braced for impact as something clasped his ankle.
An instant before the boat struck, he was yanked underwater. The gunman clung to him as he was pulled downward. The boat struck. The hull rammed into the gunman’s body.
The man’s hands fell loose, allowing Dirk to separate and descend another foot. The white hull raced by, the deadly props buzzing just inches from his head.
As the maelstrom subsided, Dirk felt a fin brush past his face. Summer, with an elbow hooked around his ankle, swam for the bottom like a demon. She pulled him down to her and passed him her regulator. As he drew a deep breath, she purged air from her B.C., attaining neutral buoyancy. She maintained an inverted position, kicking her fins lightly as he clutched her vest. Together they swam horizontally, maintaining their depth while exchanging the regulator. Above, the cabin cruiser made several more high-speed passes.
Dirk and Summer waited until the boat roared away and its motors faded to silence. They remained underwater