diving toward the bow cushions to line up his own shot, holding on since their velocity raised the bow a good forty-five degrees above the water. Maggie ducked behind the windshield but held her speed.
He could only see one person—a driver—but suspected someone else was on board to take that shot.
“You know where the bow spotlight is, Maggie?”
“Yeah, it’s on a remote. I’ve got it right here.”
“Slow down a little to lower the bow, then aim it directly on that boat, and when I say hit it, blind them and don’t stop moving. Just keep driving straight for them until I say turn.”
“Got it.”
They closed in at thirty feet, and another bullet hit their boat. But he still couldn’t see the boy.
Fifteen feet. Ten. “Hit the light!”
Instantly, white light poured over the water, the blinding beam spotlighting the little boat. The driver looked over his shoulder, another man dropped down to his knees in the back, covering his eyes, but no one else was visible.
“Turn starboard!” he yelled.
She whipped the boat at exactly that second, and Dan took a shot, purposely aiming to miss but let them know he meant business.
“Stop your boat!” he yelled, punctuating the demand with another shot, skimming the port side.
Maggie adjusted the beam so it kept them in light, handicapping the shooter and revealing something dark on the deck.
Quinn, bound and flopping around like a hooked fish.
Despite his visceral reaction, Dan steadied his aim.
“Quinn!” Maggie’s voice lost all its earlier calm, cracking at the sight of her son. “Oh God, don’t shoot,” she begged. “That’s Quinn on the deck.”
“Hand him over,” Dan demanded. “Give him up or you don’t take another breath.”
He shot again, careful that the bullet couldn’t ricochet off the side and hit Quinn.
The driver and shooter shared a look, while Maggie maneuvered the boat closer, keeping the spotlight on them while they blinked and cowered.
Dan stood straight on the bow, protected by their blindness, his Glock aimed at the shooter. They were both Hispanic, but he didn’t recognize either one from his days with the Jimenez family.
“Throw the gun in the water,” Dan ordered.
They squinted into the light, defeat on their faces. The shooter in the back lifted both hands in surrender, a revolver in the right.
“In the water,” he shouted.
After a beat, he obeyed, his weapon splashing as it hit.
“Stop the boat. Now!”
The driver pulled back on his throttle and Maggie did the same, easily matching their slowing speed. When they idled to a stop, so did she, just as Quinn rolled over, revealing duct tape over his mouth.
“Get over there,” Dan said to the driver, using his gun to point to the other man. “Next to him.”
With both of them together, Dan could shoot either one at any time. He climbed over the port side rail, balancing as his boat dipped in the water before he eased himself to the other deck.
Keeping the gun aimed on his targets, he used his other hand to reach down and help Quinn, who looked at him with eyes full of terror. And tears. Fury careened through Dan. The bastards made his kid cry.
Behind him, he heard Maggie move into position to help get Quinn on their boat. With his feet bound, he struggled, and Dan turned just enough to negotiate a way up to the other boat, when Maggie shouted and a body thudded against Dan.
He grunted with the force and lost his balance just as Quinn fell over the side and hit the water hard.
“He’s tied up!” Maggie screamed. “He’ll drown!”
Dan managed to whip around and slam his elbow into the first face it met, but the other man pounced on him, knocking his gun out of his hand and sending it sailing across the deck. Dan got in a kick to the gut of the other guy, but the first one was already at the helm. He flattened the throttle, sending Dan tumbling backward to his knees, rolling into cushions, the weapon still two feet from his reach.
He twisted in time to see Maggie scrambling, ready to dive in after her son. The driver whipped the boat in the opposite direction, taking the outboard perilously close to the dark spot where Quinn had gone under.
Leaping to his feet in one jump, Dan dove into the black water, instantly grabbing the boy’s shoulder as they both sank deeper.
Dan forced his eyes wide, just in time to see the proper blades churning closer to chew them up. He looped his hand through Quinn’s