of slavery. I can help you find her, and you know it. But we can’t wait much longer.”
The comment staggered Payne. With all of the fighting and arguing that was going on, Payne had forgotten about the one thing that mattered most: Ariane.
“How can you help?”
“I know the island much better than you. I can be your guide and an extra gun. Whether you know it or not, Ariane means an awful lot to me, too.”
Payne pressed the gun even harder into Bennie’s neck. He interpreted Blount’s comment as some kind of sexual insult.
“Why is that, you skinny bastard? And trust me, if your answer isn’t a good one, I’ll splatter your dreadlocks all over the wall!” Payne took a deep breath to control his fury, but it didn’t work. He was still fuming. “Why is Ariane important to you?”
“Why?” he stuttered. “Because she’s my cousin.”
CHAPTER 50
ARIANE could hear heavy footsteps in the hall, but she had no idea who was out there until the door burst open. Two large figures entered the room.
“Well, well, well.” Greene laughed. “If it isn’t the trou blemaker’s bitch!”
Holmes followed him into the room. “All tied up and lookin’ good! If we had a little more time, I’d be tempted to play with her.”
Greene shook his head. “Unfortunately, we don’t. And all because of Payne.”
The sound of his name made her heart beat faster. “Is he here?” she tried to ask, but it came out mumbled.
“Wow, I think she’s trying to talk.” Holmes stared at her jaw, which had been broken by Harris Jackson. “A good-looking bitch who can’t talk. It’s like a dream come true.”
“Tease her later,” Greene suggested. “We gotta move before the two soldier boys find us.”
Two soldier boys? The sound was music to her ears. That meant Jones was probably with Payne, which only made sense. They did everything together, especially when it came to the military. But how in the world did they find her so quickly? Were they brought to the island the same time as her, or did they find her on their own?
Truthfully, it didn’t matter. As long as they knew where she was, she had a chance.
“Okay,” Holmes said. “I’m going to untie you from the bed now, but I expect you to be on your best behavior. Understood?”
Ariane nodded, even though it hurt her jaw to do so.
Holmes reached for the knot near her left wrist, but before he got ahold of it, a frantic voice came out of his radio. “Jesus! Is that Jackson? What does he want now?”
“Don’t worry about it,” Greene muttered. “You take care of the girl. I’ll take care of Harris.” Greene pushed the reply button on his own radio. “Harris? Is that you?”
“Levon,” Jackson answered, “we’ve got a major problem here!”
Greene frowned. “What’s going on?”
“I went down to the dock to check on the boat and . . . it’s gone!”
“What are you talking about?”
“All the guards are dead, and the boat is gone!”
“What about the slaves?” Greene demanded. “Where are the slaves?”
“They’re gone, too! I don’t know how, but the boat is gone!”
“Fuck!” Greene shouted. “I don’t believe this!”
Ariane watched Greene carefully, waiting to see what he was going to do next. She sensed that he might take his anger out on her. Thankfully, that never came to pass.
“What should we do?” he asked Holmes.
Holmes shrugged as he unfastened Ariane’s rope. “Your call.”
Greene gave it some thought before answering. “Just wait for us at the dock. We’ll be there shortly. And try to find Theo if you can. I think it would be best if we all stuck together.”
“Sounds good,” Jackson replied. “Make it quick. I’m in the open down here.”
Greene turned off his radio. “I can’t believe this shit! How can two guys cause this many problems?”
Holmes grinned at the comment. “You’d be surprised what two men can accomplish if they put their minds to it. . . . Like us, for instance.”
“What are you getting at?”
“I realize you’ve known Harris and Theo forever, but under the circumstances, we need someone to take the blame for all of this. If the feds get a couple of suspects in custody, they won’t be as likely to hunt for anyone else. At least not immediately.”
Greene’s interest was piqued. “What are you proposing?”
“How much would it bother you if we left them behind? Why don’t we get off this island while we still have a chance?”
“Interesting,” Greene muttered. However, after giving it some thought, he detected a flaw in