Greene outweighed him by sixty pounds, he wasn’t about to back down. He had to stand his ground now, or Greene would tease him forever. “What’s your problem, man? Why do you have to ride me so damn hard?”
“Because I feel like it.”
“And why’s that? What’s your problem with me?”
Greene stood his ground, reveling in the thought of a confrontation. “Here’s my problem. I’m fed up with all your perverted games, your groping and raping. That shit is wrong, and it’s gotta stop.”
“Oh, yeah? And who’s gonna stop me?”
“Who’s gonna stop you?” Greene smiled at Holmes. They had discussed this moment back at the house, and Greene had volunteered for the duty. “Me, my Glock, and I.”
Greene pulled his trigger and the thunderous blast echoed off the water and the surrounding trees. The bullet struck Jackson in his forehead and plowed into his brain with the finesse of a bulldozer. Then, as if in slow motion, Jackson slumped to the edge of the dock and hung there for just a second before he tumbled into the water with a loud splash.
“Nice shot,” Holmes remarked. His nonchalant tone suggested that Greene had just made a free throw in a game of HORSE. “Try to keep your elbow in more. It’ll improve your accuracy.”
“Thanks. I’ll have to remember that the next time I kill someone.”
Holmes glanced at his watch and realized time was running short. “That might be sooner than you think. We have to take care of Webster before we leave. Why don’t you give him a call and see what’s keeping him?”
Greene nodded. The adrenaline from killing Jackson surged through him, practically making him giddy. “Breaker, breaker, one nine,” he said, laughing. “Theo, do you read me?”
There was a slight delay before Webster answered. “I’m here, Levon.”
“Where’s here, Theo? We’ve been waiting for you at the dock.”
Another pause. “I’m up at the house. I figured we’d have to flee, and I wanted to pack a few things before we left.”
“No problem.” This would work out well for Holmes and Greene. They needed to stop by the house before they left the island anyway. “I’ll tell ya what, why don’t we swing by the mansion and help you out with your things?”
Relief filled Webster’s voice. “That would be great. I wasn’t looking forward to going down to the dock by myself. I’m not very good with guns.”
A wide grin returned to Greene’s face. “Don’t worry, Theo. I am.”
PAYNE patted Webster on his head, then took the radio from his hands. “You did great. You sounded very natural.”
But he refused to speak. Instead, he slumped in his chair and pouted about getting caught.
“What now?” Jones asked as he chewed on his first food in what felt like days. “We got them coming here, but what are we going to do with them when they arrive?”
Payne flicked Webster on his ear. “I say we make a trade. I’ll gladly give up Theo here if they give us Ariane. As far as I’m concerned, anything we get after that will be icing.”
Jones swallowed a mouthful of apple and decided it was the best goddamned piece of fruit he had ever eaten. “Speaking of icing,” he said as he searched the pantry for anything that resembled cake. A box of Twinkies was the only thing he could find. “Once we get Ariane to safety, will we have time to hunt down Levon?”
“I don’t care what we do as long as you understand that she’s the number one priority here. After that, I’ll back you on anything that your heart desires.”
“Cool,” he mumbled as he stuffed half a Twinkie into his mouth.
While Jones chewed the yellow cake, Blount entered the kitchen from the security office. “They’ll be here any second. I just saw ’em pull their truck onto the road from the dock.”
Webster stared at Blount in disbelief. It was the first time he’d heard Bennie speak normally.
“What kind of truck?” Payne wondered.
“Flatbed. Both guys are in the front, but it appears they have some hostages in the back.”
Payne prayed one of them was Ariane. “Were they guys or girls?”
Blount shrugged. “Kind of looked like females, but don’t quote me on it.”
Jones continued eating Twinkies as he ran several different scenarios through his mind. Finally, he came across one that he liked. “Okay, fellas, this is how we’ll play it. Instead of picking these guys off from a distance—which I could do with my eyes closed—I think it’d be best if we dealt with them up