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Back Blood in the Water
Chapters (82)
  1. Title Page
  2. Copyright Notice
  3. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  4. ONE
  5. TWO
  6. THREE
  7. FOUR
  8. FIVE
  9. SIX
  10. SEVEN
  11. EIGHT
  12. NINE
  13. TEN
  14. ELEVEN
  15. TWELVE
  16. THIRTEEN
  17. FOURTEEN
  18. FIFTEEN
  19. SIXTEEN
  20. SEVENTEEN
  21. EIGHTEEN
  22. NINETEEN
  23. TWENTY
  24. TWENTY-ONE
  25. TWENTY-TWO
  26. TWENTY-THREE
  27. TWENTY-FOUR
  28. TWENTY-FIVE
  29. TWENTY-SIX
  30. TWENTY-SEVEN
  31. TWENTY-EIGHT
  32. TWENTY-NINE
  33. THIRTY
  34. THIRTY-ONE
  35. THIRTY-TWO
  36. THIRTY-THREE
  37. THIRTY-FOUR
  38. THIRTY-FIVE
  39. THIRTY-SIX
  40. THIRTY-SEVEN
  41. THIRTY-EIGHT
  42. THIRTY-NINE
  43. FORTY
  44. FORTY-ONE
  45. FORTY-TWO
  46. FORTY-THREE
  47. FORTY-FOUR
  48. FORTY-FIVE
  49. FORTY-SIX
  50. FORTY-SEVEN
  51. FORTY-EIGHT
  52. FORTY-NINE
  53. FIFTY
  54. FIFTY-ONE
  55. FIFTY-TWO
  56. FIFTY-THREE
  57. FIFTY-FOUR
  58. FIFTY-FIVE
  59. FIFTY-SIX
  60. FIFTY-SEVEN
  61. FIFTY-EIGHT
  62. FIFTY-NINE
  63. SIXTY
  64. SIXTY-ONE
  65. SIXTY-TWO
  66. SIXTY-THREE
  67. SIXTY-FOUR
  68. SIXTY-FIVE
  69. SIXTY-SIX
  70. SIXTY-SEVEN
  71. SIXTY-EIGHT
  72. SIXTY-NINE
  73. SEVENTY
  74. SEVENTY-ONE
  75. SEVENTY-TWO
  76. SEVENTY-THREE
  77. SEVENTY-FOUR
  78. SEVENTY-FIVE
  79. SEVENTY-SIX
  80. Praise for Blood in the Water
  81. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  82. Newsletter Sign-up

Ten minutes later Diamond O’Connell exited the doctor’s office. She walked with an air of relief—the bleeding was normal, and the doctor had assured her that the baby was fine. All she needed was a little rest. She felt like a weight had been lifted from her; she couldn’t remember ever having been as scared as she was before talking to the doctor.

As she turned toward the parking lot, a gray van pulled up alongside of her, and the door opened. At the same time, a man covered in tattoos came up from behind and grabbed her, pushing her toward the van. She started to protest, but the man with the tattoos flashed a knife in front of her face. It was covered in blood, and she instantly went silent.

The commotion was enough to catch the attention of some of the other people on the street, who yelled and looked around for a security guard or a police officer. One person even called 911, but by the time the police arrived, the gray van was gone. The two officers weren’t sure how seriously to take the reports; people often think they see something wrong when there is actually a logical explanation short of foul play. As they stood in front of the medical office, debating next steps, they heard a panicked scream from the parking lot. They hurried over and found Joe Konicki slumped over the steering wheel of his car, covered in blood.

At that moment, they no longer questioned the seriousness of the kidnapping reports, and they called back to the station to alert the detective squad.

THIRTY-EIGHT

The effeminate man looked out of place in the dark and dingy warehouse. He was dressed in a suit that must have cost several thousand dollars. It was dark, but not black, and it had a subtle pattern to the fabric. A soft, white shirt that was so clean it seemed to glow was opened to the third button, revealing a hairless chest. His long hair had been lightened, and it was swept back in an elaborate coif.

Javier Carpio stood before him, slovenly and wrinkled. He didn’t care; he could crush the man with one swing of his hand if necessary.

But such violence was unnecessary and unwise at the moment. Six larger men, also impeccably dressed and armed with assault rifles, surrounded the dapper man. Four of Javier’s own men, not associated with T’Phong Soh, all also heavily armed, backed Carpio. If violence broke out here, it was likely that most of them would end up dead.