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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

The Citacea closed the distance quickly, which was fortunate. Cicero could see that two of the MS-13 soldiers had left the land and were moving quickly into the water to try to catch Cormack. He steered the boat in between the men and Cormack.

They hit the rocks when they were still ten yards from him. Both sets of Soh’s men were now firing at the boat, and the vessel lurched and groaned as it scraped over the harbor’s bottom.

“You’re gonna sink us!” Olney screamed. It was to no effect. Cicero leaned on the throttle, pushing the boat forward over the rocks.

“He’s here!” Buddy shouted. He reached over the starboard gunwale and grabbed Cormack’s arm. Bullets pelted the port side of the boat, which faced the shoreline. Olney reached over with Buddy and the two of them hauled him on board. “We got him!” Buddy hollered. “Get us out of here!”

The two who had entered the water to try to catch Cormack were almost at the Citacea. They swam around the stern to try to get on board just as Cicero threw the throttle into reverse. The boat lurched and bucked, hung up on the rocks, struggling to free itself.

“You’re gonna rip the hull apart!” Olney screamed.

Cicero floored the engine in reverse and the Citacea gave one great lurch and then bumped backward over the shallows. Soh’s men were floundering behind the boat, and they screamed in unison as the propellers shredded them, leaving them as chum in the water.

The gunfire continued, and Buddy, Diamond, Cormack, and Olney lay flat on the stern deck. Cormack slid his body over toward Diamond. “Are you OK?” he asked her through chattering teeth. “Did they hurt you?”

She shook her head. “Are you OK?” she asked back.

He nodded.

“Are you shot?” Buddy asked him.

“I don’t think so,” Cormack responded. “But I can’t feel much at the moment, so we’ll have to wait and see.”

Cicero had pulled the Citacea free from the harbor floor, and had turned the boat around. He pushed the throttle forward again, and the boat picked up speed as it pulled away from Long Island. There was still gunfire behind them, but fewer and fewer shots came anywhere near the boat.

Olney hurried up the ladder to the flying bridge. “Let me take over,” he said to Cicero. Cicero relented. Olney handed him a flashlight. “Downstairs, in the hallway between the staterooms, there’s a hatch that gives access to the hull. Go take a look,” Olney instructed him. “We need to see whether the hull’s been breached. If so, she could go down quickly, and we’re all fucked.” Cicero gave Olney an angry look, but headed down.