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Back Blood in the Water Save as PDF
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

T’phong Soh entered the room in a whirl, the door at the far end of the room swinging on its hinges as he strode toward Cormack with what appeared to be impatience and anger. The events of the past few days had unnerved him most of all. One arm was in a sling. “You have put limits on my business in the past,” he said, his tone accusatory.

“I have,” Cormack conceded. “We all have to have limits.”

Soh shook his head. “No,” he said. “I decide what business I will do. No one else. That is the way it must be going forward. Is that understood?”

Cormack looked at the men with the automatic weapons. “I understand that that’s the way you feel,” he said. “But that’s not the way it is ever going to be.”

Soh slammed his fist down on the table. His face had turned bright red. “No!” he shouted. “It will be that way, or you will die!”

“You asked me here under a flag of truce,” Cormack said. “I accepted your invitation. And now you threaten me?”

“You will die! And I will kill your daughter as well!”

Cormack could feel the anger burn within him, but he fought back against it. Now was not the time for him to lose control. He leaned back even farther in his chair. “Have you checked with your superiors about this?” he asked.

“I have no superiors!” Soh shouted, and for a moment, Cormack thought the small man was going to lunge across the table at him.

The door behind Cormack opened, and five men walked in. All of them were heavily tattooed, and four of them were heavily armed. The other one was a man of enormous girth. He was not quite six feet tall, but he was well over four hundred pounds, and his presence seemed to crowd out everything in the room.

The impact of the enormous man’s presence was clear on the faces and in the demeanor of Soh and the men behind him. Soh’s face went white, and the men behind him eased back, lowering their guns.

The man moved slowly, and without a word. He reached over and pulled a chair that was leaning against the wall over to the table. As he sat down, everyone in the room held their breath, wondering whether the chair would take his weight. It groaned and sagged, but managed not to collapse.

He folded his arms on the table and took a deep breath. When he spoke, his voice was so low and soft that Cormack had to strain to hear him.

“It surprises me to hear that you have no superiors,” he said with a tone of disappointment.

“Pineda, I didn’t mean—”