Overboard (A Crow's Nest Novel Book 2) Page 16

  “I fucking hate you!” In some part of her brain, Cassidy realized she cursed. It had just come out, fueled by venom and hatred, and disgust with a world that would let Ivanov get away with horrible crimes.

  Strong arms gripped around the waist, pulling her back, even as Hunter and Noah moved to block Ivanov from her swing. Why would they do that? Didn’t they understand. He was going to get away with it if she didn’t do something. All of this will have been for nothing.

  “No!”

  She fought against the person holding her, kicking and flailing, screaming words—and she wasn’t even sure what they were. Only that they held venom that should have cut Ivanov down to the quick. Instead, he just laughed as Cassidy was pulled out on to the deck, the door slamming shut behind her.

  “No! Let me go!” She reached for the door, but it was so far away that even if she strained with all her might, she’d never reach it. “They aren’t going to make him pay.”

  “Sirena!” Miguel whirled her around, gripping her shoulders tightly. “Stop it!”

  Her mouth opened to argue, but then she noticed the blood on his arm. Her gaze flicked to the knife, the blade also slick with crimson. Stark shock sent a cold wave straight to core, spreading out through her limbs until it reached her hand and she dropped the knife. It clattered on the deck, the sound loud and abrasive to her ears.

  “Sirena,” he said again, this time his tone softer. “Cassidy.”

  Despite the loudness of the knife, his voice seemed so very far away, lost behind the wind and soft rolling waves the ocean. But Miguel’s blood was on her hand—she had cut him with the knife. It seemed a stark red, as though her hand had fallen into gray scale and his blood the only thing left with vibrant color. The boat tilted, or maybe she did, because suddenly she was falling, and it was only Miguel’s grip that kept her from falling on the flat knife.

  Everything inside of her hurt—from her heart to skin, to her teeth. Trembling took over, and her chest tightened, no longer allowing her to draw a full breath. Oxygen seemed to hit just at the base of her throat before being expelled back into the world. Sobs took over, screams maybe, she thought. Cassidy wasn’t sure. Some coherent part of her brain that still existed knew she was breaking down—that everything was falling apart. Ivanov wouldn’t be punished. She had hurt Miguel. Her sister would never gain justice.

  And Cassidy would most likely wind up in a mental institution again.

  “Breathe, Sirena.” Miguel’s voice broke through the fog of panic that surrounded her. “Breathe.”

  His strong arms were wrapped around her. Cassidy wasn’t sure when that happened. She felt the tears on her face, but she also felt his chest against her back, breathing slow as she tried to make her do the same. His strong, warm body cocooned around her protectively as he placed warm kisses on her head and cheek.

  “I’m sorry,” she whispered, when her voice worked again.

  The blockage that kept her from breathing began to dissipate. She closed her eyes, forcing herself to breathe properly, to gain back the control that she’d lost.

  “It’s not your fault,” Miguel said.

  A sob escaped and she hung her head low. “He’ll never pay for what he’s done.”

  He moved her sand-filled hair away from her ear. “Don’t be so sure, Sirena.”

  Something about the way he said it sent a shiver down her spine. She’d never heard him speak like that, and it made her think about the scars on his back. There was a promise in his words. Something sinister that Cassidy, on some level, knew she should be afraid of. Only she wasn’t. That unspoken promise brought warmth back to her body. She felt it cascading through her. Miguel had just given her hope that the monster on the ship might not escape after all.

  Cassidy didn’t know how she heard so much in those words. Maybe she was projecting. Maybe she just needed something to hold onto. Maybe she was just hysterical after being hunted on an island. But there was one thing she knew for sure.

  Miguel would take care of her.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Detective Wallace arrived with a group of policemen via boat. The blue and red lights swirled off the dark waters and reflected brightly off the yacht. The Coast Guard came—and with it, some familiar faces the Crows had worked with in the past. When they realized it was the Crow’s Nest crew on the ship, things became a lot more dire for the men who were zip tied and sitting on the deck. As much as Miguel was happy to just put a bullet in their heads, Cap had been adamant they do it by the book.

  The book was bullshit, so far as Miguel was concerned, but Cap was in charge, and he followed orders.

  Most of the time.

  Besides, The Cleaner was still in the wind, and when Miguel found him, nothing would be done by the book.

  Cassidy sat in a lounge chair on the deck, a paramedic checking her over. Bruises and scratches littered her tan skin, and her pretty eyes were puffy from the earlier breakdown. Admittedly, he had expected it. Cassidy had been through a lot. Not just tonight, or even in the last few days, but since the day she had learned that her sister had been murdered. The determination to bring her sister’s killer to justice impressed him. It had been one of the first things—aside from her perfectly feminine physique-that had drawn him to her.

  When it came to passion, Cassidy had more than anyone he’d ever met. A passion for life, for what was right, for her career as an investigative journalist. The moment she realized Ivanov would most likely not pay for the murder, that passion dissipated.

  The justice system was fucked up, and people like Wallace had too much tape holding them hostage. That’s why the Crows did what they did. Because the law can’t protect everyone—and sometimes breaking the laws was the only way to save the people hurting the most.

  Detective Wallace finished speaking with Cap and walked over to Miguel. He had already given his statement to someone else. They hadn’t wanted him with Cassidy while she gave her statement and was looked over. They didn’t want him to influence her. He wouldn’t, but he understood it was protocol. That didn’t mean he’d be too far away. Cassidy kept flicking her gaze to him, and he made sure he was right there for her to see.

  Miguel wasn’t going anywhere.

  “Hell of a night,” Wallace said as she approached.

  The smell of seawater calmed him as he turned his head to look at Wallace. He leaned against the bow of the boat, hands holding onto the edge.

  “When is he being deported?” Miguel asked.

  Wallace nodded, as if accepting that he wasn’t going to sugar coat anything. “Within the next forty-eight hours most likely.”

  “And the other men?”

  “Are American,” she said. “Thanks to Honey and Cassidy, we have enough to end this operation and make sure they all go away for a very long time.”

  “There are others,” Miguel said.

  Wallace sighed, her eyes gazing toward the open ocean. “There always are. We both know that.”

  Miguel didn’t know Wallace as well as Cap. He knew she’d been involved in Sin’s stalker case and that Cap had helped her once upon a time. The specifics, he didn’t know, but Wallace often came through for them in times of need.

  “Her parents are requesting that after Cassidy is cleared that she be handed over to them,” she said.

  “She’s not a child.”

  The wind whipped through Wallace’s short-cut hair and she smirked, looking over at him. “No, but she has a history of mental illness.”

  “She has a history of being forced into mental institutions. There’s a difference.”

  Wallace nodded. “Maybe so, but she escaped the hospital.”

  He gave her a dull look. “After someone tried to murder her.”

  As much as he’d like to take credit for her escape, Miguel knew better than to divulge that information. Wallace was a woman of the law. She didn’t want to take any members of the Crow’s Nest down but she would do her due diligence—and she wouldn’t lie under oa
th. Miguel didn’t know her so well that she’d ever explicitly said it, but it wasn’t hard to figure out. Wallace was a good woman, and she was bound to the laws—more than she was to the Crows.

  “Allegedly,” she said.

  Point and case.

  “She doesn’t belong in a mental institution,” Miguel said. “She wasn’t and isn’t crazy. Ivanov has had his sick game going on for a long time. The evidence corroborates that.”

  Wallace nodded. “I’m not disagreeing, but until she’s cleared by a physician, and restored her independent rights, there’s nothing I can do.”

  Everything muscle in Miguel’s body tense as two black and white units walked toward Cassidy. Fear flashed across her face. He pushed off the edge of the boat, stalking toward them. Cap moved between them.

  “Don’t,” he said.

  “They’re not taking her,” Miguel said.

  The edges of his vision darkened with rage. Every instinct in him was ready to go on the attack for her, to keep them away from his Sirena.

  “Miguel” Cap said in a hard tone. “This is not the time.”

  “Well then, when is the fucking time?” It came out in such a roar that some of the officers glanced their way.

  Wallace held up a hand, signaling for them to stand down.

  Miguel’s generally playful and comedic nature could no longer mask the fury that bubbled up inside of him. He worked very hard not to let the darkness in him touch his friends and familia, but tonight, he was losing that battle. Every corded muscle in his body begged to kill Ivanov with his bare hands—and after him, every man who had touched his Sirena or even wanted to. They all deserved death. The scars on his back tingled, and he kept his gaze hard. They were not going to fucking take her.

  “I’m not going to let her get cuffed to a bed again,” he said through gritted teeth. “The last time that happened, she was almost murdered. And her parents care more about saving face than actually supporting the one daughter they have left. So, if you think for one fucking second, that I’m going to let her get hauled away like some sort of criminal…” he shook his head. “You’re all dead wrong.”

  Wallace’s eyebrows had raised with each word. Her posture stiffened, probably sensing the promise of pain behind those words.

  “Miguel, enough.”

  The order in Cap’s voice was clear, and though Miguel had never actually been in battle with the man, the Crow’s Nest Crew were their own sort of mish-mosh military unit—and Cap was the Cap.

  He clacked his jaw shut. As much as he wanted to be loyal to his team, Miguel would go AWOL to keep Cassidy safe.

  “Wallace,” Cap said turning back to her. “Is Cassidy officially being charged with anything?”

  She shook her head, a slight smirk on her lips as if she already knew where this was going. “Not after everything no, but technically she’s still in her parent’s custody.”

  He held up a finger. “Technically, she’s not.”

  “What?” Miguel asked.

  Cap shrugged and nodded to Wallace. “Check for yourself.”

  The smirk on her lips disappeared, and instead, Wallace pulled out her phone, checking the records.

  “Well, I’ll be damned,” she said. “Looks like Cassidy Fletcher is no longer a ward of her parents, but free on her own recognizance.”

  “So, technically,” Cap said. “She’s free to go.”

  Wallace nodded and put her phone back on the clip. “It seems so.”

  The rage receded and Miguel let out a slow breath. Honey. She was behind it. When it came to things like this, she always was.

  “But Miguel,” Wallace said. “Threaten me again, and I’ll make sure you eat your own testicles off a silver platter.”

  The threat surprised him, but Cap only chuckled, and then shrugged at Miguel.

  Later, they could sort it all out. For now, he had a Sirena that he needed to take home.

  The interaction had startled Cassidy for a brief moment. Not because she was scared of Miguel, but because she thought that they were going to take her into custody. Granted, she’d been a wanted woman, but she had proved she wasn’t crazy—that Ivanov was the real monster here. And they still wanted to take her.

  Every instinct told her to jump overboard. She had survived once, she could do it again. Swim and swim and swim, until she was away from the nightmare of all of this. Until she could find a way to make Ivanov pay. Because even if they did take her—even if they believed her— the bottom line was her sister wasn’t going to get justice.

  And Cassidy didn’t know how she could live with that fact.

  After the tones hushed, Miguel stalked toward her, murderous intent still in his eyes—but Cassidy knew that it wasn’t for her. If he burned the world down, it would be around them both. Miguel would never hurt her, or even direct that rage she knew was buried beneath the surface toward her. Even on the island, as he pummeled the man who was going to do horrible things to her, Cassidy didn’t see a monster. She saw a protector. A man willing to do anything for the people he cared about.

  And he’d been alive. The relief that he’d been alive trumped everything else going on in that moment, and she could breathe without pain.

  The paramedic finished patching up her calf where they concluded a jumping spider had bitten her. The area was irritated, but luckily jumping spiders only had enough venom to kill their prey—and humans were not their prey. The paramedic went to say something but took one look at Miguel and he all but fled to the other side of the deck. In any other circumstance Cassidy might have smirked, but right now, she was terrified that they were going to lock her up in a mental institution again. No way in hell could she go back to that. Not after everything.

  Her heart pounded as he sat beside her on the lounger. The breeze, though warm, still made her shiver. She leaned against him, pulling the blanket tighter around her shoulders. Somehow, she’d been given clothes—a t-shirt and sweats, along with the blanket. The pant leg was up where the paramedic had been working and a bandage was now wrapped around her calf. Still, this boat made her feel so cold, inside and out. She wanted to leave—but she didn’t want to go to the hospital.

  “Miguel?” she asked when he didn’t say anything.

  “You’re coming home with me, Sirena.” The fury in his eyes simmered as he gazed at her, replaced instead with something softer mixed with concern. “And I won’t take no for an answer.”

  Swallowing the ball of emotion in her throat, she nodded. Cassidy didn’t want to ask how he had arranged it. She didn’t want to know what the next step for Ivanov was. Her body ached, both her soul and her mind felt heavy with exhaustion and defeat. Maybe Ivanov wouldn’t go to jail, but she was one hell of an investigative reporter. She had people in the game still. The evidence was irrefutable. They could break the story, make it go viral.

  That, at least, made her hold a little hope in her heart. And her parents would know the truth. Meredith deserved more than she was ever given in life. And more than Cassidy could offer her in death, but at least the world would know the truth about Ivanov—about the murdering bastard and all the other men who, thankfully, were American. She planned to make sure that they all stayed behind bars for as long as the warped justice system would allow.

  But tonight, she was just battle worn and exhausted. She leaned against Miguel, and he wrapped strong arms around her, pulling Cassidy flush against him. A soft sigh escaped her.

  “I’d really like that,” she said.

  Somewhere, in the back of her mind, Cassidy wondered how he had made that happen. Most likely, her parents were going to lose their mind at the scandal that was about to break. Keeping up appearances—that’s all they’d ever wanted to do.

  At this moment, she didn’t care what they thought, what anyone thought. Eventually she’d have to face her parents—Kendra’s family, and all the others who had been a part of this. Maricela, Cassidy was sure, would have some choice words for her. All of that would come soon enou
gh.

  She’d proved she wasn’t crazy. For tonight, that would have to be enough.

  Getting up, she took Miguel’s hand. Everything ached. After a hot shower, she planned on sleeping for a week. If not longer. The boat moved a little too much, and she stumbled into his arms. His protective embrace pushed away the rest of the world. The lights faded in her peripheral, and the voices were drowned out the wind whipping around them. The aches became heavy and suddenly, she wasn’t sure why her feet didn’t work as well.

  “I got ya,” Miguel said as he lifted her into his arms.

  “I know,” she whispered, wrapping her arms around his neck. A moment later, she let herself fall asleep.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  The team, along with Cassidy still sleeping in Miguel’s arms, slipped back onto their boats and sped back toward the Nest. The paramedic had wanted to check her over again, but Miguel had not so politely warned them that if anyone touched her, he would rip their fingers off at the joint. Cassidy had already been cleared to leave. Miguel wasn’t going to give them a chance to rescind.

  As they headed back home, Miguel realized they would need a place to stay for a while, but he didn’t mourn his houseboat. Keeping the bare minimum on his person was something he learned long ago. The houseboat didn’t have anything on it that had been sentimental. Things were replaceable. People were not.

  Not even his estupida hermanita. Miguel knew that was going to be a long conversation that he wasn’t ready to have. There were many things in this world he brushed off his back, but disloyalty was not one of them. Sister or no.

  When they arrived back at the Crow’s Nest, Sin, Honey, and Ida were all waiting for them. They rushed over, checking on the men, and then Cassidy.