Seduced by the Sea Lord

Chapter 27

The instant the man, Blake, turned his weapon on Lucy, Torun slammed his palms against the glass.

It rattled but did not shatter. Steel threads held it too tightly.

Blake jumped and swung the weapon on Torun. "Settle down in there."

He hated the man with the heat of a thousand undersea volcanoes. "Go on. Shoot me."

"Ha." Blake motioned for Lucy to sit again.

"No, thanks." She stood firm, arms crossed. "Let Torun out, give me back my crew, and I'll consider not prosecuting you."

"Prosecute!" Blake shook his head, his soul as black as the greasy engine. "Lucy, you're dead. They held your funeral last Tuesday. Do you know how long you've been gone?"

Her eyes widened, and her heart rate increased. Despite the syrupy, slow air and the thick glass, Torun sensed her feelings. She was worried about her parents and friends. Had she caused them to grieve?

"I could shoot the both of you, toss your bodies over the side, and people would be none the smarter."

"You mean 'none the wiser,'" Lucy said.

Blake tightened his grip on the spear weapon. "Wiser, smarter, you're not going to be anything but deader. So sit."

A tense beat passed.

Lucy looked at Torun, hardened, and scooted the deck chair next to the cage before she eased into the seat. She crossed her arms and legs, then faced their enemy. "What do you want?"

"Take me to the Sea Opals."

She raised a fierce brow. "I thought they were all in the Keys?"

"Oh, they are. But you've found a whole bowlful. Why fight success?"

"I'm sure your investors are wondering that too."

Blake's brows lowered. "Enough chitchat. Where are they?"

"Directly below us," she lied without missing a beat. "They're hidden in a reef. Let Torun go."

"Gracie swam over that reef. She went all around the atoll looking for you."

Lucy's light flickered. She must feel guilty for the young woman. How desperate Gracie must have become when her employer didn't surface, and it became clear she had been lost at sea.

"That's when she called me," the man continued. Lucy's soul darkened even more, this time in shock. "Surprised? Yes, I took out insurance. I heard you were going over our old hunting grounds, and there was no reason not to send in my own spies, who you eagerly hired."

She gritted her teeth. "So, you really did believe in me all along."

"Nah. I believe in taking precautions with my investments."

"If that were true, we'd both be millionaires. You wouldn't have lost all the money in stocks and gambling the first time."

He blackened. "If you hadn't been so afraid, I would have earned the money all back. It takes money to make money. You kept holding on to the capital when we needed to buy."

"Because you kept losing it!"

He cut her off. "The point is, the Sea Opals are in a cave. And if you want your fish man to keep breathing, you'll take me there."

"Keep breathing?" She looked at the cage. "What do you mean?"

"Want to see a neat trick?" Blake removed a black remote device from the metal drawer and pressed a button. "This cage was made for pressurized living specimens, but it can also do this."