The eight-foot alligator had disappeared beneath the sea’s debris-littered surface. Empty soda bottles, plastic bags, and random household objects bumped against one another in the light current. Fitz pulled his dangling leg onto the raft and observed their surroundings with a narrowed gaze. “Did you see where it went?” “No,” Marcus quavered. “What the hell ...

Two bright red fiberglass oars dipped into murky seawater, propelling the kayak raft forward a few frustrating inches at a time. The rain had slowed to a light drizzle, with occasional wind gusts swirling moisture around the bedraggled group. Thick air muffled Bella’s infuriated screams. Each wail grated against Marcus’s increasingly fragile nerves. She cried ...

Searing pain attacked Esme from all sides. She tried to stay silent, but with each movement and jostle, her agony broke free and pushed from her lungs into the dank air. Sweat drenched Marcus as he grunted and swore. He and Fitz held Esme’s stretcher between them. They had kept their gait smooth down the ...

“You’re insane,” Esme said. “You have a better idea?” Marcus answered. Esme pursed her lips as her gaze lost focus, searching the corners of her mind for a more effective plan. Finally, she exhaled heavily. “Please, just leave me,” she whimpered. Marcus stared at his wife and watched her lively, beautiful features crumple under a ...

Marcus burst into the condo, Matty clutched in his arms. The faux leather of the pale blue sofa softly squealed as he set his son down. Matty blinked up at him, his expression confused. “Where are we?” he asked. “In another condo, buddy.” “What happened to ours?” Marcus smiled but decided not to answer. “I’ve ...

Marcus surfaced, spitting out a mouthful of salt water. “Matty!” he screamed over the rippling seawater. He frantically swung his head back and forth, searching for any signs of his son, who had learned to swim the month prior. His mind jolted to that morning in the condo pool. Was it just this morning? Matty ...

The wild gallop of Marcus’s pulse propelled him along the corridor. Stucco-covered walls stretched ahead to his right, the other side flanked by waist-high plexiglass bordered by metal safety rails. His eyes razed every inch of the space as stagnant, humid air did little to cool his sweaty skin. Fitz peeked over the railing every ...

Marcus gaped at his son and the puddle on the rug at his feet. No. His vision clouded as liquid panic pumped through his veins. Fitz said Matty’s name, strode to the boy, and crouched before him. No, no, no. “Marcus!” Fitz snapped his fingers toward him twice. SNAP SNAP. He blinked, and the room came ...

Panic clawed under Sofia’s damp skin, and her sweat beaded and flew from her forehead every time she swiveled to listen for her pursuer. She lurched left as the wall against her fingertips vanished into nothingness. Sofia paused, unsure which way to go. Jax clicked on his flashlight, and the glow splashed her dim shadow ...

Sofia stumbled along, blind in the darkness, her left hand tracing the painted concrete wall to her left, the other clutched to her aching ribs. She stopped, planted her back flat against the stubbled surface, and listened. Staccato curses echoed and bounced through the black passage, Jax’s angry voice peppering her with rancid fear. Her ...