Footfalls echoed through the empty street, bouncing between abandoned buildings and fading into the warm, muggy air. Marcus glanced at Jax, noting his six-foot-plus frame, muscled upper body, and confident stride. “Are you a local?” Marcus asked. “For now.” Silence stretched. “Here on vacation?” “Nah. Vacations are for rich people.” Marcus frowned. “How did you ...

Fitz’s lungs burned as he spun in the shallow, murky seawater. Agony tore through his calf muscles, which ripped beneath the powerful reptile’s vice-like jaws. As his brain begged for oxygen, Fitz tried to focus. In his mind’s eye, Fitz suddenly saw a young woman on a muddy bank. Blood oozed from a dozen puncture ...

Now unimpeded by cloud cover, the gleaming sun threw waves of late-summer heat down to the still waters in the streets below. Sea birds explored further inland, drawn by the floods. The air buzzed, and clouds of mosquitoes searched for their next meal. Fitz lifted a flat hand to his brow and squinted at the ...

Marcus heard Shawn’s mother wailing on the rooftop a few blocks away. He and Fitz paddled steadily in grim silence. The sound of morning animals rose around them. Seagulls and sandpipers chirped, squawked, and sometimes alighted on the water nearby to peck at a morsel. Gray clouds grew thinner, and the sun peeked over rooftops. ...

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 ...