Free The Edge of Trust: Team Edge by K. T. Bryan Page B

Ellie and explain.  Now go!”  He hefted her onto the side railing.
    At the last second every instinct inside her balked.  She couldn’t do it.  She simply could not leave her child, no matter what it might cost her.  She’d rather face Sanchez, take her chances with Satan himself, than leave her child. 
    She back-kicked Matt.  What she hadn’t planned on was his anticipation.  He blocked her kick and used her leverage against her to send her winging over the side.
    Jesus God, if anything happened to Ellie, her precious baby, she’d kill him with her bare hands for pushing her overboard. 
    It was so dark now she couldn’t see more than a few inches in front of her.  Panic squeezed in again.  What if she’d gotten turned around and wasn’t headed toward shore at all?  Stopping to tread water, she checked the luminous display on the compass, then faced east and tried to spot something, anything at all through the rain and inky blackness. 
    There.  Those had to be lights.  It looked like land up ahead, but she was still too far away to be sure.  Maybe, though, maybe that was the Hotel Del. 
    The ocean’s maleficent darkness pulled at her legs, tugging, clawing, dragging, and she wondered how long it would take to sink to the bottom, to let go and just fade into a thousand years worth of silt and sand. 
    To sleep. 
    No.  To let go now would be her child’s greatest betrayal.
    But God help her, her limbs were so tired she could barely lift her clumsy arms out of the water. 
    Somewhere in the depths of her mind flashed an image of a happier, more carefree time.  Of a vivacious young woman.  A woman with a destiny to fulfill, a blossoming future spread before her with nothing standing in her way.  And a bright impression of a man.  A kind, loving man with a warm, sensuous touch and a rich, whiskey-timbered voice. 
    The sun was almost overhead, and Sara, sitting on a beach towel, with her chin propped on her knees, watched Dillon dump another bucket of sand onto the already huge heap two feet away.  With a teasing smile she asked, “What are you doing, trying to pile up enough sand to reach to the moon?”
    “Much grander than that.  I’m building you the most beautiful, most legendary, most infamous castle of all medieval legend.” 
    By the amount of sand he’d managed to accumulate, she didn’t doubt him , and she laughed.   “Ah, King Arthur lives on.”  He was building her Camelot, right now, right there, and a gentle warmth eased into that place in her heart where Dillon lived. 
    Life was their kingdom, and Camelot, their favorite.
    Dillon flashed her a wicked grin, looking for all the world like a bronze pagan king.  His gaze traveled from her tan legs to her breasts, then lingered on her mouth.  When their gazes locked, her body went hot, liquid and slick.  She loved that he could do that to her.   Make her want him right then, right there, on a beach filled with people. 
    “Behave,” she said, “or I’m calling Merlin.”
    “Have his cellphone number, do ya?”
    “Of course.  On speed dial.  I’m going to have him cast a spell on you.”
    “You, my fair maiden, already have. ‘Tis the strongest spell the world has ever known.”  He lifted her hand to his lips. “Your love is enchanting, and I am forever your captive.”
    That day they’d built a castle to dream on and laughed a thousand laughs.  And when twilight arrived, when the beach had emptied, they’d made love in the sea. 
    It was an idyllic time.  A golden age of sun and laughter and love.  Adventure and romance. 
    Then, like a shot, she saw Sanchez’s chilling smile rip through her memories, and the nightmare she’d been living for the last million years screamed into focus, goading her to fight that much harder to survive.  She wouldn’t, couldn’t, let that sadistic monster win.
    She had skills now.  Things she’d been taught.  Day after agonizing day, Craig had taught her a lot over