Page 101 of Angel

She takes two steps at the same time as me and falls into my arms, heavy sobs wracking her body.

“I killed him.”

“You did a good job of it, too.”

I scan the room.

“Okay, it’s all okay. I’ve got this.”

“But Jason–”

She makes to vomit and I push her into the ensuite.

“Retch in the toilet if you must, but clean yourself up. Leave Martinez to me.”

While I leave her to collect herself, I head back into the main cabin, noting his naked body from the waist down, immediately realizing what was happening.

The gun is close to his head where the bullet entered his brain, and I carefully wipe the gun clean with a handkerchief.

The gloves I always keep in my jacket pocket help me clean the evidence away and I position the gun in his hand pointing at his head.

“Sophie.”

I whisper with an urgency that tells her we don’t have much time.

“Follow me. We’ll lock him inside and leave.”

“Now?”

Her makeup is streaked with tears, and I pull her into my arms, sharing her pain, loving how she fought back.

“Leave it with me and do as I say and don’t question me. We don’t have long.”

I check my phone and point to the door.

“Come.”

I usher her out of the cabin and remove the key from the lock inside and secure it when we are outside. Then I pocket the key, intent on dropping it over the side as soon as we get on deck.

We head out into the night air, noting that most of the crew and guests are dealing with the commotion, and as I grab a couple of lifejackets from a nearby muster station, I pull one over my head and offer the other to Sophie.

“Here, put this on.”

“Oh my god, Jason. You’re serious.”

“It’s the only way out of hell, princess. Don’t worry, I won’t let you drown.”

She does as I say, but I note the fear in her eyes and with a soft smile, I whisper, “Do you trust me, princess?”

“I do.”

She half smiles but tears sparkle in her eyes and as we hear footsteps, I pull her toward the steps leading down to the garage where they keep all the inflatables and jet skis. It will be easier to jump off the boat without raising the alarm, and I make sure to keep an eye open for any of the crew. Luckily, they all appear to be dealing with the commotion upstairs and I turn to Sophie and say with some urgency,

“Come. Jump with me.”

Another yell alerts me, “Man overboard!”

As Gosia jumps, we do too, and as every man is focused on her, we disappear into the ocean undetected.