Thirteen

Rex envelopes his arms around me, close after crying so much.

The great and powerful Thea, the tomboy gangster with overalls of the playground, has never cried so much.

Getting hurt wasn't much of a big deal when I was young. Scraping my knees, chipped tooth, and broken arms have always scared my parents, but not once did I cry from the pain.

I always thought I had pain-resistant or felt numb at times, but now, I let out all those pains mixed in my emotions when it started to involve my brother and best friend.

When they were kidnapped, I wasn't sure what emotion I should feel, but I felt that anger inside. It was pending for me to find the bastard and kill him. If it weren't for my brother stopping me, I would've been sent to juvie and spent my life repenting.

At that time, I thought I was strong, but it was all for show. Whenever I fought with Ares, I would win the argument, but I noticed he had made it easy for me to punish him. Of course, he didn't want to hurt his big sister, but it shows I wasn't his opponent but his sister—someone he could depend on.

And now, I don't know what to do.

I softly sigh and hear the soft snores of my fiancé. I let out a chuckle and cradle against his chest, hearing his heartbeat.

After our passionate lovemaking, we decided to stay in our room. I took a nap after crying, and in the arms of my man, I hadn't noticed it was dark outside. Effie and the others have probably gone to their rooms.

Since it's our last night of this trip together, we might as well go back to sleep. I'm excited to hold Jacob in my arms. I know I only FaceTime him whenever I get the chance, but having him physically close to me can ease my heart.

I let out a yawn and shut my eyes as I get myself comfortable, but just for a second, I hear creaking noises outside the room.

I turn my head and listen, capturing the slow noise and quiet voices on the other end, maybe thinking it's either my siblings or the others trying to be silent.

I lay my head back on Rex's chest as he stirred and pulled me closer to him. I feel so safe in his arms. Feels right.

Then, another noise wakes me up. I sprang up and glanced at the door, hearing another thud outside.

I groan and rub the bridge of my nose. "I swear."

I kick the blanket off, grab my sleepers, and walk down the hall. The cold air hit me as I hugged my body. Although it's Hawaii, and it can get hot, we are in the middle of the ocean. I'm only wearing a tank top and shorts.

It's fucking cold!

"If it's Seth or Ares, I'm going to make them swim with the sharks if they-" I pause, and he's in the corner.

Peering ever so slightly, I spot mysterious people boarding the yacht with the moon over me, giving me the light. They resemble the fishermen I saw before boarding the ship; they aren't holding fishing poles, but guns.

I was never bothered to pay attention to the people, but now that I see them, they don't look like ordinary fishermen.

These men look like professionals.

"Oh shit," I mouth quietly.

There were eight men, and one of them stood in front. "The boss wanted us to capture the women but kill the men. Please make sure they are dead and thrown into the water. The waters of hungry predators will make them disappear. So listen closely to go over the plan."

"Yes, sir!"

No! No!

I need to wake up Rex.

I step back quietly, not making a sound, and dash for my room.

I closed my door and jumped on Rex, shaking his body frantically. "Rex! Baby!"

He let out a groan and turned the other way. I had no luck in shaking his body and waking him up, so I slapped his face.

"What the fuck?!"

I covered his mouth. "Shh!!"

"Thea, babe, why did you slap me for the hell?" He asks, groaning while rubbing his face.

"There...there are people on the yacht."

"What?" He flashes confusion on his face.

"They are in front of the yacht and have guns!" I wanted to scream, but I had to whisper loudly.

I got off and went to my bag to grab my phone. As Rex peeks his head out, he disappears. I wanted to call him back, but I didn't have time, so I quickly dialed Effie's number.

After a few rings, she finally answered with a hoarse voice. "Ate? Why are you calling me when you can go to the room?"

"Effie, wake up Logan, Liam, and Lily and meet Rex and me at the lower deck."

"What?" She yawns. "What is going on?"

"No time, now go wake the others up. I'm going to call Terry." I hung up on Effie and made another call to Terry. She picked up after the first ring. "Terry, wake-"

"I know."

Wow, that was quick.

I didn't explain, but she beat me to it. I mean, she's a hitman. Of course, she's a light sleeper in situations like this.

"Then you saw them?" I heard the door close, felt Rex behind me, and whispered that the men were still talking.

"Yeah, Seth, Ares, and Jo are at the lower deck." She whispered during the phone call. "I was about to go to Effie's room before going to yours and let you know what is going on."

"Terry, they have guns and eight of them," I tell her as I nibble on my fingertips. "Is it safe to go to the lower deck?"

"Well, I'm in the position to see all eight, just...head...the..."

"Hello? Terry?" I looked at my phone and smacked it several times until the call ended. "Fuck!"

"What happened?"

"I think they jammed the signal." I start to panic. "Rex, what are we going to do?"

Rex rubbed his head and breathed intensely. "Where are Terry and the others now?"

"Seth, my brother, and Jo are on the lower deck. Terry is going to get Effie and the others."

"If she's getting them, then we might as well head over to the lower deck."

I grab Rex's arms. "What if they see us?"

"They won't," he reassured me. "Since they are still chatting and haven't made their move, it's best for us to escape.

"Rex, I'm scared," I said, my body trembling. This wasn't the first time I had felt this way. I felt scared when Ares and Jo were kidnapped, and now, unknown men with guns are out to get us.

Rex pulls me into his chest and wraps his arms around me. "It's going to be alright. I won't let anything happen to us. We need to think smart and lose them. Come, let's get out of the room and stay low."

I remembered Rex had served in the military; like Don, he was a sergeant in the Marines.

I know I feel safe and trust Rex, but eight men against ten have the upper hand, but half of us haven't really experienced combat involving guns. Effie has been training with Terry, and Lily has never fought in her life. Ares can help, but because of his temper, he will make a mistake and get hurt. I don't want that.

The twins and Seth were trained in combat and weaponry because of their dad. As for Jo, she's still not herself.

The two people who experience the most are Terry and Don, but we have a few advantages since Don isn't here. I know Terry would get us out of a situation like this, and I know the boys will help, but something in my gut tells me something terrible will happen.

And it worries me.