Talia opened her eyes, then squinted into the bright sun. She was hot, her temples were pounding and her hands tied behind her back. She glanced around her as snippets of memories surfaced. Joe had gone to get her something to drink, then someone had grabbed her. She remembered the boat. Remembered being hit with a gun.
Anna.
She turned toward the helm. The woman she’d once trusted was steering the boat into the open waters. Away from Venice. Away from Joe.
“Did you kill Thomas?” Talia asked, loud enough to ensure she heard her over the strong winds.
Anna glanced back at her. “You’re finally awake.”
“Did you kill him?” she repeated.
“You want answers? Here’s one. I honestly never set out to hurt Thomas.”
Talia frowned. Intentions held no meaning at this point. “Tell me what happened that night. You at least owe me that.”
Anna shrugged. “I don’t owe you anything.”
“If you killed my husband, you owe me the truth about his death.”
“You always did ask too many questions.” Anna pulled back her wind-blown hair and tied it up with a band. “The truth is that I had too many credit card bills. Student-loan overdue notices. Medical bills from my mother’s illness. Thousands and thousands of dollars. So I started stealing evidence collected during raids. It was easier than you’d think. It started with a pile of cash tucked in a drawer. No one noticed. I had a few contacts on the side, where I could quickly get rid of the drugs. Eventually I stumbled across the paintings. I knew some cartel members used art as collateral, so I knew I’d hit the jackpot.”
There were more questions Talia wanted to ask. Had Thomas been involved? Had Anna been the one who’d pulled the trigger and ended his life? But instead she held her tongue and simply listened.
“Then that night—that night Thomas caught me. I didn’t have time to think things through. Not with the rest of the team searching the other half of the house. So I shot him.”
“So was Thomas involved in the thefts or did you set him up?”
“Does it really matter anymore? The money was good, but the paintings were going to be my way out. Then somehow in the chaos of that night, they went missing.”
Talia stared at the horizon. They were approaching one of the outlying islands. “You’re not answering my questions about Thomas. Did Thomas know what you were doing? Was he involved in the thefts?”
Anna hesitated before answering. “No. He had no idea what I was doing.”
Talia tried to stop the swell of emotions. All this time she’d thought he’d betrayed her. “Why kill him?”
“Because Thomas was always so...black and white. He thought he could save the world. And when he found out what I was doing, he thought he could save me. The problem is I’m not exactly worth saving. So framing him became easier than giving myself up. I made sure that the case was quickly buried, and it managed to stay that way until your FBI friend decided to open it up again. I knew the truth was going to come out eventually, so I made a plan to disappear.”
“But in order to leave the country, you needed the money from the paintings.”
“I told you I never planned to hurt Thomas, but that night, when he discovered what I was doing... I didn’t have a choice.”
“You always had a choice.”
The jagged pieces of the puzzle were finally coming together. Had she really been so wrong about Thomas? She’d believed he was guilty. That her own taste in men was skewed because she hadn’t seen the truth. And yet he’d actually been the honorable man she’d once believed him to be, and had died trying to help his partner. Talia stared out at the water. If she died, no one would ever know that truth. Because she knew Anna had no intention of letting her go once this was over. Which was why giving up wasn’t an option.
“Why did you kill his brother?” she asked, searching for more answers.
“Thomas’s brother was another unfortunate accident.” Anna kept talking as if she hadn’t heard what Talia had said. “For him, anyway. If he would have just told me where the paintings were, I wouldn’t have had to hurt him.”
Instead, she’d killed him.
Talia shifted in her seat, then winced as the plastic restraints gouged into her wrists. “Why now, after all these years? What made you start looking for them again?”
“For months after Thomas’s death I tried tracking them down. You had signed off for the paintings in part of Thomas’s things, so I searched your house and looked into everyone who’d been involved in the chain of evidence. But I still couldn’t find them anywhere. I figured someone had made a mistake, or they’d been snatched along the way. So even though I kept looking, I never found them. Then your FBI agent made the connection between the gun and the drug dealers and the paintings, and I figured I was being given another chance.”
“So what happens now?”
“I believe your in-laws know where they are. And you’re my leverage.”
“And after you get what you want, then what? You’re planning to kill me as well?”
“Well, I can’t exactly leave a witness, now can I?” She chuckled as they approached one of the islands. “I know what you’re thinking. That your FBI agent will come to your rescue. But he won’t. Not this time.”
Talia watched one of the hundred plus islands came into view ahead of them. Most tourists never saw the series of islands that were scattered across the lagoon away from the historic center of Venice. She’d toured them once with a few friends, and while she’d always love the city of Venice, the outlining islands were full of traditional Venetian culture in the making for hundreds of years. They were full of fishing boats, vineyards and cathedrals. Museums and tucked-away hotels and restaurants. All without the throng of tourists clogging up the waterways.
Which was more than likely why Anna was bringing her here.
“Where are we going?” Talia asked, refusing to give in to the panic trying to edge its way through her.
“A little place where we can hole up for a few days. Isolated enough that you won’t give me any trouble. Close enough to the main islands that I can finish what I need to.”
“And you think your plan will work?”
“Enough of your questions. And don’t forget the rules. Don’t even try to get the attention of any of the other boats.”
Talia glanced behind them. There was another larger boat coming up behind them on their starboard side, along with a few scattered smaller boats. But none of them were coming to her rescue. Joe would have no idea where she was. No idea how to rescue her. Which meant she was on her own this time. And was why she had to come up with a plan.
* * *
Joe’s muscles tensed as Silvio maneuvered his boat toward an empty space along the dock of one of Venice’s outlying islands. He crouched on the bow, making sure to stay hidden behind the larger craft bobbing in the water between their boat and the craft Anna was just now docking. But as far as he could tell, Anna had no idea he was less than ten yards away. He caught a glimpse of Talia before they slid into the dock. She was sitting beneath the canopy, and looked as if her hands were secured behind her.
Anna started tying the line to the mooring pole. Joe nodded at Silvio, praying their impromptu plan worked. Silvio jumped onto the dock, carrying with him a map of the area, then quickly approached Anna’s boat.
“Excuse me... Sorry to bother you.” Silvio pulled open his map and started talking to Anna. “I’m a bit lost. I thought this was Sant’Erasmo, but now that I’ve docked, I’m not so sure.”
Joe quickly jumped onto the larger cargo boat beside them, then made his way around the stern, to where Anna was holding Talia.
“I think you’re on the wrong island,” Anna said. “But I’m just sightseeing, as well. I suggest you speak with one of the locals.”
She started to turn back, but Silvio kept talking. “I’m visiting from down south. I’ve heard they grow the most incredible produce here—asparagus, purple artichokes. But now in looking at this map, I’m not sure.” He flipped the map upside down.
“I said I can’t help you,” Anna said, raising her voice. “I’m sorry.”
Time was running out. He was going to have to make his move. The boat rocked beneath Joe as he stepped onto the small, flat-bottomed topetta. Talia turned to him, eyes wide with surprise as he moved past her. He motioned at her to stay quiet, then quickly moved along the edge of the boat, to where Anna stood. She had a small handgun in a holster at the small of her back.
He came at her from behind, taking her by surprise. With one fluid motion, he disarmed her before tossing the weapon into the water.
“Two can play the same game,” he said, twisting her arm behind her to restrain her.
But Anna wasn’t going down without a fight. She turned sharply and jammed her elbow into his injured arm. He took a step back, trying not to give in to the excruciating pain that shot through his body.
Talia rushed toward Anna to stop her, but constricted by her bound hands, she couldn’t avoid Anna’s disarming punch to the side of her face. Joe came back at her. This time he anticipated her next move and struck back. Anna landed with her face down on the deck and Joe’s foot firmly planted against her back.
“Joe!”
Joe turned as Talia lost her balance and the momentum swung her over the edge of the boat and into the water. She hit the murky water headfirst.
“Keep your gun aimed on this woman,” Joe shouted at Silvio, then jumped into the water after Talia.
He had no idea where she was. All he could see were particles of dirt floating around him. He started praying again as he searched the water. His eyes burned. His arm throbbed. But she was here somewhere. He found her struggling to get to the surface with her hands tied behind her. Grabbing her around the waist, he started for the surface, but she started fighting back. Joe held on to her tighter. His heart pounded as they broke the surface of the water. She gasped for air, and he caught the panic in her eyes.
“Talia, it’s me. Stop. You’re okay.”
He held on to her tightly with his good arm, her chest heaving as she drew in another lungful of air. He managed to pull her up onto the dock then laid her down carefully on her back. He grabbed his pocketknife then snapped off the restraint.
“Talia...” He hovered beside her where she lay, still trying to catch her breath. “Please tell me you’re okay.”
Despite the hot sun pounding down on her, her body was shaking. A mixture, he was sure, of both fear and relief.
“Talia? Are you okay?”
She managed a nod.
“Try to breathe, then. Slow, deep breaths.”
“Where’s Anna?” she asked.
“She’s still on the boat, but you’re safe. She’s not going to be able to hurt you anymore.”
Talia turned her head toward the boat. Silvio still stood on the stern, pointing his gun at Anna. “Who is he?”
“Agent Silvio Gabriello,” Joe said, turning to his new friend. “And someone I owe a debt of gratitude.”
“That ‘agent’ bit might just grow on me,” Silvio said, not taking his eyes off Anna. “In case you were wondering, we just needed a distraction,” he said to her. “I know this island very well. In fact, I have a number of friends who live here. A few burly fishermen. I gave them a call as we were pulling up to the dock. They’re on their way here now to ensure you are placed in custody until the polizia show up.”
“I still don’t understand who he is,” Talia said.
“I’ll tell you all about him later. Do you think you can sit up?”
Talia pressed her hands against him and managed to sit up. Her dark hair clung to her face, where a nasty bruise was beginning to show up. But at least she was alive and safe.
She scrunched her hair with her fingers, then turned back to Joe, her gaze stopping at his arm, where he’d been shot the day before. She reached up and pulled at his sleeve. “Your arm...it’s bleeding again.”
“Forget about my arm. It will be fine. I was afraid I’d lost you out there.”
“How in the world did you find me?”
He shot her a smile. “I have a few resources available to me.”
“She was going to kill me as soon as she got those paintings.”
“I know, and I couldn’t let that happen.”
“She was planning to use me as leverage.”
“So she never found the paintings.”
“No. And there’s another thing I found out. Thomas was innocent.”
“Innocent? What do you mean?”
“Thomas never should have died. She framed him. She was the one stealing from the raids, and he found out. She ended up killing him and planting evidence on him.”
He wiped away the water running down her cheek. She had to be exhausted both physically and emotionally. But now, while nothing was going to bring Thomas back, maybe she could move on with her life knowing he really had been the man she’d always believed he was.
“I’m so sorry for everything you’ve had to go through,” he said.
“So am I, but it’s over, Joe. And I finally know the truth.”
He could hear the relief in her voice, but it wasn’t over. Not completely. Not for him. He glanced at Anna. There was still a connection between Anna, the paintings and the murder weapon that killed both Thomas and his brother, and he intended to find it.