Cut and Run 3 - Fish and Chips

released him, and he could hear coughing and sputtering nearby as someone else struggled in the water. Screaming and shouting mingled with the rushing sound of adrenaline in Zane’s ears and someone barking orders nearby.
    Free of the fear that had frozen him but now literally shaking, Zane finally managed to right himself and wipe his stinging eyes so he could see Ty next to him. “Did you say that to get me to jump?” he choked out.
    Ty was struggling through the water toward the edge of the pool. He looked more like a drowning puppy than the graceful swimmer Zane had seen in the ocean and pool several days ago. Ty didn’t respond; he merely spit out a mouthful of water and shook his head. He threw both arms over the edge of the wall, pulling himself just enough out of the water to be able to gasp in several deep breaths. Zane got to the side of the pool as well, still trying to wrap his brain around Ty’s manipulation and the obvious fact that it had been successful.
    Zane was ill, angry, aghast, still scared out of his mind, desperately relieved… a mishmash of flaring emotions he couldn’t sort out. He kept his eyes on his partner, wondering if Ty was going to respond. But Ty just stared at the deck of the pool as he rested his elbows on it, looking a little dazed.
    As Zane watched, a heavy black boot stepped in front of his partner’s face, causing Ty to look up at its owner. One of the ship’s security officers stood above him, looking down at them with his arms crossed disapprovingly. Behind him, the Bianchis were wrapped in towels and handcuffed, two other security officers flanking them.
    Ty looked up at the man for a few moments longer, then thumped his head down to his forearms in surrender.

Chapter 13

     
    T Y SAT with one foot pulled up on the hard berth, his elbow resting on his knee as he stared at the sterile white walls of the holding cells. There were three of them, each separated by thick wire fencing. Ty leaned his shoulder against the wire of his cell and exhaled slowly.
    “At least we’re not being shot at anymore,” he drawled to Zane, maintaining the British accent just because it annoyed the Italian agents and the ship’s security, who were still trying to figure out who the hell they really were. And because he fucking could.
    “True,” Zane agreed, shifting tiredly on the small bench in the next cell. He still looked tense. “They’ll clear it up soon enough and let us out of here.”
    Once the ship’s security had gotten their shit together, the situation had settled down fast. Mostly because everyone was locked up somewhere or another, according to the various and sundry visitors they’d received to fill them in or taunt them.
    Dolce and Gabbana had come by to berate them for sticking their American (maybe) noses where they didn’t belong. The two goons turned out to really be Italian Guardia di Finanza, presumably assigned to shut down the Bianchis. Ty and Zane could only assume Vartan Armen really had been trying for a coup; he’d supplied the Guardia with the information they needed to bust the Italian couple. Ty was fairly sure these two wouldn’t be long for their jobs after all the reports got filed.
    It was possible Armen actually hadn’t resorted to attempted murder, but they would never know for sure, since he was now in the ship’s morgue and couldn’t tell anyone what had happened. While Armen may or may not have been the guilty party where the attempts on Ty’s life were concerned, the perpetrators of the scuba-diving and rock-climbing incidents might not be found, according to the captain.
    Ty suspected the same men who’d been doing the shooting and chasing; it was probable they had planned to cheat the entire smuggling ring and kill them all. They weren’t talking either, which left a whole lot up to conjecture about who the hell they really were and what had truly happened. They’d been locked up in the jail on Tortola, and they were being held on charges of attempted murder. They might even face charges for attempting to hijack the cruise ship, if prosecutors were feeling particularly vindictive. Ty thought for sure there would be other charges coming along as well, including smuggling, money laundering, and weapons charges pending extradition.
    The captain had politely informed them that the Bianchis were on house arrest in their cabin until Dolce and Gabbana could claim jurisdiction.
    Ty wondered how the hell he and Zane got stuck in the