“You’re going to be okay.” She looked around, searching for a way out of the water. Rif was scrabbling down the escarpment, followed by Gabrielle. She’d never been so happy to see him.
A loud splash caught her attention. She turned. Nikos had dropped into the river, surfacing not far from them.
Her brother wasn’t giving up.
She waved her arm high in the air, yelling to Rif. “Take care of Papa.”
Her father looked into her eyes. “Don’t leave me.”
“Rif is here; he’ll help.”
She swam away from shore, inserting herself between brother and father.
“It’s over, Nikos. Let it go.”
“Get out of my way.” Her brother’s powerful arms made short work of the distance between them.
“I’m not your enemy, Nikos. Neither is Papa.”
“You made your choice.” He reached out with one large hand and shoved her head underwater. She dove down and resurfaced to his right, slicing the knife deep into his shoulder. His right arm flapped beside his torso, pouring blood into the water. She kicked him in the gut, forcing them apart.
The current was carrying them toward the rapids. She looked for something to grab on to, watching in horror as two crocs slipped off the shoreline into the water, their powerful tails driving them forward.
Nikos closed the distance between them, swimming strongly despite his injured arm.
Blood poured from his shoulder, hatred from his eyes. His left fist slammed square into her nose. Her head snapped back. Dizziness threatened. She sliced at him again with the knife, only grazing his left biceps.
Seconds away from the rapids, the current accelerated, trying to suck them below the surface. Water splashed into Thea’s face, mouth, and nose.
Nikos grabbed hold of her right wrist and twisted hard. She felt a bone crack, followed by intense pain. The knife sank into the water.
She tried to head-butt her brother, but he ducked to the side.
His full weight was suddenly on top of her, his left arm holding her tightly, forcing her underwater. The dark river turned her world black.
He’d expect her to panic, flail. But fighting would expend too much energy, and he could overpower her at close quarters. Instead, she’d use the river. She went slack, every muscle soft. Her lungs burned, desperate for oxygen, but she allowed the undertow to suck them downriver. Not long now.
His hold on her loosened. She waited, desperate for air, riding the force of the water. Her energy was waning. She couldn’t hold out much longer.
Suddenly the speed of the current quickened, water slapping her from every direction. They had hit the rapids.
In one quick movement, she brought her knee up to his groin, hard.
Instinctively he arched his back. She capitalized on the move, twisting so she was now on top. She surfaced and inhaled. Foaming river water slammed her face. She sucked in a mouthful. Coughed.
The powerful current carried them through the narrows.
A quick glance downriver. Her only chance.
Seconds from plowing into a small island of protruding rocks, she thrust her fingers into the deep wound in Nikos’s right shoulder. His body buckled from the pain.
She twisted to the right as they hit the rocks, the back of Nikos’s skull taking the impact, snapping his head forward. He lost his grip on her entirely.
His body shuddered, and he vanished underwater. She dove down, trying to find him, but only blackness greeted her.
She resurfaced, scanning for any sign of him. A quick breath, and she dove again, her arms sweeping underwater, hoping. But he’d disappeared.
The current swept her along, banging her into rocks. She tried to swim toward shore to avoid the next set of rapids, occasionally diving down, still trying to find her brother.
Voices sounded in the distance. Rif was sprinting along the shoreline, headed for her.
She searched the water for Nikos.
Gone.
Chapter Eighty-One
Thea opened her eyes and looked around. She recognized the dark wood panels and rich burgundy brocade of the bedroom on the Paris Industries corporate jet. She shifted in the bed. Sharp pain radiated from her ribs. Her right arm was in a cast.
A doctor hovered over her, adjusting an IV drip. “Her blood sugar levels are stabilizing, but she’s still dehydrated. In another twenty-four hours, she should be as good as new—well, except for the fractures. I’ll be back shortly to check her vitals.”
The doctor was talking to Gabrielle Farrah, who sat in an armchair in a corner of the bedroom. Her dark eyes had lost their luster. Stress formed fine lines around her mouth.
“Papa?” Thea leaned forward, her body tensed in pain.
“He made it; we’re going to see him now. He was airlifted to the nearest trauma center, which is in Johannesburg.”
Relieved, Thea collapsed back into the pillows.
“Rif flew with him in the chopper.”
She recalled that moment on the river, asking Rif to take care of Papa. For once, he’d followed orders. She almost smiled before the full memory of what had happened rushed back. “Nikos?”
“No sign of him yet, but he wouldn’t be the first person to disappear into the waters of the Zambezi.”