It’s been a few days since they started up the Mississippi River and were approaching Memphis, Tennessee. It was raining, and Sara had a cold. She hadn’t been feeling well lately. She threw-up last night and she had a slight fever.

“Max, we need to pull in and take Sara to a doctor.” Emma was concern about her daughter.

“Alright. I’ll pull in at Memphis.” Max didn’t like this, but Sara was sick.

Max pulls the boat into a slip and heads to the office to plan for a few nights. While he was inside, he gets the number for a taxi company. He calls them and heads back to the boat to grab his gun and to help Emma with Susan. Emma and Max slip on their vest under their clothes and help Sara to the cab.

Sara was leaning against Emma as they headed to the nearest doctor’s office. Sara shivers as she pulls her coat tighter around her. She was cold, and her stomach was upset. She couldn’t hold down dinner last night. She was coughing a lot and her throat was hurting. She did the salt gargled like Emma suggested for her throat.

They manage to get Sara to an Urgent Care to be looked at. There was a lot of people waiting to be seen. Once they were called. Sara is taken to the back and examined. The doctor checks her over and pronounces that she has the Flu. He prescribes some medicine and gives her a shot. Emma gets a flu shot while she is there and Max decides to take his chances.

Once Max pays the doctor visit and goes to a pharmacy not too far from the Urgent Care place. They stop at a local grocery store to pick-up a few items for Sara. While they were in the grocery store, Max thought he saw a guy looking at them and Sara. Even though her tattoo has been changed and was covered up. She still stuck out because of her accent.

Max keeps an eye on him, while Emma stays close to Sara. The same cab they took last time shows up to pick them up. Max was looking at him and something seemed odd about him. Max glances out the back window and notices a car was following them.

“Pull into that shopping center please.” Max watches as the driver ignores him and continues onward.

The driver ignores Max and continues onward. He was told to deliver them to a house.

Max pulls his gun out “I said, to pull into the shopping center right now.”

Max puts his gun to the side of the cab drivers head. He would pull the trigger if he didn’t do what he was told. He glances towards the rear-view mirror to see if the car he spotted was still following them.

Dave was told to take them to the house or he would be killed. He knew Luka would kill him and his family if he didn’t do what he said. He
glances at the man holding the gun to his temple to see if he would pull the trigger. He decides that this man meant business. He pulls into the shopping center parking lot.

Max noticed the car that was following them pulls in behind them. He looks towards Emma and notices she had her gun out.

“Get ready to run with Sara.” Max looks towards Sara and could tell she wasn’t feeling well.

As soon as the cab comes to a stop. Emma pulls Sara out of the cab and hides among the parked cars. The car that was following them pulls in and several men get out and start chasing after the girls, while another comes after Max.

Max makes his way around a car to come up behind the guy looking for him. He cold-cocks him behind the head with the butt of his gun. He falls to the ground and feels around his wallet and car keys.

Emma spots the two guys chasing after her and Sara. She knew Sara wasn’t in any condition to do any running. She spots a truck high enough off the ground that Sara could crawl under and hide.

“Get down and crawl under the truck, Sara.”

“Yes, ma’am.” Sara drops down and crawls under the truck.

She takes Emma’s purse and pulls it to her. She tries to keep from coughing. She watches as Emma runs off.

The two guys that got out of the car lost sight of the girl and the woman. They were told to bring both them back alive. They look around and spots the woman, but not the girl. They start chasing after the woman.

Emma smiles as she gets the two guys to chase her. She ducks near a car and waits for one guy to walk on the other side of the car. She shoots his ankle out.

Andrei falls as his ankle is shot. He falls to the ground. He doesn’t see who shot him. The next thing that happens, he is knocked out.

Makar looks around for Andrei but doesn’t see him. He spots the woman and fires at her. His bullet strikes the car window beside her.

Emma heard the glass beside her shatter as a bullet hits it. She spots the person firing at her and fires at him. She hits him in the chest.

Makar saw the woman turn and fire her gun at him. He felt two bullets hit him in the chest and drops to the ground. He takes his final breathes as he closes his eyes.

Emma runs back over to where she left Sara and helps her out from under the truck. She saw Sara shiver.

“We need to find Max.” She looks around and spots him running over to her.

Sara was in the middle of a coughing fit. She was coughing so hard, that she felt light headed and ready to pass out. She stops after a few minutes.

“We need to get her back to the boat, Max.” Emma was worried about Sara.

“Come on, I got us a car.” Max picks Sara up and carries her to the car the bad guys came in.

He keeps to the speed limit, but knows he needs to get Sara back to the boat. He parks the car as close as he can and carries Sara down the deck, while Emma protected them. When they get to the boat. Emma tucks Sara in bed and gives her some of the medicine as she feels the boat moving. After Emma makes sure Sara was tucked in bed and asleep.

She heads into the galley is and lift the hidden floor panel and pull out two M4A1 Carbine for her and Max. She also pulls out a few grenades for them to use. She puts the floor panel back in place and heads up to the flybridge to give Max his M4 and a few grenades. She was glad that they traded ships when they did. This one was equipped to do surveillance and had a few hidden weapons to protect it.

“Here you go Max.” She hands him the rifle and grenades.

“Thanks.” Max had the throttle at full as they moved up the Mississippi River.

He was trying to put as much distance between them and whoever came after them. How did they know they were in Memphis? Did they have someone following them?

“Emma, take the controls for awhile please.” Max moves aside to let Emma take the steering wheel.

He heads down to the Master bedroom where his bag was and grabs his bug detector. He starts outside around the boat and checks all the way around the boat. He doesn’t pick-up anything and just as he was heading up to the second deck. He picks up a tracker. It takes him a few seconds to locate it, but he finds it. He tosses it overboard into the river. He searches again and locates another one, but this one allowed the listener to listen in on their conversation.

“Why don’t you chickenshit come and get us, instead of hiding?” He crushes it in his hand.

He heads back inside and put his bug detector away and head up to the flybridge. Max notices that Emma had her rifle within arms reach and was watching the radar unit.

“What were you looking for?” Emma had spotted Max looking around the boat.

“Bugs. Somehow, they figured out what boat we are on and bugged the boat. I’m expecting whoever they are to be coming for us soon. We need to end this. I want to know who the jackass is. So, let’s lay a trap for them so we can find out.” Max was getting tired of this cat and mouse game.

“I agree with you. Sara isn’t feeling good and this needs to end.” Emma slows down and wonders what Max had in mind.

“Pull the boat over and pretend we are having trouble. We’ll play possum and let them get close to us.” Max heads down and changes into his wetsuit and his snorkel.

Emma sends a call out for help saying they were having engine problems. She gets a response that someone would come out and check their engines out and if need too. They would tow them to the nearest marina.

Max waits till he hears a high-speed boat coming towards them, before slipping into the water. He uses the boat as cover. He watches as they pull up close to the boat. He spotted three people in the boat. They didn’t look like people that worked on boats. He swims under their boat and comes up behind their boat and throw a thick chain around the propeller blades of the boat.

One of the guys in the boat raises and points his gun at Emma.

“Where’s your partner and the boy?” Nikolay had his gun pointed at the FBI agent.

His partners Pavel and Ruslan were looking for the other FBI agent. They knew the boy was sick, from the cab driver they threaten and kill. Pavel and Ruslan were looking hard for the other agent.

Emma just smiles “right behind you with a grenade ready to throw at you.”

A grenade lands right at their feet and a smoke cloud blocks their vision. Max climbs aboard and starts knocking them out. He wasn’t going to kill them, till he finds out who keeps sending them after them.

“Here’s some rope for you.” Emma tosses Max some rope.

“Thanks!” Max catches it and starts tying each guy up.

Once they were tied up. Max secures the boat they used to get to them to their boat and removes the chain from around the propeller. He and Emma drag one of the guys into the water.

“Wakey-wakey!” Max dunks the guy they put in the water, under.

Valery wakes after he was dunk under the water. He spits out the water that he had a swallow. He couldn’t move his arms. His legs were still
free, but he couldn’t get at the guy in the water with him.

Max looks at the Russian guy as he realizes he is in the water. The only reason he wasn’t underwater, is because Emma was holding a rope tied to his bound hands. She was stopping him from going under.

“Кто послал вас за нами?” Max was speaking in Russian to him.

“Пойди сам себе американскую свинью!”

“Ты не очень умный.” Max nods to Emma as he dunks the guy underwater.

Max holds him underwater for the count of ten and brings him back up.

Valery was trying to keep from drowning as he tries kicking the guy in front of him. He kept missing each time he tried. He is pulled back up as he gasps for air.

“Feel like talking now?” Max was ready to dunk him under again.

The water was his element. This is where he felt alive and comfortable. He just smiles at the guy.

Valery doesn’t respond and holds his breath.

Max punches him in the breadbasket and dunks him under the water.

Valery gasp as water enters his mouth. The guy had punched him in his stomach, causing him to exhale. He starts choking as the water goes
down his throat. He tries to push down, but there was no ground under him. He coughs as he is pulled up for air.

“Последний шанс.” This was going to be his last chance.

Valery looks at Max “Karaulov Nikolay (Kolya) Timofeyevich, he sent us to retrieve the boy and to kill you. He wants the boy.”

“Who is Karaulov Nikolay (Kolya) Timofeyevich?” Max was curious about this guy.

“He’s the Brigadier of the Mkhedrioni Mafia. He wants the boy because he likes children. He also wants the boy dead because gave the FBI information about what happened at the cabin. He’s the only witness left that could testify against him.” Valery knew he was dead.

“Where can I find this Karaulov?” Max wants to make this personal and kill this man.

“172 Cedar Street, East Hampton, New York, You’ll find him there or at the Maxim Caviar Boutique & Bar. He normally conducts business there.” Valery knew he was a dead man now.

“Pull him up, Emma.” Max climbs aboard their boat and helps Emma with Valery.

“Radio ahead Emma and have a team meet us in Granville.” Max heads up to the flybridge after helping Valery inside the boat.

Emma watches Valery as she takes her cellphone out and calls the Memphis office to have them send a team to Granville, Tennessee. She’ll call back to inform them which marina they are docked at. She hangs up and grabs a towel to dry Valery off.

By 8:00 pm they pull into Wildwood Marina. They get two slips. One for the boat and one for the other boat that has the other two sleeping men in it. It takes the Memphis office half-n-hour to meet them. The FBI agents that show-up take the three men away.

Max calls their supervisor and tells them who is behind this whole mess and that he wants in on the capture of Karaulov Nikolay Timofeyevich. He also informs his supervisor. That Emma wants to stay by Sara’s side.The reason she wants to stay, is because Sara has the flu. Emma doesn’t want to leave her side while she is sick.