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  “Say no more,” Rossolatos said, kneeling beside her. He drew a gun from the holster at his waist and fired. Nancy cringed at the noise, but the barrage of shots sent Mashti and Shara scrambling behind the Sea Star.

  But what about Rashid? Nancy thought frantically. It was a long shot, but she decided to shoot off one more flare. Quickly she reloaded the gun, stepped beside the boulder, and shot a flare toward the mouth of the cave.

  The flare made it inside the entrance, and an echoing blast followed. A moment later Nancy saw Rashid crawl out of the cave entrance. He was firing a machine gun!

  Nancy dived for cover, silently praying that the plan had worked. Behind her, half a dozen boats closed in on the shoreline. Rossolatos was speaking into a walkie-talkie, updating the other police and Interpol officers.

  A shower of gunfire tore along the beach, chasing Rashid and ripping holes into the hull of the boat where Shara and Mashti were hiding. The terrorists were clearly outnumbered.

  Within minutes the threesome surrendered, marching onto the open beach with their hands over their heads. Nancy watched as they were handcuffed and loaded onto a police boat.

  Weak with relief, Nancy dropped the flare gun in the sand. “I need to find out if my friends made it out,” she told Officer Rossolatos, anxiously pointing toward the rocky ridge. “Can one of the police boats give me a lift?”

  Nancy was escorted onto a launch, which sped over the water, circling the point. Immediately she spotted the borrowed fishing boat anchored in the cove. Zoe and Bess were pacing along the beach.

  “Still no sign of them,” Zoe reported as Nancy waded ashore. “What was all that gunfire?”

  When Nancy told them what had happened, Bess widened her eyes in terror. “Oh, Nancy, what if they don’t make it!”

  “They will,” Nancy said, hugging Bess. She only hoped she was right!

  The three girls waited in silence, staring into the clear pond that disappeared into the tunnel. Minutes dragged on, and Nancy thought the waiting would never end. Then, at last, she saw the silhouettes of swimmers coming through the dark mouth of the rock tunnel.

  “It’s George!” Bess squealed. “And Kevin! They’re back!” She raced into the pond.

  A moment later George and Kevin emerged from the water, pushing back their snorkel masks. Their clothes were clinging to them, but to Nancy, it was the best sight she had seen in her life.

  “You had me scared sick!” Bess said, throwing her arms around her cousin.

  Nancy was right behind Bess. “Thank goodness you’re safe!” she said, hugging George and Kevin. Then she turned to Mick and Theo, who were just emerging from the water and taking off their masks.

  “You guys are true heroes,” Nancy said. She squeezed Theo’s arm and gave Mick a big kiss.

  “We can’t take all the glory,” Mick said, gazing down into Nancy’s eyes. “We wouldn’t have been able to get them out if you hadn’t had the guts to go into the cave with that flare gun.”

  “That was amazing,” George agreed. “One minute we were sitting there, doomed. The next minute there were rockets zipping through the cave.”

  “Thanks for saving us, guys,” Kevin told the group. “After this I’ll be happy to get back to the tame world of a TV sports announcer.”

  “After this week we’ll all be ready for something tame,” Bess said.

  “Well,” Theo said, folding his arms, “is anyone interested in some snorkeling lessons?”

  Officer Rossolatos had asked the teens to remain on the scene until the police report was complete. Relieved that the terrorists had been captured, the group didn’t mind hanging around.

  At one point Nancy noticed George and Kevin stealing off for a private moment. A few minutes later they hugged, then separated. Kevin joined Mick and Theo, who were talking with Officer Rossolatos. George came over and sat next to Nancy on a boulder in the shade.

  “Looks like you two were having a heart-to-heart,” Nancy told her friend.

  “About our relationship,” George admitted, sitting down beside Nancy.

  “And . . .?” Nancy prodded.

  There was a thoughtful expression in George’s brown eyes as she cupped her chin in her hands. “You know that Kevin has to report to Madrid on Sunday, right?”

  Nancy nodded.

  “Well,” George continued, “his job keeps him on the road a lot. It’s been bugging me for a while. I think we both need to be free to see other people.” She let out a sigh. “I’m nuts about Kevin—you know that. But he’s going to be on assignment in Europe for quite a while. I just think that we both need our freedom right now.”

  “How’s Kevin taking it?” Nancy asked gently.

  George shrugged. “He’s not crazy about the idea, but he understands.”

  Nancy nodded sympathetically. The news of George’s decision reminded Nancy that she faced a huge choice of her own. And suddenly her decision was crystal clear.

  “Mail call!” Zoe shouted as she ran down the path to the hotel beach. It was Saturday morning, and Nancy and her friends had decided to spend the day lazing around at the inn. Theo, George, and Kevin were windsurfing just offshore, and Nancy, Mick, and Bess were stretched out on beach towels.

  “Two letters from the States,” Zoe said, handing envelopes to Nancy and Bess.

  “News from the homefront,” Bess said, tearing open a letter from her mother.

  When Nancy saw the return address on her letter, she decided to read it later. She tucked it into her tote bag.

  It was from Ned. No matter what the letter said, Nancy knew that Ned was only part of the reason for her decision not to marry Mick. Her adventures in Europe had taught her one important thing about herself: She thrived on independence. Marriage involved a commitment—a giant step that she wasn’t ready to take. Right now she needed to be free to explore everything life had to offer.

  The only bad part was that she had really fallen for Mick.

  Nancy looked up as Zoe and Bess jumped up and ran into the water. Now that she and Mick were alone, she knew it was time to tell him what was on her mind.

  “We need to talk,” she told him, sitting up.

  “Fire away,” Mick said. He propped himself up on his elbows and faced her.

  “About getting married,” Nancy began, then paused when a rush of emotion nearly overwhelmed her. Tears stung her eyes as she looked over at Mick. “I—I’m just not ready, Mick. I’m crazy about you, but I’m not ready to make that kind of commitment, and leave my friends and father and—”

  “Shhh,” Mick whispered, gently placing a finger over Nancy’s lips. “You don’t have to explain. I understand.”

  He stared into Nancy’s eyes for a moment, stroking her cheek. “I have to admit, I wish it weren’t so. The door is always open, Nancy. Remember that. I’ll never forget you.” He reached into his knapsack and pulled out his wallet. Opening it, he showed Nancy a picture. “See?”

  It was the photo Dimitri had taken of them the day they had arrived on Mykonos.

  “It’s a picture of us—and not a very good one,” Nancy teased.

  “What do you mean?” Mick said, taking a closer look at the photo. “I look spectacular!”

  Just then everyone charged onto the beach and dragged Nancy and Mick into the water. A water battle ensued. Finally Nancy, Bess, and George managed to untangle themselves and head for the beach, leaving the others in the water.

  “We noticed some heavy conversation going on,” Bess said as she toweled off. “Did you decide about getting married?”

  Nancy took a deep breath, then told her best friends about her decision.

  “Wow,” George said. “I mean, I’m glad you’re not moving to the other side of the planet, but are you sure you’re all right?”

  “Don’t feel bad, you two,” Bess said, throwing her arms around Nancy and George.

  Nancy smiled weakly. “Even though I know it’s the right choice, it will still be hard to say goodbye,” she said.
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  “I know what you mean,” George agreed.

  “But soon we’ll be back in the States,” Bess pointed out. “And there’s just something irresistible about All-American guys. . . .”

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen