Bloodline Sidney Sheldon

Those kids are going to die.

 

Deep beneath the waves, Billy Hamlin plucked a fifth oyster shell from the sand. It was cool and peaceful down here, and quite beautiful with the sunlight shining its dappled rays through the water, casting ethereal dancing shadows across the seabed.

The chances of him finding a pea-sized pearl were almost nil. But Billy was enjoying showing off for Toni and the crowd on the beach. He felt at home in the water, confident and strong. In the real world he might be Charles Braemar Murphy’s inferior. But not here, in the wild freedom of the Ocean. Here, he was a king.

Grabbing the oyster tightly in his hand, he began to swim back up towards the light.

 

Wrenching the wheel to the right with all his strength, Charles Braemar-Murphy closed his eyes. The tender banked so sharply, it almost capsized. Clinging on for dear life, Charles heard screams ringing in his ears. Was it the boys’ terror he was hearing, or his own? He couldn’t tell. Salt spray doused him, lashing his face like a razor. The tender was still moving at a terrific speed.

How had it happened so quickly, the shift from happiness to disaster? Only seconds ago he’d been deeply, profoundly happy. And now…

Heart pounding, teeth clenched, Charles Braemar Murphy braced himself for the blow.

 

The crowd on the beach watched open mouthed as the tender careered uncontrollably to the right, further into the shipping lanes.

At first the wake was so huge and the spray so high it was impossible to make out what had happened to the rowboat. But at last it emerged, bobbing wildly but still intact. Two boys could be seen standing inside, waving their arms frantically for rescue.

The relief was overwhelming. People cheered and cried and jumped up and down, hugging one another.

They made it! He missed.

Then, somewhere amongst them, a lone voice screamed.

“Swimmer!”

 

For Toni Giletti, it all happened in slow motion.

She saw Charles swerve. Saw him miss the row boat by inches. For a split second she felt relief, so powerful it made her nauseous. But then Billy Hamlin shot up out of the water like a tornado, directly in the tender’s path. Even if Charles had seen him, there was no way he could have stopped.

The last thing Toni saw was the look of shock on Billy’s handsome face. Then the tender cut off her view.

Someone on the beach screamed.

Charles cut the engine and the tender sputtered to a halt.

Billy Hamlin was gone.

 

 

About the Author

 

The novelist and screenwriter Sidney Sheldon remains one of the world’s top bestselling authors, having sold more than 300 million copies of his books. Are You Afraid of the Dark? was his most recent in a long line of huge hits on bestseller lists everywhere. He is also the only writer to have won an Oscar, a Tony, and an Edgar Award.

 

 

The Guinness Book of World Records heralds him as the most translated author in the world. Sidney Sheldon passed away on January 30, 2007.

 

 

 

 

 

Books By Sidney Sheldon

 

Fiction

 

 

The Tides of Memory

Angel of the Dark

After the Darkness

Mistress of the Game

Are You Afraid of the Dark

The Sky is Falling

Tell Me Your Dreams

The Best Laid Plans

Morning, Noon & Night

Nothing Lasts Forever

The Stars Shine Down

The Doomsday Conspiracy

Memories of Midnight

The Sands of Time

Windmills of the Gods

If Tomorrow Comes

Master of the Game

Rage of Angels

Bloodline

A Stranger in the Mirror

The Other Side of Midnight

The Naked Face

 

 

Praise

 

“Exotic, confident, knowledgeable, mysterious, romantic…a story to be quickly and robustly told and pleasurably consumed.”

—Los Angeles Times

 

 

“A blood-chilling tour de force. Readers will be dazzled by Sheldon, who weaves a rich tapestry of violence, romance, power plays and international intrigue.”

—Hollywood Press

 

 

“Fast, furious, fascinating, superbly entertaining and once begun, utterly impossible to put down.”

—Fort Worth Telegram

 

 

“A tale that captures the reader on the first page and keeps him glued…until the very last gasp, because he builds conflict on conflict and casts of flamboyant, colorful, richer-than-Croesus characters who leap from bed to boardroom to continents and capitals with the ease of a trapeze artist.”