by McKenna Dean
It didn’t move when I reached for it with splayed fingers.
The wolves closed in with lowered heads and lips peeled back to reveal every tooth in their mouths. A thin stream of drool trailed from the mouth of the wolf wearing the Picasso.
The terrier sprang into the middle of the circling wolves, placing himself between me and the pack.
The little dog looked back at me over his shoulder, and I felt him willing me to get it. To put together the pieces. Somehow, in that instant, I knew what to do.
“Samson,” I whispered.
The tag on the terrier’s collar flipped from DELILAH to SAMSON and I swear the dog grinned at me. His tongue lolled in an expression of utter delight before the skin on his face rippled in a subtle wave. His tail elongated, lashing from side to side. His snout lengthened, and then the hair on his muzzle gave way to scales as his teeth grew larger and his pupils changed from round dots to reptilian slits. Brown irises morphed into gold, and the little paws shifted into three-toed feet sporting enormous talons as his body grew in size.
The wolves collided into each other in an effort to stop their forward charge as the dog blocking their path turned into a giant, teeth-gnashing reptile. One of them shrieked like a puppy as Samson roared a defiant challenge. The hair went up along the back of my neck and arms at the sound.
I blinked as wolf-shifters turned and ran, with Samson-the-lizard in hot pursuit, knocking aside boulders as big as my head without hesitation as he scrambled out of the cavern. No. Not a lizard. I recognized his species from my Sunday afternoons at the Museum of Natural History. First identified in 1924 by Henry Field Osborne, the creature had been named Velociraptor by the scientist.
I’d just seen my first dog-shifter. And he was a freaking dinosaur.
Thank goodness, he appeared to be on my side. For now. But perhaps it would be best to be somewhere else upon his return.
I picked up the ray gun, which was still cool, but perhaps it needed more time to recharge.
Stepping on a sharp stone, for the first time I noticed the condition of my feet. Cut, bruised, and battered, it was a wonder I’d gotten this far without falling down. My stockings hung in tatters, doing more harm than good, and I tore them off. I needed to find something to use as a sort of makeshift slipper and go after Knight.
The torchlight sputtered and flickered, casting a beam on something that glimmered behind a large vase. A pair of ruby pumps with short, manageable heels, sturdy bows, and thousands of red sequins sparkled up at me.
Miracle of miracles, they fit. Almost as if molded to my feet. I didn’t care if they were part of Redclaw’s cache or stolen from one of the local estates. All that mattered was that they protected my feet.
The air was close in the narrow passage. If not for the feeble light cast from the electrical system, it would have been impossible to navigate. As it was, the walls had crumbled in places, depositing piles of rubble I had to scramble over. Margo and Knight couldn’t be that far ahead, yet I heard nothing but my own ragged breathing as I fought a rising panic. The walls seemed to push in on me, and more than once, I barked my shins on an outcropping of stone, or fell against the dank walls, scraping my knuckles.
Where were they? If I didn’t catch up to them before they reached Knight’s car, the chances of rescuing him were slim to none.
I came to a fork in the passage, one I did not remember from my earlier rambles with Tommy. To the left, the tunnel curved around a bend toward the main house, the electric bulbs weaving in a drunken line along the rock walls as far as the eye could see. The fork to the right was black as pitch. As I stood between the two branches, a damp wind flickered in from the right, ruffling my hair and bringing with it a hint of salt air. Someone must have dug this passage since I was here last, and it opened out somewhere on the estate.
I hesitated. Creating a new tunnel had to have been a tremendous undertaking, one that took someone with a lot of resources and manpower. But if the organization Margo worked for had decided another entrance was necessary, one that didn’t cross over exposed estate grounds or exit into the house library, then it wouldn’t have been impossible. The Stanfords were away from the estate for much of the year. A dedicated team could get the job done in a matter of weeks. Provided Stanford Senior wasn’t behind HADES in the first place.
No matter who built it or why. The real question was, which way should I go?
Logic dictated they took the lighted path, since it would come out the closest to Knight’s car and have the advantage of putting a locking door between them and any followers. A breeze brushed my cheek, and I saw the fluttering movement of intact cobwebs along the lit tunnel. The almost imperceptible barrier across the passageway told me what I needed to know.
They didn’t go that way.
I plunged into the dark tunnel.
Cold blackness enveloped me, threatening to smother, save for the promise of an exit ahead. Without warning, I walked straight into a large boulder. Patting the chilled stone with my hands, I found the opening off to one side and ducked within. Far ahead, a faint gleam of moonlight pointed the way out. The passage was narrow and rough-hewn. I had to navigate by touch. An eternity passed before I reached the opening, bursting through the brush covering the exit to gulp deep breaths of cool air, relieved to be above ground once more.
I’d come out behind the house, on the far side of the tennis courts. From here, anyone could reach the road bordering the estate without difficulty. No doubt Tommy had unlatched the workman’s gate to allow HADES access. I hesitated. Would it be best to try to intercept Margo and Knight before they reached the car, or cut across the estate and set up an ambush where they least expected it?
A light bobbed ahead in the woods like a lovesick firefly. No longer certain I could make it back to the car before they did, I ran toward it.
I heard Knight before I caught up with them. His sarcastic griping carried over the quiet night noises. I didn’t know if he intended to make it easy for someone to follow them or if he was just being his usual prickly self, but it was the sweetest sound I’d ever heard.
“You won’t get away with this, you know.”
“For God’s sake, shut up.” Margo, I was happy to hear, was out of breath. “I have the goods, and I have you. If you’d played your cards right, this could have been a partnership.”
“The way you partnered with young Stanford? Forgive me, but you seem all too ready to jettison that relationship at the first opportunity. Literally.”
“Tommy was a means to an end.” Margo hustled Knight along. “He’s no longer useful. For his sake, he’d better not cross my path again.”
Through the trees, the stone wall of the estate loomed. As I’d suspected, they headed toward the workman’s gate. Once they reached the road, it would be impossible for me to follow without being seen. I still didn’t have a clue how I would stop Margo from driving off with Knight. At least she didn’t know the ray gun wasn’t working. All I needed was the element of surprise.
No sooner had I thought the words, then a series of flashlights came on all at once, pinning Margo and Knight as though they were attempting to escape from Stalag 17. I dove behind a tree, pressing into the rough bark in the hope no one had spotted me. After a moment of frozen silence, now sure no one had seen me, I peered around the edge at the scene taking place.
Margo squinted into the light, maintaining her grip on Knight’s arm as she covered him with her weapon. “Who goes there? What do you want?”
“Brave words.” The lazy voice sent a chill up the back of my neck. “I might ask you the same.”
“Arturo. Good, you’re here.” To my ear, Margo sounded more nervous than relieved, but perhaps that was just wishful thinking. “Just in time.”
“Funny. I was just saying the same to the boys, here. Wasn’t I, boys?”
A menacing chuckle, even more threatening for the invisible sources, echoed in the woods blocking the path to the road.
“Who’s t
he boyfriend?” Arturo lit a cigarette, the bright spurt of the match flared, highlighting a handsome, if somewhat brutish face. He drew on the gasper, causing the end to glow a bright orange-red for a moment.
“Let me introduce the no longer esteemed but still brilliant Dr. Peter Knight. I was on my way to deliver him to you, as promised.”
“Really?” Knight’s sneer was his supercilious best. “I was under the impression you were on your way—”
His words ended with a grunt as she shoved the gun muzzle into his ribcage.
“Let the doc talk. I’d like to hear what he has to say. A little bird told me you haven’t been playing square with us, Nancy.”
Nancy? Seriously, how many names did this woman have?
“You’d believe some malicious rumor over me? You know me.” She lifted her chin in defiance, and her gun wavered from its steady press against Knight’s side, angling toward the glow of the cigarette. Knight tracked the movement with his eyes and then went back to squinting straight ahead.
“That’s just it. I do know you. Where’s the goods?”
“In a safe place.” Margo snapped. “Not far from here. If you’d just—”
“What’s in the bag?” An ominous tone underlined Arturo’s voice, a hair-raising threat that was even more chilling for its seemingly benign inquiry.
“The bag?” Margo repeated, and her free hand slid back to the shoulder strap of the duffle. “Oh. I was bringing you some samples. The best of the artifacts, so to speak.”
The end of the cigarette burned redder. Arturo dropped his smoke and ground it out with his shoe. “I heard you were planning to sell to the highest bidder.”
“That’s ridiculous.” She did a remarkable job of hiding her fear. I’ll say that much. Anger masked any wobble her voice might have had. “I secured the goods. I saw an opportunity to get you Dr. Knight, and I took it. Yes, word about the artifacts must have gotten out. We ran into wolf-shifters earlier. I suspect they followed Peter.” In a move so subtle I almost missed it, she rotated her hand so she aimed her gun at the spot where Arturo stood just outside the light. “But as to attempting to sell the artifacts behind your back? I wouldn’t be that stupid.”
“No.” Arturo sounded almost regretful. “I wouldn’t have thought so. What I don’t understand is how you thought you’d get away with it.”
Margo’s hand jerked, but it was too late. The spurt of gunfire flared like little bolts of lightning from the dark stand of trees, the noise covering the involuntary gasp I made. I was certain the pounding of my heart would give my position away, even as I kept my eyes glued to the scene. Despite the seeming barrage of bullets, the unseen gunman’s aim was true. Margo slumped to the ground without a sound, leaving Knight quivering where he stood. I pressed a knuckle into my mouth to quell any sound, horrified at what I’d just witnessed.
Knight’s breath came in sharp huffs. His shock was plain to see as he gaped at Margo where she lay crumpled at his feet.
“Dr. Knight. If you would be so kind as to collect the bag and come with me?” Arturo spoke as if he were inviting Knight to join him for a drink on the patio. Knight stared at him a long moment before leaning down to pick up the duffle. His movements were jerky with stunned disbelief, but he complied. Really, what choice did Knight have?
I remained where I was, chest heaving with the effort of suppressing the instinct to bolt away from the clearing. Trembling, I watched as Knight tugged at the bag, removing it from beneath Margo’s body with some difficulty before he joined Arturo at the line of trees.
I did nothing as Arturo’s men swung their flashlights away from the scene of death and picked their way back toward the road where, no doubt, they had a car waiting.
Arturo’s men grossly outnumbered me. The ray gun was dead, and even if it worked, there were serious limitations on its range that Arturo’s well-armed men didn’t face. There was no way I could save Knight now. As long as Knight was worth something to them, Arturo and his men would keep him alive. But why, oh why hadn’t I contacted Ryker the moment I knew the artifacts were in the area? Or given Knight the ladybug pin when I had the chance? At least we’d be able to track him then. I had no choice now but to let HADES—or whatever dangerous organization employed Arturo—take Knight away and hope somehow I’d be able to find him.
I had to go for help.
I waited until there was no longer any bobbing movement of flashlights in the woods before I dashed forward into the clearing. With shaking knees, I dropped to the bed of pine needles carpeting the ground and felt around with my hands. I knew Knight wouldn’t fail me. He had to know I was his only hope of escape. Once Arturo shot Margo, Knight had few options, and therefore would plan accordingly.
The moon came out from behind the clouds and bathed Margo’s body in a dread, cold light. I’d never seen anyone dead up close before, not even my father. The casual violence of her murder was unnerving. It must have been even worse for Knight, who’d been standing next to her. Had he moved even a fraction of an inch he’d have been a casualty as well.
Something glinted in the leaf litter beside Margo. My grin was surely triumphant when my fingers closed on the car keys Knight had dropped during the confrontation with Arturo. No doubt hoping I was following and would stop at the sight of Margo’s body. Snatching them up, I scrabbled to my feet and turned to find myself surrounded. I never even heard them coming.
Moonlight cast an eerie illumination on the odd assortment of beings facing me. A silver wolf, bigger than the ones I’d battled before. A leopard, whose spotted coat blended in with the shadows cast by the foliage. As I stared, a Great Horned Owl glided in on soundless wings at least six feet wide to land in a nearby tree. And though my heart dropped to my red ruby slippers, I held my ground as a great brown bear stepped forward, opened his massive jaws, and roared at me.
Clutching the car keys in one hand and the ray gun in the other, I said with as much calm as I could muster, “Redclaw, I presume?”
Chapter Twenty
The bear shook his head and sneezed for good measure, which I took to be agreement. I pointed toward the road. “They took Knight that way. They’re armed and dangerous.”
The leopard hissed, baring long teeth that gleamed in the moonlight. The owl hooted in derision, and the bear merely huffed, stamping its massive paws as it stomped up and down in place. The ray gun warmed in my grip as I waved it toward the road. “Let’s go.”
The owl flew off ahead of us in ghostly silence as it glided through the woods. The wolf and the leopard raced ahead, disappearing out of sight when they went in divergent directions. Even the bear, which I assumed would be slow and pondering, left me in the dust, demonstrating how those massive hindquarters could power through the brush.
I ran as fast as I could behind them.
Bursting through the workman’s gate onto the road, I took stock of the raging battle before I plunged in. Shouts of dismay preceded reckless gunfire as Arturo’s men retreated toward the big Cadillac parked by the side of the road. If they’d had any sense, they’d just dive into the car and drive off, but they’d waited too long. The large owl swept in to rake dangerous talons at their faces, and it was impossible for the gunmen to draw a bead on it as the bird of prey weaved in and out of the melee. The bear bounced on the hood of the car with both front feet until it caved in and the windshield cracked. I crept up on the gunman about to shoot the bear and stunned him with the ray gun, sending up silent thanks it had at least enough juice for that setting again. The leopard bowled over the man who’d been about to shoot me in retaliation, but yowled in pain when a bullet scored its flanks. That gunman went down with a gurgling scream as the wolf leapt in with slashing teeth.
Shouts and rapid gunfire drew my attention to the appearance of a giant praying mantis in the middle of the road, pulling a smile from me despite the circumstances. They never should have left Knight alone with the duffle bag. While Arturo’s henchmen concentrated their fire on the illusion, I sn
uck up to the back of the car. If I could get close enough, I could take out the shooters with the ray gun and free Knight.
It was a good plan. It should have worked. The team from Redclaw distracted Arturo’s men. Another few feet and I’d be in position. But I didn’t account for the alertness of Arturo’s crew, or the rapidity with which they realized the mantis was a hoax. Knight got clipped with a right hook for his trouble and went to his knees, rubbing his jaw. His eyes tracked me as I crossed the moonlit road to get into place. Some sixth sense must have alerted the man who’d hit Knight to look behind, and he shouted a warning when he saw me. Wavering blue rings of light struck him where he stood, but two other men whipped around to target me. In that split second, I knew I couldn’t take them both down. I fired, holding my breath as the rings made their way through space and time toward their objective, but both men were in position to shoot, and just one collapsed. That left the other shooter poised to take me out.
A wall of heat came between me and the gunman as Ryker, in Phoenix form, descended. Wings extended to protect me, and a being of fury and light landed between me and certain death. His hooked beak opened in a cry of rage that was terrifying to behold. I imagined what the shepherds with their flocks had felt when the Angel of the Lord appeared to them. Orange, purple, and blue-tinged flames radiated off Ryker as he shielded me, and I almost fell to my knees and covered my eyes.
The gunman wasn’t as reverent. With an inarticulate cry, he fired his weapon, pumping lead into Ryker’s body, which jerked and shuddered. The flames went out; the Phoenix transformed back into a man wearing a skinsuit, and Ryker toppled to the ground.
