Dark Sentinel: Book one in the Sentinel Series

by Adam Matlow

  Amara pressed down harder, and Marcus couldn’t help but let out a cry of pain. A wide grin crossed Davon’s face. “I recommend you be honest with me, or else Amara here will start removing bits of you. Now, where’s the girl?”

  Marcus spat out another mouthful of blood. “What’s she to you?” he asked.

  “I ask the questions,” snapped Davon. He flashed a glance to Amara, who dug the blade deeper into his arm. The pain made him light-headed, he was on the verge of passing out.

  “Last chance. Where is she?”

  How long since he left Vana at the truck? It was daytime now, so it must have been a few hours at least. If she had any sense she would be long gone by now. He wouldn’t wish Davon on his worst enemy, he’d just have to hope she’d left while she could. He was quite attached to his arm, and he’d like to keep it that way.

  “She’s hiding on the outskirts of town, I was coming to get supplies when Hudson’s collection of inbred monkeys jumped me.”

  Hudson rifled through some papers on his desk and produced a map of the area. He brought it over to where Marcus was sitting. With his finger, he pointed to a spot nowhere near where he left Vana.

  “There,” he said. “I left her there.”

  Davon didn’t look at the map, instead, he pushed it to one side. Hudson backed away silently.

  “We already found your vehicle,” said Davon, “She was nowhere to be found.”

  Marcus saw an opportunity.

  I’ll make myself useful to you.

  “I don’t know where she’s gone,” blurted Marcus. “I told her to stay put and wait with the truck until I got back.”

  “And what exactly were your plans for when you returned?”

  We were going to hide out in the Badlands, find an abandoned building and hole up in there until this all blew over.” he lied.

  “What did she tell you about herself?” Davon asked. He brought his face down close and flashed his teeth. Marcus reeled back as Davon’s hot breath hit his face.

  “Nothing, she barely spoke, it’s almost as if she’d never spoken to anyone before.”

  At least that much was true.

  Davon considered what had been said for a few seconds before he spoke, “I have heard enough.” He glanced at Amara and nodded. She released his wrist, which was now covered in blood from where the blade had cut into his skin. His relief was short lived when he saw Amara raise her blade, ready to land a killing blow.

  He jolted back in the chair and strained against the ropes binding him. He turned his head and winced. “Good luck finding her without me,” he spurted out desperately. “I know the Badlands, I know all the places she could hide. Let me live and I’ll help you find her.”

  The first chance I get, I’m gone.

  Amara grabbed Marcus by the hair and pulled his head up. He hoped he’d done enough to convince Davon. If not, at least it would be over quickly.

  Davon stared at him, a strange grin on his face. He grabbed Marcus’s head and tilted it to one side as if he was examining him. After what felt like an eternity, he released him and put his hand on Amara’s shoulder. She lowered the sword and sheathed it.

  “Perhaps you are right, you could be of some further use to me,” said Davon as he turned to leave the room. “Amara, I’ll leave this in your hands. Do not fail me again.” Amara showed no outward sign of concern from his barely veiled threat.

  “Davon,” called Hudson, “I hope I have proven to be of some use in this situation,” he said, the confidence in his voice betrayed by his body language. “I already have men out looking for the girl.”

  Davon stopped in his tracks, and promptly turned and strode back over to Hudson. He grabbed his shirt with both hands lifting him so he was at Davon’s eye level, who was quite a bit taller. Hudson was not a small man by any means but the apparent ease at which he was lifted surprised everyone in the room. Clifton, who normally would have rushed to his boss’s aid, stood rooted to the spot, his eyes darting between Davon and Hudson and the two men by the doorway. He shifted his feet back and forth but made no attempt to intervene.

  “Listen to me very carefully, I want the girl alive,” growled Davon.

  “Should one of your half-witted men hurt her I will have Amara remove your head and have it displayed on a spike at the main gates. You, as well as anyone you may care for.” Davon glanced at the photograph on the desk. Hudson swallowed hard and remained silent. Davon released his grip and he crumpled to the floor. He didn’t try to get up but instead backed into the corner.

  Amara swung the sword towards Marcus, who flinched, before realising the target was the ropes binding him to the chair. He really wished people would stop doing that to him. The remains of the rope fell away and Amara yanked Marcus out of the chair, jammed the cold, hard barrel of her gun into his back and pushed him through the doorway towards the exit. She wasn’t taking any chances this time.

  She marched him outside and the Humvee, now repaired, sat waiting for them. The dents from his previous run-in with it were clearly visible. Clifton was muttering to himself, kicking up dirt as he walked along behind him. He was red-faced, perhaps because he hadn’t been allowed to rough Marcus up. They marched out into the morning glare, broken glass cracked under his feet. He stopped, and turned to Clifton, shooting him a look which said, better luck next time.

  Marcus braced himself for the inevitable, taking all his remaining willpower not to duck out of the way as Clifton’s fist hit him in the gut. He went down. He laughed through the pain, tears blurring his vision.

  Totally worth it.

  Amara came to his aid and dragged him up by his shirt. She gave Clifton a look which conveyed it would be a bad idea to try that again. Clifton, on the other hand, seemed to have gotten it out of his system and was grinning at Marcus.

  “You’re a dead man anyway,” he snorted. “Enjoy what’s left of your miserable life.”

  “Why Clifton, I didn’t know you cared,” Marcus retorted, blowing him a kiss.

  Clifton raised his fist but was stopped by the point of Amara’s sword at his neck. He lifted his hands in surrender and backed away, grinning at Marcus as he drew a line across his neck with his finger.

  Marcus was loaded into the back of the Humvee and his hands were once again tied together with a thick rope. The two heavies that escorted Davon were also in the Humvee and they looked much more able and well trained than her previous companion. It would be harder to slip away from these guys. But still, every second he was alive was one more than he would have had. He needed to use his time wisely.

  Marcus intended to wait until night time before he made his move. It was still early in the morning, so he would have to string them along for a few hours until dusk. Amara finally spoke to ask Marcus where they should start looking. By now, Vana would have a full day’s head start on them. He asked to see a map and found an area he knew to be a day’s walk away, in the opposite direction to anywhere anyone sane would want to go. It was an area he knew well, and one where he felt he would have the best chance of escape. It was also several hours drive, which was a welcome way of using up some of the daylight hours.

  ◆◆◆

  Marcus made sure to make them stop every few miles to check an area where he said Vana might be hiding. It was wasting their time, and more importantly making the heavies riding along with them restless and impatient. Even the unflappable Amara started to show some irritation. This served his purpose well; they would be more prone to make mistakes which gave him more of a chance. He wouldn’t be able to keep this up for much longer, there was bound to be a limit to her patience and he didn’t want to be around her when it ran out.

  Finally, they reached the area where Marcus wanted to make his move. Dusk painted the sky a deep shade of purple. Out here with no artificial lights, it would be pitch black, even the light from the moon would be dim; scattered by the dust in the air.

  The path was too difficult to navigate at night, and Marcus argued Vana would
spot the headlights from the Humvee from miles away and would easily be able to avoid them. He convinced them it would be best to stop here for the night, as Vana surely would not travel in the dark.

  Amara turned in her seat and unholstered her gun. She leaned into the back where Marcus was sitting and pushed the gun into his kneecap.

  “If this is a trick, you’ll be sorry,” she said, digging the gun into him. “I won’t kill you, but you’ll wish I had when I deliver you to Davon. That is unless the girl takes your place.”

  They parked the vehicle beside a crumbling building. The two guards got out and secured the perimeter whilst Amara built a small fire. Marcus was kept locked in the back of the Humvee, his hands tied at the wrists. He tried to pull the knots apart with his teeth when the guards were not looking, but they were too tight.

  Amara kept her distance from the fire and her eyes on the horizon, ever alert. Occasionally one of the guards checked on Marcus. He pretended to be asleep, hoping they'd eventually tire and become careless.

  The doors to the Humvee were locked, but he had an idea on how he might deal with that. He coughed and heaved to attract the attention of one of the guards. After a while of listening to him retching in the back, one of them came over to find out what all the commotion was about.

  “What’s up with you?” the guard asked,

  “I need water,” spluttered Marcus through fake coughs.

  The guard took a water bottle from his belt and held it to Marcus’s lips, before squirting it onto his face.

  “That’s all you’re getting, make the most of it,” said the guard with an irritation in his voice. Marcus took his opportunity. Before the guard could slam the door shut, he wedged his boot into the frame of the door to prevent it from closing. The guard, who had already started to walk away, turned around a puzzled look on his face. He returned to the Humvee and reached out to slam the door shut again. With all his strength Marcus kicked the door, which swung out and caught the guard on the head. He staggered around for a few seconds, dazed, before Marcus dove out of the seat, knocking him over. The guard hit the ground with a thud, moaned and rolled over. He nursed his head as he tried to regain his footing. Marcus kicked out, catching the downed guard in the chest, knocking the wind from him, turned and ran into the darkness.

  His escape attempt lasted precisely fifteen seconds before he was brought to the ground tackled by the second guard. Moments later he was looking up the length of Amara’s sword, its point dug sharply into his chest.

  “Pathetic,” she spat. “I expected as much.” She pulled her sword away and pointed it at the guard, still catching his breath.

  “You. Tie him up, and make sure you do it properly this time or you’ll have me to answer to.”

  His legs were tied, the rope cut deep into his skin. He considered protesting, but he knew they'd only tighten them out of spite. He winced as his hands were tied behind his back. The guards took a hold of him, each grabbing an arm and led him back to the Humvee.

  “We’re heading back to the Forge,” Amara stated as Marcus was dragged across the dusty ground.

  “It’s obvious you were never going to lead us to the girl. She’s nowhere near here is she?” Amara glared at Marcus and continued, “Davon will not be pleased you have deceived him. You can forget any hope you may have had for a quick death. He likes to make an example out of people like you. Failures.”

  There was nothing much Marcus could say in response, he would be watched like a hawk from now on. He would be thrown in front of Davon and god knows what he would do to him. He tried not to think about all the terrible things in store for him, but his mind tormented him with all the possibilities.

  Marcus hit the ground in front of the Humvee, whilst one of the guards went to open the door to get him in. The other guard maintained a tight grip on his shoulder.

  “Sorry about the head,” said Marcus, gesturing towards the bandage wrapped around the guard’s head. “No hard feelings eh?”

  His head hit the metal framework of the Humvee, and a wave of dizziness came over him.

  The faintest hint of a smile crossed the guard's face.

  A loud bang and the crack of breaking glass broke the silence. The grip on his shoulder was released and he fell to the ground, cracking his knees in the process.

  The body of the guard hit the floor next to him, a bullet hole in his temple. Marcus gagged, and dove for cover. Shots rang out as the remaining guard fired blindly into the night. The attackers returned the favour and a bullet ricocheted off the ground a few feet from Marcus. He felt a sharp burning pain in his left shoulder. He’d been hit. Instincts wanted him to put pressure on the wound, but with his hands still tied behind his back, it was impossible.

  He wormed his way across the ground towards a large boulder and curled up behind it, pulling himself against it to get out of the line of fire.

  The commotion in the distance drew closer.

  Bandits. It must be, nobody else would be crazy enough to attack the Legion. Whoever it was, they’d caused enough of a distraction that he might be able to escape. He started to crawl away from the battle, inching through the dust on his hands and knees. A hand appeared from out of the darkness and grabbed his legs.

  “Not so fast,” huffed Amara, as she dragged him away from the firefight. “You’re not getting off that easily.”

  “In case you haven’t noticed we’re being shot at. Untie me, give me a gun, it’s our only chance to get out of this in one piece.”

  “You must think me a fool.” She cocked her gun and pressed it against Marcus’s head. The muzzle was still hot and it burned as it pressed into his skin.

  “No comment,” he said flatly.

  She pulled the pistol from his head and shot several times into the night. There was a yelp as someone went down in pain. More shots rained on their position.

  “Good shot! Can I have a go now?”

  Amara reeled around. “I have two bullets left,” she said. “Should they overrun us, one is for you the other is for me.”

  “You know, I’m starting to think you don’t like me.”

  She ignored him and called to the second guard. “Cover me.”

  The man acknowledged her command with a nod. To Marcus’s surprise, he stood and unloaded his clip into the darkness. He made an easy target.

  That’s crazy, he’s committing suicide!

  Amara used the distraction to reposition herself out of the line of fire. She dragged Marcus along with her by the legs, and for once Marcus didn’t resist. Wherever she was going it was safer than where they were. It must have taken an immense amount of strength to drag him, but she managed to get to the front of the Humvee, putting the engine block in between them and the bullets flying towards them.

  There was a scream, followed by silence as the second guard was hit. He tried to move but didn’t get far before he was hit several more times. His body slumped to the ground, leaving a smear of blood on the Humvee door.

  The gunfire stopped. In the distance people yelled commands at each other. Weapons clacked as they were reloaded and somewhere in the darkness came the moans of someone who had been shot.

  “So, this is how it must be,” Amara said, pointing the gun at Marcus’s head.

  “Wait, wait!” cried Marcus. “I have several ideas, many of them much better than murder-suicide.” He braced himself for the shot. At least it would be quicker than anything Davon had in store for him. Perhaps he had gotten off lightly.

  There was a high-pitched whine. The hairs on Marcus’s neck stood on end and a tingling sensation rippled across his skin. A bright flash startled Marcus and left streaks across his vision. This was followed by a crackle and the smell of burning.

  Marcus squinted through one eye to find someone stood over the unconscious body of Amara.

  “Holy shit it works!”

  The woman pulled down the bandana covering her face. It was Kali and she was holding a bizarre looking weapon. About the length of
a rifle and covered in wires and batteries. Smoke rose from the barrel which glowed red hot.

  “Managed to get yourself shot then I see.”

  Marcus grimaced as he slumped back to the ground. He took a few deep breaths and tried to steady his nerves.

  Kali shouted over for a med kit and she was handed a small green box, battered and scratched from years of use. She pulled out some wadding and a haemostatic agent and applied it to Marcus’s shoulder.

  “I’m no medic, but this should hold you over until we can get back to camp,” Kali said. Activity around the camp became more frenzied as the dead were collected and the wounded helped into waiting vehicles.

  “We’re part of the underground,” Kali stated, after seeing the confusion on Marcus’s face. “The rest of my people are still tied up with the Legion back in New Hope.”

  Marcus had heard of the underground. At least the rumours. A group of people who opposed Davon and the Legion, fighting back wherever they could. Supposedly they attacked Legion forces, stole supplies and generally made themselves a thorn in the Legions side. It was hard to get any real information though, as the Legion controlled access to information. Their propaganda had people believing everything was just fine.

  “What are you doing here?”, asked Marcus, “Not that I’m complaining of course.”

  “Long story. I’ll fill you in later. You’re welcome by the way.” She looked at the unconscious Amara.

  A truck pulled up and Kali helped Marcus across to it.

  “Wait, what about her?” he said, pointing to Amara.

  “She’s coming with us. We need her alive.”

  “Please, can I be the one to tie her up?” asked Marcus. “Payback.”

  “You’re in no condition to do anything. Just get in the damn truck.”

  Kali jumped into the front seat next to the driver and Marcus was helped into the back seat.

  “Are we going to New Hope?”

  “Nope, we’re heading someplace else. It’s going to take a few hours, why don’t you get some sleep, I’ll wake you when we get there.”