Ruby donated her pistol. Jennie tore off her sleeve and wrapped it around the barrel of the gun after removing the magazine and clearing the chamber. From her pocket, she made her best judgment on the vial she was choosing and doused the material until it was covered.
She handed the butt of the gun to Triton. “Hold this. Keep it away from your face.”
Triton obeyed.
“What are you going to do?” Jack asked.
“The impossible,” Jennie replied. In the dark, she drew her two guns. The others heard the firearms drawn from their holsters and protested, knowing a gunshot could force another cave collapse.
Jennie ignored them and spread her arms wide. She cracked her neck, then rested the guns against each other in the shape of an X. With one swift, sharp movement, she pulled the guns apart, making the metal cylinders rub roughly against one another. The metal on metal created a spark that illuminated the tunnel for a split second.
She was too far away from the rag.
This time.
She brought the guns back and repeated the maneuver. This time, the rag caught one of the sparking embers and erupted into light and flames.
It was blinding, going from an abyss to the sight before them. They shielded their eyes, waiting for them to adjust. When their vision cleared, they saw Roman lying on the floor and their hearts fell.
His leg lay trapped under a boulder. Jennie and Triton ran to either side and tried to move it, but it held fast. They ushered Ashton and Rhone over, and between the four of them, they managed to remove the boulder from his leg, rolling it out of the way.
Triton knelt beside him. “It’s a good thing he’s out cold. That’s going to be sore when he wakes up.”
That was the understatement of the century. It looked as though Roman’s knee had disappeared entirely. His lower leg hung limply as he and Jennie raised him from the floor and hooked his arms around their shoulders.
Baxter appeared from behind them, breathless and wild-eyed. “We’ve found something. Back there in the cave. It might be a way out.”
Jennie looked at him incredulously. “Are you kidding?”
“It’s true,” Carolyn added. “When you lit that flame, it spread down the tunnel. It’s amazing what a little light can do to pitch-black. There’s a dark space that might be nothing, but it could be something. It’s on the other side of the chamber where the tomb was.”
“Lead the way,” Jennie instructed.
Ruby was charged with looking after the flame. After a few minutes, it started to sputter and die, but before it could, Jennie ripped off her other sleeve and threw it onto the pistol.
Just keep it fed and it’ll serve you well—advice her father had given her when Jennie was nearing her eighteenth birthday, not long after her mother had passed, and survival became a necessity. Fire is hungry. It won’t stop eating. Make sure you feed it sufficiently.
The place the specters had found was no larger than a crawlspace, a jagged hole that had opened after the disturbance created by the bomb. Sandra appeared through the wall, an excited look on her face. “There’s a tunnel in there. It’s small, but I think it leads to the sewers.”
“What do you mean, you think?” Ruby asked.
Sandra shrugged. “I’ve never seen sewers before. I think that’s what’s there. It doesn’t smell great.”
“That’s the sewers,” Ashton chuckled.
Feng Mian appeared next to Sandra. “The girl speaks true. The cave is narrow. You’ll need to crawl through it. One loud noise could make the whole thing collapse, but it may be the only chance you have at getting the mortals out.”
Jennie glanced back at the others. Feng Mian’s words were directed at them, knowing that Jennie could turn spectral at any point and just waltz herself out of this predicament.
Not that I ever would leave these guys behind. Not in a million years.
Jennie and Triton gently eased Roman to the ground. He was still limp, but at least he was breathing. They could only hope that he would stay that way until they could clear everyone out and get to the other side.
God knew what would happen when he awoke. He was a strong man, but was anyone that strong?
“We’ll wait behind,” Jennie instructed the others. “Jack, Ruby, you go first. Ashton and Rhone, you follow after. Specters, get the hell out of here and see if you can find where to go once we reach the sewers. We’re going to need a hospital, and fast.”
“What about you guys?” Rhone asked. “We’re not leaving without you.”
“We’ll go last,” Jennie replied, fixing Triton with a concerned look. “We’ll only slow you down.”
Ruby was the first to head in. As the smallest among them, she was just about able to crawl on her hands and knees. The ceiling scraped her back, and at one point, she yelped when a jagged piece of rock scratched her shoulder.
Dust sprinkled down on her. She placed her hand over her mouth and apologized, the crawl space carrying her voice toward the others.
Jack had to take a different tack, dragging his feet behind as he rolled his forearms one over the other and Army-crawled out of there. Ashton was more graceful, lying on his back and using his feet to propel him onward.
When Rhone had disappeared through the hole, Jennie extinguished the flame on Ruby’s pistol. They would have no need for fire in there.
“How are we going to do this?” Triton asked. “You on top, or me?”
A faint chuckle carried down the tunnel.
“Filthy minds,” Jennie muttered. “You go first. You pull his arms and drag him backward. I’ll stay at his tail end and keep an eye on that leg. If he gets stuck, I’ll shove his good leg to unblock him, okay?”
Triton nodded but looked uncertain.
“Either way, this is going to be hard,” Jennie soothed, resting a hand on Triton’s shoulder. “He’ll be okay, but we have to be quick. If he wakes and cries out in pain while he’s in there, it might bring us all to ruin.”
Triton’s face hardened.
Although the trick was not to rush, they still had to try to move quickly. Jennie followed behind Triton as he exhausted himself by dragging Roman along the tunnel. Roman’s body was only just narrow enough to fit, thanks to his ridiculously wide shoulders, and along the way, the tunnel narrowed enough that Jennie had to give an encouraging shove from her end to help him along.
At what Jennie guessed must be halfway through the tunnel, Roman grumbled. She was holding his left foot and felt his toes wiggle.
Not now, she thought. Please, not yet.
Triton must have felt it, too, because his movements became more jolting. Roman was dragged in quick bursts, their pace increasing. Jennie could hear Triton’s exhausted panting.
Another narrow segment caused Roman’s body to catch again. With a great effort, they pulled and shoved him ahead. This time his head lifted as he awoke, suddenly trying to raise himself off the ground.
“Fuck! What? Argh!” The syllables burst out his mouth rapid-fire. His arms, which were pinned above his head by Triton, tried to reach for his legs. Although they could not see, Jennie could sense the movements in his language and the movement of his body.
He cried out in pain. His voice was magnified in the crawl space, and rocks fell on Jennie’s body. The cave behind her growled and protested, rumbling as Roman’s sudden alarm triggered another rockfall.
Shit. Jennie had no other choice. They must be near the end of the tunnel by now since she could feel Baxter and Carolyn with Sandra some way ahead.
Jennie found one of the specters and latched onto them. She stood in the rock and moved past Roman and Triton. When she reached Triton, she lay down in the tunnel and turned material. She clutched his legs and pulled him toward her, hoping that would help him pull Roman. Roman kicked and yelled in pain, protesting the desecration of his broken leg. Jennie called to the others, and within seconds, they had a daisy chain of people dragging Roman out of the tunnel.
The walls shook arou
nd them. The others shouted out as rocks fell on their heads. They increased their speed, and finally Jennie popped out of the other side. She dragged Triton with her. Triton dragged Roman.
Just as they cleared the space, the tunnel collapsed. The small space they had just been in sealed without apology. Jennie and the others were left breathless with the smell of waste and sewage around them and a large muscular man wailing in pain.
Jennie looked at Baxter, who studied her with concern. She panted. “And you said that this would be a bad idea.”
Despite himself, Baxter let out a soft laugh.
Chapter Fifty-Three
Richmond, Virginia, USA
Rhone couldn’t believe that he was back in the sewers again.
Seriously, is this what my life has come to? A few weeks ago, I was a senior agent in the SIA, now I’m spending my life wasting away in shit-infested tunnels.
These tunnels weren’t as generous as the New York sewers. They were crammed and less maintained, with slick stone pathways that ran parallel to the gutters. After they had managed to stifle Roman’s cries of pain—thanks to another one of Jennie’s array of vials—the group had allowed themselves a few minutes to recover and gather themselves.
“They’re one step ahead of us,” Ruby commented, brushing the dust off her front. Streams of silver moonlight came down from grates above them, but there was no way to climb up and take Roman out without causing him further damage.
“Always one step ahead,” Carolyn repeated.
Jennie gave them an empathetic look. “Don’t get disheartened. You know as well as I do that things get worse before they get better. That’s just the way of Justice. The bad guys rise, but they reach their peak, and in that time, we catch up. We narrow in on them. We stop them before they go too far. This is just a part of the game.”
“Seems like a shitty game to me,” Jack sulked. His hair was flecked with dust, and he had faint scratches on his face. “I prefer Monopoly. Or Kerplunk.”
Carolyn smirked. “That the one with the sticks and the marbles?”
“Yeah,” Jack replied.
Jennie smiled at them. “See, even in the darkest moments, you can find humor. The light will never be extinguished by the dark. That’s what we fight for, and that’s what we’re going to do here. Who cares if they’re one step ahead, because all they have to do is slip up once, and we’ll be on them like…”
“Roman on Julia?” Triton chuckled.
Jennie, who hadn’t been around enough to understand the reference, raised an eyebrow.
Triton shook his head. “I’ll explain later.”
Rhone grinned.
They followed the sewer, eventually coming across an opening on their left that led into the outside world. The sludge trickled down a slight slope and past a large gray factory. Fresh air caressed their faces.
There were fields and trees around them. A few roads littered the landscape ahead. In the distance, they could just about make out the lights of the city a couple of miles from where they stood.
“Someone’s going to have to find the bus,” Rhone stated, eyes narrowed as he tried to get his bearings. “I’m thinking the quarry is in that direction somewhere. That’s where the bus will be.”
Ruby sighed. “It’s not like we can call the others, is it? My cell phone is gone.”
“Mine, too,” Triton added.
Jack nodded. “And mine.”
Jennie took hers from her pocket. She had already felt the tell-tale bend of her once-solid phone through her trousers and was prepared for the state that it was in. Tiny glass fragments jabbed her finger as she held the shattered phone. “Mine’s out of commission, too.”
Ashton walked up the grassy bank that ran either side of the sewer. “I’ll volunteer, considering I’m your chauffeur. Ruby? Jack? You’re young and sprightly. Want to keep me company? Who knows if that strange figure is still around? She might have blown all the tires on her trip out of the tunnel.”
Jennie hadn’t considered this. “Are you going to be okay?”
“Sure.” Ashton grinned. “Just because I fly helicopters and planes, it doesn’t mean I haven’t been through the same basic training as Rhone, Jack, and Roobs.”
Ruby glared. “It’s Ruby.”
“Whatever, princess.” Ashton stuck out his tongue. “Shall we?”
Jennie watched them disappear over the verge before she slumped on the grass and took a long breath. Triton sat beside her, with Rhone lying peacefully at their feet.
Baxter paced around them, hands behind his back. He stared at the moon and began to sing. “Stranded at the drive-in. Branded a fool…”
“What are you doing?” Jennie asked, a smile creasing her cheeks.
Baxter continued, “What will they say?”
Rhone groaned. “Please don’t.”
“Monday at school,” Baxter finished, his face breaking out into a huge grin. “I love that film.”
“Grease?” Feng Mian asked, uncertain.
Sandra gave them all a strange look. “What are you talking about?”
Jennie waved a hand. “Forget about it. You’re too young to understand.”
“I’m older than you are,” she retorted.
“True,” Jennie replied. “But if you don’t know what Grease is, you never watched the moon landing, and you have never heard of a Sloppy Joe, what life have you really lived to brag about?”
Sandra picked up a pebble and tossed it at Jennie. She batted it away, and it hit Roman in the chest. Roman grumbled.
Sandra and the others tried to stifle their laughs. Jennie playfully glared at Sandra. “Grow up, we’ve had enough rocks and dirt attacking us today.”
When Sandra’s eyes lowered, Jennie picked up her own pebble and chucked it through the specter. “Oh, what’s one more?”
* * *
They arrived at the hospital a little past midnight. Roman still snoozed deeply, unaware of any time passing or the pain that would soon wrack his leg.
Jennie managed to coerce some nurses to rush out to the bus and take Roman on their stretcher. The nurses had a hard time hiding their confusion as they looked at the dirt-covered group, who looked as if they’d been playing in the dirt. The smell of the sewer wasn’t kind to them either, and the nurses wrinkled their noses as they placed the injured man on a gurney and carted him away.
Triton was the first to volunteer to stay with Roman. When Jennie tried to argue, claiming they’d need Triton with them due to his skill set, Triton argued back, stating he wouldn’t leave a fallen comrade behind. A few minutes later, Ashton put the bus in gear and they left Roman, Triton, and Rhone behind.
Baxter sat beside Jennie and played with his fingers. “We’re falling apart. They’re dividing us into smaller teams.”
Jennie remained quiet.
“The more fractured we are, the more likely they are to win. It’s in our constitution. ‘United we stand, divided we fall.’”
Jennie knew the phrase very well, yet it was something she hadn’t had to play with all that much over the years. In her experience, one person could put an end to injustice. It had only been the last few months that she had needed her team to help conquer the enemy.
Baxter continued, talking as if to himself. “We’ve been divided from the start. With the SIS in one state and the SIA in another, we’re all over the place. We haven’t been united since we started this whole thing. They’re a clever bunch, really.”
Jennie agreed. Ever since Zhao had split the Seven and created devastation amongst the separate states, they’d had to spread thinly to try to cover all possible outcomes. Even now, as they worked to find Jiao and dispel the Dreadnought’s army before it grew too large, their team was divided. Some in the manor, others in the hospital, the rest on this bus.
“You’re right, Bax. We should unite,” Jennie replied. “The problem is until we know where Jiao and the Dreadnought are, we can’t zero in on anything. We have to find them first.”
/> “How did they find us?” Carolyn asked. “That person was clearly ready for us at the tunnels, so how did they find us?”
Ashton answered, craning his neck over his shoulder. “They must have known we’d go and see the site ourselves. It’s our only lead. After the fellas investigating the other day, it was obvious we’d be back.”
Jennie stared out the window and put her brain into motion. Until she had confirmed evidence to the contrary, she had to assume that Jiao and the Dreadnought weren’t united. In which case, where the hell would either of them go? Did Jiao have her own place in the city? Was the Dreadnought hiding underground, like every other goddamn spectral overlord she encountered?
As Ashton cruised along the streets toward King Manor, Jennie closed her eyes and allowed herself a few moments rest.
* * *
The manor was quiet when they returned. They stumbled through the door, all of them feeling the exhaustion of their adventure. They slumped on the nearby couches and closed their eyes.
Jennie moved straight over to the bar and busied herself in her favorite way, making cocktails for the wounded and tired.
“Not now,” Ashton grumbled. “I don’t think I could stomach any alcohol.”
Baxter watched her carefully, unsurprised that Jennie hadn’t pulled out anything alcoholic. She deftly added various juices and cordials to a pitcher until a neat purple liquid was produced. She disappeared from the room for a few minutes, then came back with Hendrick in tow. Hendrick dropped a couple of drops of something thick and black into the drink before Jennie poured the completed mixture into glasses.
“Drink up. I advise drinking in one go.” Jennie drained her own in a heartbeat.
Ashton, Jack, and Ruby brought theirs to their noses and grimaced.
“Seriously,” Jennie confirmed. “Just drink.”
They did, with great effort.
Jack held back a gag. “Whatever is in that isn’t your finest work.”
Ruby wanted to speak but couldn’t. She held her nose and swallowed down a mouthful of bile.
Agents, Agreements and Aggravations: In Her Paranormal Majesty’s Secret Service™ Book Three Page 41
