Warrior Unraveled

by Tina Folsom

  Zoltan pivoted and reached for the item his subject handed him. “A button?” He brought it closer to his eyes and examined it. It was silver, and when he tilted it just right, the light of the match made an engraving visible: a dagger.

  A dagger he had no trouble recognizing. He’d been injured by daggers like this one often enough. The daggers of the Stealth Guardians.

  Fury charged through him. They were here. They’d entered his domain. How, he didn’t know. But he was certain it was them.

  “Put everybody on alert.”

  Quentin stared at him blankly.

  “We have intruders.” Intruders who could make themselves invisible. Were probably roaming his Underworld right now, scoping out the layout, searching for weak spots, spots which they could attack. But not even their cloaking powers would help them evade the weapon he was about to unleash.

  “Get the dogs!”

  10

  They’d walked through a labyrinth of countless tunnels that all appeared to look the same. Virginia had lost track of which direction they were headed in, they’d turned left and right and turned back at dead ends so many times. For all she knew they were back at the same place where they’d started.

  Whenever they’d heard voices or other sounds, Wesley had dragged her in the other direction, clearly wanting to avoid another demon encounter. But what if they were heading too far away? What if the reason they hadn’t come upon another demon in the last half hour was because they were walking toward an area that even the demons avoided? And what if there was no water in this direction either? Surely the demons would congregate around the water sources in this hellhole, since they, too, needed water for survival.

  “We have to turn around,” she said quietly but firmly.

  Wesley glanced at her, but continued walking. She tugged at his hand and stopped, forcing him to do the same. With a sigh, he faced her. “What?”

  “We’ll never find water here. If there’s any, it’ll be where the demons are. They must have caves they live in. There has to be water there.” She motioned to the dark corridor ahead. “There’s nothing down there.”

  “Then what do you suggest?” He ran a hand through his hair. “If we go back there, our chances of being discovered get exponentially higher. Eventually they’ll hear us, even if they can’t see us. And then what? We have no weapons. Or do you want to throw rocks at them and hope we can take a few out like David took out Goliath?”

  She blew a breath through her nostrils. “I wish it was that easy, but only weapons forged in the Dark Days can kill a demon.” She pointed to her empty holster. “And I lost mine.”

  “I know. Listen, I know how you feel.”

  She raised an eyebrow. How could he know how she felt?

  “It’s not in your nature to avoid a fight, but we’re outnumbered, unarmed, and unprepared,” Wesley said, and partially, he was right.

  “No other member of my race has ever entered the Underworld. This is an opportunity I might never get again. This is perhaps the only chance I’ll ever have at getting the inside scoop on our archenemy. Maybe find a way to destroy them once and for all.”

  Wes shook his head vehemently. “We have no idea what we’re dealing with down here. Going on a spying expedition is too dangerous. I like a good fight as much as the next guy, but I know when to turn tail and run.”

  Virginia opened her mouth to protest, but Wesley suddenly pressed his palm on it and nodded his head in the direction they’d been heading in. She froze. Then she heard it, too. Footsteps. Rapidly coming closer. She nodded, signaling her understanding to Wesley and pressed her back flat against the jagged rock formation that formed one side of the tunnel. Wesley did the same next to her, so their bodies were touching. She felt the brittle stone at her back crumble, and small pebbles rolled down to her feet.

  Alarmed she looked at them, hoping the sound hadn’t alerted the demons that were fast approaching.

  Moments later, five of the evil creatures charged by them, not even glancing at the spot where Virginia and Wesley were standing. They were armed to the teeth—as if they were heading into war. If only she had a dagger or two, she would take them out one by one like a shadow they couldn’t even see coming. But without a weapon she felt helpless, and she didn’t like that feeling. No, she didn’t like it at all.

  Grudgingly she had to admit that Wesley was right—if only this one time—and that an encounter with the demons could prove fatal.

  Virginia didn’t breathe until the sound of the demons running had completely vanished. Then she pushed herself off the rocks at her back, making more of the porous stone crumble under the pressure and collect at her feet. Instinctively she bent down and brushed them off her boots. Fine white dust remained.

  She pivoted, but Wesley had noticed the same thing and was already inspecting the rock they’d been leaning against.

  “Limestone,” he said. He knocked against it, and more of it crumbled, as if it were as thin as drywall and just as fragile.

  She met his eyes. “Do you think there’s water behind it?”

  Wes nodded. “It sounds hollow. I need a rock, something to knock through it.” He glanced around, took a few steps forward, and bent down. He came back with a piece of granite no larger than a grapefruit. “I hope I’m right.”

  With the rock in one hand, bracing himself against the wall with the other, Wes pulled back his arm and took aim. The rock connected with the limestone and drove right through it. The momentum pulled Wesley with it, knocking him against the wall.

  The impact shattered the wall, creating a large opening. Wesley tumbled through it.

  Shock made Virginia’s heart race at a million miles an hour. She dipped her head through the hole, and to her surprise, she saw her own face reflected back at her. As if in a mirror. A wet mirror-like surface.

  “Found it.” Wesley’s voice coming from only a foot away jolted her. He was getting up, dusting off his pants. He hadn’t fallen more than a couple of feet and had landed right at the edge of a pool of water.

  Some light filtered through cracks in the rock and provided sufficient illumination in the cave that was maybe as large as a tennis court.

  Wesley reached for her hand. “Come in.”

  She set her feet over the remainder of the wall that had crumbled and allowed Wesley to help her down, even though she could have jumped the foot or two without effort. But somehow feeling his hands on her hips gave her a sense of safety.

  Still in his arms, she lifted her lids and met his gaze. Damn, could those baby-blues actually be sparkling more down here, or had she started hallucinating?

  “Let’s do the spell,” he said, his lips barely moving.

  “Yes, yes, the spell,” she stammered and eased out of his embrace.

  Her hands suddenly trembled, and she blamed the fact that Wesley was about to use magic, a power she was both afraid and in awe of, and not the sexual tension that seemed to crackle between them ever since he’d kissed her.

  Witchcraft was something she had no defenses against. Fighting with deadly weapons was one thing, defending oneself against a witch’s spell was another altogether. And what if he had in fact already used witchcraft without her knowledge? What if he’d whispered a silent spell to bewitch her so she would trust him, believe in him, desire him? How would she even know?

  “You okay?” Wesley suddenly asked, looking deep into her eyes.

  “I’m fine. Let’s just get this over with.” The sooner the better. And she would watch him like a hawk, just in case he tried to pull a fast one.

  Stop fretting! He won’t betray you. Just remember what he said. He needs you alive, because he wants you in his bed.

  And that thought was frightening in itself. Because it meant he’d work his way through her defenses, just like he’d found a way through the limestone wall.

  ~ ~ ~

  Virginia wore an apprehensive look. Was she worried that he wasn’t up to the task and not as skillful a witch as he’
d told her he was? Maybe twenty years ago she would have had to worry, but he’d mastered his craft, and a guiding spell was the stuff of novices.

  “Don’t look so doubtful,” Wes murmured with a smile. “I can do this in my sleep.”

  “Has anybody ever told you that you’ve got a big mouth?”

  He chuckled and knelt down in the sand that surrounded the water. “Trust me that’s not the only thing that’s big.” When her chin dropped in stunned silence, he winked at her. “You have to admit, you practically handed me that one.”

  “Are we gonna chit-chat or do the spell?”

  “It’s called flirting, and yes, we’re doing the spell.” He couldn’t help himself, rattling Virginia’s stern façade was too much fun. Whenever she lost her cool, he could practically see the flames she wanted to torch him with. But he wasn’t easily burned. She’d have to get a lot closer for that.

  “Okay then.” He took a deep breath and looked at the water’s surface. It was as smooth as he imagined Virginia’s skin to be.

  Concentrate!

  As smooth as silk. Better.

  He looked at his reflection in the glassy surface. “Egressus,” he murmured softly and began to chant a Latin incarnation. The words repeated over and over again, until they all seemed to be one. One word, one mission, one goal.

  Ripples built on the water’s surface, traveling outward toward its shore.

  Faster and faster they came and washed over the sand.

  “Egressus,” Wes repeated the Latin word for exit.

  Then the next ripple rose like a serpent and snaked onto the shore. It drew a pattern in the sand, moving as fast as a tornado, yet as gentle as a mother’s touch. A corresponding fire scorched his arm, though no flame was visible.

  Like a child’s crayon the serpent drew a picture in the sand. And then just as quickly, it seeped away in the ground, leaving only a patch of wet sand. The fire on his arm extinguished. He exhaled sharply.

  “Oh my God,” Virginia said, her voice carrying respect and admiration. “It looks like a map.”

  “It is.” He studied the drawing his spell had created in the sand. “It shows where we are.” He pointed to a dot near a small pond. “And where we need to go.” He followed an arrow that wound its way through a labyrinth of tunnels and ended in a circle.

  Virginia pointed to it. “What do you think this is?”

  “Not sure, but it looks like a roundabout, you know, with all these tunnels leading to it. Maybe a stairway or something leading up? I mean, we’re gonna have to go up, right? We must be deep down somewhere in the earth’s crust.” At least it felt like it with all the lava, the sulfur, and the stench that came with it.

  “Your guess is as good as mine. The Stealth Guardians have always assumed that the demons must be somewhere below ground, but we’ve never been able to confirm that.” Then she pointed to the map again. “But how will we remember this map once we’re back in the tunnels? I don’t have a phone to take a picture.”

  “Then maybe we should use this map,” Wes said and unbuttoned his shirt sleeve, then rolled it back to expose the inside of his forearm, where a twin of the map was emblazoned on his skin like a tattoo. He’d felt the temporary burn while the spell had worked its magic, but now the discomfort was gone.

  Virginia gasped and ran her finger over his forearm. “How?”

  “Pretty neat, huh?” He took her hand and squeezed it. “We won’t have much time. The map will vanish from my skin within an hour, or even earlier.”

  He jumped up and pulled her with him. Moments later, they were hurrying down one of the tunnels, following the map on Wesley’s forearm.

  11

  Virginia heard the dogs before Wesley did.

  “Fuck, they’ve got dogs,” she cursed.

  Wesley whirled his head to her. “What does that mean?”

  “They’re using dogs to sniff us out. They know we’re here. And they know we’re invisible.”

  “Ah, fuck!”

  “We need to run.” She pointed to another tunnel.

  He shook his head and pointed in the direction the barking of the dogs was coming from. “Our way out is in this direction.”

  “Not if the dogs rip us to pieces.”

  “Then we have to make sure they don’t smell us.”

  “They’ll smell us. We’ve gotta get out of here.” She turned.

  He snatched her arm. “Take off your jacket.”

  She snapped her gaze to him. “What for?”

  “Just do it.” Wesley was already unbuttoning his shirt and sliding it off his shoulders, revealing a sculpted chest and muscled abs.

  Virginia looked away from the tantalizing sight and took off her leather jacket. “What are you planning?”

  “Spit on the jacket.”

  She looked at him and witnessed how he rubbed his crumbled up shirt under his armpits, then spit into it, and realized what he was doing: transferring as much of his scent onto the piece of clothing. Quickly, she spit onto her leather jacket.

  “Now what?”

  Wesley pointed to the tunnel that veered off to their left. “Let’s leave the stuff down there.”

  They started running, until Wesley stopped her. “Stuff your jacket into this crack.” He motioned to a large hole in the rock.

  Virginia followed his order. “And yours?”

  “A little farther up.” He ran and she followed him closely, cloaking him with her mind instead of her touch now.

  A dozen yards farther, he stopped and shoved his shirt into another crack. Then he turned back and they both ran back toward the tunnel they’d come from.

  “They’ll still smell us though,” Virginia said.

  “Not if we cover our scent with something much stronger,” Wesley said. “And I think I’ve got just the thing. Come on.”

  He was already running back down the tunnel they’d originally come from. She was on his heels. Following her was the barking of the dogs, coming closer with every second. Her heart started to pound. Stealth Guardians weren’t exactly fond of dogs, for obvious reasons. She could only hope that Wesley had a plan to disguise their scent so the bloodhounds didn’t discover them.

  Wesley finally stopped and crouched down. She followed his gaze and noticed a yellow substance he was scraping off the base of the tunnel wall.

  “What is that?”

  “Sulphur deposits. Rub the stuff over your T-shirt and pants, and your arms, too.”

  Virginia bent down and reeled as the smell of rotten eggs assaulted her even more violently than before. “Shit,” she cursed, but started scraping the vile substance off the wall and smearing it over her T-shirt.

  Wesley did the same, though in addition to staining his pants with the stuff, he also rubbed it all over his naked torso. Within seconds, they both reeked of it.

  He met her eyes. “Ready?”

  She nodded.

  “Let’s get back to where the other tunnel veers off.”

  She grabbed his hand, and felt him freeze for a moment, a soft smile forming around his lips. “Just so I don’t have to waste energy making you invisible with my mind,” she explained.

  “Yes, just to save energy.”

  Careful not to make a sound, though the approaching dogs were loud enough now to drown out their faint footsteps, they hurried back to the intersection of the two tunnels.

  In the distance, Virginia could already see them coming. Bloodhounds, Pitbulls, and Dobermans. On long leashes, their snouts moving constantly, sniffing, their muzzles open and drooling with spit, the animals charged in their direction, dragging their demon masters with them.

  She knew immediately that the dogs had already caught on to her and Wesley’s scent. In a few seconds they would be here, proving their worth to their masters.

  Virginia gripped Wesley’s hand tighter. In response, he put his other hand over hers and met her eyes. His attempt at reassuring her failed—the dogs had just reached the point where the tunnels intersected,
and were only yards away.

  The dogs appeared to hesitate, one heading in one direction, two others in the other, while two more dogs seemed indecisive. They sniffed and yowled, tossing doubtful glances back at the demons.

  “Find them!” one of the demons yelled.

  One of the dogs took off in one direction, dragging his demon owner with him. But a Doberman suddenly made a beeline for the spot where Virginia and Wesley were pressed against the wall.

  “What the fuck’s wrong with the dogs?” one demon asked the other.

  The fellow shrugged. “Give ‘em time. They’ll pick up the scent again. Won’t you, Rex?” he said to the Doberman who had just reached Virginia’s feet.

  Fuck! Another second and they’d be discovered.

  The dog continued sniffing. She could almost feel his snout at her pant leg. She dared not move, didn’t even dare look down for fear of making a sound.

  Something warm suddenly seeped through her pants and ran down to her ankle. Warm and wet. She glanced down to her feet. The Doberman, his leg lifted, was peeing on her.

  Crap!

  One of the demons laughed. “Yeah, sure that’ll help him find them.”

  The Doberman’s master jerked at the dog’s leash. “Stupid dog, let’s go.”

  “Hey, this way!” another demon hollered, his voice coming from the tunnel where Virginia and Wesley had stashed their clothes. “We’ve got their scent. Hurry!”

  The other demons ushered their dogs down the tunnel and raced down it with them.

  Virginia breathed a sigh of relief, then shook her leg to rid herself of the dog’s piss, but some of it had seeped into her socks and boots. Feeling Wesley’s eyes on her, she turned her gaze to him.

  “Don’t even!” she snapped under her breath, cutting off whatever wisecrack remark was sitting on his lips.

  “In that case, let’s hurry. They’ll discover our ruse soon enough. But we’re not far now.” He looked at the tattoo on his forearm and took her hand.

  They started running down the path from which the demons had come with their dogs. Another turn into a wider tunnel, then Wesley took a fork to the left. There was light at the end of the tunnel, more light than Virginia had noticed in the others.