One of them looked her way and she quickly ducked down again. Please, keep going. She didn’t want any trouble and she really didn’t want to have to shoot anyone. Anya wasn’t even sure if she could shoot someone when it came right down to it.
She held her breath and listened. The voices got softer and softer. She relaxed. They hadn’t seen her.
Anya started to get up when a burst of machine-gun fire filled the air. She crept out from her hiding place and eased out so she could look down the street. A pair of men in black armed with rifles stood over the bodies of the four kids. Gold crosses hung from their necks so she assumed they were from the holy army, the last people in the whole world she wanted to deal with.
She ran back the way she’d come. Hopefully they hadn’t noticed her.
From behind came the sound of pounding footsteps.
So much for hope.
A little ways ahead on her right was an alley with a dented dumpster. She ran down it and crouched out of sight. If they didn’t see her maybe they’d think she’d kept running.
Anya slipped the safety catch off in case they didn’t. Her heart pounded so hard she had trouble hearing the heavy tread of the soldiers’ boots.
The thudding stopped.
“I’ll check the alley and catch up with you,” someone said in English.
Her hands trembled and her knuckles were white on the pistol’s grip.
Soft steps approached. He crunched on some garbage. Clang, clang, clang, he tapped on the dumpster.
She held her position. The holy warrior appeared in front of her and Anya pointed the pistol at him, center mass like Fedor had taught her.
He laughed. “Do you even know how to use that thing?”
“Please just leave me alone,” Anya said as tears ran down her face. “I don’t want to hurt you.”
He laughed again. “The way your hands are shaking I doubt you could hit me if you had the guts to shoot, which I also doubt. Why don’t you lower that gun and come with me? It isn’t safe out here for a girl on her own and the men at the barracks would be excited to meet you.”
His leer sent a shiver down her spine.
“I’m not going anywhere with you. Now go away!”
He took a step toward her. “Don’t be stu—”
Boom!
The pistol shot was deafening in the tight space. The soldier clutched his chest and stared at her in disbelief. He fell to his knees then landed at her feet.
Anya scrambled up and ran. She didn’t have a plan, didn’t think. She just ran, as far and as fast from the man she’d killed as possible.
When her lungs were burning and her heart pounding so that she feared she might collapse she found a smashed-in storefront and slipped inside. She just needed to catch her breath for a minute.
Glass crunched under her feet as she made her way deeper into the shop. The shelves had been ransacked long ago. In the rear wall she found a door that led to small office with a table, chair, and battery-powered lantern.
She slumped into the chair and sighed. God, she was tired. Her legs felt like year-old rubber bands. It wouldn’t hurt anything if she rested for a little while. Anya put her gun on the table and noticed whoever had stayed here before her had left behind an English newspaper. On the front page was a handsome young man of Japanese Imperial descent. She checked the date. Three weeks ago.
Desperate for anything to distract her from what happened in the alley she picked up the paper and started reading.
The world’s first male wizard, Conryu Koda, proved himself a friend to the Alliance this week when he singlehandedly saved Sentinel City from a grim fate. The terrorist organization known as the Le Fay Society attempted to open multiple gates to the netherworld and only this brave young wizard was able to stop them. Many people are calling Conryu a hero, but the humble young man insists it was only with the help of his numerous friends that he managed to succeed in stopping the plot.
Whether he’s simply being self-deprecating or not, this reporter is glad to know Conryu Koda is watching over the Alliance.
She shook her head and tossed the paper on the table. This boy, barely older than her, had saved an entire city. Surely if he could do that, then she could make the trip to the Eiffel Tower Memorial.
Heartened by the story, Anya pushed away from the table and took up her weapon. She was going to make it and no one would stop her.
Anya left the shop and retraced her steps, being careful to avoid the alley where she’d left the dead man. She made quick progress through the empty streets and half an hour after finishing the article found a sign that gave directions to the memorial and said it was a quarter mile away.
The memorial wasn’t terribly impressive, it consisted of a simple black plaque with the inscription “Never Forget.” She wasn’t sure what they weren’t supposed to forget. If it was the Elf War then it went without saying no one would ever forget. After all, nearly three-quarters of the world’s population died before the elves were driven off or killed.
“Anya.”
She spun and raised her gun. Fedor strode into the clearing. His shirt and pants were torn and his makeshift bandage soaked with blood. All in all he looked like he’d been through a war. Which she supposed he sort of had, a small one, but still bad enough.
Anya ran over and hugged him. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah. I think I finally shook off the monsters that were chasing us.”
“Monsters?” She’d half convinced herself that the yellow eyes were a trick of the light.
“Dragon-blood soldiers, the Empire’s elite. The czar is certainly determined to get you back.”
Anya was equally determined to escape. For all this time she’d been running and hiding with no real goal of her own. But now she had one. She was going to meet the boy in the story.
* * *
Hedon and Victor had returned to their human forms when Yarik led them back to the subway entrance. They came by surface road after they finally found a way out of the underground. It annoyed Yarik to no end that he’d failed once more to capture the girl. It was like trying to tackle a greased pig, she just kept slipping through his grasp. He’d have one more shot at Calais. If they screwed up there, well, he didn’t want to think about it.
“Agent Yarik!” Father Gabriele hurried toward him, a mad smile plastered on his twisted face. “We’ve had a glorious victory. The heathen frogs had no idea what hit them. We made a glorious slaughter in God’s name. The Archbishop will be pleased and we have you to thank.”
Yarik grunted. He was in no mood to celebrate with the god-drunk lunatic. He needed to return to Calais.
“I’m thrilled for you, Father, but we need to get back to the port as soon as possible. Our target escaped us and will surely make for her escape route as quickly as possible.”
“Of course, of course. We’re done here anyway.” Gabriele turned toward his celebrating men. “Everyone on the bus. We’re going home.”
That brought another loud cheer and they all climbed aboard. The bus was nowhere near as crowded this time when they turned north. The zealots had lost two-thirds of their number yet they seemed almost high on victory. Perhaps they were happy for their dead comrades who got to go to Heaven ahead of them.
Whatever, Yarik was happy to be able to stretch his legs out and take a nap. He was so tired even Father Gabriele’s driving couldn’t keep him awake.
The next thing he knew Hedon was shaking him. “We’re here, sir.”
Yarik groaned and sat up. His neck hurt like the devil after sleeping in that awkward position, but he felt rested, at least a little bit. Now he had to figure out how the resistance planned to smuggle Anya out of the country.
Once upon a time a tunnel had connected France and the Kingdom of the Isles, but the elves had destroyed that early in the war. A boat was the only possibility. He’d set a trap near the docks. Hopefully it would work out better than last time. It was time to stop thinking like a lion and start thinking
like a spider. He’d make a web and sit in it until he caught his fly.
8
Escape
They bounced along the rough road to Calais in the little car Fedor hot-wired, leaving Paris in their rearview mirror. They made no effort to contact the army. Fedor didn’t say anything, but from the tightness of his expression she figured he didn’t hold out much hope for their hosts. Anya did her best not to think about them. In fact, she tried not to think about a lot of things. The soldier she shot in the alley being at the top of the lists.
Unfortunately, she couldn’t get him out of her head. Every time she closed her eyes he was there, staring at her with his perpetually open, accusing eyes, his shirt stained red. Once she’d fallen asleep and he moaned, “Whyyyy?”
She tried to scream, “Because you wanted to take me back to your friends and rape me!” but instead she woke up panting.
Anya glanced at Fedor. He stared straight ahead, his face set in a grim scowl, his injured arm cradled against him. If anything, she thought he looked worse now than he had in the tunnels. That was saying something.
“Why are you doing this for me?” The question had dogged her since the day they fled their little house. If there was ever a time to ask, this was it.
“The resistance thought that by getting you out it would help spread the word about our cause. I told you that.” He never took his eyes off the road.
“I know you did, but what I want to know is why you? Considering everything that’s happened why not cut and run? It would be a lot safer for you.”
Fedor heaved a great sigh. “Do you know how your father died?”
She flinched, taken aback by the sudden change of subject. “I know he was killed by the Empire, murdered on some mission for the resistance, but not the details.”
“The night your father made that run it was supposed to be my turn. We rotated so no one took all the risks, but my wife had fallen ill and I needed to stay home to take care of her. Your father offered to make the run in my place. It should have been me that was killed, but it wasn’t. His kindness ended him.”
“I’m sure Dad didn’t blame you,” Anya said, “If Mom got sick you would have done the same for him.”
“I would have, but it didn’t work out that way and I had to live with my best friend’s death. When the decision was made to get you out of the Empire if you passed your wizard’s test, I knew what I had to do. I swore I’d get you to safety no matter what it took. And I will.”
“What about your wife?”
“She died a month after your father. Cancer, they said. The witches don’t waste healing magic on nobodies like us. I had always hated the Empire for its cruelty and oppression, but when they let her die when a bit of magic might have saved her…” Fedor shrugged and seemed unable to continue.
Anya watched the countryside go by for a few minutes. Away from the city France seemed more at peace. Perhaps the fields and forests hid the effects of the war better than the crowded buildings of the city.
Another bump rattled her teeth. Maybe they could call a truce and fix the pavement. It would be a better task for all these men than trying to kill one another.
“There’s another matter we need to discuss before we reach Calais.” Fedor seemed to have collected himself and his grim scowl was back in place. “The Kingdom agent we’re meeting has a small boat tied to the twenty-seventh berth at the docks. It’s called The Wave Rider and her name is Rebecca North.”
“They sent a woman?”
“Indeed, Rebecca is one of their finest field agents, or so my contact says. I’ve never actually met her. The description I was given was, long dark hair, green eyes, jagged scar on her right cheek. She’ll wait for another three nights, then leave, with or without us. Hold the wheel a moment.”
Anya took the steering wheel while Fedor reached into his inner shirt. He came up with a two-inch-long thumb drive. When he held it out she took it and returned control of the car to him.
“That’s what they want,” he said. “All the intelligence the resistance has collected is on that drive. It’s encrypted. She may require you to hand it over before she’ll let you on the boat. It’s perfectly fine if you do, but don’t give her the password until they’ve given you everything you want. Once you tell them you’ll have lost all your leverage.”
“You keep saying I should hand it over and I shouldn’t give them the password. What about you? You’ll be there with me, won’t you?”
“I hope so, but that security agent didn’t strike me as the type to just give up. I fear we may have to fight our way past him and his monsters. If it comes to that I may not be able to go with you.”
A chill went through Anya. “Don’t say that! We haven’t survived this long together only to fail at the end. We’ll escape, both of us.”
He finally cracked a smile. “You have your mother’s strong will, that’s certain. You’ll need it in the Kingdom. They’re good people for the most part, certainly compared to the Imperials, but like any other government they won’t hesitate to use you and throw you away when they’re finished. Keep that foremost in your mind.”
Fedor gave her the password and made her repeat it five times before he was satisfied that she had it memorized. They passed the rest of the journey in silence. Anya did her best to convince herself that Fedor didn’t intend to sacrifice himself to save her.
* * *
Fedor pulled off the road half a mile from the city. Beyond it the ocean sparkled in the afternoon sun. Anya got out and stared at the water. She thought she could smell a hint of brine, but it was probably her imagination. Beyond that lay her freedom, or maybe just a new prison.
After what Fedor told her about the Kingdom government she’d begun to doubt it was much better than the Empire. On the other hand they were offering her escape and safety instead of hunting her down so they could make her a slave. Maybe she’d give them the benefit of the doubt.
The driver’s side door slammed, jarring her out of her thoughts. Fedor rotated his injured arm and glared at the city as though it was an enemy.
“Do we have a plan?” Anya asked.
“I have two plans, but I can’t make up my mind which one to try.”
“Let’s hear them.”
“One, we ditch the car, sneak in, and try to reach the boat without getting spotted. Two, we drive like madmen through town and run over anyone that gets in our way.”
“Can we swim to the boat, like in Anapa?” Anya asked. Neither of Fedor’s plans appealed to her.
“We could, but I doubt they’d leave that route unwatched a second time. If the enemy spotted us we’d be sitting ducks in the water.”
“We’re going to have to sneak in then. No way could we drive in without getting shot.”
Fedor grinned at her. “Correct. We’ll make a general out of you yet.”
Anya shot him a glare. “You knew what we were going to do from the start. Why the test?”
“I wanted to see if you’d learned anything.” He gave her shoulder a squeeze. “You may not believe it, but you’ll do fine in the Kingdom, with or without me. The truth is I hardly recognize you as the scared girl I rescued in the farmhouse. You’ve grown, become strong. I’m very proud, and your father would be too.”
She sniffed, fought the tears, and lost. Anya hugged Fedor and cried into his chest. All the fear and uncertainty that had built up over the past weeks poured out.
When she got herself back together and wiped her cheeks she said, “Thanks. We ready?”
“Did you check your weapon?”
Anya slid the pistol from her belt, pulled the magazine, checked it, and slammed it into place. “I’m good to go.”
He nodded. “You certainly are. Come on.”
They set out toward Calais, avoiding the road and traveling through the lawns and rubble of the ruined suburbs. It was weird and felt like trespassing, but she suspected the people that had lived here were long past caring if someone walked through their l
awn. Given how little remained of the neighborhood she doubted they cared about anything anymore.
From a distance they looked over the checkpoint that led into the city proper. Four men in black carrying machine guns stood around a pair of sawhorses that blocked the road. It looked like a flimsy setup to Anya.
“Maybe we could have smashed our way through,” she said.
“Sure, but the noise would have alerted every holy warrior in the city. We wouldn’t have made it ten blocks before an RPG blew us to smithereens. No, slow and steady is best.”
“If you say so.” She eyed the hundred yards of open field between them and the nearest building, a ruined, half-collapsed shop of some sort. “How do we get across that?”
“We crawl.” Fedor fell to his stomach and inched his way forward.
Anya made a face, but followed. Halfway across the field a spider nearly the size of her hand crawled in front of her. She held her breath and it quickly crawled on its way. She continued on with a relived sigh. Anya hated bugs.
After the longest ten minutes of her life they reached the edge of the field. Fedor gathered himself and looked toward the soldiers. They’d broken out a pack of cigarettes and were laughing about something. She doubted they’d be laughing if their boss showed up right then.
“Let’s go.” Fedor sprinted for the ruined building and Anya followed on his heels.
No alarm went up so she started breathing again. “What next?”
“The docks. Be careful, I’m even more convinced it’s a trap after seeing the lax perimeter security. They want us in the city.”
Anya couldn’t think of anything to say so they set out, heading north, keeping to the shadows and alleys. Twice patrols of armed soldiers passed them by and each time Fedor grew more tense. It was starting to infect her, though how she could get any more nervous she didn’t know.
Escape From the Dragon Czar: An Aegis of Merlin Story Page 15
