Mercenary

by Jennifer Blackstream

  Chapter 24

  I didn’t wait for Liam. I didn’t have to since I could feel him right behind me. His aura preceded him, pressing against my back like an oncoming storm, filling my head with echos of his voice.

  “I think you like it.”

  I shivered again, hard enough that I stumbled. It wasn’t much, just a missed step, but it was enough for Liam to close the distance between us without running to catch up.

  We’d had a lot of onlookers on our way in. This time, everyone paid attention. Silence rolled over the casino, and the voices trickled away as everyone stopped to stare. I had no idea what my aura felt like to everyone else right now. All I knew was that I had to get outside, had to clear my head.

  Now.

  Peasblossom squeaked as I bent down and scooped her off of my leg. We passed into the shadows of the parking garage, and I paused to take the contract from the pixie. As soon as she let go, the contract lost its shield of invisibility and I quickly scanned the signatures scrawled at the bottom.

  “Ian Walsh.”

  Liam stopped behind me, and his breath stirred the hairs on the back of my neck. He was breathing harder than he’d been before. Strange, since he hadn’t been running.

  “That can’t be his real name.”

  I shook my head, clearing my throat before I spoke again. “Most likely either an Anglicized version of his name, or a legal alias.”

  I unzipped my pouch. “Bizbee, could you file this away please? Keep it safe?”

  “Your hands are shaking,” Bizbee said, his little face pinching with a frown. “Are ye all right?”

  I ripped the wig off my head and tried to muster up a smile. “I’m fine. Just anxious to get that contract to Anton.”

  “Sunset isn’t for another hour,” Liam pointed out.

  His voice was gruffer than usual, and the sound rubbed against my skin in a not unpleasant way. I shivered and walked faster.

  When I got in the truck, Jeff opened his mouth, then immediately closed it when Liam got in a split second later. We both closed our doors a little too hard, the slam loud in the small space.

  “So…” he said warily. “How’d it go?”

  I jerked the wig off my head and stuffed it into my waist pouch. “I got the contract. We need to get it to Anton.”

  Jeff studied me, as if waiting for me to say more. His gaze flicked to Liam. “Success then. Any…problems?”

  “No,” Liam said shortly.

  Peasblossom’s invisibility dropped and she hopped onto the seat to share a look with Jeff. The raven ruffled its feathers on Jeff’s shoulder. “Blackjack,” the bird said helpfully.

  Liam pulled out of the parking garage, heading for the Winters building. His energy wasn’t calming down. It pulsed against me, making it harder to breathe. I wanted to lean into that energy. See what it felt like if I pressed my hand to his skin.

  I didn’t realize I’d given in to the urge until my fingertips brushed his forearm. The energy spiked under my touch, and I wrapped my hand around his arm, feeling it pulse against my palm.

  Liam’s muscles flexed under my touch, and he took his eyes off the road long enough for me to catch a glimpse of the heat in his eyes. My breath caught in my throat.

  “I sense I’m interrupting something,” Jeff said calmly. “But I think you should know, we’re being followed.”

  I tore my hand from Liam’s arm, fear chasing away the pleasant hum drowning my thoughts. I looked out the back window, but didn’t see anything beyond ordinary Cleveland traffic. “Who?”

  “The blue van. The very large blue van.” Jeff slid down lower in his seat. “It’s been following us since we left.”

  “I can make a few turns, find out if it’s really following us,” Liam said.

  His voice still held more of a rasp than normal, and he wouldn’t look at me.

  “Don’t bother,” Jeff said. “I know a tail when I see one. And unless I miss my guess, that van is part of the sideshow.”

  “Stavros noticed the missing contract.” My stomach bottomed out.

  “Maybe, maybe not. It could be that you two put on a more tempting show than Stavros was willing to walk away from.” He shrugged. “Or he noticed the missing contract.”

  “There’s going to be a lot of collateral damage if they attack us in the middle of the city,” Liam growled. “We need to get somewhere with fewer people.”

  “I know the place. Peasblossom, grab the GPS and put in the address for the Acme building.”

  “Right!”

  I looked at Scath still reclining in the backseat. Her side where she’d been burned in Arianne’s office had completely healed, and she looked at me with the same serious, stoic look she always wore. “I hope you’re ready for some exercise.” I handed Jeff my phone. “Call Anton. The private number you used earlier. I need to leave a message telling him that Ian is the one who bound Roger.”

  Jeff dialed the number and handed me the phone. “Won’t do you any good. If we die, Ian will be able to spin his own tale. It’s what he does.”

  Vera’s sleepy voice answered. “Anton’s phone, this is Vera. Who is this?”

  “Shade Ren—”

  The phone dropped its signal. Of more concern, was the fact that the trucks electronics gave up the ghost as well.

  Liam cursed and gripped the wheel, guiding the truck toward the Acme building’s parking lot. Fortunately, we were close, and he made it off the street, though not so far as to allow us the luxury of choosing our position strategically.

  “What happened?” I demanded.

  “Electromagnetic pulse.” Jeff gestured toward my cell. “And a jammer.”

  Liam pulled his shirt over his head and unfastened his jeans, rolling his neck from side to side. “Jeff, how injured are you?”

  “Fit as a fiddle. Illyana knows her healing.”

  “They’re getting out,” Peasblossom said loudly. “I see seven, no, eight people. The wizard is here, and he’s got two women on either side of him wearing lots of sequins. Oh! And there’s a giant! Yikes. Wolfman, knew that was coming. It’s the fellow with the metal sticking out of his face. Another woman, can’t tell what she is. Eep!”

  She fluttered into the front seat and I held out my palm for her to land in. “That’s a dragonkin! They have a dragonkin!”

  “That would be the fire breather,” I said grimly. I touched the top of Peasblossom’s head and gave her a spell. “Save this for an emergency,” I told her. I didn’t bother to whisper, Liam would hear me anyway. “Not for me. This is for whoever needs it most, understand?”

  Peasblossom crossed her arms and stuck her chin out. “I know what you want.”

  That was not the same thing as agreeing to obey orders, but I let it go. I didn’t have time to convince her.

  We got out of the truck, and I couldn’t shake the feeling we’d fallen into an old western. There was no point in hiding, or using the truck for cover, we’d only let them focus their attention on a smaller area. So we came around the vehicle, ready for the attack we knew was coming.

  Stavros stood in the center of his line of cronies, but remained behind them. His mere five-foot-six stature didn’t make him any less intimidating.

  His eyes flicked from me to Liam and back, and a broad smile spread over his face. “It has been a long time since I’ve enjoyed a performance like the one you and your lupine friend here put on for me. You’re the first to get the better of me in well over a decade. I hope you can take some comfort in that.”

  “Is this the part where you tell us if we give you back the contract, you’ll let us live?” Jeff drawled.

  Stavros shook his head, the smile still on his face. “Oh, no. No, you stole from me, and for that you’ll have to pay. It’s a matter of precedent, you understand. No one can steal from me and get away with it. However, I will make you a deal.” He pointed to me and Liam. “You two fight to the death. The winner can walk away.” He tilted his head, and added with less enthusiasm to Je
ff, “Same deal for you and the cat.”

  “What is she?” asked the elegantly attired woman standing to the far right. She studied Scath with large eyes heavily outlined with kohl, and her sleek penciled eyebrows arched with interest.

  I glanced at the woman, my eye drawn first to her teal colored dress with a plunging neckline and a matching choker. Gold beads dangled from a small circlet on top of her head, with identical gold pieces hanging from her earlobes. Her straight brown hair was pulled back in a high ponytail, and fell to brush the center of her back.

  “She’s someone who dislikes people who stand in our way,” I said shortly.

  The woman never took her eyes off Scath. Which is why it came as a shock when I found myself lifted off the ground and hurled through the air.

  The world spun around me, and I lost all sense of direction. I had a split second to focus the magic I’d held ready, shouting the spell just before my body slammed into the ground.

  “Effingo!”

  The impact with the dirt knocked the air from my lungs, stealing whatever breath I might have used to cry out, but the spell was already rolling. Colors coalesced in the air around me, and four illusions that looked exactly like me sprang up like cartoon daisies. The strong man who’d climbed out of Stavros’ van had been waiting for me to come close enough to grab, but my spell caught him off guard. He recovered quickly, swinging one meaty fist through the air.

  He chose wrong, and his fist passed through one of the illusory doubles, popping it. The strike had been far too close to my head for comfort, and I fought for the breath for another spell.

  “Glacio!” I choked, throwing a hand toward him.

  A layer of ice frosted over the ground, and the giant shouted as he lost his footing and hit the parking lot—hard.

  “They’re illusions!” the telekinetic screamed, gold bangles bobbing madly about her head. “The real witch is—”

  “No one asked you!” Peasblossom screeched.

  I looked up in time to see a pink blur dive for her, driving a scream from the telekinetic as Peasblossom’s tiny cocktail sword found a home in the curve of her left butt cheek.

  Pain throbbed in my back, but I forced myself to sit up. The two women standing on either side of Stavros turned their attention to Jeff. One of them raised the whip she held at her side, while the other one melted toward the ground like a tower of cheap candle wax in direct sunlight. I barely registered the four massive paws, long sinewy tail, and thick mane of a lion before the hiss of the whip through the air spurred me to shout a warning at Jeff.

  The ranger raised his arm in time to block the bite of the whip, the piece of leather wrapping around his forearm. The woman grunted and pulled, trying to free her weapon. Blackjack dove out of the air, slashing her face with his claws, drawing thick trails of blood and leaving her screaming and clutching her face.

  I hadn’t seen Jeff draw his gun, so his shot startled me. The shapeshifter finished taking the form of a lion, only to take a bullet in her front flank. She roared and hit the ground with a dull thud. Concentration broken, she lost her feline form, melting back into her human self.

  I forced myself to my hands and knees, trying to make my throbbing joints obey my commands and shuffling a step farther from the struggling giant.

  To my right, Liam had his own problems, outflanked by the firebreather and Edwin. Smoke curled from the fire breather’s nose with each exhale, and his reptilian eyes dilated with anticipation. The werewolf flexed claw-tipped fingers. If he had any kind feelings toward Liam for his offer of help earlier, there was no sign of it now.

  Liam hadn’t shifted yet. Instead he drew his gun in one smooth motion and shot the werewolf. Edwin dove forward, too fast. The bullet missed him, and the breath left Liam’s body on a grunt as the wolf tackled him to the ground. The fire breather reached down and closed his fingers around Liam’s wrist, holding his gun hand still as he drew in a breath. When he exhaled, a spurt of flame licked at the gun, heating the metal still clasped in Liam’s hand. Liam snarled and dropped his weapon.

  Scath roared and charged forward, leaping at the fire breather. I saw a billow of red and orange flame and smelled burning fur before they both hit the ground.

  I shoved myself to my feet only to stumble back when a blade slashed downward in front of me. Another of my duplicates disappeared, and I stared as a sword-wielding man turned to look me in the eye. Feline irises narrowed to slits, and he sniffed the air. A smile curled his mouth, revealing a flash of too-sharp teeth.

  I let my mouth fill with saliva, pushed my magic into it, and spit at him. A tacky ball of blue goo shot toward the cat shifter, spreading into a sticky blue net. He dove out of the way, but the edge of the spell caught him, tangling his ankles together. He didn’t fall, but he stumbled and dropped one of his swords.

  “Give up now,” Stavros called out. “You cannot beat them.” He raised his hands in the air, looking for all the world like a ringmaster summoning the audience’s attention. “We have been together for too long. We are not just a handful of rabble, but an organized troupe of performers, assassins, and thieves. Hundreds have fallen before you, and hundreds will fall afterward. We are the Sanctum, and we cannot be beaten.”

  I recognized magic when I heard it. Stavros’ words echoed with power, and as I glanced around at our opponents, I realized what he was doing.

  Our attackers got their second wind first.

  The telekinetic sucked in a deep breath, the tense lines of her face smoothing as she regained her calm, seeming to ignore the many pricks of Peasblossom’s blade as the pixie taunted her to keep her attention off me. Thus far, the telekinetic had managed to save herself from being bled to death with a telekinetic shield, but now she dropped it.

  Peasblossom saw her chance, and dove for the psychic’s throat. I didn’t have time to scream a warning. The telekinetic flung out a hand, zeroed in on Peasblossom’s mind, and closed the pixie in a ball of telekinetic energy.

  “No!” I screamed, watching in horror as the woman cupped the ball in her hands, not releasing it until she held the pixie in her fists. Peasblossom thrashed, and the telekinetic hissed as if she’d bit her, but still didn’t let go. Her wings. She’ll crush her wings.

  I didn’t have time to get to my familiar. The strong man recovered his breath, rolling off the ice onto his feet and seizing my waist. My distraction over my familiar’s peril cost me, and the giant tightened his arms around me, sealing me in a bear hug.

  I closed my eyes, shoving the panic down and focusing on my power. I thought of cold, chill, ice. I imagined the man’s lips turning blue, his teeth chattering, his skin losing its warmth. I didn’t have the breath to speak, so I shoved my magic at him along with the images, the sensations in my mind.

  The strong man stumbled, and his grip loosened, but only slightly. He regained his footing all too soon, and though his embrace no longer felt like iron bands, it was still more than enough to keep me from wriggling free.

  The shapeshifter who’d been forced from her lion form got to her feet, her hand pressed against the wound in her shoulder. Stavros’ rallying spell hadn’t healed her, but it had given her the boost she needed to shrug off the pain and keep fighting. She limped to the telekinetic and took Peasblossom from her, squeezing the pixie tight with the hand of her good arm. Peasblossom wailed, and the sound was a sharp knife to my gut.

  The other shapeshifter abandoned her whip and, with more grace than her counterpart, took the form of an eagle. She rose into the air and chased the raven away from the fight.

  The telekinetic leveled her gaze on me, her magic brushing my mind. Before I could draw the breath for a spell, Jeff aimed his gun at her, forcing her attention to him. The elegant woman swept out her arm, and a wave of force slammed Jeff into the side of the building. His head struck the brick hard, and he fell to the ground, catching himself on his hands and knees. He swayed and blood trickled down his temples. He’d dropped his gun when he hit the wall, and the
weapon had been swallowed by the debris littering the area.

  Another movement caught my eye. Edwin had Liam on the ground and was straddling his waist. I could see the blistered flesh of Liam’s hand where his gun had scalded him, the sweat pouring down his face. Liam arched his back to throw his opponent off of him, but the wolfman had benefited from the wizard’s help as well. Despite the struggle, he wasn’t winded, wasn’t slowed by his injuries. He slashed downward before Liam could roll him off, and I screamed as his claws opened Liam’s throat.

  Scath leapt off the fire breather, drawn by either the scent of Liam’s blood or my scream, I didn’t know. She roared, a sound that made my ribs vibrate, and gave even Stavros pause. Then she was on Edwin, claws and teeth tearing into him. The shifter didn’t make a sound as he toppled backward under the massive cat.

  The firebreather rolled over onto his side. He was bloody, but still breathing, and as Scath pinned down the werewolf, he let loose another spout of fire that caught Scath’s fur. The stench of burning fur and flesh rolled over the battle ground, and my stomach heaved.

  “Get the contract!” Stavros shouted.

  The catperson clucked his tongue in shame as he freed himself from my spell and stood, sheathing his swords. The giant tightened his grip as the swordsman stalked toward me with his slitted feline eyes staring into mine, daring me to move as he unzipped the pouch at my waist.

  A second later the mocking glint left his eyes, replaced by agony as he screamed and reared back.

  The sizzle of melting flesh drew my eyes to his hand, and I stared. Acid.

  I looked down, but I couldn’t see my pouch past the thick arms of the giant holding me.

  “There’s more where that came from, ye great furball!” Bizbee shouted. “Keep yer bluidy hands to yerself!”

  Bizbee. I sagged in relief. “You won’t get it,” I choked. “You might as well call them off.”

  Stavros gave me a scolding look, shaking his head as he drew closer. “Tell the creature to hand over the contract. You can’t win.”