Relentless Page 16

  When we reached the northern end of their property, Olympia parked back from the fence. It was six feet of chain link topped with a foot of barbed wire. The three of us hustled to a spot where we could see through a tall bush to the tiny beach several hundred yards away. The light was fading fast.

  It was empty, and no boats floated nearby. The cramping in my stomach subsided.

  Hector pulled out a fancy pair of binoculars. “Night vision. We do try to keep up with the times.”

  “Good for you,” I said. “See anything?”

  He scanned the water, slowly moving the binocs back and forth. “By Zeus! There they are, only a half-mile away in the fog.”

  He handed me the glasses and pointed in their general direction. The black cabin cruiser rose on the heavy swell then disappeared into a trough. It took me a minute to spot an inflatable raft near the boat. Two lumps, probably men, stuck up over the sides of the raft. “Dammit! Two men in an inflatable are headed our way.”

  Hector muttered in Greek.

  “What do you think the bastards plan to do?” I asked.

  “Sneak up on us from here, obviously,” he said.

  “Well, I’m not so sure,” Olympia said. “Maybe they don’t know how tough it will be to get past our fence. The west end juts out over a sheer cliff, and the east end extends into a huge bramble of blackberry bushes in the forest.”

  I was always in favor of the direct approach. “If their magic is good enough, they can breach the wards and use bolt cutters to open a gap.”

  “Maybe,” Hector said. “But if they attack the wards, they’ll produce a loud shriek. We’d have plenty of warning before they walked the three miles to town, even if we hadn’t spotted them coming.”

  The problem was, he wasn’t sneaky enough to understand a depraved sorcerer’s mindset. “What if this is just a diversion? It could be intended to draw you up here, away from the cove, where the main attack would come from the black boat.”

  Hector growled “By coming at us from both directions, they’d divide our defenses, namely me and Leo.”

  Olympia gasped. “How can we fight on both fronts?”

  “You need a real bitch of a sorceress on your side,” I said. “Luckily, I’m free this evening, and I’m cheap. How about the three of us strengthen this ward now. Then, if the cabin cruiser continues south, you two can drive back to town to prepare a welcoming party for what will probably be the main assault. I’ll stay here to slow down any assholes who make it through the fence.”

  Hector gave me a one-armed hug. “I’ve told everyone in the family—you have the heart of a lion. Let’s see what they do. If they attack from the south, we can certainly fight back. We have a fifty-caliber rifle that’ll seriously damage their boat before they can force their way into the cove.”

  “Sounds like fun,” I said, and I meant it. I always loved a chance for payback to sorcerers, particularly if they come after me.

  We strengthened the wards along the north fence, making a big improvement, but stationary defenses could only withstand so much punishment. Then we waited.

  Olympia used a walkie-talkie to communicate with Leo in Greek, and I only had a general idea of what she said, something like, Leo needs to break out the big gun and watch for black boats sneaking around in the dark.

  And it quickly became dark. The night vision binocs showed the men silently rowing toward the tiny beach, and sure enough, the cabin cruiser headed south.

  Hector said in a firm voice, “Promise me you’ll be careful. If not, you’re going back with my daughter, and I’ll stay here.”

  The main threat was probably heading south, and he needed to help there. “I’ll be careful, just doing what I can to slow them down. As you know better than most, this won’t be my first rodeo.”

  Olympia and Hector walked back to the Jeep, taking the binocs so she could drive without her lights on. The fog rolled over me and blocked the dim light from a quarter-moon. With the damp, it got much colder.

  I couldn’t see a thing as I stood in total darkness, listening for the approach of the two men. They could show up anywhere along the fence, but a spell strong enough to breach a ward would make a hell of a racket and tell me exactly where they were. So, I headed to a bush near where I thought they were most likely to approach, and I waited, using the time to build up my anger at their sneak attack.

  A few minutes later, the unmistakable sound of boots scraping on rocks and pebbles carried over the dull roar from the surf below. Then I heard them panting. Either those two were making mad love to each other on the hillside or they were struggling up the steep hill.

  As they got closer, my nervousness grew. They’d probably checked the fence in the past and knew it was enchanted. If so, they had to be sorcerers strong enough to get past the magical barrier. If I was wrong, they’d go no further, and my job would be done. That’d be a letdown, but then I could run back to town to help in the fight there.

  The two finally made it to the top of the hill on the other side of the fence. As best I could tell, they were about fifty feet closer to the forest than I was. Silence again.

  What was their plan? I’d had plenty of time to put myself in their shoes. One possibility was they’d been sent to create a false alarm. In that case, they’d attack to trigger the shriek then they’d leave.

  I hoped for the second possibility, namely that they planned to keep on keepin’ on. If so, they’d smash through our defense and run to join the fight in town.

  Either way, it was their move.

  Chapter 17

  IN A LOUD voice, one of them cast a Dunarsh lightning spell. The darkness lit up at the same time as a boom echoed off the forest. An instant later, the ward sent out a shriek that practically burst my eardrums. I should’ve expected that. It had to be heard three miles away.

  Thank the gods, the ward survived. It vibrated through the section of fence a few feet away from me but didn’t break.

  “You dumb shit!” one of them said. “You have to do better than that.”

  So, they were planning on coming through. My skin tingled with excitement. I’d fought against two opponents at the same time before, and it was always more of a challenge.

  A second, deeper voice said, “I didn’t want to waste power. If you’re so damned strong, you do it.”

  That confirmed they were coming in. Seconds later, a much louder boom sounded and our ward shattered into a thousand bits of magic. That told me the second guy was far too tough for me.

  I definitely wasn’t going to risk slavery by offering a challenge, but I could slow these assholes down and get a few licks in along the way.

  A loud, gas-powered motor started, and a screeching sound told me they were using a power saw to cut through the fence.

  My main advantage was I knew this terrain. They had only two choices, either taking the trail along the top of the bluffs or the one near the forest. If they tried to bushwhack across the fields and pastures, they’d run into too many gullies and rocky outcroppings.

  So, I waited. My anger built as I thought about how casually they were breaking through to attack the Papandreou family and the other Greeks in town, knowing they would soon come after me, too.

  The motor died out, and they argued for a moment about which path to follow.

  It was dark, but the fog had vanished again. I could barely see a few feet ahead in the dim light from the setting moon. They were too far away from me to cast a spell, but they might come my way. If not, I’d have to hurry after them.

  Either way, these sons of bitches need to hurt.

  “We are going this way,” the stronger one said. Footfalls approached.

  I waited until I could make out the outline of two large men. That’s when I let the fury building inside me explode. How dare they attack at night on the Greeks’ own land. From a few feet away, point-blank range, I aimed my staff at them. Holarthon, elbo frappe!

  A white-hot ball
of lightning hit the closest guy in the chest. Without waiting to see what happened, I fired a second one at the other guy. Then I ran toward the ocean until the trail turned south along the edge of the cliffs.

  Both men screamed behind me. Maybe that’ll teach you to stop sneaking around in the dark.

  I couldn’t run at full speed because the trail meandered alongside a sheer drop-off. Luckily, I remembered enough about the trail’s ups and downs to avoid taking any headers into the water and rocks below.

  After about a quarter mile, I stopped behind one of the many boulders that pockmarked the pastures. The particular rock I chose was taller than me and rested ten feet off the trail. It would give me some protection, and I hoped to see them dimly as they passed by. I created a ward around me as insurance and tried to catch my breath. Then I prepared another couple of spells. How dare they stomp over someone else’s property with evil on their minds!

  Far to the south, heavy rifle fire erupted. That cheered me up. I hoped it meant Hector and his crew were sinking the black boat before he could reach the harbor. If so, these bastards chasing me would have no way to get back to Eureka. The raft they’d rowed to the tiny beach wouldn’t carry them far.

  I listened for the telltale sound of feet crunching on the gravel path or swishing through tall pasture grass. No matter how sneaky they were, they couldn’t stay as quiet as motionless me.

  I peered around the edge of the boulder, ears and eyes on full alert. North on the trail, something scuffed against the ground. Then silence. A click sounded out as a couple of stones smacked each other. One of them muttered an oath under his breath.

  Two dark shapes came into view outlined by the setting moon behind them. Their heads were enormous, like they were wearing helmets, and their torsos even bigger. They had to be wearing night vision goggles and backpacks. Crap. They could see a lot better than I could.

  I slowly eased my staff into position. Holarthon, elbo choque. This time, a blinding bolt of lightning hit the guy in front, but it dissipated against some barrier he’d created. I fired a second bolt at him, hoping it would get through.

  It did, and he roared in pain, dropping to the path. The second guy fired a fireball at me. It mostly hit the boulder, but partially obliterated my ward. The smell of burning hair filled the air. He’d singed the left side of my head.

  I tamped out the fire and ran across the pasture to reach the path somewhere in front of them. Then I almost broke my neck as one foot caught on a protruding rock. Somehow, I managed to keep my balance and ran south on the trail. A ball of lightning shot past me, barely missing me.

  Unfortunately, it seemed that the weaker guy had been walking ahead of the other one. I’d blasted him good, but the stronger guy got off easy. He’d stay back and help his buddy, wouldn’t he?

  But I heard him running behind me, swearing all the while. My best chance was to outrun him. I tried but tripped several more times. He slowly closed in on me, using the advantage of the night googles to run faster.

  Because I couldn’t get into a shooting match with such a powerful sorcerer, I pushed away my anger and calmed my mind. Holarthon, elbo protége. It wasn’t the best ward I’d ever made but much better than nothing.

  A lightning bolt lit up the sky and slammed into the back of my barrier. It took the brunt of it before disappearing but jolted me forward. A jolt of fear blasted through my body. I stumbled again, barely managing to keep my feet under me. Then ran on.

  Although I tried to recreate my protection, my thoughts were too scattered. Nothing was working. I could dash into the field on my left and hide, but that would leave the Greeks with no warning of the impending danger.

  The white hotel came into view as I rounded a rise. So close. Then my foot skidded on a loose rock. I tumbled forward onto my hands and knees.

  Before I could get up again, the bastard smashed into me, knocking me onto my back. A rock in the path dug into my ribs on the left side. Although a stabbing pain shot through me, I didn’t have the luxury of crying about it.

  He towered over me and laughed. “About time I caught you. And wow, you’re a bitch.”

  He reached out to leap onto me, and I barely had time to pull in my legs. Then I kicked at him with all my strength, catching him in the stomach and knocking him sideways. He landed on his backpack, snarling.

  I rolled over, ignoring the shooting pains in my back, and scrambled to my hands and feet. Fury boiled within me again, and I pointed my staff. “Holarthon, elbo assomme!”

  My stunning spell caught him before he could get up, and he writhed in pain.

  As he screamed, I dashed toward the hotel. Hopefully Hector would be there, and he could deal with this monster.

  The trail was much smoother close to the hotel, and I ran faster. Behind me, my tormentor chased me again. I was almost out of breath but didn’t dare slow down.

  A pulse of ball lightning grazed me on my left shoulder and set the fabric in my flannel shirt on fire. While running, I used my free hand to tamp out the flames. The fire burned my hand, but no choice.

  “Hector!” I screamed. Then I realized he might still be down by the cove on the other side of town. Couldn’t make it that far. The son of a bitch behind me yelled something, but I didn’t catch his words. My heart beat too loudly in my ears.

  Up ahead, Leo’s voice rang out loud and clear. “Moira, I’m coming!”

  He wasn’t strong enough. I needed the old man. Although I was almost out of breath, I managed to yell, “No! Run to cove!”

  But a second later, I spotted him standing in the path pointing past me. Leo yelled something in Greek and fired. Red lightning shot by me into the dark.

  The sorcerer behind me didn’t speak, but a stream of white lightning flew past on my left side and hit Leo in a deafening thunderclap.

  Leo’s body twisted, froze for a second, then collapsed to the ground. I ran to him and patted his face, but no reaction. Fear of what that spell had done to Leo froze me for an instant.

  Then, livid, I turned to face the sorcerer, now only a few feet away. With my staff, I sent a massive white fireball into his chest at point-blank range. It crackled and roared as his clothes burst into flames. He screamed, then dropped to the dirt and rolled, trying to put out the white-hot magical inferno.

  I ignored him and checked Leo’s pulse. Nothing. I tried chest compressions and mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, but he didn’t respond. One shot, and he was gone.

  I turned to check on the sorcerer, and his motionless body lay on the ground, flames still consuming him.

  “Hector!” I screamed. “Anybody! Leo needs help!”

  In the distance, he yelled, “I’m coming.”

  I tried more compressions. Leo didn’t respond.

  Hector arrived a moment later, his chest heaving.

  “I’m so sorry! Leo’s gone,” I said.

  The old man collapsed to the path next to his grandson and held the limp body against his. Then he roared in frustration and anger.

  Hector rocked back and forth, speaking in Greek. I assumed he was making magic, but Leo remained motionless.

  Tears flowed down Hector’s checks and mine. My throat was so tight, I could hardly breathe.

  Olympia ran up to us.

  “What happened?” she asked me, her voice barely a whisper.

  I told her what I’d done since she and Hector had left me. Neither interrupted or asked questions. I was second-guessing every decision I’d made, but they didn’t.

  When I finished, Hector said, “You have nothing to apologize for, Moira. You did everything you could, handled yourself brilliantly.”

  I wasn’t so sure, but I put that aside. “The other one is still out there. I last saw him up in the north pasture. I think he’s hurt. This one,” I pointed at bastard’s charred body, “was too strong for me until he attacked poor Leo.”

  With a low anguished voice, Hector said, “We are not gods. There’s always so
meone out there stronger.”

  No one spoke for a moment. In the sudden stillness I wondered what had happened at the cove. “What about the black boat?”

  Hector said, “I sank it as they tried to cut the cable. The baldheaded captain and another sorcerer on board chose to fight from the water. I offered them two chances to surrender, but they continued to cast spells. Big mistake.”

  I wasn’t sure what that meant. “Are they dead?”

  “Unless they grew gills. I stunned each of them, and they sank below the surface. Didn’t resurface. When I was sure they couldn’t hold their breath any longer, I came to find you. I’m so sorry I waited too long.”

  I tried to comfort him by patting his back. “Should’ve used my phone as a flashlight and outran them to reach you. Leo might still be alive.”

  Olympia held up her hand. “No more second-guessing. It won’t bring my son back to life.”

  Hector said, “Exactly. Let’s take the Jeep and find the other one.”

  He stood, lifted Leo in his arms, and carried him into the hotel. There, he laid the body on one of the sofas in the lobby. The rest of the family gathered around, and he briefly told them how he and I were going to track down the last sorcerer.

  Then Hector and I ran for the Jeep, which was parked in front of the main entrance. He got behind the wheel, and I sat next to him. There was no need for secrecy, so he turned on the headlights and drove up the path I’d run down. We didn’t speak much, each of us consumed with our own grief, but he stopped occasionally so I could use a flashlight to scan the fields and pastures for the second sorcerer.

  As we were bouncing ahead, it hit me—I’d killed a man. I didn’t regret it, and I would certainly kill the other one if I could find him before Hector did. The bastard deserved what he’d gotten, and yet this was something I couldn’t undo. I’d have to think that part through at another time.

  Finally, we reached the place where I’d hidden behind the boulder. Nobody was there, but the sorcerer had left his backpack in the middle of the path. I jumped out and opened it. It contained a bunch of packages about the size of paperbacks wired to each other.