by T. G. Ayer
Soon, she’d sketched out the map of the farm with the main house, the chicken coops and even the cow in the yard. Just as she gave his pencil back and moved to stand, she stopped. “Wait. There was something else.”
Bhana returned the pencil. “It was a giant banyan, so large that a man could stand upright within the roots. Someone had decorated the tree with red fabric and red thread. The tree was huge, I think its spread was larger than the main house on the farm.”
Bhana nodded. “Now, that we can work with.” He hurried away, leaving the room to make his calls and give his instructions.
Max walked over to her side and she glanced up at him. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m worried about you?”
She frowned. “Now why in the world would you worry about me? Do I look unwell?”
“It’s not that, and you know it.” Max looked frustrated, “I think you’re tiring yourself out. What was that stunt you pulled with the priestess?”
“What do you mean?” Allegra wasn’t taking too kindly to Max’s tone, and couldn’t help that her voice rose in annoyance.
“Using your energy on things other than finding the origin points of this disease.”
Allegra nodded. “I know. I understand your concern, but it wasn’t as if I could help it. The vision came when I-”
“When you touched her.”
Allegra’s eyes widened.
“Fine. I get it. I’ll stop touching people.” Allegra’s spine stiffened as she glared at Max.
Was this their first fight?
Allegra wanted to laugh. They’d have to be an actual couple first before they could have any ‘firsts’.
Startled at her line of thinking Allegra looked up and met Max’s eyes.
Guess he was thinking the same thing.
Chapter 50
The late afternoon sun was beating down on them when Bhana and his men drove the team over to the Bharat Military Airport where they would board a plane to Bhoot, a town near the Patels’ chicken farm. With Allegra’s exact description, the farm had been located from the air, with an estimated ninety percent chance that it was the right place. The banyan tree had been the decisive clue.
They drove through the airport complex, which buzzed with an energy Allegra couldn’t define. Maybe it was the hot afternoon, heavy with petrol fumes and the odor of heated metal. Maybe it was the combined emotional quota of the platoon, eager to be part of the end of the threatening pandemic.
Whatever it was, it made Allegra more nervous.
She glanced over at Corina and Flavius who both remained unperturbed, calm and cool in the face of their mission. Experience, no doubt. Max and Bhana were discussing military politics, both knowing many of the same army people across the world.
Allegra rubbed her hands down her khaki cargo pants, wiping the moisture of her nerves away. Without question, she’d worn the dull green shirt, cargoes and boots Corina had supplied. The general had been generous and considerate, seeing to it that the team had also been provided with clothing suited to a military op. Given that they’d traveled unprepared, they were more than grateful.
Bhana’s driver maneuvered the bulky vehicle along the perimeter of the complex and emerged at the back onto a tarmac filled with armored war-vehicles and planes, as well as the hustle and bustle of cargo loading and unloading.
The sight of pallets piled high with cargo, wrapped in giant green netting, soldiers with clipboards, some waving little red paddles in their hands while directing planes both large and small, diverted a little from Allegra’s nerves.
The driver slowed and circled a large cargo plane, army-issue, blunt-nosed and a dull green in color. Still, the interior was large enough to haul soldiers and ammunition as well as a couple of tankers. He drove their truck onto a ramp at the back of the plane before waiting for the back door to seal.
Bhana got out of the truck and Max and the team followed. Allegra felt a little out of place as she studied her surroundings. The plane was wide and long, the sides lined with seats. Bhana waved a hand at a half dozen empty seats, giving Allegra a worried glance.
“Please strap yourselves in. Helmets and parachutes, please.” After a second concerned glance around, he caught the eye of another soldier who was supervising the loading of dozens of narrow metal boxes marked with numbers that she assumed denoted weapons models. “If you need anything, Captain Rai here will help you.”
The soldier gave Bhana a sober nod, then faced the team as they looked for seats. He was short and stocky, his skin light though marked with the signs of teenage acne, his eyes unfathomable. Allegra found herself looking away quickly, disliking the pull of nerves that twisted her gut. She was too nervous for her own good.
The rest of the seats were occupied by soldiers, safety helmets on, hiding their features. All in all they looked intense and serious.
Good.
Allegra and the team took seats while Max headed toward the front of the plane to talk with Bhana. Planning strategy, Allegra hoped.
Rai grabbed helmets and backpacks from a box up ahead and handed them one of each. “Parachutes go on the shoulders, strapped around the waist. Legs go in the bottom loops.” He drilled them through the emergency procedure, indicating which cord to pull first, then second, and how to judge the distance. The entire time he kept looking at Allegra, his expression contemplative and hard.
A crash-course in parachuting was the last thing Allegra had expected but she nodded and paid close attention all the while praying she’d never need to use this newfound knowledge.
Corina and Flavius flanked her, and it felt almost as if they’d positioned themselves in order to protect her. It could well have been her imagination, but she appreciated it anyway.
Once the plane rumbled to life, talk was impossible and Allegra settled against the wall behind her. Rai sat opposite, his eyes flitting across to her every few minutes. She didn’t miss the hard, almost angry looks he gave her, and again Allegra swallowed down a bubble of fear.
After a bumpy ride due to low cloud-cover, they touched down with Allegra praying to at least survive the landing.
She did, and exhaled in relief as the plane rolled to a stop. Through the bustling activity of landing and off-loading the aircraft Allegra didn’t fail to notice Rai having what looked like a secretive conversation with a couple of his soldiers.
Allegra had never claimed to be good at reading body language but with these men it wasn’t hard. The covert, over-the-shoulder looks, the heads bent close as if sharing a secret, all made her wonder if they were discussing her or her team.
She tried to put it out of her mind as they exited the plane at the Bhoot Airport, the sun now lower on the horizon, though still hot enough that she had to shade her eyes. The airport turned out to be merely a large clear piece of land, just long enough and wide enough to land the giant plane.
They were met by a small platoon from the Rajasthan army which served to boost their ranks.
Security was on high alert. For both Allegra and for the disease.
Bhana had said that the government had put a moratorium on information to the press. Allegra prayed to Apollo and all the gods that they’d be given the peace—and the freedom—to do their job.
The drive to the remote town was long, and offered up one long hour of bouncing around on unpaved roads through dense bush, while the sun began to sink into the horizon, turning the sky a marbled blend of soft pink and warm coral.
The scenery changed from small villages to miles of uninhabitable dry land, to farms. Nothing was expected in this terrain.
Captain Rai’s leading vehicles threw up clouds of dust too, which hampered the view at times.
When the caravan slowed to a crawl, Allegra peered out the window trying to see what was going on up ahead. Bhana shoved the door open and began to speak, his voice brisk.
But something cut him off, and a hollow thud followed.
Max and Corina shared a concerned glance and both scrambl
ed to exit the vehicle. Max was halfway out the door when he stopped so suddenly that Corina slammed right into his back.
Peering around him, Allegra’s breath caught in her throat at the sight of Captain Rai, the muzzle of a rifle pointed at Max’s forehead.
“Get out,” he instructed, waving the rifle at them. The team complied, with Max giving them a warning glare that said, Don’t try to be a hero.
They were instructed to stand at the side of the road, with a blood-stained Bhana and his lone military driver completing the lineup. The general was silent, only the vein throbbing at his temple betraying his fury.
The right half of his face was red from blood dripping from a gash in his scalp. Allegra felt sorry for the man who’d hit him. Should they survive this coup, his attacker was surely dead.
Captain Rai gestured to his men, yelling out instructions in Sanskrit, before walking off to the main vehicle. Allegra leaned toward Bhana. “What’s going on?”
His eyes were hard as he stared at the men—his men—who were now holding him at gunpoint, having taken all the teams weapons and sat phones. “Kantha has her claws in many things and many places.”
Allegra’s jaw dropped. “What does she want?”
Bhana gave a tight shake of his head. A warning. Allegra straightened to see Rai stalking back toward them. He came to a stop in front of Allegra. “What you are trying to do goes against the laws of time, and of nature. One should not mess with what is pre-ordained.”
Allegra shook her head. “We’re trying to save the world. Do you not understand that?”
He smiled coldly. “What you do not understand is that in this age, mankind must pay for their fall into debasement. Humankind deserves to die, and if the gods see fit to create our destruction who are we to defy them?”
“But the whole world, all those people . . . .” Allegra trailed off, staring into the man’s unforgiving eyes.
“Do not think for one moment that you are the only oracle. Mother Kantha has seen this destruction you speak off. Many of our seers have.”
Contrary to what Rai thought, Allegra was under no such illusion. Her lips formed a thin, cold line. “And you chose to do nothing?”
“We chose to refrain from interfering in nature, in redirecting the hand of the gods. It is not our place.”
“But we must do something,” Allegra protested.
He shook his head. “What you do not understand is that there is nothing you can do. Avert this disaster, and another one will come along. Disease, disaster, death. Fate will come. Karma will be harsh. We deserve nothing less.”
He was walking away stiffly before Allegra could respond. She glanced at Max. “What are we going to do?” she whispered.
“We wait for our chance, then take it.”
Chapter 51
A shout went up from a vehicle along the road and one of Rai’s men scrambled forward, waving at the prisoners with his rifle.
They followed his direction and turned to head into the bush single file after an armed soldier. General Bhana and his driver, then Flavius and Corina, then Allegra and Max, with a soldier slotted in after every two of them.
Their captors weren’t taking any chances. The third soldier walked directly in front of Allegra and she studied him, the weapon held at shoulder height, pointed at Flavius’s head, the army khakis, the knife sheathed at his waist.
Suddenly it hit Allegra as to their intention. They meant to kill them in cold blood. Line them up and shoot them in the heads, or slit their throats.
Panic rose within Allegra’s gut but she pushed it down and breathed. Max was directly behind, walking with a rifle in his ribs. The ground dipped into a shallow valley, dotted with thin, emaciated trees and dry scrub. Not half a dozen steps in, Allegra heard a soft scuffling along the line behind her.
A glance over her shoulder revealed the soldier on the ground, a short knife in his throat, the handle still sticking out of the wound.
How Max had managed to stab the man with his own knife while he held a gun on Max she had no idea.
She spun around in time to see the soldier in front of her pause, and begin to turn around. Everything moved in slow motion.
The soldier lifted his rifle at Max and began to curl his finger around the trigger. Allegra reached forward, still unsure what she was supposed to do.
Unbidden, her fingers closed over the handle of the knife at his waist and she slipped it free.
The soldier bent forward, finger beginning to pull the trigger. Allegra felt the knife slice flesh and slide deep within the man’s ribs. Wet warmth coated her fingers as she watched his confused expression cloud over.
He sank slowly to the ground, his rifle falling in the dust beside him, leaving Allegra holding a blood-drenched blade.
She began to shake, her limbs flooding with adrenaline and horror.
She’d just killed a man.
Max’s hands closed over her shoulder. “We don’t have time for a panic attack. Hold onto the knife just in case, and let’s keep moving.”
Allegra nodded and put one foot in front of the other, supremely conscious of the moisture caking her fingers and growing tacky as it cooled.
She still clutched the knife in her hand, unable to uncurl her fingers and let go of the weapon.
Ahead of them, the line slowed as they entered a clearing and the leading soldier stopped and turned around. When his eyes widened, Bhana punched him in the throat, sending him down in a pile of unconsciousness.
The remaining soldier pulled the trigger.
The shot rang out, bringing everyone to a halt. A streak of fresh blood glistened along Bhana’s upper arm. The soldier stared at them, frantic now as he realized he was all alone. He took a step back then scanned the line again, his face composed and determined.
When he turned his rifle on Allegra, she knew what he meant to do.
He pulled the trigger before she could do anything more than blink.
The blast was loud, louder than Allegra had expected.
Corina cried out before slamming backward into Allegra. The seer’s weight threw Allegra backward and she fell to the ground, the knife flying from her grip.
Corina lay on top of her, shuddering.
Allegra’s heart slammed against her ribs, threatened to burst in her chest. Her vision clouded as shock filled her, numbing her limbs.
Her ears rang harshly as tears filled her eyes, blurring her vision. Then, Corina’s weight brought her slowly back to reality.
Allegra forced the panic away and slid the seer carefully off her chest before placing her on the ground to check her wound.
She knew what Corina had done and yet she was still furious. “What in Hades’ name were you thinking?” she whispered harshly as she lifted the torn shirt from her stomach. Shaking her head she glared at Corina, her eyes again filling with tears.
They were out in the bush, the vehicles long gone, the sun setting, no access to immediate medical care, with Corina bleeding out from a bloody gaping hole in her abdomen.
Corina reached for Allegra’s hand, fingers tightening over her forearm. “You are . . . more important. You must . . . do whatever you can to . . . to save us.”
Allegra shook her head even as her tears fell. “It didn’t have to be this way.”
Corina shook her head slowly. “There was no time. It is what it is. Be . . . the Pythia we all need.”
Blood began to spill from Corina’s mouth and Allegra was hit by a wave of shock so hard that she let out a horrified moan.
Her vision had not been of Corina dying from the plague. She’d seen this moment in her vision and misinterpreted it.
Before Allegra could say anything else, Corina sighed and her eyes closed. She’d fallen unconscious which Allegra knew was a bad sign.
Allegra glanced around at the worried, grieving faces watching her. Max blinked hard and cleared his throat. “We have to move.”
“No,” Allegra shook her head, “we have to help her.”
“I called for help ten minutes ago. The chopper will be here soon.”
“Chopper?” Allegra frowned. “But Rai’s men . . . they took your weapons and your phone.”
Max’s smile was cold and angry as he said, “Emergency tracking device with an SOS feature.” He tapped his wristwatch.
“Oh,” was all Allegra could muster in response.
“There’s a NGS Army base a few miles south.”
Allegra nodded and glanced at Corina. “That’s good. They can take her to a hospital.”
Max’s hand curled around Allegra’s upper arm. “Allegra . . . with a wound like that she won’t survive the next ten minutes. She’s bleeding internally.”
Allegra shook her head. “No. The chopper can take her straight to the hospital. Then we can go to the farm.”
Max’s jaw tightened and he looked about to say something when Bhana touched his shoulder and pointed to the distant horizon.
A light bobbed in the sky, the chopper on its way.
They paid little attention to Allegra, and even Flavius kept his distance, his eyes shielded, his expression withdrawn.
Allegra shielded her eyes as the chopper landed in a nearby clearing, spinning a whirlwind of dust and leaves around them. She covered Corina with her jacket, trying to ensure the dust stayed out of her wounds, then stood and waited as soldiers exited the chopper with a stretcher.
Flavius drew her aside as two soldiers prepped and loaded Corina into the stretcher before strapping her in. He was a man of very few words, and even now, in the mire of grief, he remained silent, just the arm around her shoulders showing his concern.
With Corina safely inside, Max waved for them to get in. Allegra hurried to the chopper and climbed in before strapping herself into the seat beside Corina. The seer’s face was pale, almost luminous in the lights of the aircraft.
Up ahead, Allegra heard Max and Bhana talking, the phrase ‘directly to the farm’ filtered through to her.
She sat forward. “You aren’t planning on going to the farm first are you?” she yelled above the noise of the whirring blades. “Corina will die!”