“Well, you guys led me on a merry chase today. Well done,” she said.
“How did you know where to find us?” I asked. No sense in pretending we weren’t who we were anymore. She had us.
“It was the logical first choice since you know about the artifact, you’d start at the dig site.”
“What artifact?” I said, playing dumb. Leikala smirked at me like it was time for me to drop my facade, but I stared her down.
“Did you really talk to Mr. Kim?” I said after an awkward pause. I glanced over at Pilar, but she was intently studying the back of Leikala’s head. Maybe, just maybe, Leikala was telling the truth and everything would be okay.
Except it wasn’t.
Because when Leikala pulled out on the main road, she turned in the opposite direction of Hilo, and as she did, the back doors of the car locked shut and a dark black glass partition slid out of the front seat up to the ceiling of the car, sealing us off from the driver.
We were trapped.
CHAPTER NINE
We Meet Again
We tried the doors. They were locked tight. We pounded on the windows, but they were tinted and I doubted that anyone could see in. Not that there was any traffic going by anyway.
I pulled my phone out of my pocket and turned it on. But it gave me a “Signal Not Available” sign on the LED screen. Stupid phone. Pilar’s said the same thing. Leikala’s voice came over the speakers.
“Your phones won’t work. The backseat of the car is lined with a special compound that blocks the signals.”
“Where are you taking us?” I said, trying to keep the fear out of my voice.
“Just enjoy the ride. By the way, I can hear you and see you. So don’t try anything stupid.”
I was scared. Was there anything I could do? I had a cell phone that didn’t work, a wad of cash in my jeans pocket, and my Swiss Army knife. Maybe I could hack my way through the side of the car to freedom. Ha. Pilar didn’t have anything in the way of weapons. Our hearts were beating a thousand beats a minute, but we were out of ideas.
We drove for quite a while, turning frequently. We seemed to be headed into the interior of the island. The terrain became more mountainous and covered with even thicker vegetation. We sat there staring out the tinted windows and watching the countryside go by.
After a while, the car slowed and we pulled off the road onto a path that led into the rain forest. The trees and bushes were very close to the car. Then the car seemed to drive into the side of a mountain, and as we pulled in, I could see that we were now inside a huge compound built into the mountain. Great. It was another secret hideout just like the one at Blackthorn. Doesn’t anybody use plain old barns or garages anymore? Why not old, abandoned warehouses somewhere, like normal crooks?
The car stopped and I could hear the locks on the back doors release. A big, burly guy in a black jumpsuit opened the door on my side. He looked like he’d had a healthy dose of steroids with his Cheerios that morning. He grabbed my arm and pulled me out of the car. Another guy that could have been his twin was hustling Pilar out the other side.
We were in a large room with about six cars and trucks parked in it. There were a handful of people milling around and watching us. They were all wearing the same black skintight jumpsuits. Leikala got out of the car and turned to face me. The behemoth holding my arm let go for a second. That was when I launched the best spin kick of my life right at Leikala’s head. It was a beauty.
Unfortunately she was ready for it and blocked it easily. This told me she had some martial arts training—probably more than me. Maybe she wasn’t lying about going to Blackthorn after all. I was about to go for her eyes when King Kong grabbed me from behind. Lucky for her.
“Enough,” she yelled. “You are so predictable. I don’t know why Simon is so fascinated by you.”
So there was the proof. As if we hadn’t guessed already, she was working for Blankenship. And this must be some kind of Mithrian hideout. Great. Just great. Could I be any more lame? I mean, I get us all the way out of the school and on a plane to Hawaii, and I’m not there five minutes before the bad guy captures me. Maybe this whole secret-agent “fighting the forces of darkness” thing was not a good career choice for me. Perhaps I should consider switching to the food services industry or maybe being a bowling alley attendant.
“Let me go!” I tried to kick backward and get Kong in the shins, but it was like kicking a steel pipe. He just laughed.
“Take them to the holding cells. Simon will be here shortly.” She turned and started across the room.
“Hey! Leikala!” I yelled. She stopped.
“Yes?”
“You have a big zit on your lip!”
Her hand started to fly to her face before she stopped and scowled at me.
“Take her now!” she yelled.
Ha! Score one for Rachel Buchanan. If you can’t kick a bad girl in the head, go after her complexion. Childish, I know. But I needed to land a couple of shots to help rebuild my fast-crumbling self-esteem.
Kong and his twin took us down a hallway. I tried to look around the facility to see if I could learn anything. A bunch of old crates and stuff were stacked around that said “U.S. Navy,” so maybe this was an old military installation left over from the war. I had read a little about the Big Island on the flight over, and there was a section in the guidebook that said the U.S. military used it for training during World War II. This was probably some old bomb shelter or something that the Mithrians had expanded.
Finally I was unceremoniously shoved into an empty room. There were a couple of thin mattresses on the floor and nothing else. I heard the door being locked behind me, and realized they must have taken Pilar to another room. I was alone.
I tried to organize my thoughts. I had to assume the room was bugged and they could watch me. I still had my cell phone that didn’t work. I still had my Swiss Army knife, too, but I didn’t think I could take on a whole compound of Mithrians with that.
Basically I was stuck. I paced some more and then sat on the mattress. There wasn’t much to do except wait for Simon to show up. Which of course he eventually did.
He came into the room without even knocking. I have to say this is one rude person. Lies, steals, tries to take over the world, and then walks in on you without knocking. He was wearing a black jumpsuit like everyone else, plus the same gold medallion with the engraving of a bull’s head on it that he’d worn on the ship.
Leikala and the steroid twins entered the room behind him. She had changed into the same jumpsuit everyone else was wearing. I stood up.
“Ms. Buchanan,” he said. “So lovely to see you again.”
“Charmed,” I said. Not.
He laughed.
“You are a prickly one, aren’t you? But you are also the living reincarnation of a goddess, and I suppose that requires a certain amount of bravado.”
Mr. Kim was right. Simon was bonkers, and for some reason he thought I was this Etherea person reborn. But to hear him say it made it real somehow. I guess a small part of me had hoped maybe Mr. Kim was wrong—that Blankenship really didn’t have this whole “Rachel is a living goddess” thing going on. Part of me had wanted to believe that he was just really, really angry with me for messing up his ship and stealing his book. And then perhaps after we’d discussed our feelings, we’d shake hands, apologize for the misunderstanding, and go our separate ways.
But nope. Here he was standing right in front of me, confirming Mr. Kim’s theory. Whoo boy. Right. Me a goddess? A goddess of shopping, perhaps. A goddess of getting out of doing homework, definitely. But not Etherea, the goddess of light. I guess Mr. Kim knew Blankenship pretty well.
“Whatever,” I said. “That whole ‘living goddess’ thing? I don’t even have my driver’s license yet, and I’m pretty sure if I were a goddess I’d at least be able to drive. So I’d say this has all been a big misunderstanding. Now you can just let me and my friend go and we’ll forget the whole thing.”
“Don’t try to deny your destiny, Ms. Buchanan. Or, I should say, Etherea. I’m quite convinced, and so is Jonathon. He told me himself that he believes it is true. Etherea has been reborn, just as prophesied, and it is you.”
Mr. Kim had told him that? What? When did that happen? Very smart, Mr. Kim.
“You know Mr. Kim is on his way to rescue us, don’t you?” I said.
Leikala had moved to a position near Simon, and when I said that they looked at each other. Just a quick glance. Weird.
“I wouldn’t worry about your Mr. Kim coming to save you. From what I saw of you in Washington, I imagine he doesn’t even know you’re here, does he?”
I tried to keep my face from showing anything. But it was no use. For a moment I couldn’t think of anything to say.
“I thought so,” said Simon. “Your timing is impeccable, Ms. Buchanan,” he went on. “Tonight we are planning a ceremony in your honor. Then we will find the artifact and leave the island. Jonathon will never find us.”
A little ray of hope entered my mind. If there was going to be a ceremony somewhere else other than here, maybe there would be a chance to get away in transit. Plus, that meant he hadn’t found the artifact yet. Aha.
“What type of ceremony? Luau? Dance party? Will there be a DJ or a live band?” I asked.
Blankenship was getting good at ignoring me.
“I’m sure Jonathon has told you that it was Etherea who banished Mithras to the underworld. Tonight we take the first step to release him from his unwanted exile.”
“How? You don’t even have all the artifacts yet. And you can’t bring this bull guy to life without them. So isn’t your ceremony a little premature?”
“Certainly there is more work to be done. But we must go in stages, and your arrival here has brought us an unexpected gift. Something we mean to take advantage of. Although I may dispose of you anyway, just to see what happens to the prophecy then.”
Gulp. Okay. Not so good. “Dispose” of me. But something was going on here. I mean, Simon had been planning this for years, so I think he threatened to kill me just to spook me. If he really did things out of order, it might screw up years of scheming on his part. I didn’t think he’d take that chance. But he was crazy. Then I started worrying that he’d deciphered the map and found the artifacts. Maybe if he found the one here on the island he could summon Mithras. Then I was toast.
Time to be distracting.
“Have you found any of the other relics?” I asked. I doubted he would give anything away, but then, the guy was a huge egomaniac. If he did have all the artifacts, surely he wouldn’t be able to resist rubbing it in my face.
“As I’m sure your Mr. Kim has told you, I have tremendous resources at my disposal—thousands of followers who are dedicated to the cause of summoning Mithras. Finding the relics has been easy, really.” I was sure he was lying. He didn’t have them. He was bluffing and trying to draw me out to see if I knew anything.
“Sure. I guess when you threaten, maim, intimidate, and kill people, it’s a real motivator,” I said.
Blankenship laughed. The guy has the most evil laugh you’ll ever hear.
“Indeed. Killing those who disappoint you is an effective management method. I highly recommend it. But you’ll get a firsthand look at some of my methods this evening. And then I suggest you think about the possible benefits of working with me.” He smirked at me and turned to leave. I wanted to keep him talking. Perhaps I could trick him into giving up more information.
“Let me get this straight, bull boy,” I said. “First you want to destroy Etherea, who is supposedly me, and then you want me to join you? First of all: Ick. No, thanks. I mean, look at your uniforms. That ninja look jumped the shark two seasons ago.”
Leikala flashed me an evil look. Mithras glanced at her and she shrugged her shoulders. It was clear they didn’t know what “jumped the shark” meant. Losers.
“You know, went out of fashion. Lost all hope of any hipness. Became irrelevant.” I used my most superior tone. Leikala just kept glaring at me.
I pointed to my lip and said, “Don’t worry, a little Clearasil will clear that right up.”
She started toward me, but Blankenship put out his arm and stopped her.
“I hate to be melodramatic, Ms. Buchanan, but I think you will find joining me to be much better than the alternative.”
“And what is that?” I asked. I suspected I already knew the answer.
“Why, death, of course.”
And with that he turned and left the room.
CHAPTER TEN
Out of the Darkness
The waiting was agony. First of all, about an hour after Mithras left I really had to use the bathroom. As the need to go reached crisis stage, I had to pound on the door for fifteen minutes before Dumb opened it. He led me to a bathroom down the hall. That was a relief. When he brought me back, he shoved me roughly into the room again.
“I’ll bet high school was the best seven years of your life,” I said to him. His eyes narrowed like he didn’t get it.
“You see, most people only go to high school for four years. That’s why it’s funny when I say high school was the best seven—” He slammed the door in my face before I could finish.
A short while after that, Dumber came into the room with a tray of fruit and bread and some guava juice in a pitcher. He set it on the floor and left.
We’d been able to sleep and eat on the plane ride over, but my body clock was all messed up. I was running on pure adrenaline. When I saw the tray of food I realized how hungry I was, and since I didn’t think Mithras would try to poison me before he killed me in his stupid ceremony that night, I dug right in.
After more waiting I heard the door being unlocked, and Leikala and Dumb and Dumber came into the room. No Blankenship.
“What? Where’s Simon? Too busy polishing his bull’s horns?” Leikala stepped toward me and launched a round kick. I didn’t move or flinch. I figured (make that hoped) that Simon wouldn’t want us roughed up before his big ceremony. Luckily, I was right. Leikala’s kick stopped about an inch from my temple. She was good. I had to give her that.
“You know I could kill you so easily,” she said.
“Maybe. But I don’t think your boss would be real happy about that. That’s the trouble with being a hench-girl. If you were in charge, you could just kill me and get it over with. But when you’re second fiddle, there’s always someone you have to answer to.”
“Hah! Like you don’t jump each time your precious Mr. Kim snaps his fingers.”
“Sure. We all pretty much do what Mr. Kim tells us to. But the big difference, Leikala, is that if we want, we walk away and do our own thing. Once you’ve thrown in with Mithras, I don’t think he lets you leave. So an almost-smart girl like you will never end up running things. How sad.”
The whole time we were having this conversation, Leikala kept her foot cocked an inch from my face. I think she was trying to demonstrate how long she could hold her fighting stance. What a show-off. Now she brought her foot down.
“You’re going to know a lot about sad very soon,” she said.
She nodded at Dumb and Dumber. I noticed then that Dumber was carrying a little folding screen. As he took it to a corner of the room and set it up, Dumb hung a long white gown on a hanger from the top of the screen. Then they left.
“No separate dressing room?” I said. “You Mithrians must have to operate on a budget. Pretty funny when your boss is supposed to be one of the wealthiest guys in the world. I mean, couldn’t he buy some furniture, for crying out loud?”
“Shut up and change,” Leikala said.
I walked behind the screen and took a look at the robe. It looked familiar somehow.
“Are you sure you don’t have anything else?” I called over the screen. “I’m not really a robe type of girl. Is there an Old Navy store nearby? They’re having a huge sale this week on performance fleeces. We could save money and be styli
sh all at the same time.”
“Shut up and change.”
I really didn’t have much of an option. I didn’t think I could take Leikala. Plus the steroid twins were right outside the door and they’d be on me in a second. Too bad I didn’t have a secret gas pellet or a stun gun or even a table leg. If I survived this I was going to talk to Mr. Kim about getting a lot more spy gear.
I decided to just drop the robe over my clothes. It was all white and made of some kind of flimsy material that felt like thick gauze. Almost like it was made out of soft metal or really light chain mail, if that makes sense.
Once I had it on, I stepped from behind the screen.
“What is this I’m wearing?” I asked.
“It is a re-creation of Etherea’s Gown of Light. You will be wearing it in the ceremony.” Aha. I had seen something like this in the painting of Mithras and Etherea that Mr. Kim had shown me.
“Hmm. Well, here’s hoping you Mithrians fail in that ‘world conquest’ thing, if this is how everyone will have to dress. You clearly have no fashion sense.”
“You won’t be around to see it anyway,” she said, smiling evilly.
“So where is this ceremony happening? Someplace nice, I hope.”
“Wouldn’t you like to know,” she said.
“Well, duh. Of course I want to know. That’s why I’m pumping you for information. Don’t you know when you’re being tricked into revealing secrets? Geez, what kind of dense supervillains are you people? No wonder you were dumb enough to sign on with Blankenship.”
“Simon is a great man! He has a vision. Those of us who are loyal to him will have enormous power when Mithras is summoned forth.” She had a dreamy look on her face like she had a crush on the guy or something. Yuck. Major yuck.
“But if you really went to Blackthorn, then you know Mr. Kim, and—”
To Hawaii, with Love Page 7