She turned away when the helo settled onto a bare stretch of land across the French border from the principality. This wasn’t a sightseeing trip, and pretending it was would only jar her out of her combat ready mindset and cost lives—hers or someone else’s. And luxury be damned, there was still the usual wash of air and dust when they finally settled to the ground.
Her team knew the routine. The door might have glided open silently, but they still ended up hunched over and hustling, heads down, toward the lone terminal of the small building that served as office and terminal both.
They were all equipped for recon, which meant no weapons beyond what they could run with. Their mission was to scope out the enemy’s estate, to take pictures and write notes, not fight a battle. But that didn’t mean they couldn’t, or wouldn’t. They were hunting intel, but their briefing materials had been very clear on one point. Sakal had plenty of human troops who were expected to be on full alert after his narrow escape the previous morning. They knew Xavier was coming, and odds were they had human spies of their own, either within the Fortalesa or down in the town, who could easily climb the hill to see and report everything that happened, including her small team of fighters boarding a helicopter.
Fortunately, Layla and her team were very good at what they did. She’d put them against Sakal’s daylight guard any day of the week. Some of his were no doubt former military, but that didn’t compare to her team, who’d been fighting in the jungles and deserts of the world just a few months ago. Frankly, the only real question was whether Sakal had any vampire fighters at all. Knowing he’d eventually have to go up against one vampire or another, it might be assumed he did. But the sorcerer hated vampires so badly, hated what he’d become as a vampire, that they hadn’t been confident he would employ any in his own defense. Also, given his personal weakness as a vampire, he couldn’t secure the loyalty of any vampire fighters he employed. At least not as a vampire. As a sorcerer . . . well, that was a different matter.
Either way, her team was charged up at the idea of entering into real combat after so many months in the vineyard.
A dark-suited bureaucrat met them inside the terminal. He confirmed her ID, saying only, “Captain Casales?”
When she nodded, he gestured for them to follow, and they did. This speedy transition was only acceptable because he’d been provided with photo IDs of both her and Brian, and she’d been given the same on him. He was one of Xavier’s retainers, someone the vampire lord used whenever he or any of his people needed to slip into France, which apparently happened more often than anyone in that country was aware of.
Moving quickly through the small terminal and out to the parking lot, the man led them to a big black SUV in a model only available through private vendors in most of Europe. That didn’t mean they weren’t common, however, since they were the vehicle of choice around the world for criminals and the law-abiding rich who wanted to be perceived as criminals.
Brian took the keys, thanked the black-suited man, and that was it. The man strode back to the terminal and the team loaded up. Brian drove, with Layla riding shotgun, while Kerry and Riv sat in back. Continuing on by helicopter would have been faster, but while Sakal’s estate was large, the area was still populated, and there was nowhere for them to land without being observed, especially in the middle of the day.
They stopped a mile away from Sakal’s estate in the parking lot of a trailhead that branched into a few different hiking trails. Their vehicle wasn’t typical, but there were enough passenger vans and busses that it didn’t stand out any more than the four of them did when they headed down the trail with heavy backpacks, dressed for hiking. The day was warm, but it was midweek, which limited even further the number of possible witnesses.
Keeping to the tougher trails, and taking advantage of various ground dips and swells, they made their way without any interruption, other than the occasional barking dog, until they stood eyeing the sorcerer’s estate. The several buildings sat on a slightly elevated rise, and were surrounded by a ten foot wall. It had been designed to mimic an aristocratic estate of old, or maybe it had begun its life that way and Sakal had merely upgraded. The question hadn’t been in their briefing. The wall was constructed of irregular pieces and shapes of rock which, while attractive and in keeping with the design, was also much easier to scale. So, bonus for them.
Based on drone photographs and existing maps, they’d chosen to enter on the back side of the wall directly opposite the gate, which would give them a better view of interior operations. All four went over the wall with ridiculous ease, paused to exchange rapid hand signals, and then broke into two teams and headed off. Each team would cover half the estate, then return to the same point for withdrawal along the same route to their vehicle. Depending on the remaining time, they would copter back with their report, or if it took longer than anticipated, they would transmit digital copies of all data and maps they’d generated about the enemy estate.
Layla had specifically chosen Kerry to partner with, since their half of the estate included the main courtyard in front of a building which Xavier had been convinced did, in fact, house vampires. One of the conclusions from the previous night’s discussions had been that Sakal, as the narcissistic and cowardly person he was, would want to ensure his own safety. And the best way to do that at night was to employ the best vampire fighters he could afford, since money was the only way he had to secure them in his defense. He was very likely, therefore, to exert the most effort to safeguard the courtyard closest to his own quarters. As Layla had told Xavier, there was no guarantee that Kerry had enough magical sensitivity to sense Sakal’s sorcery at work, but it was worth a try. And if they found something, they could always notify the other team to look for identical or at least similar constructs. The two teams had their usual comm units, and had long ago worked out a shorthand version of clicks to convey most types of urgent messages. But if necessary, they could conduct careful and low-voiced conversations.
As they left Brian and Riv, the two women kept a close eye out for any daytime troops, scanning windows and roofs as well as any ground units. Daylight guards on vampire estates were typically more concerned with criminals and snoops, rather than armed invaders, but whatever the routine, Sakal would want to cover his ass against human intervention. The vampire quarters on Sakal’s estate, as with most wealthy vampires, would be in an underground vault, much like Xavier’s. The risk of human invaders penetrating such a vault was very small, especially in anything less than several hours. Therefore, while daylight security was generally strong, it didn’t normally have to be strong enough repel a vampire’s usual enemies, which in this day and age were other vampires. It was always possible that one or more of the guards on an estate could betray their vampire master and admit human intruders, as had in fact happened to Lord Raphael in California some years ago. But by all accounts, Sakal was more worried about daytime attacks, than those that might occur at night.
This was curious enough that Xavier remarked on it, but she already knew that Sakal acted more human than vampire. By far. He no doubt even saw himself that way. He so hated vampires and what he’d become under their tutelage that he simply pretended not to be one of them.
The two female fighters began their rounds, watching for anything, believing the greatest danger would be on the grounds, not on the short slope just below the surrounding wall. The slope had undoubtedly been intended to add a measure of difficulty should anyone attempt to scale the high wall. But that precaution had ultimately been ignored in favor of aesthetics, leaving the slope covered in medium-sized fruit trees, which provided excellent cover for anyone wanting to navigate the edges of the estate without being seen.
They stopped several times to snap photos of larger defensive sites, including camouflaged and surprisingly heavy gun placements, that hadn’t shown up on the photos Xavier had shown them. If Sakal’s soldiers let go with som
e of the heavier weapons, they could inflict serious casualties among even vampire attackers. Vampires were tough, but not invincible. Knowing about the weapons in advance, they could take them out before the real battle ever got started. Camouflage protected the placements from aerial reconnaissance, so it was possible Sakal hadn’t considered their vulnerability to early targeting. Layla added it to her notes, then agreed with Kerry that they should search for ground- to-air placements next. The weapons would draw unwanted attention to the estate if they were ever used, but maybe Sakal considered his location sufficiently remote to favor security over practicality. Or maybe his plan was simply to abandon the estate, and its protectors, if the situation proved too dangerous to him personally.
They also noted guard routines, building entry points including whether they were guarded, barrack locations, and manned outposts, along with anything else that caught their eye. One of those eyecatchers, which they paused to study for some time, was what appeared to be two identical ammo dumps, watched over by two stationary armed guards each, but fortified with nothing more than sandbags. That wouldn’t have been remarkable on a movable or temporary battlefield, when speed was of the essence, but on a permanent estate like this? Why wouldn’t he have covered the ammo ditches with concrete bunkers?
Signaling Kerry to crawl to better cover, Layla did the same and huddled close enough to tap her head and whisper, “You getting anything?”
Kerry shook her head in the negative.
“We have to get closer, then.”
Kerry shrugged and whispered, “Might help,” and pointed at herself.
Layla understood that getting closer would not only let them get a better look, but would also give Kerry’s magic a better shot at working. But such a move was arguably beyond the game plan they’d agreed on for this recon. Armed with compact but very high-powered binoculars and cameras, and with the high ground and all four quadrants covered, there was no reason to risk capture or worse for the sake of fixed details that they could ID from the satellite photos.
On the other hand, she and Kerry were already there. Wouldn’t it be good to know if they were magical installations? What if they were more of Sakal’s multi-layered traps, like the one he’d used against Xavier in Barcelona, but this time, designed to isolate large numbers of Xavier’s fighters?
She’d already decided to do it, but spent several minutes arguing with herself, trying to find a flaw in her logic. Nothing came to her, however, so she signaled Kerry to move higher, under better cover. She wanted to reach out via comm to make Brian and the others aware of the situation, so they’d know where to look if something untoward happened to them.
She first signaled to Brian using mic clicks that they needed to talk and she was in a secure location—secure being relative in the situation. It took more than a few minutes, but Brian eventually voice-commed back.
“Problem?” he said before Layla had a chance to speak.
“Negative. A tactical adjustment. We need to take a closer look. Security status is doable.”
“Is it worth it?”
“That’s a roger.”
“Shit,” he said so softly that all she heard was the hissed “sh.” “Time?”
“Now. One hour estimated, start to finish,” she said. She considered that to be the high end of what they’d need to complete the task, but didn’t want the rest of the team to worry if they were late coming in.
“We’re two zero mikes from your position,” he said, indicating they were twenty minutes away. “I’m coming to you. Send Kerry in exchange.”
“Negative. I need Kerry.”
“Then you make the exchange.”
“Negative.” She didn’t offer a reason, didn’t fucking need one. She knew why he wanted her out of the danger zone, and it wasn’t because they were friends. The whole team were friends. No, this was because if anything happened to her, Brian thought Xavier would go ballistic and maybe get a lot more of them killed. But if she thought that was true, she never would have come in the first place.
The silence on his end said he didn’t like it, but knew she was right. “Roger that. We’ll hold here until you’re both out.”
“Roger that.” She’d give him that much, since it made tactical sense.
“Out.”
Layla turned the volume on her comm down to what she considered the “click” range, pushed the mic aside, then leaned close to Kerry. “That one,” she whispered, pointing to the nearest of the strange ammo dumps. Maintaining their hidden location for the time being, she scanned for the most discreet path downward in terms of likely cover, considered what they’d seen of the relevant guard patrol, and finally decided on the best route which would avoid detection by both stationary and patrol guards.
By mutual agreement, she and Kerry waited until the current pair of patrol guards passed each other down below. Then with Layla in the lead, they began a cautious but steady descent that would bring them close enough to the curious site, while avoiding notice by the stationary guards.
It went better than she’d hoped, aided by the stationary guards who’d gotten bored enough to exchange a short conversation just in time to provide a convenient distraction. Layla reached for her camera just as Kerry tapped her leg. Jerking her head around, she saw Kerry gesture at her head and nod emphatically.
Magic. Damn it. She hadn’t wanted to be right.
They were far too close to risk a voice comm, so they waited again until the patrol guards crossed each other’s paths, wasted a few seconds wishing the stationary guards would get chatty again, then Layla gave the signal and they did a literal slow crawl back up to the safest hiding spot available, just short of the wall, where she called Brian one more time.
Brian and River were together, which saved some time. They both confirmed identification of the same type of installation. But while they’d questioned the battlefield experience of whoever had approved the design, they’d hadn’t considered magic, and had no Kerry to sniff it out, in any case.
“We should take these out now, while they’re still inactive. By the time our vamps arrive, Sakal could have activated them, and it’ll be too late.”
“Any way of accessing what we’re dealing with?” Brian asked. “Are these things even worth the effort, much the less the risk we’ll be taking by trying to neutralize them?”
Kerry shook her head. “I can’t say. This is beyond me. It could be anything.”
“The presence of guards says something about its importance to Sakal. We know that much. Anything important to him should be important to us.”
“If we do this, how will we do it? What’s the best way to blow up magic, without getting blown up along with it?”
“Just that, I’d think,” Layla said, though she didn’t know for sure. “Blow the fuckers to kingdom come, disrupt the spell or whatever, right?” She looked again to Kerry for an answer.
Her response was another shrug. “We’re well outside my expertise here. I do know that spells can be disrupted by changing their physical elements, which would seem to apply here, but . . . ” She shook her head. “I can’t say for sure.”
“Brian?” Layla asked. As much as she believed her assessment was right, it had to be unanimous. There were too many unknowns to permit one person’s judgment to carry the day.
“I don’t like it,” he said. “But I like leaving it there even less. I say we go.”
“I say what the bloody fuck are we doing here?” River grouched. “But yeah, we go.”
Layla checked with Kerry, who added a simple, “Agreed.”
“All right. We go in, and we get out. Rendezvous at our entry point. We wait no more than twenty, that’s two oh mikes. If either team doesn’t show by then, the other gets out and reports. Agreed?”
They agreed one at a time, until Layla said, “Let
’s blow some shit up. Out.” She disconnected, adjusted her volume, and turned to Kerry.
Putting their heads together, the two women calculated their explosives supply and quickly decided on a plan. Ideally, all four dumps would blow at once, or at least within a minute or two of each other. But they couldn’t guarantee that, didn’t have the communications or the gear to time something that precisely. The best they could do was time their own two sites to blow more-or-less simultaneously, and hope the guys took roughly the same amount of time to set and blow theirs.
For Layla and Kerry, that meant splitting up and hitting one site each, which was far from ideal, but neither was carrying any timers, mainly because they didn’t carry anything that could be triggered by one. The only explosives they carried were grenades, and the sites were too far apart to hit one, then run to the other without breaking cover and giving themselves away.
“All right,” Layla said before they crept out of hiding again. “We stay together as long as these trees last, then split apart to reach each of our targets. I’ve got four grenades. You?”
Kerry agreed, holding up four fingers.
“Good. We toss three, arm and toss one, then get the hell out. Rendezvous at this point,” she said, pointing her finger downward to indicate the spot where they were currently hunched down.
Kerry held up ten fingers, but Layla grimaced. Ten minutes could be an eternity on the battlefield. And once the first grenades went off, that’s exactly what the estate would become. She held up seven fingers in a compromise. Kerry shrugged, but nodded her agreement.
They adjusted the heavy packs on their backs, made sure everything that needed to be reachable, was, and the rest was secure, then bumped fists and started down.
Xavier: Vampires in Europe (Vampires in America Book 14) Page 33