Picking up the two cylinders on the ground, he met her eyes and whispered, “Flash bangs. Bright and noisy but not lethal. It'll buy us a few seconds of surprise. While I pin them down, you run. No arguments, Evelyn.”
She wanted to do just that. Argue with him. Over Rhett's instructions, she heard the officer say, “No, you can just get out here and do it.”
Pulling her feet under her, Evelyn mimicked Rhett's crouch. The butt of a gun dug into her ribs, the other a solid weight in her hand. The pep talks started, an inner monologue of self encouragement and reassurance.
You can do this. Don't freeze. Don't panic.
Not today. Today she was going to fight her way free with Rhett. She wouldn't leave him behind no matter how mad it made him.
Keys rattled in the lock of the back doors. Evelyn swiveled to face them.
Rhett, a half foot in front of her, looked ready to take on a whole army. Ready to do whatever it took to protect her.
She licked her lips as one door swung open.
Rhett didn't wait for the second. He yanked the pin with his teeth in one device and tossed it out into the open. Right after, he tugged the pin on the next and threw that, too. The first exploded with a shattering bang and a flash of light, causing a sudden flurry of shouts and screams.
The second added to the chaos times ten.
Rhett hesitated only long enough for the second flash-bang to go off; then he was on the move, both guns in hand, launching out the back onto the asphalt.
Evelyn exited right on his heels, coughing when she passed through a lingering cloud of smoke that was already dissipating on the air. The closed door had protected her from the flash of light and most of the noise, but her ears still rang with the concussion.
People were cowering and running for cover in all directions. Cars that had been waiting behind them backed up, frantic to get away. Too frantic; some hit the cars behind them, causing a cacophony of curses and blaring horns to add to the disruption. Evelyn didn't see the driver or the officer in her dash through the street for the far sidewalk.
Any second she expected to feel someone tackle her or shoot her. Making the curb, she stepped up and turned with the gun raised, ready to cover for Rhett. He was right in the middle of throwing another grenade like a quarterback throws a hail mary; it pitched far down the street toward the cluster of Hummers.
People were still running, hiding, screaming. Rhett, a one man army, wreaked utter havoc on what had been a normal work day for law abiding citizens. Even while the grenade arched through the air, he turned to follow her, boots pounding the pavement. He shot her a hot look that put her into motion.
The third grenade sounded five times louder than the other two. It startled her as she ran but she didn't look back.
“Move it, Evelyn!” Rhett shouted behind her.
She cut up between two buildings, a tiny alley with debris everywhere and a few crates sitting in crooked stacks close to the wall. Dodging them, she picked up speed, hearing screams and horns and other mayhem behind her.
Bursting out of the alley, another street straight ahead, she glanced left and right. Looking for the best place to run. Panicked citizens rushed for cover, diving into stores, under cars, and around corners out of sight. Some just looked startled, as if they wondered whether there was a shootout or something more sinister at work.
Before she made a decision where to go, she heard the telltale clink-clank of a grenade. Rhett swarmed her from behind, pushing her into the street, forcing her to run forward. He covered her while the flash-bang went off somewhere up the road. Even from this distance it made her ears ring.
She wondered if the agents had found them already or if Rhett was just clearing the way.
He rushed her to a sleek looking street bike the owner abandoned in a hurry. Picking it up off the ground, he swung a leg over. She needed no extra encouragement to do the same. He tucked his gun, turned the key that was still in the ignition and shot them forward with gear shifting skill as honed as his weaponry training.
Evelyn hung on with one hand and kept the gun down at her side with the other, breathing so hard that her chest hurt. He veered them onto another street, dodging running citizens, shoulders hunched forward. She bounced on the back when he swerved off the street and into a driveway leading to a park, going right over the grass at a diagonal angle.
Sirens blared through the afternoon and she wrenched a look over her shoulder. One of the Hummers careened around a corner and two other police vehicles shot past it, one turning the other direction.
“Rhett!”
“I hear it.” He didn't look back.
Shooting through a yellow light, he braked hard and turned left, accelerating so fast the sting of the wind made her eyes water. Gun or no gun, she wrapped both arms because she feared she might fall off if she didn't. Finger off the trigger, she grit her teeth when he swerved up onto a sidewalk, scattering people everywhere, and rattled down a set of concrete stairs leading to another level.
Overhead, a helicopter, the shiny black one that looked like a flying bug, cut straight across the street fifty feet ahead. Rhett's evasive maneuvers kicked in immediately: his whole body tensed and he hit the brakes hard. The bike fishtailed, smoke peeling up off the pavement.
Evelyn yelped in surprise, arm clutched around him like a vise.
Swerving right, he headed into a parking lot, zig-zagged between cars, and aimed for a sprawling set of city buildings that spanned an entire block.
The chop-chop-chop of rotor blades overhead reverberated through Evelyn's bones. She glanced up. A helicopter, sleek and black like the SUVs, sliced through the air on their tail.
“Are they going to shoot?” The wind tore the words out of her mouth.
Rhett didn't answer. He entered the maze of city buildings at death defying speed, hitting the brakes hard enough to slam her against his body. They veered into a narrow pass-through between two of the tallest structures. Shadowy from lack of light, she understood why he chose it; the helicopter couldn't follow them in and flying overhead to keep them in view would be difficult to say the least.
Coming to a full stop, he shouted, “Get off!”
“...what? I'm not leaving you--”
“Evelyn, get the hell off the bike. Now!”
Grinding her teeth, she unwrapped her arms and flung her leg over the back.
Rhett jumped off and dumped the bike. Grabbing her hand, he tugged her into a run. Several doors led off the narrow pass-through into each separate building. He stopped to yank on a doorknob.
Locked.
“Why are we going inside? Rhett? Won't they just trap us in there?” Out of breath, she followed to another door. That one opened under his hand.
“Distractions, Evelyn. We need more distractions.” Stepping into an employee lounge, he slowed their pace to a brisk walk. They exited into a series of long hallways branching off three different directions.
He took the one straight ahead that seemed to empty into a much larger, enclosed area.
Evelyn thought it was a city business of some kind, perhaps for registrations and court hearings. Plaques on the walls gave directions to different floors. The place had an overall clinical appearance—shiny linoleum floors, boring paint, ugly accents in nickel plate that smelled as stale as it felt.
So far, they hadn't seen anyone else. That changed when they drew close to the other, large room. She could see people milling about everywhere, waiting for their turn in a line at a long desk whose purpose she couldn't discern. Information, payments, sign-ups. It could be anything.
Rhett didn't hesitate; letting go of her hand, he ripped a flash-bang out of his belt, yanked the pin and tossed it in. It hit the floor with a clank and rolled, drawing several people's attention.
Evelyn shrank back, ducking closer to the wall. She tried to block her ears with her hands but the gun made it difficult. With a quick flick of her thumb, she made sure the safety was on and tucked it into her waistband.<
br />
The pop-bang sent people screaming in all directions. A few even ran their way but most stampeded in one general flow toward the front of the building. Rhett snagged her hand and ran into the melee, sinking right into the chaos, flowing out the smoked glass doors with at least eighty other people.
Evelyn bounced off bodies like a pin-ball, managing to stay on her feet with Rhett providing counter-balance and support. The sun blinded her temporarily when they hit the sidewalk and she let the tether of their hands guide her.
Sirens blared at both ends of the street and the helicopter circled like a metal vulture picking over its prey. Officers shouted to no avail, running into the mayhem with their guns drawn.
Evelyn caught glimpses of it all while she ran with Rhett away from the scene, blending in with the panicked crowd who wouldn't calm down until they were well away from the unexpected terror.
It gave them good cover, hid their rush to hide.
They came within ten feet of one of the officers and passed right by without being noticed. If the officer had seen the belt around Rhett's waist, the game would have been up. The frenzy proved a successful distraction.
Thirty feet ahead, police vehicles sat in a haphazard array in the street. One of the black Hummers had been abandoned in the fray, doors standing open. Jogging between two police cars, Rhett guided her to it.
“Get in. Hurry up.” He let her go and hopped up into the driver's seat.
Shocked that he would consider taking this, of all things, she ran around the front and got in. The military design came with several kinds of radios, scanners and other equipment that she didn't recognize.
Rhett closed his door and put the Hummer into gear. The driver had left in such a hurry that the engine was still running.
Risking being seen by any number of personnel, he drove them away, taking the first turn he came to. Reaching over, he flicked on one of the radios.
“Look and see what kind of weapons or anything they have in the back, would you?” he asked.
A blitz of static preceded a man's voice on the radio. “Subjects possibly inside, may have taken hostages. Proceed with caution. Cordon off a ten block area and set up new check points in case they found a way out.”
“They don't think we ran out with the crowd, do they?” she asked, twisting around the seat to look in the back. There was another seat and a broad space behind it.
“They won't leave any option out, but thinking we might still be in there with hostages will slow them down considerably.”
“Not when they realize someone stole one of their cars.” The tension ebbed and flowed out of her voice.
“It could have been anyone. A rebel angry at the system, someone in desperate need--”
“Yeah, us,” she interjected with a scoff. The intense situation demanded a release valve of some sort. When she glanced back at him, she saw the flicker of a grin in the rear view mirror.
“What's back there?” he asked, back to business.
“I don't know what I'm looking at. I see a few black bags like the one you carry behind the seat but I can't see inside them and I can't reach them.”
“All right. That's good.”
“What are we going to do now?” She edged back into her seat and faced forward.
“Try to get past their check point before they realize it's us.”
***
Rhett took every major highway, driving right in plain sight, heading south toward Isthmia. Instead of skulking around on the back roads, they shot toward their destination as brazenly as any other motorist. They passed the interchange and for the first time, Evelyn breathed a sigh of relief. No matter what else, they were finally past that obstacle. Although she needed a drink and had to use the restroom in a ferocious way, she said nothing. Rhett didn't seem the type to get angry about that when they were under the gun, but she didn't want to add more pressure to an already volatile situation.
It seemed impossible to her that it was a couple hours past lunch, on the same day they'd met up with the others in the clearing in the foothills. An entire year could have fit itself between then and now.
On the radio, Rhett had picked up several more blips of information. They'd swarmed the building and announced their discoveries across all channels.
Basement clear.
Fourth floor clear.
First floor clear.
Second and third to go.
No reports of the missing Hummer had come in yet.
Several miles outside of Ithsmia, Rhett pulled off the main thoroughfare and cruised into the city via the outskirts. The ocean spread out before them, blue and inviting, the breeze salty and warm.
It took her a few minutes to realize Rhett wasn't aiming straight for the shore but into an area that she would have described as less than desirable. The rows of apartment style buildings, crowded close in this specific area, needed more than paint and a patch job to fix them.
“What are you doing?” she asked when she couldn't stand it any longer.
“Covering our ass.” He pulled over to the curb with apartments on both sides. “Leave your door open.”
Evelyn glanced across the Hummer at him with a frown. When he got out, she did too. At the back of the vehicle, Rhett opened it up and took out two of the bags. He didn't check the contents, just grabbed them and set them on the ground. After taking his belt off, he stowed it inside one then reached over and disarmed her. The guns both went in with his belt. He zipped the bag closed, picked it up, and started walking away.
Both doors were open and the engine still idled. They could be at the docks in a matter of minutes in the Hummer. On foot it would take longer. Evelyn paced alongside him, staring at his profile, unclear what his intent was.
“In about an hour, probably less, someone will steal it. I'm sure there's a tracking device on it, so those bastards will be led in the opposite direction while we shove off from the coastline.” He didn't look at her, just kept walking.
Evelyn hadn't thought about tracking devices. Maybe they had sent someone to follow the Hummer already, prepared to take it back from whoever stole it.
“Do you think they're onto us yet?” she asked.
“Hard to say. They're distracted and frantic. I'm sure they know it's missing, but if they think we're still inside that building with possible hostages, they'll concentrate there first. Every lead will be explored, no doubt about that. I'm just hedging my bets that a missing Hummer with all that chaos and fleeing people will be farther down on their list for a little while.”
Evelyn followed him through back alleys and behind businesses toward the docks. On foot, Rhett tried to stick to the shadows and the least visible places he could. When he asked her if she needed to stop for a bathroom break, she could have hugged him. While she took care of that, Rhett got them food to go. He'd chosen a small restaurant to make their stop.
As soon as they had their orders, they set off for the docks again.
Not trusting that chaos wouldn't break out any second, she ate on the way. Rhett actually chuckled at her.
“Learning fast, aren't you?” he asked.
“Well you keep saying how we have to take advantage of the time while we have it. I notice you aren't eating though.” She bit into her broiled chicken sandwich, stepping around a pothole in the sidewalk.
“I need another few minutes to come down off the adrenaline rush or the food'll make me sick.”
“You must have been through a lot of--” Mid-sentence, she felt a bee sting sensation in the middle of her back. Not even a full second later, in periphery, she saw Rhett drop everything and yank a gun from his waistband, spinning around with it raised.
He looked fuzzy, strange. His movements reminded her of someone underwater, not quite in control. She dropped her food and slumped to a knee, reaching a hand up behind her. Whatever hit her, she couldn't reach it.
Did bees live by the water?
Could a bee sting through her shirt?
Quest
ions swirled around her mind while a gunshot cracked through her consciousness. A scream built in the back of her throat and she had to put a hand on the concrete to prevent herself from taking a header into it.
Then she was down there anyway, not quite recalling if she'd fallen or tripped, the world spinning and spinning and growing black around the edges.
“Rhett?” She tried to speak. Couldn't tell if she did or if it was just the desire to. Temple to the ground, she saw everything sideways: the dirty base where the wall met the sidewalk, a gum wrapper, half of a brick, Rhett's boot. She blinked to no avail.
The blackness swooped in and claimed her.
Chapter Nine
Haifa, Israel, bustled with late afternoon activity. The city had the same, ancient feel on her skin as certain places in Greece. It felt like home. Domes and spires and other architectural wonders decorated buildings, offset by pristine landscaping that accentuated the surroundings, built to draw the eye.
Minna, after departing the vessel that carried her across the Mediterranean from Crete, hired a car and driver to ferry her to Jersualem. It was less hassle, and faster, than trying to take the train. Ensconced in the back seat, she regarded the landscape out the windows and discouraged conversation with the driver so that she didn't have to answer too many questions about her visit. Her past. Whatever might come up.
News spilled out of the radio between music and she caught up on the headlines while the driver skillfully put miles under the tires as quickly as he could. The bonus she'd offered him to get her there in good time gave him something to look forward to.
In modest slacks and a linen button down shirt of pink, with the cream scarf draped over her head and under her chin, she could have passed for any tourist in for a visit.
Being here reminded her of centuries past, when the first murder of one of her sisters took place. Back when Jerusalem had been at war, when the Templars rode the land with their symbols brazenly marked on their tunics and swords. She had developed a deep seated loathing for the Knights when she realized their intent was to eradicate the daughters of Eve from the earth. Like the rest of her sisters, she couldn't comprehend the aggression, the hate.
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