Tomb Raider Emeritus: An Urban Fantasy Action Adventure (I Fear No Evil Book 6)

by Martha Carr

  Lily looked at Shay, fear in her gray eyes. “We’re screwed.”

  The tomb raider shook her head. “No, we’re doing great, kid. I grabbed the artifacts. We just have to complete the exit plan, and we’re good.”

  “You don’t understand.” The teen swallowed. “I just had a vision. Tons of guys are coming. Demon Generals and Mafia from the looks of it.”

  “Peyton? Lily said she just had a vision of reinforcements. What the hell? I thought you said they couldn’t communicate.”

  Peyton groaned. “Yeah, one of the drones just spotted a bunch of SUVs and cars on the way, coming damned fast.”

  “How many vehicles?”

  “Enough that I think you’ll run out of ammo if you tried to take on all those guys.” Peyton sighed. “There’s no way they got a message through. I was even monitoring our frequency for other encrypted traffic.”

  Shay frowned and shook her head. “Then they somehow knew we were gonna raid tonight. Maybe one of the tunnel kids ratted us out.”

  Lily glared at her. “None of them would sell us out.”

  Shay shrugged. “Just considering the options. If not… Shit.” She scrubbed a hand down her face. “That damned elf must have placed a phone call. He was playing both sides. Doesn’t matter now. We stick to the plan and get the hell out of here from above.”

  She rushed past Lily into the stairwell, and the teen spun on her heel to follow. They all but flew up the last few flights.

  The tomb raider reached for the roof door, but Lily jumped and pulled Shay down.

  “What the hell are—” the tomb raider began.

  Bullets ripped through the roof access double doors. A dozen holes decorated both doors a moment later.

  “Oh.” Shay blinked. “Good vision timing there.”

  Lily grinned. “I try.”

  “Stay low. Can you tell me what we’ve got?”

  The teen took a deep breath. “Four guys, three on the left and one on the right.”

  Time to do this. They don’t have their reinforcements yet.

  “Okay, stay low.” Shay crept over to the door and reloaded. “One…two…three.” She threw open the door.

  The crack of pistols and rifles echoed in the night. Bullets whizzed over her head. Two Demon Generals stood on the left, both with handguns, and one tall Russian mobster holding a rifle. A smiling man in an expensive suit stood on the right with a rifle in hand.

  Shay didn’t give herself time to register any other details before she jerked her pistol up and snapped off two shots at the first man on the left. Three quick moves of her hand and shots later, all four lay on the ground.

  She stood and rushed toward the groaning men. Without any hesitation, she put bullets in their heads.

  Lily blinked a few times at the dead men. “Wow.”

  “This is what it means sometimes, kid. Always keep that in mind.” Shay shrugged. “Not gonna shed any tears for Demon Generals and mobster trash.” She stared down at the man in the expensive suit. Nothing was getting all those stains out. “Tío. Guess his little new mini-cartel plans are already over, and the Demon Generals can go back to be worthless street trash.”

  I won’t let any speck of the Nuevo Gulf Cartel ever rise again.

  Shay shook her head and glanced around. Despite all the violence and blood, they now stood atop a 33-story building that provided a wonderful view of the panorama of the city at night. From this height, the lights all joined together, an almost hypnotic rendering of a cityscape.

  “Everything okay?” Peyton asked.

  “Yeah. We’re both fine. The reinforcements here yet?”

  “Almost. A couple of minutes.”

  Shay snorted. “Too slow. We can catch our breath.”

  A dark shadow in the distance caught her attention, and concern swallowed the wonder.

  “Shit. What now?” She pulled binoculars from her backpack and looked toward the movement.

  It was no Ice Witch looking to steal from her or flying gangster reinforcements. It was a man swinging from the top of City National Tower. A man she recognized, even in the darkness, his face burned into her soul.

  Marcus, you son of a bitch. Of course, the one time I run into you, you’re too far away for a rematch.

  Shay shook her head as the thief leaped off his line, falling backward before snapping his arm up to catch a flagpole and spinning around several times. He released the pole and flew upward, where he caught the edge of another roof one-handed.

  The timing was exquisite. Even the smallest miscalculation would have sent him plummeting to the street below.

  “It’s like the guy thinks he can’t fall. Like he doesn’t give a shit in the world. He’s just…free to move. No cares, no worries.”

  Lily moved to Shay’s side and watched Marcus. “That’s insane. No one from the tunnels would try something like that at the distance he just swung and jumped. So that’s what it’s supposed to look like.”

  The tomb raider looked at the girl with an arched eyebrow. A strong wind cut over their roof, their hair fluttering in the wind.

  Shay burst out laughing. Lily blinked and looked at Shay, a confused look on her face.

  There’d been so much blood even after Shay had left behind killing. Every moment had been a struggle with her assuming her next encounter might cost her life. She’d told herself that she had a life plan, but all she’d had was a vague idea to make money. She wasn’t sure if she expected to live as long as she had.

  James had changed that. Alison had changed that. Now Lily had changed that, too.

  Shay finally realized what she’d lacked before. All animals might want to live, but not all animals had a reason to live.

  I should have died so many times, but I haven’t. And I’m just glad to still be alive and have a reason for it.

  She laughed harder. Gratitude. What a novel feeling.

  “It’s a great night to be alive, Lily,” Shay explained. “Maybe every night’s a great night, but I’m really feeling it this night.” She threw her head back and howled at the moon.

  Lily’s eyes widened, and then she threw her own head back to join her mentor.

  They howled over the course of a half a minute before stopping and grinning at each other.

  They heard shifters in the distance howling back.

  Shay and Lily laughed hard.

  “Um, I have no idea what you’re doing right now,” Peyton reported, “but the reinforcements are at the front. So, maybe stop being crazy and get the hell out of there.”

  Shay chuckled and shook her head. She reached into her backpack to pull out a grappling gun, then nodded to Lily. The girl pulled out one of her backpack.

  “We got what we came for.” Shay spared another quick glance at the dead Tío. “And I’ve nipped a problem in the bud. The Demon Generals won’t be bothering my department head anymore. Still wonder what their new boss wanted from him, though.” She walked to the edge to aim the gun at the roof of a parking garage below them. “For now, let’s get the hell out of here.”

  16

  Shay smiled and tapped her foot. It hadn’t been that hard to track down Carver. He lived in a run-down apartment building in Elf Town, which suggested his information brokering wasn’t as lucrative as she might have expected. A little early-morning visit wasn’t out of order, and people would probably wait to call the cops if he ended up screaming for whatever reason.

  Don’t know why this guy lives in such a shitty place. The asshole took money from me and from the other guys. He should be living in a mansion if he does that kind of double-dealing all the time.

  She lifted her hand and knocked lightly. It didn’t take that long before the door opened. The elf’s eyes widened. He hadn’t been expecting her, probably for more than one reason.

  “Hey, Shay,” he mumbled. “Didn’t know you knew where I live.”

  “You’d be surprised what I can find out.” She shrugged. “May I come in?” she asked, her voice full of for
ced sweetness.

  “Sure, sure.” He swallowed and motioned inside.

  Shay stepped inside, and he closed the door behind her.

  Carver stepped back. “How did your—"

  The tomb raider had an adamantine knife out and at his neck before he could even blink.

  “So, funny thing happened the other day. Despite the fact that I’d disabled the alarms, communications, and all of that kind of shit, a bunch of reinforcements showed up. Fortunately, I got away before they could get to me, but it really got me to thinking.” She slowly moved the knife up and down but kept it as his neck. “What if someone sold me out? That led me to my second question: Who sold me out?”

  Carver gritted his teeth. “I wouldn’t sell you out. I told you before, I don’t want to be on Brownstone’s bad side.”

  Shay chuckled. “Now the problem isn’t that you’re on his bad side. It’s that you’re on my bad side, asshole. Brownstone’s a saint compared to me.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I didn’t sell you out.”

  She narrowed her eyes. “Don’t bother playing dumb. I already know you received a big deposit in your account the other day from a shell company owned by our mutual friend, the recently deceased Tío. This is why a scumbag like you should always do business in cash.” She winked and lowered her knife.

  “You’re not going to kill me?” Carver rubbed his neck, his face a mask of surprise.

  “Let’s just say I had a recent epiphany that makes me slightly less bloodthirsty. Plus now you fucking owe me, asshole, and if I ever end up dead, a nice little automated message will go to one James Brownstone about how you might be involved. Then you get to see what the Scourge of Harriken does to one single elf.”

  His eyes widened. “Hey, that’s not fair.”

  Shay shrugged. “Let’s just say it’s my way of keeping you honest. And don’t worry, if I ever die, James won’t kill only one person. Think about all the people he killed when his dog died. I think a country might disappear during his revenge over me.” She waved and sheathed the knife. “See you, Carver.”

  She opened the door and stepped out, sparing one last glance for the pale elf. He dropped to his knees, his breathing heavy.

  “I have to make sure you never die,” he mumbled.

  Shay yawned as she stepped out of her car. It’d been a long night, and she’d gotten up far too early. Lily hopped out of the passenger’s seat. She’d stayed the night in the tunnels, but the tomb raider had suggested they train together in the morning at Warehouse One.

  Lily wanted to anyway, even if Shay had an ulterior motive.

  The girl took several steps, then stopped to blink at a waving Alison in the middle of Warehouse One. “Huh?”

  “I’m Alison.”

  Lily looked at Shay, and the tomb raider offered a shrug and a smirk.

  “Um, I’m Lily. Nice to meet you.”

  Shay cleared her throat. “Alison Brownstone, my boyfriend’s adopted daughter.”

  The Gray Elf teen nodded quickly. “Yeah, I…kind of knew all that. It’s just weird to see her here.”

  Alison laughed. “I knew Shay before you did, and I asked to meet you.”

  Lily frowned. “Why? I don’t even know you.”

  “That’s the problem. You don’t know me, and I don’t know you.”

  “Not following.”

  Alison shrugged. “Anyone Aunt Shay’s spending a lot of time around is a person worth getting to know. It means you’re worth spending time around. She doesn’t waste her time.” She offered a hand. “I know we’ve just met, but I’m sure we could be good friends.”

  Lily swallowed, her cheeks reddening. “Oh, sure.” She shook her head. “Nothing against you, Alison, but like you said, you don’t know me. Maybe I’m not the good person you think I am. Maybe I’m not worth getting to know.”

  Trying your cynical-girl-off-the-street routine, Lily. Trust me, I’ve tried that one on her.

  Alison laughed.

  Yeah, here it comes. One of them can see the future, and the other one can see souls.

  “Shay hasn’t told you a lot about me, has she?” Alison asked. “About the kinds of things I can do.”

  Lily shrugged. “Not really.”

  “I see souls.”

  “Huh?”

  Alison grinned. “I can see the energy and souls. I can tell what people are feeling, if they’re lying, that sort of thing. I can see your soul, and it’s the beautiful soul of a good person. So you can tell me you’re a bad person if you want, but I won’t believe it.”

  Shay snorted. “Don’t let her mess with your head too much, Lily. She does that kind of thing to James and me all the time; really gets into your head. Makes you question yourself.”

  “Oh, Aunt Shay, don’t be that way.”

  Lily laughed. “Aunt Shay? It’s so weird to hear her called that.”

  “I’d prefer if she were my mom, but we’re still working up to that.”

  Shay blinked several times, then laughed. “Don’t marry me off just yet, kid. I’m still young.”

  “Just saying.”

  The tomb raider clapped her hands. “Now that introductions are out of the way, why don’t we do what we all came here to do? Train.”

  Lily and Alison nodded.

  She pointed to the climbing wall that marked the beginning of her current basic obstacle course. She’d simplified some of the obstacles and their positions so Alison would have a better chance and excluded some of the difficult strength obstacles, but it was still a challenging course.

  “Why don’t you two see who’s better?” Shay suggested

  Lily smirked. “Not to brag, but you have been training me.”

  Alison scoffed. “And I’ve been getting training from both Aunt Shay and my dad, who’s the Scourge of Harriken, by the way.”

  The other girl grinned. “Less talk, more walk.” She jogged toward the climbing wall.

  Alison hurried after her. She raised her hand and sent out a magical pulse.

  Lily blinked and looked over her shoulder. She glanced at Shay, but the tomb raider did nothing but smile.

  You figure it out, Lily. You’re magical, so it should be easier for you.

  Both girls hit the climbing wall and scrambled up it. A few minutes and several more pulses later, both girls were scrambling down a net, panting, with sweat pouring down their faces.

  When they hit the bottom of the net, Lily frowned. “Alison, wait.”

  Alison took a few more steps before stopping to look over her shoulder. “Ready to concede to my greatness already? That didn’t take long.” She took a few deep breaths. She was pretty winded too.

  “You’re crazy, you know that?”

  Shay crossed her arms and smirked.

  Finally figured it out, did you, Lily?

  “Why do you say that?” Alison asked. “Not saying I’m not crazy, just wondering why you think I am.” She completed her sentence with a merry grin.

  “You can see souls, but you can’t see much else, can you?” Lily shook her head. “You’re blind. It’s weird, though. I can kind of see it when you move, but other times, it’s like you’re suddenly not blind.”

  Alison shrugged. “I can see magical energy now thanks to the training I’m getting at my school.”

  Lily frowned. “Is that why you’re sending out the pulses? So you can kind of see the magic on stuff?”

  “Yeah. Why did you think?”

  “First I thought you were just trying to distract me, but Shay didn’t say anything, so I figured there had to be more to it.” Lily stared at Alison open-mouthed for a few seconds. “I can’t believe you’re running an obstacle course blind.”

  Alison laughed. “It’s not the seeing that’s the hard part. Dad and Aunt Shay were running me so hard when I first came home on summer vacation I was throwing up.”

  Lily snickered. “That sounds like Shay.”

  The tomb raider rolled her eyes. “Technic
ally, her dad made her throw up. I pushed her to her limits, but there wasn’t as much vomiting involved.”

  “Yeah, you are good at pushing people.”

  Alison wiped a little sweat from her forehead. “Intense exercise that might end with someone throwing up? I guess in this family that’s how we get to know each other.”

  Lily blinked several times, looking more than a little startled.

  It was the word family that did it, wasn’t it?

  Shay didn’t say anything else, just letting the teen take it in. Maybe, just maybe, they could have something more than a mentor-and-protégé relationship.

  All those years of thinking I didn’t need anyone, and now I might end up with not only one but two daughters.

  Shit, what am I saying? Daughters? I’m not a mom. I’m the cool aunt who can kick ass and paraglides off mesas.

  She snickered.

  Lily eyed Shay. “It’s very creepy when you do that without saying anything first.”

  “You been talking to Peyton?”

  Alison stretched her arms above her head. “I think I’m going to go hit the showers.”

  Lily sniffed her armpit. “Yeah, I could use a shower myself.”

  Shay nodded, and the girls set off toward the hallway leading to the shower.

  “You said you learned to see magical energies at your school?” Lily asked.

  Alison nodded. “It’s not so much they were trying to teach it to me as the more magic I learned, the more I could see.”

  “So you go to magic school?”

  “Yeah. The School of Necessary Magic. It’s in Virginia. Everyone there is like us—special.”

  Shay smiled as the two girls disappeared down the hallway talking about the school, relief spreading through her over a worry she hadn’t even realized she had.

  Lily and Alison were the ultimate examples of compartmentalized parts of her life. Shay had half-worried that if the girls were to meet, they’d hate each other, being similar in that they were both stubborn magical teenagers.

  So much for compartmentalizing my life. Everything’s kind of blurring together lately, but I’m not so sure that’s bad. It’s making things less stressful, not more.