Buried in the Sky

by Ryan Mullaney

  Lincoln stepped down, backing away for Simone to pass. “I think she said she's next.”

  Warren stood in Lincoln's face. “I don't care what order you're in, just get in the damn carriage!”

  “Okay.” Lincoln turned to Simone. “You ready?”

  She nodded.

  The next thing that happened, Lincoln had the nearest merc's gun in his hand and smacked the butt against the man's head. He dropped.

  Warren drew his gun, but Simone weaved the bars of her crutch around his arm and twisted.

  With a cry, Warren's hand opened and the gun fell.

  The other merc reached for the gun at his side. Simone swung the other end of the crutch around to smack the guy in the face. His hand never reached his gun.

  With both mercs down, Lincoln held Warren at gunpoint.

  Vincent watched the whole thing from the carriage. “Well, that was interesting!”

  Simone yanked the crutch free from Warren's arm. He growled in pain from the force of the pull.

  Staring down the handgun's sights, Lincoln said, “Simone, radios.”

  Quickly, she took the radio from Warren and then from each of the two mercs.

  “Now listen to me very carefully,” Lincoln said to Warren. “You're going to get back on that train and not get off until you're told to get off. Understand?”

  Warren laughed, unperturbed by the shift in power. “I don't take orders from you, Yankee scum.”

  Vincent hopped down from the carriage. “As a matter of fact, you were sent to Peru to take orders from me. Now, do you want to walk on the train, or be carried?”

  Warren spit in Vincent's face. “I listen to Briony Black, not her washed-up boy toy.” He turned to face Lincoln's gun. “You going to shoot me?”

  Simone exhaled a frustrated sigh. “We don't have time for this.”

  With a swift baseball-like swing, Simone's crutch hit Warren’s head with such force that it broke in half. The big man dropped to his knees, falling face-down in the dirt as the broken half of the crutch pinwheeled through the air.

  She threw down the remains of the crutch and nodded toward the carriage. “Either of you two good with horses?”

  _____

  Lincoln held the reins as the horses pulled the carriage up the mountain pass.

  Simone looked out the back with Vincent, watching for signs of Warren or the others following.

  Twenty minutes passed with no sign of anyone behind them.

  Vincent took each of the three radios and removed the batteries, tossing them out of the carriage at random intervals. “They shouldn't be able to contact Solomon, or anyone else for that matter.”

  Simone's eyes fell to the three cell phones they had confiscated from the SWANN mercs and Warren. No incoming calls or messages came through.

  She wondered if that was a good thing or not.

  “They could be tracking the signals,” she said.

  Vincent smiled. “Let them. All that means is they're on the way up the mountain as planned. Solomon won't know what happened until it's too late.”

  The uncertainty didn't sit well with Simone. She knew how good Solomon was at adapting to changing circumstances. He'd likely have already thought of a plan to deal with exactly what had transpired.

  “Simone,” Lincoln called from up front. “You work on finding that fragment. Vincent and I will deal with Solomon.”

  “We have to be ready,” she said.

  Vincent turned to her. “For what?”

  “Anything.”

  She glanced again out the back.

  No one followed.

  _____

  Mount Emei, China

  It took over an hour and a half for the horse-drawn carriage to deliver Simone, Lincoln, and Vincent to the summit.

  In that time, not one call or message came through on any of the phones taken from their three adversaries, and no one came up the mountain behind them.

  They came to a wide, flat courtyard with several small temples situated near the perimeter. But in the center stood a massive golden statue with elephants carved at its base and human figures seated atop the elephants, with huge graven faces, ten in all, at the pinnacle.

  “The Temple of the Golden Summit,” Simone said, her eyes wide with the same kind of excitement she felt every time she came to a new wild place that begged to be explored.

  Leading up to the giant gold temple were two rows of smaller white and gold elephant statues, as if in procession toward the Golden Summit Temple.

  Vincent wandered over to the edge of the stone courtyard, coming to a short wall that was all that stood between him and a drop so immense, he could not see the bottom. Only clouds. Clouds all around, and far as he could see in every direction.

  “Wow,” he said in complete awe of the breathtaking sight.

  Lincoln advanced in a slow circle of the courtyard, eyes watching in every direction. “Stay focused.”

  Turning her back to the temple, Simone gazed around and listened. Then she said, “There's nobody here.”

  The silence atop the mountain left an ominous feeling in the pit of Simone's stomach. All appeared well, but her intuition told her something wasn't right.

  She turned back toward the Golden Summit Temple and approached the entrance.

  “Woah, Simone...”

  She halted at Vincent's words. “What? What's going on?”

  He stepped around the temple, his gaze on another temple situated up a set of wide steps. This structure, less ornate than the Golden Summit Temple, had a giant hole in one side of its sloping roof, as if struck from above and punctured by a great force.

  Like a meteor.

  “I'm on it,” Simone said and limped as fast as she could toward the steps.

  Vincent went for the pass that led up to the summit, gun in hand. “I'll watch the pass.”

  Gazing about in mild confusion, Lincoln wasn't sure what to look for. He just knew he had to be alert.

  A military helicopter would be arriving at some point for the hostage rescue. He didn't have a definite time, but it would be soon.

  But where the hell were April and Solomon?

  He spun around to see Simone making her way up the wide steps to the temple with the hole in its roof.

  As she approached the entrance, she paused, turning a glance back to Lincoln.

  Slowly, she turned and limped inside.

  Darkness greeted her. Every window in the structure was shuttered, leaving only the faint glow from the open entrance in which she stood, and a beam of light spilling in from the hole in the roof, pointing to one spot in particular in the middle of a debris pile.

  Simone stepped forward, putting little pressure on her right foot. Every step felt like a dagger going into the bottom of her boot. But she had no crutches, so she just had to deal with it.

  As she drew ever closer to the pool of light, something familiar came into view. A familiar, yet otherworldly glow.

  The third meteor fragment.

  This one was smaller than the other. She thought she could lift it herself and carry it out. Place it in the carriage and wait for rescue.

  No sooner did her thoughts turn toward the rescue helicopter than she heard a low roar in the distance.

  Her head turned toward the entrance of the temple. Running footfalls echoed across the stone courtyard until Lincoln stood in the entranceway.

  “Chopper inbound.”

  “Ours?” Simone asked.

  Lincoln shook his head. “SWANN.”

  Crap. Simone turned back to the fragment. “I think I can get this out by myself – ”

  It happened faster than her mind had time to think. As she bent over for the fragment, she heard the beast's paws touching down on the cold stone floor of the temple.

  Even in the dim light, she could make out the iconic black and orange stripes of the Bengal tiger. And within one second, it raised a monstrous paw, swiping through the air, swinging its great claws for her face.

 
23.

  Mount Emei, China

  Instinct more than effort had Simone dropping to her knees and rolling away from the huge beast's swiping claws.

  “Simone, watch out!” Lincoln drew his gun and aimed for the Bengal tiger.

  It lurked in the shadows, avoiding the shaft of bright light filtering in from above. Lincoln didn't have a clear shot, and, worse, he couldn't find Simone.

  He stepped into the temple, gun forward, finger near the trigger. “Simone!”

  She cried out as the tiger lunged for her again.

  Barely escaping with her life, she scrambled backwards on hands and knees, feeling wetness stream down her upper arm.

  “Dammit, he got me.” She didn't take her eyes off of the tiger as it stalked toward her again. But she didn't have to. When she felt blood pooling under her left palm in her frantic scramble, she knew it wasn't good.

  “Simone, you hurt?” Lincoln called.

  “I'm bleeding pretty bad.”

  Lincoln fired off a warning shot, straight up into the roof.

  Dust rained down as the tiger turned its attention to the sound, leaving a brief window of opportunity.

  Adrenaline spiked, Simone got to her feet and ran – flat out – behind a pillar where the tiger couldn't see her.

  She wanted to run more but the pain in her foot was too much. She didn't even think she could make one final sprint for the way out.

  She listened for the tiger's steps on the stone floor, but all she could hear was a slight ringing in her ears from the gunshot, and the growing roar of the incoming chopper's rotor.

  Thinking fast, Simone pressed down on her bleeding wound and called out, “Lincoln, I need another distraction!”

  Two more shots were fired, the second followed by a yelp from the tiger.

  “Don't kill it!” Simone yelled.

  “What!” Lincoln shouted in sheer bewilderment.

  “That's an endangered species.” Simone crawled from one pillar to the next as the tiger spun back around, searching for the source of the gunshots.

  “Simone, you're endangered!” Lincoln walked backwards as the tiger stalked toward him. He backed toward the exit of the temple. “Is there another way out?”

  Searching, Simone spotted a smaller doorway opposite the main entrance. “Looks like it.”

  The Bengal tiger closed in on Lincoln.

  He held the gun out, staring down the barrel at the enormous predator. “Grab the fragment and make a break for it. I got this tiger pretty well distracted.”

  He backed out of the temple, gun held firmly on the tiger, and stepped into the whirlwind of the incoming chopper.

  Chancing a quick glance from his peripheral vision, Lincoln spotted the black SWANN helicopter setting down at one end of the courtyard.

  A roar from the tiger sounded clearly over the roar of the chopper, drawing Lincoln's attention back fully. The sight of huge white teeth the length of his fingers had his stomach tying itself in knots.

  “Simone, get that fragment and go! Make it fast!”

  In the shadows, Simone pulled a bandanna from her pocket and wrapped it around the gashes in her upper left arm, tying it into a knot and pulling it tight with her free hand and her teeth.

  Grimacing from the pain, she willed herself to her feet and looked to make sure the tiger was preoccupied.

  Indeed, it was nearly out of the temple, nearly on top of Lincoln.

  There was no time to waste. Simone rushed as quickly as she could, mind overpowering matter, pushing through every feeling and sensation and emotion that compelled her to stop, and powered through it all, reaching the third fragment.

  This one was smaller than the other one she’d handled. She muscled it up, carrying it in both arms, tendons taut as piano wire, veins in her biceps bulging.

  It must have weighed nearly a hundred pounds, but with baby steps, Simone limped slowly, carefully, yet as quickly as she could manage, toward the rear exit.

  She didn't look back. She couldn't hear anything over the rotor spinning down just outside the temple. The tiger could have changed its mind and bounded after her and she wouldn't know until its enormous fangs were buried in her jugular. She just had to trust that Lincoln would keep it occupied until she was free.

  Blood streaming down her arm and into her grip made the fragment slippery, but Simone held on for dear life and reached the rear exit.

  She tried pushing down on the door handle with her elbow, but it didn't move.

  She tried again, harder this time, but it held firm.

  Locked.

  “Oh, you motherf–“

  The chopper rotor spun down and silenced, and the roar of the great Bengal tiger echoed across the courtyard.

  She turned back to the main temple entrance. It might as well have been a mile away. No chance of carrying the fragment all the way back across the whole temple and out the door where SWANN operatives and no doubt Solomon himself were waiting.

  Simone looked to the locked door, feeling a sense that she never appreciated feeling.

  Defeat.

  In a last-ditch effort, Simone steadied the meteor fragment in her arms and, with all of her strength, launched it straight into the door.

  The lock gave way and the door swung open in a rush, clanging against the temple wall and swinging back.

  As quickly as she could, Simone gathered up the meteor fragment in her arms and made her away around the temple, lumbering slowly under the heavy weight of the object.

  Every step on her right foot felt agonizing, but she couldn't stop. Not until the fragment was on the horse-drawn carriage, and eventually on the rescue chopper -- whenever that was going to arrive.

  As she rounded the side of the structure, she heard panicked shouts from multiple parties -- Lincoln, Solomon, and others she couldn't identify. They were all yelling to one another, telling each other to stay back, avoid the agitated tiger. Even the horses were going crazy as she drew closer.

  Her arms gave out before she reached the carriage. The fragment fell to the ground, hitting the stone courtyard with a dense thud and rolling to a stop five feet in front of her.

  The sound drew the attention of everyone, including the tiger.

  Doubled over and huffing for breath, Simone raised her eyes to catch sight of the tiger stalking toward her with slow, deliberate steps.

  "Ah, crap."

  A barrage of automatic gunfire boomed, echoing across the mountaintop.

  Startled, the tiger circled back to the center of the courtyard, its ferocious eyes jumping from one human threat to the next, watching in all directions at once as nobody dared to come hear it.

  Simone's head spun in the direction of the gunfire. She spotted one of Solomon's grunts standing beside the SWANN chopper and aiming an assault rifle into the air.

  As the echo faded, the courtyard fell into an eerie quiet, all parties holding their ground, waiting for the others to act.

  Solomon stepped forward, giving the tiger only a brief glance to see that it was not close enough to be an immediate concern. "Bring her out!"

  Two more mercs hopped out of the chopper, each one with a hand on the shoulders of April Farren.

  Her arms were bound behind her. She hopped from the chopper, giving her head a quick shake to the side to get the mass of red curls away from her eyes.

  Those eyes -- ice blue -- found Simone.

  Simone straightened, weighing her options. It appeared that she had no choice but to hand over the meteor fragment. Until the rescue chopper was inbound, she and her team were every bit as handcuffed as April.

  "Don't do it, Simone!" Lincoln called. He turned his gaze to April. She shook her head, but said nothing.

  "Here you go," Solomon said. "Alive and unharmed. We'll be taking that fragment now."

  Vincent eased his way toward Simone, twenty yards away. He moved so slowly, neither the tiger nor any SWANN operative noticed him closing the distance between him and her.

  "You let he
r go first," Simone said. "When she's safely ..."

  A distant sound stole her attention. An engine. The rescue chopper?

  No...

  An automobile. A truck of some sort, coming up the mountain pass at high speed.

  Simone didn't want to turn around, to take her eyes away from April, from Solomon, from the tiger.

  She waited until the approaching vehicle was just around the bend before she turned around.

  The pick-up truck came to a grinding halt on the courtyard stones.

  Through the cloud of dust, Warren emerged from the vehicle. The two mercs from the train appeared behind him, standing between Simone and the horse-drawn carriage.

  In a sudden burst, the horses took off down the mountain path in a terrified frenzy, taking the carriage with them.

  A trickle of blood streaming down the back of his head, Warren took a menacing step toward Simone.

  "Stop!" Solomon called from across the courtyard.

  Warren paused, turning to face Solomon. "She's mine. I want her head on a stake!"

  "Nobody is getting beheaded today," Solomon said. "Get the fragment and bring it here."

  With fire in his eyes, Warren turned back to Simone and took another step. Then another. He reached the fragment and took another step, forgetting about it entirely, his focus locked on Simone.

  "Not one more step."

  Warren spun, and found Vincent staring down the sights of the handgun he took from Warren.

  "Step back," Vincent said. "Or do you want to eat a bullet?"

  Warren grunted. "Piss off, Vincent. You don't have the balls."

  Vincent pulled the trigger.

  The shot rang out and Warren screamed, dropping to the ground and clutching the gunshot wound in his leg.

  "The next one's in your face, mate," Vincent said.

  The two mercs drew back, both unarmed. Vincent whirled around and leveled his aim on Solomon. "Uncuff the ginger right away."

  Solomon didn't move. "You don't have a leg to stand on, Vincent."

  "You have me confused with Warren, I'm afraid."

  Warren grunted through the pain, shouting, "I'll kill you too, Vincent! You worthless prick, I'll kill you!"