Evie's Knight (40 page)

“Who do you think you are,” he challenged, his voice booming.

Was he speaking to her or Jocelyn now?

It didn’t matter. Evie tugged harder, thrashing as she tried to yank her hands free. This time Frank groaned in disapproval, tightening his grip on her wrists mercilessly. It felt as if her bones might snap–that he was capable of crushing them like the dry, brittle twigs spread over the canyon floor.

Evie held still, unwilling to provoke him further. Her heart, in a panicked thrum of anxiety, pushed her breath in and out in a hurried rush. It was too much. Calvin and Parker hadn’t come. It was just her, and she couldn’t give up without a fight.

Desperately, she began to thrash, fighting to thrust him away from her. She tried to kick, hoping to knock the blade from his grip, but the determined man pressed his great weight against her legs, restraining further movement.

Evie struggled again to catch her breath as the familiar numbness started in her fingertips. Her inner voice began screaming in high alert,
No Evie–do not pass out!
Desperate to remain in a conscious state, she closed her eyes and tried to take a slow, deep breath.

Amidst the panic in her head, the utter chaos of the moment, Evie detected a quiet hum in the distance. She stilled herself enough to tune into the subtle flutter and felt her heart jump in response. Yes, something was coming–a rapid and speeding force–and with it came hope.

Chapter Forty-one

Frank Pilger’s lips curled back in a demonic smile as his knee shoved between Evie’s legs. He leaned forward, and a thin stream of saliva slid down his stubbly chin.

The faint hint of bristling leaves rustled in the breeze–a quiet force speeding toward them.  Evie recognized the noise in an instant.

This sound was familiar. This sound meant he had come.

Her heart hammered out of rhythm. With her captor’s face looming just inches away, she was careful to keep her eyes from straying, unwilling to alert Frank of their company. Still, she caught sight of him as he approached–a massive blur of dark hair and strong, muscular arms, speeding like a train in their direction.
Calvin.

Quicker than she could fathom, Frank was ripped from the altar. The action was nearly soundless. Evie sat up to see Calvin clutching Frank by the neck, using him to buffer his collision with the mountain wall.

The impact sent both men to the dirt where Calvin landed on his feet in a low crouch. Frank hit the ground like a sack of disjointed bones, his sweaty cheek slamming against the flat, dry ground. He lay lifeless, unmoving as Calvin glanced at Evie. The enraged expression on his face nearly made her flinch. His gaze shot to the dark guards next. Only then did she realize two of them, Spider and Red, had waken from their strange slumber and were striding in unison toward him.

Calvin turned to the approaching men, chest and elbows high, fists locked and ready. Spider took the first swing, his face hidden behind the black, knotted fray of his hair. Two muted thumps echoed over the grounds as Calvin blocked Spider’s fist, and then Red’s giant boot with his forearm. He ducked next, dodging both a deadly looking swing from Red and a high kick from the bug-like man. He escaped another blow before clocking Spider in the jaw.

A strong burst of hope filled Evie’s chest as she watched Calvin dominate, lunging a fist into Red’s gut. Yet in the next moment, just as Red’s boulder-like fist rammed against Calvin’s face, she felt that hope escape her–replaced with a renewed sense of panic. The merciless beast struck again, thrusting a massive knee into Calvin’s stomach.

Though he hunched over at the blow, pain evident on his tightened face, Calvin didn’t slow. He straightened back up, readied his fists, and fought.

Evie had already seen Calvin in action, but it was always in the safe and altered environment of The Loft. This was different. These monsters weren’t mused beings at Calvin’s mercy. They were real. And the effects would be permanent.

The fast-moving brawl quickly took on a pattern, Calvin striking and defending in near rhythm. For each attempt he dodged, Calvin delivered a hit of his own to the two men in turn. A few rounds of that, and Calvin would receive a nasty blow, usually from the bigger guy with the red spikes and distorted head. That guy was strong, and the sound of his unearthly growl sent a shiver of heightened fear up the center of Evie’s back.

As she watched, sick with worry, Evie caught eye contact with Calvin. He held her gaze only briefly, but in that fleeting moment, an enigmatic energy passed between them, causing a flame of heat to erupt in the center of her chest. She reminded herself that Calvin could die from this battle, and the grief that consumed her at the thought was crippling.

The sound of Red’s sickening roar grew louder as Calvin slipped out of rhythm. No longer displaying his pattern of defend, strike, and defend again, Calvin took hit after hit, fist after boot, elbow, or knee.

Though her hands were bound, Evie scooted herself forward, fighting with the yards of fabric around her legs, and wedged the back of her shoes in the layered rocks. She had to do something, was determined to try, until the sound of Calvin’s voice made her stop.

“Evie,” he shouted. “Don’t move.” He straightened up, thrust a fist into the center of Red’s massive form, and threw Spider in a headlock under his weight. Red’s ogre-like body doubled over in pain. The top half  of the beast seemed much larger than the rest of him, his legs suddenly looking incapable of  supporting his hulking chest and colossal head.

Evie stayed put and focused on the rope at her wrists. She shot a quick glance in Frank’s direction, saw his lids flutter with short, speedy blinks, and wondered when Parker would step in. He must be close by–a hidden wildcard–ready to pounce when the timing was right.

Spider lay in the dirt, looking dazed and groggy, while Calvin continued to fight Red almost robotically, attacking and defending in movements that looked choreographed to perfection. Though her fingers worked frantically to loosen the impossible knot, Evie kept her eyes pasted on the brawl.

A thick gust of air hit the back of her throat as a twisted root caused Calvin to lose balance. The stumble, coupled with a shove from his opponent, sent Calvin to the dry, powdery dirt below. Red pounced. His arms, thick as anaconda snakes, coiled around Calvin’s upper arms, forcing him to a stand while pinning his hands behind his back. He then looked toward the remaining guards.

As if he’d related some unspoken command, the three of them strode in a trio toward Calvin as he struggled to free himself. Evie had nearly forgotten all about the others. They’d been as still and silent as the mountain wall.

Calvin glanced at Evie, desperation causing her to yank against the rope at her wrists with brutal disregard for the skin beneath.  He watched the action while shaking his head, an intense sternness in his eyes. “Stay there, Evie,” he mouthed.

As the other guards strode across the clearing, marching in a zombie-like fashion, a strange pause took place. Their movements became slower, sluggish. It looked as if they were tracking through neck-high quicksand. Even the swing of their arms was subtle and immeasurably slow. Evie felt it too, something stifling her movement as she worked to free her hands. An odd noise accompanied this strange, new occurrence, or lack of noise was more like it. A thick sort of hum taking its place. She wondered if Calvin had frozen time, or at least tried to, and it didn’t fully work. Perhaps it wouldn’t stop the happenings around him, only delay them instead.

With great effort, Evie turned her gaze back to Calvin, frustrated by her slowed mobility. She caught sight just in time to see him burst off the ground. Calvin’s movements weren’t slowed at all. In fact, compared to the hampered mobility of the dark guards, his actions appeared impossibly fast. With all the ease of a skilled acrobat, Calvin tucked his knees to his chest, rounded the four-foot distance behind him with a backflip, and landed just in back of the red-haired giant who’d had him pinned just seconds ago. Red’s face slowly took on a baffled appearance as he labored at the simple task of turning his head.

In the suspended moment, Calvin seemed to defy gravity. Evie watched in awe as he lifted both feet off the ground once more, thrust his legs forward and, with one lithe kick, hurled Red toward the slowly approaching guards. She inwardly cheered as the cluster of enemies tumbled like a set of human dominos.

With a menacing groan rumbling deep in his throat, the giant shot to his feet and gave his head a dizzying shake. He was moving quickly again, and so were the others, working to untangle themselves from the myriad of twisted limbs. In a pink-fleshed fury, Red started swinging his massive fists once Calvin was in reach. Calvin dodged the first two attempts with what looked like little effort, but the third swing hit him hard. 

The remaining guards stood one by one, striding toward the scuffle. The young one took the lead, his pallid face finally coming to life. Even Spider managed to peel himself off the ground and join the attack. Evie’s heart sunk like a stone.

A cloud of dust kicked up as Calvin fought all five pawns at once. Full of strength and fury, his movements became impossibly fast. It was hard to keep up with the action. Too many fighters were in the ring. Evie knew she could only take in a small portion of what actually occurred, but it was obvious Calvin’s training had paid off. His ability to fight several men at once was impressive, and lent Evie some much needed encouragement. She held her breath a lot, scrutinizing each body that hit the dirt, sighing in relief when it wasn’t Calvin.

Suddenly, the young one, who’d been knocked to the ground, caught Evie’s attention as he crawled behind Calvin and came to a stand. She gasped, hollering his name just before the kid could loop his pale arm around Calvin’s neck. With the same accelerated pace, her rescuer spun, sweeping his leg behind him and put the youngster down. Astonishment replaced the threatening look of fury on Calvin’s face, and he flinched back, staring at the kid as if it were the first time he’d laid eyes on him. He shook his head absently, blinking back the shock.

Just as Evie feared, the others seized the moment, each taking position to attack in a deadly quad-force. Evie cringed, dreading what they might do to him, when suddenly the group went from rigid to lax. Ink dropped his readied fist and took two steps back. Red, who’d been poised for a hefty kick, straightened up and backed off as well. Arms dropped to sides. Shoulders slumped. Everyone’s but Calvin’s. He remained in his defensive stance, eyeing each one of his opponents as he circled slowly in place. Full circle once. Twice.

And then, before Evie could see it coming, Red came to life and reached for Calvin’s neck with blinding speed. Two more guards shot forward as well, grabbing hold of Calvin’s arms and wrenching them behind his back. Their movements were so cohesive, so connected, it was as if all three bodies were of one mind. And Calvin was trapped. Though Red’s meaty hands were in place at Calvin’s neck, it was easy to see he wasn’t choking him, only holding him in place. But for whom? The youngster only stood by, along with Spider, watching blankly while Red, Ink, and the crazed woman resisted Calvin’s furious attempt to break free.

It wasn’t until Calvin paused for breath, exhausted by his efforts, that the guards attention shifted to one single spot just beyond the altar.

It was then Evie recalled Frank’s presence–his existence, really. Following the gaze of the guards, Evie caught sight of her captor. In quick, frenzied movements, Frank pressed away from the dirt and came to a stand, swaying like a drunken lush. Dirt clung to his shirt, his hair, and the sweat dripping down his face; he looked crazier than ever.

The dark guards looked to Frank as he smeared clumsy fingers over his eyes. For the first time since she’d seen it, Evie wondered about the dagger. Where had it gone? She scanned the dirt where Frank and Calvin had landed, her heart hammering to a painful degree. A large, grimy hand clenched around the ivory base just as her gaze rested on the dagger, a few feet away from the altar. Frank secured his grip on the weapon and bolted toward the men, an utter look of hysteria in his eyes.

“No!” A long cry tore from Evie’s throat. Panic and fear, the sheer horror of the moment took over. She wedged her rope-bound wrists between her knees and yanked, tearing at the skin on her knuckles, twisting one of her hands free. She staggered to her feet, the jagged rocks shifting beneath her, and lunged toward Frank, unwilling to let the long, hindering skirt thwart her attack. Arms reaching, body stretching, Evie landed solidly on his back. She gripped handfuls of his shirt to steady herself, flinging the blonde strands of her hair out of her face with the flick of her head.

“Evie, no,” Calvin cried out, voice tense with fear. 

Everything turned sluggish and slow once more. Calvin must’ve attempted to freeze time again. With her thwarted movement, she climbed into position where she took fistfuls of Frank’s hair and pulled, yanking his head back with the force of her weight.

Frank’s body bent backward as he struggled to stay upright, reaching for any part of Evie he could grasp onto. She leaned to one side, avoiding his searching hand, still tugging on the man’s hair. She was just about to jump down when he finally succeeded. With all the force one hand could possibly hold, Frank grabbed her upper arm, tearing her off his back and hurling her across the landing.

Evie braced herself as she hit the ground, her arms taking the brunt of the impact. Small rocks burrowed into her skin as she skidded toward the large stump she’d been tied to. The massive tree seemed to speed toward her at an alarming rate, and Evie realized she would hit it head-on. She flinched, tucking a shoulder beneath her, and rolled, exposing the back of her head instead of her face.

The  rough, peeling bark made a crunching noise as she smacked the tree, the inside of her head pulsing heavily.

“Stay there, Evie,” Calvin hollered, his voice strained. “Don’t move!”

Her labored breaths muffled the sound of his voice, but she still heard the frustration in his tone. She watched in a dizzied haze as Calvin thrashed to free himself while Frank marched closer with the blade. Evie focused on the action as best she could, chanting a silent prayer. After one short blink, the lighting above her changed. Just enough to gain her attention. She looked up to the yellow spot of sunlight.