Dragonvein - Book Three (24 page)

After a few weaves and near collisions with roadside signs, the basics of driving soon came back to him. Jonas, on the other hand, was looking petrified. Markus was forced to keep tapping him on the arm to remind him that he was the one meant to be navigating by using his pendant.

“I sure would have liked to have one of these back on Lumnia,” Markus said, now at ease with the controls and clearly enjoying himself.

Jonas swallowed hard as they took a turn. “How do they make things like this?”

Markus simply laughed.

After only a few minutes, they found themselves in a residential area. Most of the houses were covered with twinkling lights and various other Christmas decorations. This impressed Jonas enough to almost make him forget that he was traveling at unbelievable speeds while inside the belly of a great metal beast. The radio had come to life twice, both times with calls asking for the location of the two guards. Markus ignored them. There was nothing to be done anyway.

“What powers all this?” Jonas asked, continuing to gaze at the lights.

“Electricity,” Markus replied. He could see the look of confusion on the old man’s face. “It's like magic, I suppose. Only
people
make it.”

“How?”

“I really couldn’t tell you. I was never big on science.”

Jonas decided to forgo more questions and enjoy the sights. “This is far different from the last time I was here,” he remarked.

“That's because the last time you were here, you landed in the middle of a war zone. You didn’t really think the entire Earth was like that, did you?”

Jonas shrugged. “It was my first impression. To me it looked ruined and scarred. It’s hard to imagine that what I saw back then is the same world as this.”

Markus was about to respond when he saw a pair of headlights rushing up behind them in the mirror. A frown formed. Surely no one had found the bodies already. He glanced over at the pendant Jonas was holding. It was now flashing rapidly. They were very near.

As the car behind drew closer, Markus could see the outline of emergency lights on its roof. His hands gripped the wheel tightly while the vehicle followed them for several blocks. Finally, it turned onto a side street. He let out a sigh of relief.

Jonas, oblivious to what had just happened, was concentrating on the pendant. “Turn left,” he said.

Markus did as instructed, still keeping a close eye on the rear view mirror. The houses in this area were smaller than those only a short distance back; mostly single story homes with compact yards and modest decorations. It was clear they were moving into a less affluent neighborhood. As they passed by a tiny blue house with a small porch surrounded by a chain linked fence, the pendant went wild.

“That has to be it,” Jonas announced.

Markus kept driving while looking for a good place to get rid of the car. But after one more block, the headlights from earlier returned. This time however, the vehicle came right up close behind them. What's more, a siren was blaring and its emergency lights were flashing red.

Jonas turned to look. “Who is that?” he asked.

“The police, I think.” Markus didn’t bother explaining any further. “Just keep quiet and stay still.”

“What do they want with us?” he asked nervously. Though he didn’t know exactly what the police were, he had obviously identified them as some sort of authority.

“Hopefully nothing. So just stay calm.”

Markus turned at the next right and then pulled to the curb. The jackets they had taken said security on the chests, so as long as the rest of their clothing remained unseen, there was always a chance the officer might accept them as such. Unless the bodies had been found, of course. If that was the case, it wouldn't take a detective to figure out what happened.

The officer approached the driver’s door, hand resting on his sidearm. Markus searched for a way to roll down the window, finally figuring out that it was operated by a button rather than the hand crank he had seen in the past.

“Is there a problem?” he asked, trying to sound confused as to why they were being pulled over.

The officer scrutinized him for a moment, then bent down to take a closer look at Jonas. “You guys are a bit far from home, aren’t you?”

“I’m just trying to get this old guy home,” Markus said. “He wandered up, a bit confused and lost. I loaned him a spare jacket of mine to keep warm.”

“You should have called us,” the cop said. He leaned a little closer. “Is that right old timer? You lost?”

“He doesn’t speak English,” Markus explained quickly.

“Then how do you know he’s lost?”

“Lucky for him, I speak Dutch.”

The cop looked at him skeptically. “That’s a hell of a coincidence, I’d say.”

Praying that the man would not recognize Dutch when he heard it, he turned to Jonas and said in the language of Lumnia: “Say something and point straight ahead.”

After a moment of hesitation, Jonas pointed. “What’s going on? Are we in trouble?”

“We’ll know in a few seconds.”

Markus turned back to the officer. “He says his house isn’t far. Just up the street a few more blocks.”

“You want me to take him?” he offered.

“That’s all right,” Markus said, producing his very best 'nice guy' smile. “I don’t mind. I speak his language.”

A chirp from his radio caught the officer’s attention. “Hang on there a second,” he ordered, stepping a few paces away from the car.

Markus listened carefully. After a few seconds, he heard what he was fearing the most - a terse report of two security guards found dead and their car stolen. He was about to slam the car into drive, but unlike the guards, the officer was well trained. He had drawn his weapon and was leveling it at Markus' head even before the report was complete.

“Don’t fucking move,” he shouted.

Jonas looked terrified. “What’s happening?”

Markus took a deep breath. “Listen to me closely, Jonas. I'm going to distract him. When I do, I want you to run like hell. Find the last mage and take him back to Lumnia. Whatever happens to me, don’t stop running. And tell Lylinora that I love her.”

“Let me see your hands!” the cop commanded.

Markus raised his hands. If he was quick, the first shot might miss. If he could take one in the shoulder, it might give Jonas enough time to escape.

“Now with your right hand, reach out and open the door.”

The officer’s hands were steady and his tone hard. This was an experienced cop. A fact that did not bode well. But before Markus could do as ordered, Jonas opened the door on the other side. As he stepped out, the officer swung his weapon over.

“Don’t fucking move!”

“Stay where you are, Jonas!” Markus called.

But Jonas seemed to have a plan all of his own. Feigning the expression of a confused old man, he rounded the front of the car. “Get ready to run,” he told Markus. “You're much faster than me. You'll have a better chance.”

The cop repeated his order, clearly reluctant to shoot a helpless old man.

“Please don’t hurt him,” Markus pleaded. “He doesn’t know what’s going on.”

“Well tell him to get on the ground!”

“He’s going to kill you,” warned Markus desperately. “Stop!”

Jonas looked at Markus with an expression that told him there would be no argument. He had made up his mind. He smiled over and said, “I told you that you would need me.”

He made a sudden charge at the cop.

The crack of the gun going off jerked Markus into motion. He wasn’t sure if Jonas had been hit, but could see that the old guy was still on his feet and advancing. The officer tried to turn the weapon in his direction, but before he could take proper aim, Jonas was on him, wrapping both arms around the man and heaving with all his strength.

Instinctively, Markus ran. The knowledge that Jonas had most likely been shot was tearing him apart, but the success of their mission was the most important thing of all. He had to keep moving, otherwise Jonas’ sacrifice would have been for nothing. Another shot rang out - then another. It took all of Markus' will not to look back. Sirens were already howling in the distance, telling him that more police were on the way. He ran even faster, heading for the house that the pendant had indicated.

With lungs burning from the cold air, he spanned the three steps leading up to the front door in a single leap and knocked heavily. He could hear someone moving around inside. A few seconds later, the door opened.

The man standing there made Ethan look positively muscle-bound. He was a bit older than expected – perhaps in his early thirties – rail thin, with unkempt brown hair and round glasses. Markus thought he looked as if a stiff breeze would blow him over. He stared irritably at his visitor, a thick book tucked under his arm.

“What do you want?” he demanded.

Before replying, Markus reached inside his shirt and produced his pendant. The rajni stone set in it was now pulsing so rapidly that it appeared almost as a steady light. This was who he wanted; there was no doubt about that.

“Can I come in?” he asked. He could hear the sounds of the sirens growing louder.

But the man’s eyes were fixed on the pendant, a terrified expression now showing on his face. “Get out of here,” he growled. “I’m not going back. You hear me?”

He attempted to slam the door, but Markus’ arm shot forward, easily keeping it open. The man struggled for only a few seconds before realizing it was hopeless and giving up.

“I guess you know what this is,” Markus said, now using the language of Lumnia. “And why I'm here.”

The man backed away a few paces. “Of course I do.” Though his reply was also in Lumnian, it carried a strange accent; no doubt created by many years of living on Earth.

Markus stepped inside, closing the door quickly behind him. It wouldn’t take long for the police to follow his trail in the snow, so he needed to act fast. He glanced at his surroundings. Beyond the threshold was a small living room with a cast iron stove at the far right wall, and a matching sofa and two chairs to the left. The walls bore pictures of unfamiliar places, as well as an extra-large painting of a sailing vessel in a churning sea. An open door at the back of the room led through to the rest of the small house.

The man didn’t look afraid any longer. If anything, he looked angry. “I’m not going back, and that's the end of it,” he stated defiantly.

“You have to,” insisted Markus. The sirens had fallen silent, which meant the search for him would begin very soon. “And you have to go
now
.” He could see that the man was weighing his options. “You can come willingly, or…” He took a menacing step forward.

“Why? Why do you want me to go back? I have a life here.”

“We need your help.”

“So Shinzan still lives?” He didn’t wait for a response. “And I suppose you need me to help you fight him. Well, you can just go straight to hell.”

“Listen to me…”

“David. My name's David.”

“Listen to me, David. There's a man lying dead in the snow right now who sacrificed his life to bring you back. So like it or not, you’re coming with me.” Markus loomed over the slight figure, his eyes ablaze with determination.

After a tense moment, David's shoulders sagged. “Okay. You win. But I need to pack a few things first.”

Markus stepped over to the window. No one was coming just yet. “Two minutes,” he snapped.

David cocked his head. “So the sirens…they’re for you?”

“Just hurry up and get what you need.”

Markus followed him through into a modestly furnished bedroom. He watched impatiently as David packed clothes, some books, and a few other odds and ends into a blue duffle bag – the whole time muttering curses under his breath.

“How is it you know about Shinzan?” Markus asked.

“I was fifteen when I came here,” he replied, at the same time struggling to fit yet more items inside his bag. “My mother and I were fleeing to the mountains when we were caught. My father was already dead…along with the rest of my family.”

“I’m sorry.”

David sneered. “Are you? Then why are you forcing me to go back? If Shinzan is still alive, you’re taking me off to die.”

Something about David’s apparent weakness brought forth anger in Markus. He forced the feeling aside; he knew it was only Specter making trouble. “I’m doing no such thing,” he said. “You are the last piece of the puzzle we need to give us victory over Shinzan. Together, we'll be able to rid Lumnia of him forever.” Even as the words came out, he knew he really didn’t believe them.

“Yeah, right.”

Voices from nearby outside caught Markus’ attention. “We’re out of time. We need to go now.”

“Just one more thing,” David said, reaching down beneath his bed. He came up holding a snub nosed revolver.

Only Markus’ experience and quick reflexes saved his life. He had known something was wrong the moment David bent down. At the first sight of the gun, he threw himself sideways and forward.

Inside such a small room, the shot was deafening. The bullet that would have otherwise hit Markus just below the throat, instead tore into his left bicep. Even though instantly aware of the searing pain, sheer adrenaline and the need for urgent action drove him on. He grabbed for the gun, managing to secure David’s wrist and force it upwards just as another shot fired into the ceiling. With his left arm hanging uselessly, he continued using his right hand and overwhelming strength advantage to smash David's arm against the metal frame of the bed. The weapon quickly dropped to the floor.