Part 49 (1/2)

”I'm trying to get her out of here, you idiot!” Mike claimed.

”Are you?”

He reached for both their wrists, jerking. Megan was instantly freed from Mike's hand.

”Thanks. If you'll excuse me, I'm going back,” she said flatly.

”No, Megan,” the man said. ”You're coming with me.”

He had lifted his head somewhat.

Ice filled her heart. She had seen him before. He was the man Finn had said was following him. Who had stood outside the coffeehouse, watching them. His hair was a dark sable color; he wore it on the long side, like Finn. He was muscularly built, but his eyes were his strangest feature. They were a strange green, almost yellow.

It was the color of his eyes that unnerved her most.

”No, I'm going back,” she said, and turned.

His hand fell on her shoulder, and he spun her around.

”You're coming with me.”

”The h.e.l.l I am!” Great. She kept pepper spray in her purse, but, of course, her purse was back at the hotel-burning up somewhere, probably.

And she wasn't a weakling.

But neither could she hope to win against this fellow's apparent force.

”Leave her alone!” Mike shouted.

”You don't know me, but I'm a friend,” the man said.

”A friend, right!” Mike protested.

”Get out of the way.”

”You're not taking her anywhere!”

The man pushed by Mike effortlessly. He made a move to come at the man, a.s.sault him. The man let out a sound that was chilling... a warning, but not a warning, a snarl that seemed to fill the night. She was dragged along as he walked through the fog, not blinded at all.

Gritting her teeth and bracing her strength, she coughed and choked. ”Wait!”

When the fellow turned, she kicked him. With all her strength. He loosened his grip.

Megan saw her chance. She turned to run back toward the hotel. In the fog, she couldn't tell the direction at first. She heard her feet clip on the pavement.Then, a tongue of fire suddenly lapped into the night sky. She spun around, realizing she had been running in the wrong direction.

And just as she did so, she felt a rush of wind. Someone coming, seeming to be all but part of the wind. She kept turning, listening to the fall of feet on the pavement.

Darkness seemed to blacken even the murk of the fog, as if giant wings had unfolded before her.

And as it encompa.s.sed her, she heard her name again.

A whisper.

”Megan...”

As Finn ran, intent only on finding the direction in which Megan had gone, he crossed over the asphalt of the parking lot. The sounds of sirens, shouting, and cacophony began to fade the farther he ran.

”Megan!” he screamed her name, into the night.

Then he paused, gasping for breath, bracing his hands on his knees as he bent over, fighting the pain in his lungs. He listened intently, praying that he would hear her respond.

Megan did not shout back to him.

But he became aware then of other sounds.

Footsteps...

A rush of them, running... coming in his direction.

He straightened, spinning around.

Figures began to emerge from the fog. One, two, three, four, five... more. They were all clad in cloaks, some brown, some black.

The cloaks were hooded. The people clad in them were wearing masks as well, most of them simple plastic, the kind that gave them all a faceless quality.

He was so furious and desperate that he was ready for them.

When the first man rushed him, his timing was precise. He kicked out in a split second, taking the man sharply in the jaw with the b.u.t.t of his heel. A screech of pain ensued, but even before it had died out, others were rus.h.i.+ng him.

At that point, instinct took over. Two came at him, and again, the years of martial arts training paid off, for he was able to throw out a punch and a kick at the same time, once again eliciting gasps and cries of pain. The one man was down, doubled over, the other was staggering.

But there were more.

Finn fought, and fought well, adrenaline and sheer willpower his main strength. But while he jabbed and lashed out as another two came forward for a frontal a.s.sault, someone jumped him from the back. Someone heavy and powerful. He whirled, seeking a tree against which to slam his a.s.sailant. Someone else came to the side, using both his arms to snare Finn's one. Another attacker fell to capture his arm.

He still had his legs, and he used them with brutal dexterity. But even as he did so, he knew he was bound to go down. He could only take on so many of them for so long a time. Adrenaline could not sustain him forever.One of the furious fellows he had first kicked came forward then, and delivered a blow to his chin that caused blackness to spin with a few pinp.r.i.c.ks of stars before his eyes. ”You'll have to kill me, you a.s.shole!” he raged.

”He's not supposed to be harmed,” someone else yelled.

Finn gathered all his strength, freed an arm, and lashed out with a solid kick again.

”f.u.c.k that!” the man with the lethal jab roared, coming forward again.

Finn braced for a jawbreaking swing, but it never came.

The man was picked up cleanly and jerked away from him. The guy must have been two hundred and fifty pounds, at least, but he was picked up as if he were a feather. He was tossed aside.

He couldn't see his sudden ally, but he knew the fight wasn't finished. He used the surprise his attackers were feeling, and jerked free. He elbowed the man at his right side so fiercely that he was almost certain he heard a rib crack.