The Crypt (31 page)

To her surprise the first person she saw was Armond Stuart.

He was hiding behind a small brick wall across the walkway near the entrance to a refreshment store for the tourists. He was looking up the walkway toward an assailant. His hand held a weapon.

Sarah had a clear shot. She took careful aim.

He looked at her. His eyes widened.

She fired.

Perfect.

His gun hand was knocked sideways, his weapon thrown from his grip.

He screamed out in pain.

She fired again. Then again. Each shot she aimed for the center of his chest, making sure she didn’t miss the kevlar vest he wore. He wavered on his feet.

She stepped forward and shot Armond a fourth time.

He fell to his knees and then onto his back in front of the tourist store’s front door.

Sarah walked across the opening. Whoever was exchanging fire with Armond wasn’t her enemy. She had no fear of being hit.

As she stepped up and stood over Armond she reached back and placed the gun in her waist line.

She wouldn’t be needing it anymore.

“I shot you. You’re dead,” Armond breathed out through clenched teeth, his eyes wide.

Sarah could tell by his gasping that he was going through exactly what she had.

She stepped up close and kicked him in the chest with her left foot. He shouted out in pain.

“Sarah!” someone yelled in the distance.

She ignored them as she got down and sat on Armond’s stomach, straddling him like a horse.

“Yes, you shot me,” she said. “I shot you so now we’re even. But there’s another matter to clear up.”

“What?” he managed.

Real fear was in his eyes. His breath panted in and out, his face shining in the little light that came up from the security lamps. She could see that he knew it was over. His reign had ended. He’d made mistakes.

“My sister. Vivian. My trump card.”

Sarah reached behind her and pulled her gun back out. She twisted around and took careful aim so as not to shoot herself in the butt.

The nozzle gently touched Armond’s crotch.

“No!” he shouted.

Sarah fired. The bullet tore a hole in the vestments he still wore. She leaned over to get a better look.

“Perfect,” she said. “That’s for all the girls you’ve raped. All the lives you’ve stolen.” She had to raise her voice over his inhuman screaming wail. “All the innocence you tore from everyone you have ever touched and this is from me to you!”

Sarah placed her right hand on his throat and started to push. With her left hand she set her weapon down and applied her thumb on his eye socket. Both hands pressed in amid his shouting. He wiggled under her but couldn’t shake her off. She pushed harder.

And then someone tackled her from the side, knocking her into the wall by the tourist shop.

Before hitting the wall and coming to a stop on the ground she was already clambering for her gun. She grabbed it, brought it up and aimed at Rod Howley.

“You don’t want to do that.”

She could barely hear him as Armond screamed on the cement between them.

Sarah decided to shout too. The pain from being hit became a form of torture. “Give me…one good reason. Wait,” she said and raised her free hand. “I actually don’t need any fucking reasons. I wanna do it.”

He raised his hands. “If you kill me it doesn’t end. You have a file now. My successor will know what I know. He will hunt you down but this time they won’t be as nice as I’ve been. This does not end with me. It ends with you.” His eyes turned to pleading. “Come in with me Sarah, willingly. I will make sure you’re comfortable. Then after six months or so you can go back to civilian life. Does that work?”

She pretended to think about it when really all she needed the break for was to get her breathing under control and manage the pain. Then she said, “I don’t go anywhere until he is dead.” She gestured at Armond.

The pig on the ground in front of her turned his head a little, following her voice. He looked at her with one eye already swelling shut, the other filled with malevolence. Blood pooled below his crotch area. He was in need of medical attention or he would bleed to death.

“Fine,” Rod said and brought his hand up. In it he held a large handgun. It was a kind of sidearm Sarah hadn’t seen before.

Rod fired from two feet away blowing the top of Armond’s head clean off. He fired again, this time aiming at the throat. A hole the size of a cantaloupe opened up above Armond’s collarbone, half his throat vanishing into the cement.

Sarah looked into his turned face and saw his good eye register the shots. Then he slumped toward the ground and Armond Stuart took his last breath.

I’m free! I’m free! He’s finally gone!

She felt an exuberance she’d never felt before. To know that her sister’s murderer was dead and to feel so good about it was almost enough to make her feel guilty. Her eyes watered a little. It was over.

The wicked witch was dead.

“Now, get up and come with me,” Rod said. “Everyone’s dead. There’s just you and me. We’ll leave together.”

“Everyone’s dead?” she was sure when she heard someone yell her name not a few minutes earlier that it was a voice she recognized. It wasn’t Rod who had yelled.

Someone’s still alive.

Whoever they were Rod was trying to get her away from them.

“Is that how this is going to work?”

“I’m not following.”

“Whoever is still alive will be killed so there’s no witnesses to this carnage?”

“But Sarah, no one is alive. Everyone was killed.”

She looked into his eyes under the brim of his hat.

“Then who was Armond shooting at?”

“Me.” He stood up and holstered his weapon. Then he adjusted his hat and looked down his nose at her. “Let’s get you out of here before the real police show up. Now that Armond is gone, they will come and they’re going to be pissed. If we’re still here we will have too much explaining to do.”

Rod reached out a hand to help her up. At that moment someone stepped up behind Rod.

It was Bennett.

She saw a weapon silhouetted in his hand.

“Ok Rod, you got me,” Sarah said as she reached for his hand.

She saw Bennett place the cold steel end of his gun against the back of Rod’s neck. Rod froze.

“So, everyone’s dead are they?” Sarah asked. “Six months or so and then back to normal life? Who the fuck do you think I am that I would believe
you
?”

“Step away from the girl,” Bennett ordered.

Rod stood up and raised his hands but not in supplication. He adjusted his fedora again and then lowered his hands. The hand cannon he’d killed Armond with had disappeared.

“Now what?” Rod asked.

Sarah chimed in as she was getting to her feet. “Watch it, he’s packing.”

Bennett found the weapon easily and disarmed him, tossing the gun at least twenty feet away.

“In the crypt there’s a slab pulled out from the wall,” Sarah said. “It’s on little wheels. Lock him in there for the night. His men will retrieve him in good time.”

Bennett nodded. “You heard her. Let’s go.” Bennett motioned with the gun.

“You haven’t heard the last of me,” Rod said to Sarah as he started walking back into the church.

Sarah followed to the top of the stairs and waited. She grabbed her gun and held it like she’d hold a rosary. Could never be too sure.

Where’s Parkman? Did Armond really get to him?

She waited what felt like a long time before she saw Bennett coming back up the stairs, his gun put away.

“You okay?” he asked when he got to her.

“Other than the bruising and possible broken ribs from four bullets in the chest and the sprained right knee, I’d say I’m doing fine. Actually, scratch that, I’m fabulous. Armond is dead.”

“Yes he is. Come on. Let’s get you to the chopper.”

“What happened to your team?”

“Ambushed. It was chaos. We had no choice. I was the only one they didn’t see. When you and Parkman left with those police officers I was behind a pillar and that’s where I stayed. They took my team upstairs and threw them all off the roof.”

“I know. I’m sorry.”

“We all knew the risks when we signed on.”

“Sure you do, but you’re human first. You feel.”

He looked over at her. “You’re right. I’m blocking it now, but tomorrow it’s gonna hurt like a son of a bitch.”

They exited the main doors with Bennett in the lead. She could see his training in everything he did. He cleared the entrance and then allowed her to step out. He moved along the wall in front of her, going her speed and keeping an eye behind them the whole time.

“Rod’s secure in the crypt?”

Bennett motioned with his hand to stay quiet. Then he leaned in close to whisper. “Rod may have more men close by. We’ll talk in the chopper.”

Sarah nodded. Then pulled him close and whispered. “Do you know what happened to Parkman? I need to know before we leave the area.”

“I don’t know but I did hear Armond say that he was dispatched. I’m sorry.”

Sarah looked down at the ground.
Oh Parkman.
It was over. Armond was dead now. Parkman, her best friend, her only friend was gone. Bennett couldn’t confirm it but Armond had.

Parkman knew they were to fall back to the helicopter. She would hold out hope until they lifted off. She would get Bennett to delay as long as he could.

Come on Parkman. Wherever you are, get up. Meet me at the chopper.

They were nearing the rear of the basilica. Bennett looked back at her.

“Are you crying?” he asked softly.

“Keep moving. Let’s get out of here,” she said as she wiped her cheeks.

They hit the grass at the back running as fast as Sarah could on her bad knee. She only stumbled once on the wet grass. The rain had completely stopped and the moon was high now. Her eyes adjusted fast. She stumbled a couple more times due to the undulations in the ground.

Within ten minutes they had reached the edge of the Danube River. Sarah looked back up and saw the massive dome on the hill.

Oh, Parkman
.
Please. Hurry.

A quick run up the street would take them to the bridge. They could cross it on foot and be at the helipad fifteen minutes after that. Sarah looked at the river. Streetlights illuminated the area. Boats lined the side, tied up and bumping softly with the current.

They continued up the street, Bennett watching everything.

“I used to know a girl named Bennett.”

“I know.”

That surprised Sarah. “You know? How?”

“Mary Bennett is my sister.”

She stopped walking.

“Sarah, we have to keep moving. We have to cross the bridge and get into Slovakia before the Hungarian authorities show up.”

“Mary is your sister?” She couldn’t believe it.

“Okay, I’ll tell you briefly. As I understand it from her, you saved her life once. Armond’s men tried to kidnap her about five years ago. You stepped in. She helped you once with your father Caleb but she actually felt she got you in more trouble. I signed on for this team years ago to stop people like Armond. I do the same thing you do but without the psychic angle. When I heard Rosalie needed help and that you were here I made sure I was on the assault team. Armond was the target but you were always my priority. Now we’re even. You saved my sister and I’m going to save you from Rod Howley. It’s in honor of who you are and what you do and also in honor of a brave and courageous woman who died tonight. Rosalie Wardill.”

Sarah was stunned. She had no idea that something she had done years ago would come back to benefit her.

“I guess that’s karma for you. Thanks,” was all she could say.

They started walking again.

A gun went off somewhere. Both of them ducked and ran to the river side of the road.

“If they’re firing at us we can jump in one of these boats for shelter. If they aren’t—”

He was cut off as part of his head behind his left ear opened up. He spun around and fell into the boat moored below them.

Sarah felt a punch in her back and stumbled.

Before getting below the edge of the road and into the shelter of the boat another punch hit her from behind knocking her forward.

She plunged over the edge and hit the front of the boat.

The forward momentum caused her to roll off the fiberglass and into the Danube River, disappearing from sight.

Chapter 29

She opened her eyes. The water pressed down on her. It was cold, chilling her to the marrow. The kevlar vest had saved her life again but now it was killing her as its weight became too much, dragging her deeper. She didn’t have the energy to swim to the surface. She felt her consciousness fading fast.