Authors: Alex Archer
Sheila stumbled into the room, lock picks in her hands. Annja caught her and pushed her up against the wall. “Want to tell me why you were breaking into my room?”
“I didn’t want to wake you.”
Annja frowned. “If Garin told you about me, then you should have known that I’m a pretty light sleeper.”
“You weren’t yesterday when I clocked you. You were way out of it then. I thought I could creep back in here and you’d be none the wiser.”
“At least until I woke up.” Annja frowned. “You got in touch with Garin already?”
Sheila nodded. “He wasn’t there, though. I had to leave a message.”
“He knows you’re on an operation and he’s not there to pick up?”
“We have a set window of contact. This wasn’t it. He won’t be available until then. I’ll have to call him back.”
Annja nodded. “So, let’s pretend that Garin says yes. Why don’t you go ahead and fill me in on the bad guys while we wait, huh?”
Sheila sat down on the chair in the room and faced Annja. “I really don’t feel comfortable doing that.”
Annja nodded, took a deep breath and summoned her sword. In an instant, it was in her hands, aimed right at Sheila’s throat.
Sheila’s eyes went wide and the color drained from her face. Annja smiled. “Pretty amazing, huh?”
Sheila nodded dumbly. “Garin told me it would be impressive, but I didn’t expect anything like this.”
“Yeah, most people don’t.” Annja kept the blade pointed at Sheila’s throat. “You know, I don’t really have a high tolerance for waiting. I’m much more of a ‘let’s get it all out in the open’ kinda gal. So, we’ll have a talk about these bad guys and not worry about what Garin might or might not say. How does that sound, hmm?”
Sheila’s eyes were locked on the blade that seemed to hover just inches from the base of her throat. “There’s really no need to bring that out and use it to threaten me.”
“I’m not threatening you, Sheila.” Annja smiled. “I’m just using this to illustrate a point—namely, that I don’t like waiting. Especially when I know you have the answer to the questions I have.”
“I feel like you’re threatening me.”
“I don’t really care, to be honest.” Annja pressed the sword at Sheila’s throat. “See, I figure if you don’t tell me, I’ll just slice your head off and then tell Garin you had a horrible accident involving our pal the shark. Really an unfortunate turn of events, but that’s the way it goes sometimes, huh?”
“You wouldn’t.”
Annja shook her head. “Don’t even go there with me. You won’t like the result.”
Sheila glared at Annja. “You’re serious.”
“Deadly.”
“I shouldn’t do this,” Sheila said. “I’d be violating one of Garin’s rules that he ingrained in me a long time ago.”
“Your choice,” Annja said. “Makes no difference to me. Or to the sword I’m holding.”
Sheila frowned. “This isn’t how I envisioned our friendship developing, Annja.”
“No?”
“I thought we had some sort of trust going.”
Annja shook her head. Outside, she could see that clouds moving in had thwarted some of the afternoon sun. “That kind of went out the window when you picked the lock on my door.”
Sheila sat quietly and then looked at Annja. “Fine. The organization is headed by a guy from Cleveland—”
“Cleveland?”
“That’s what I said, why?”
Annja shrugged. “Never thought of a nefarious organization having someone in charge from Cleveland. Just doesn’t seem right.” She shook her head. “Whatever. Keep going.”
“His name is Henderson. That’s all anyone knows. He’s supposedly one of these religious nuts who’s obsessed with anything even remotely supernatural. Doesn’t matter if it’s from some other culture or what. If he hears about it, he wants it.”
“And the crucifix fits in with his ideology?”
“Henderson’s ideology is simple. If it’s powerful, he wants it.”
“To what end?”
Sheila shook her head. “Who knows? No one’s ever really seen Henderson. He could be a complete flake. Or he could be a captain of industry. All we know is he has people everywhere, and when he hears about something unusual, he gets his fingers into it.”
“Why didn’t he recover the crucifix himself?”
“Henderson’s never been much of a starter. He prefers swooping in after the work has already been done. He’ll wait until the crucifix is recovered and then come and steal it. Easier that way.”
Annja nodded. “Guess I can see how that might look attractive.”
“He’s on the hunt for this crucifix, Annja. He wants it very badly. The lure of immortality has always held sway over men.”
“Women, too,” Annja said. “Seems to me I can recall plenty of historical figures who spent their whole lives looking for something that would stave off the onslaught of age and death.”
“Indeed. And Henderson is definitely one of those types. Garin’s intelligence estimates his age at almost eighty.”
“He wants the fountain of youth,” Annja said.
“But he’ll settle for something that keeps death away.”
Annja eyed Sheila. “Who works for him?”
“Anyone he can pay. He recruits from every walk of life, knowing that money tends to make people very open to things like murder, deception and stuff along those lines.”
“You’re certain that he knows about the crucifix?”
“Absolutely.” Sheila frowned. “He managed to plant someone on this boat. Apparently, Hunter’s rather loose approach to hiring people worked out well for Henderson’s organization. No background checks means they didn’t have to work hard at positioning their people or supplying them with an extensive résumé prior to sending them out.”
“Handy.”
“And quite unlike Garin, who had me create an entire fictitious account of my life just so I could hold up under scrutiny.”
Annja laughed. “Would have worked if you hadn’t moved the way you do.”
“Yeah.”
Annja let the sword drop. “There, now don’t you feel better having told me all of that? No sense bothering Garin at all. We’ll keep it just between us.”
“If you say so.”
Annja stood, sending the sword back to otherwhere. “I’m still not sure how you think I can take out that shark. The idea of me fighting it—”
“You don’t have to fight it, Annja. Just stab it with your sword or chop off its tail or something like that.”
“That shark is forty feet long at least. That’s big.”
“I know.”
“And that mouth. Did you see the mouth?”
“I wasn’t on deck when you were.”
“Miles of teeth. The thing’s an eating machine. I mean, I’ve seen sharks close up, but this thing is beyond unreal.”
Sheila nodded. “I’m not pretending that it’s going to be easy.”
“It will be for you. You’re not going to be in the water. I will. It’s my life on the line if something goes wrong.”
“Nothing’s going to go wrong, Annja. You just get in the water. When the shark approaches, you kill it. Very simple.”
“You think so, huh? In that case, I’ll lend you my sword and you can do the business yourself. How does that sound?”
“It won’t work,” Sheila said. “You know as well as I do that your sword won’t transfer to anyone else. Like it or not, you’ve got to do this thing because there’s really no one else who can.”
“Maybe Hunter’s got some guns on board. Maybe we can just shoot it and watch it sink to the bottom.”
“The most powerful thing on this boat is a 9 mm pistol. That’s not going to do squat against a forty-foot shark. Except maybe piss it off some,” Sheila said.
“That’s the last thing we need,” Annja replied.
“All we’ve got to do is lure it to the cage where you’ll be. Once it gets close, you can plunge your sword into its belly. Cut deep and fast and that should be a mortal wound. Once you do that, you can dispatch it at your leisure.”
“Like when my heart calms down.”
“Sure.”
Annja sat back on her bed. “The whole idea sounds insane. There’s got to be a better way, but damned if I can think of one.”
“The problem is the size of the shark,” Sheila said. “If it was smaller, we could try fishing for it. But with it being half the size of the boat, it will simply weigh far too much for us to try something like that. It has to be destroyed.”
“Cole’s going to love that,” Annja said sadly.
“I can appreciate his sentiments on this. I’m not one to encourage wanton slaughter of animals, but there’s no way around this. The shark is obviously interested in the boat since it’s made a repeat appearance, even in the wake of Jock’s death.”
“So it’s a rogue shark?”
“Could be.”
Annja frowned. She knew a rogue shark was one that didn’t behave like others of its kind. Its behavior was unpredictable and, because of that, trying to discourage it from staying around would most likely not work. Destroying the beast would be their only option.
“Okay,” Annja said slowly. “You kept your word and told me about Henderson. I appreciate that. You didn’t have to.”
“Well, you did have a sword up against my throat.”
Annja smiled. “I simply encouraged you to help me out with my distinct lack of information.”
“Convincingly, I might add,” Sheila said. “But Garin will kill me if he ever finds out, so you can’t tell him about this, okay?”
“Sure. No problem.” Annja leaned back and tried to relax. “When do you want to start?”
“It has to be soon. And it would be better if we can do it without anyone else knowing.”
“Yeah, sure, that will be easy. We’ll just wait until midnight so I can winch the cage into the ocean without anyone hearing me. Of course, it will be totally dark and I won’t be able to see a damned thing.” She glared at Sheila. “You’re nuts. Of course people are going to have to know.”
“The more people who know, the more difficult it will be to convince them that what we’re doing is the right approach.”
“Maybe we could just show them pictures of Jock’s body. That might be enough to convince them.”
“Maybe.”
Annja knew she’d have to tell Hunter and Cole about this. It would only be with their help that she could even dream about pulling it off. “We’ll talk it over around dinnertime, okay?”
Sheila nodded. “All right.” She stood. “Are we finished here?”
Annja shrugged. “Hey, you were the one who came to my room, not the other way around.”
Sheila smiled. “I think we’re done.” She put her hand on the doorknob and turned it. “Talk to you later.”
“Not so fast.”
Annja looked up at the sound of the new voice. Captain Jax stood in the doorway. She held a pistol in her hand, its black barrel aimed squarely at Sheila’s chest.
“Seems to me,” Jax said, “that we all need to have a serious talk. So, why don’t we sit down for a few minutes until we get things cleared up.”
Sheila backed into the room, her hands rising defensively. “Slow down, Captain. There’s no need for any violence.”
Jax frowned. “I’ll be the judge of that.” She looked at Annja. “Stay where you are, Annja.”
“Why would I want to do that?” Annja asked. She could have the sword out in the blink of an eye if she could just keep Jax fixated on dealing with Sheila.
“Because I don’t want to have to shoot you,” Jax said. “But I will in order to get you to listen to me. You understand?”
Annja nodded but she was keeping her focus soft, ready to move if Sheila could help her gain an opening.
Sheila kept her hands up. “Why are you doing this, Jax? I thought we got along just fine.”
“Appearances are deceiving,” Jax said. “And frankly, I never cared for the way you carried yourself.”
“Why not?”
“Too obviously disdainful of the rest of us.” Jax smirked. “Well, the joke’s on you, isn’t it? Nothing like having a gun barrel in your face to make you a little more humble, huh?”
Sheila shook her head. “This isn’t necessary.”
“I think it is. You’ve been trouble since I laid eyes on you. Time to take care of business since Hunter and Cole won’t deal with it.”
Annja frowned. Jax kept the gun steady on Sheila. She didn’t seem motivated by anger. In fact, she seemed pretty calm. Annja looked at Sheila and there was concern on the woman’s face. What was going on here? The presence of a gun in the mix didn’t help matters.
As Jax focused on Sheila, Annja summoned her sword and went on the attack, drawing the blade high overhead and launching herself through the air. She heard a shout from Jax as she pounced.
But the captain dodged the blow and punched Annja in the side of her chest, sending a thundering strike rattling through Annja’s body. Annja gasped, trying to get some air back into her. As she landed hard, Jax pivoted again and delivered a roundhouse kick to Annja’s leg, sweeping it out and dropping her further.
Annja was down before she realized Jax had the pistol aimed at her chest. “Dammit, Annja, I told you not to engage!”
But then Annja saw a form hurtle across her field of vision as Sheila tackled Jax. Their two bodies fell across the mattress, toppling over backward beyond the edge of the bed.
Annja righted herself, still trying to get some wind back into her lungs, which felt as if they were spasming uncontrollably. That was some punch she’d taken from Jax. Who had taught her that?
She had more immediate issues, though. She could see a tangle of arms and legs as Sheila and Jax fought to control each other. Sheila was doing well, but Annja could tell that Jax was simply biding her time.
Sheila tried to disarm Jax, grabbing at the gun with both hands. Annja winced. That wasn’t a good idea. Sheila should have gone for control on the hand and arm instead of the gun itself, which could be manipulated by her opponent.
Jax put that fighting tactic into effect, suddenly using her free hand to wrench the gun up and over Sheila’s wrist, snapping it down sharply. Annja heard the bone break and Sheila cried out, bit back on the pain and punched Jax in the face.
Jax took the punch well, despite the sudden rush of blood, and kicked Sheila back and up, forcing her toward Annja.
Sheila rolled, got to her feet and clutched at her broken wrist. She turned to Annja. “You’ve got to stop her!”
And then she bolted for the door.
Annja shook her head and watched as Jax came crawling up, aimed the gun and started to squeeze off a shot. Annja lunged at her gun hand and the sudden shot went awry, the bullet burying itself in the wood paneling across the room.
“Annja! Dammit!” Jax punched her again in the stomach and Annja dropped. She tried to raise her sword. Jax stomped on her arm. Annja groaned in pain. When she tried to roll over with the sword, Jax pointed the gun right into her face.
“Drop that sword!”
Annja released the blade, her fingers clutching reflexively, not wanting to let go of her only protection.
Jax cast a look sideways at the door and frowned. She looked back at Annja. “I told you to stay out of this. Now I’ve lost her.”
“You’re the traitor,” Annja said. “I guess I should have seen through the tough-gal demeanor.”
Jax sighed and helped Annja to her feet. “No, you idiot. I’m Garin’s operative on this boat. That one is the real problem. She’s with Henderson.”
Annja shook her head. “She just got through telling me all about Henderson and his organization.”
“She just finished bullshitting you.”
“Why should I believe you?”
Jax checked the slide on her pistol. “Because Garin told me you’d ask that question.”
“And did he give you an answer for me, as well?”
“No, but he did tell me that if you gave me any trouble, I should just beat the crap out of you and be done with it.”
Annja sniffed. “Sure sounds like him.”
“He also told me that you were the one who billed your trip to Japan on his credit card.”
“You could have found that out by hacking into a computer and getting his credit report. Give me something else.”
“Antarctica. Sound familiar?”
“What about it?”
“You were surprised to find him there, right?”
“Maybe.”
“And do you remember Bali? What you told him after you’d had a few too many glasses of wine?”
Annja frowned. She was sure no one else on the planet knew that. And Annja desperately wished she hadn’t said what she had that night. But it couldn’t be helped now.
Apparently.
Annja sighed. “So, who is she?”
“Sheila? Don’t know if that’s her real name or not, but she works for Henderson. She’s one of his top people. Her specialty is acting like she’s an amateur when, in fact, she’s not. And she can turn people against each other. Us included.”
“I nearly killed you.”
Jax shrugged. “I try not to take things like that personally. It tends to happen a fair amount, and if I held a grudge every time it did happen, I wouldn’t be the pleasant lass I am.”
Annja smiled. “Pleasant lass?”
“It’s a personality makeover as suggested by our mutual friend.”
“I see. Did he pluck you out of obscurity, too, in order to train you to be his superspy?”
Jax frowned. “Do I look like I need any training other than what I got in the school of hard knocks? Garin can kiss my ass if he thinks he knows something I can’t teach myself.”
Annja chuckled. “I’d love to see his reaction to that comment.”
“As long as he pays me, we get along fine. I know what side my bread is buttered on. You don’t need to worry about me.”
“But we do need to worry about Sheila.”
Jax shrugged. “She can’t go far. I broke her wrist.”
“I heard it.”
“She’s probably gone running back to her room. There aren’t a lot of other places she can go right now, are there? That’s one of the benefits to being out on the ocean.”
“A cornered rabbit can still put up a fight,” Annja said. “What if she’s got a weapon in there with her?”
“Like what? A pistol?” Jax shrugged. “She can use it on herself, if she wants. When the time comes to go in there and get her, I’ll be happy to wrest it from her dead hands.”
“I was thinking more in terms of explosives. She could blow up the boat.”
Jax shook her head. “I already sent Dave to root through her junk. He knows what to look for and I don’t.”
“Is he clear?”
Jax nodded. “I trust him.”
“All right, we’ve got to get to Hunter and Cole with this information. They need to know what’s going on.”
“Agreed.”
Jax and Annja started for the door, but as Jax went through the doorway, Annja tripped and bent forward, bumping into Jax. Jax turned just as a bullet tore into the door frame.
Splinters of wood flew off and struck Jax across her cheek as Annja realized that Sheila wasn’t about to go quietly and cower somewhere. She hauled Jax back into her room.
“Dammit!”
Jax crawled to the door and stuck her gun through the opening. She squeezed off two rounds and Annja winced as the sudden explosion thundered inside her head.
Jax pulled back and brushed a hand across her cheek. It came away bloody. “I would have taken that slug if you hadn’t bumped into me.”
“That your way of saying thanks?”
Jax grinned. “Maybe.”
She ducked and squeezed off another shot, then pulled back. Annja watched her. So far, they hadn’t heard any return fire.
Jax frowned. “You think I tagged her on that first volley?”
Annja shook her head. “No idea.”
Jax took a deep breath. “Well, no way to tell if we stay here.”
“Just be careful,” Annja said.
Jax got down on her belly and crawled over to the doorjamb. Annja frowned. “Wait.”
Jax looked back. “What?”
Annja went to her bag and pulled a small compact out. She handed it to Jax, who took it with a grin. “Good idea.”
She popped it open and used it to peer around the frame.
Annja braced for the impact of a bullet, but no gunshot came. After a second, Jax pulled back into the room and tossed Annja the compact.
“Seems secure.”
Annja nodded and they crawled out into the corridor. Jax took the lead, her pistol ready to fire if need be.
They approached the turn in the corridor and Jax looked at Annja, holding a finger up to her lips.
Annja braced herself.
Jax spun around the corner and aimed her pistol.
The corridor was empty.
Annja let loose a pent-up breath and Jax’s shoulders slumped. “So much for that.”
“You think she’s back in her room now?”
Jax frowned. “Doubt it. If she’s acting like this, it means she’s going on the attack. And that’s not particularly comforting. We’d better hook up with Hunter and Cole and make sure that Sheila’s not planning a hostage taking.”
“Good idea.”
They took the steps up toward the main deck, each time clearing the turns carefully. Annja half expected Sheila to pop out at any minute and squeeze off a few more rounds at them.
But nothing else happened. When they were close to the steps leading to the wheelhouse, Jax pointed topside. “Last I heard, Hunter and Cole are up—”
A sudden scream pierced the air.
Jax and Annja looked at each other and then ran for the steps.