Matt Archer: Blade's Edge (18 page)

The girl, flung over the creature’s shoulder, twisted around and saw me. I put a finger to my lips. She nodded, her eyes darting wildly. Poor kid was scared half to death and that pissed me off. I drew the knife from my thigh pocket, considering my options. Fog covered the ground on this side of the building. If I jumped on the zombie and put the knife through its heart, we’d both tumble to the ground. Then where would the little girl end up? Crushed or eaten alive by the fog, most likely. I had to find a better mode of attack, but the only thing I could think to do was stretch out on my belly on the edge of the roof.

The thing stumbled my way. Its black eyes stared straight ahead and lantern light spilled across its livid skin, but the light didn’t penetrate the fog at all. I held the knife at the ready and the handle shuddered in my hand. A quick flash of wild joy burned through me, the knife’s buzz tingling along my nerves as she hitched a ride in my brain. I didn’t give it a second thought; now didn’t seem like the time to worry about separation exercises. I was just glad the blade-spirit was in for this fight.

I focused on the creature. The screams and shouts in other parts of the village disappeared as the attack became clear in my mind. I had enough reach to slash its throat. Then I’d grab the girl’s arm with my free hand before she fell to the ground, just like Schmitz said. The timing would be close, but the knife-spirit would give me an assist. I’d be fast enough.

Two steps away, one step.

I reached, swinging the knife in an awkward arc, and stabbed the thing right in the jugular, pulling the blade free with a twist to maximize the injury. Black slime poured from the wound and it let go of the girl to grasp at its neck. I caught her hand as the zombie crumpled, disappearing in the fog.

“Gotcha!”

The girl dangled by one arm, but she didn’t cry out. Instead, she flashed me a fierce, gap-toothed smile then put a finger to her lips. Some kid.

I laid the knife on the roof and gripped her other hand in mine. Curling fifty pounds of girl while prone wasn’t easy. I reared back and struggled to get on my knees, keeping my arms out stiff so I wouldn’t bang her into the wall. Slowly I pulled her up until her face was almost even with mine, then I got hold of her underarms to make it easier to reel her in. As I pulled her close, she kissed me on the cheek.

“You’re welcome,” I said.

I went to rock back onto my heels so I could stand, but a sharp jerk bent me forward. The girl squealed and struggled in my arms, and I felt her slipping away.

Forms were coalescing from the mist. They weren’t zombies, though. Tall creatures, on two legs, solidified into sludge-black figures. They had wings like bats and mouths full of pointed teeth, but their eye sockets were covered with flesh, and the skin was sunken, like they didn’t have eyeballs. Scaly hands with fingers that were too long groped our direction. I looked down at the girl’s legs. A pair of those hands had her ankles; its pointy black nails dug into her skin tight enough that a few drops of blood trickled onto the girl’s bare feet. The hands were the only solid part of the monster but, as I watched, the thing took shape. I wrapped my arms tight around the girl’s back, clutching her against my chest with all my might. It didn’t seem to make a difference. The creature sniffed at us, chuckling deep in its throat.

Before I could redouble my grip on the girl, it took flight, lifting her as it rose. The kid clutched at my neck but the creature was stronger than me and her hands slipped loose. I had to release her a bit at a time to keep from snapping her like a twig as the bat-birdman’s wings beat and lifted them into the air.

My knife was four feet away. I couldn’t let go to reach it.

And I couldn’t hold on to the girl.

The harder the thing pulled, the more the girl howled in pain. I knew if I didn’t release her, the tug-o-war would kill her. Maybe that would be merciful, but one look at the girl’s face stole any resolve I might’ve had. The little girl went limp, her eyes begging me to let her go. Mike and Johnson called to me from the other side of the building. Too far away to help. I’d have to do what she asked, no matter how much it hurt.

“You fight,” I said, choking on the words. “Fight, and I’ll find you, I promise.”

She blinked slowly, and a tear dripped off her chin onto my face.

Then she was wrenched from my arms. She didn’t scream or reach for me, but her eyes stayed locked on mine until she disappeared into the night sky.

I rolled and grabbed the knife, uncontainable fury raging in my core. Something would die by my hand tonight, no freaking doubt.

One of the creatures let out a warbling cry, then they all took off after the first one. Some of them had other villagers in their arms. Many more flew escort, protecting their prey. I couldn’t even tell which way they went because they rose straight up, then, poof, they were gone. I stood on the roof, still clutching my knife, feeling useless. I wouldn’t get my measure of revenge, not tonight, and my anger dried up. All I had now was guilt. Why couldn’t I have saved her? She was only a little kid. I choked up when I thought about what might happen to her. It wasn’t like I didn’t know there were civilian victims in this war; I’d just never had one slip through my fingers. It sucked something awful.

The knife buzzed lightly in my hand.

We can’t save them all. But we can minimize the casualties by sending the dark brothers home,
the spirit whispered.

Minimize? No, I wouldn’t be happy until it was all over, down to the last monster.

Yes,
she said,
we will avenge them all. You and I, together.

The fog dissipated, leaving behind crying relatives and stunned Green Berets. Will came running around the building. He carried a sobbing preschool-aged boy piggy-back, and held a toddler in his arms, keeping them safe from the fog.

He stared up at the roof. “Matt! Where are you, dude?”

“Up here,” I said, flopping onto my back to stare at the sky. I promised that girl I’d find her. I knew it was a fool’s promise, but that wouldn’t stop me from trying. We hadn’t gotten any leads on Ramirez, either. Wynn was dead, a bunch of villagers were captured, and we’d accomplished exactly nothing.

The anger and frustration rushed me again. Part of it was mine, but some of the wrath belonged to the knife-spirit. We’d come back to this place, maybe with better intel, and we’d clean house on those flying bastards. If I couldn’t save the girl, I’d at least avenge her death a hundred times over, even if it was the last thing I did.

“Oh, man, you had us freaked out,” Will called. “The fog closed all the way around the walls right after we put you on the roof. I thought maybe one of those bird-things got you.”

I rolled onto my side and waved halfheartedly. “They aren’t birds. I’m guessing they’re the Takers.”

Uncle Mike climbed up on the roof and crawled my way. “You okay, Chief?”

I flopped onto my back again. “No.”

“If I’d known how bad this one would get, I would’ve insisted on Brandt instead of you and Cruessan.” He nudged my leg with his foot. “Want to tell me what happened?”

Since it was obvious I hadn’t saved the girl, I said, “They took her. Those things took her and I’m gonna get her back. I don’t care what I have to do, I’m going after her.”

Mike sighed. “We can’t save everybody.”

“Knife said the same thing.” I sat up and glared at him. “And maybe it’s true, but I meant what I said. I’m going to find that girl. It may take a long time, but I’ll find her, and she’ll remember me.”

Even if I had to fight every last monster between here and the edge of the world to do it.

Chapter Nineteen

I
had killer nightmares the next
afternoon while we slept off our failed mission at HQ. One dream, in which a flying snake kept snapping its fangs at my head, got me so riled I fell off of bed. I jolted into consciousness when I hit the cold tile floor and the deep aches in my hip and left elbow told me how I’d landed.

Will grunted in the bunk next to mine, but didn’t wake up. Thinking he had the right idea, I climbed back into bed and tried to go back to sleep, but it was no use. I gave up after thirty minutes of listening to Will snore like a wasted lumberjack. Disgusted, I threw on some BDUs and eased out of our visitors’ bunk room. After stopping by the can down the hall, I went looking for the rest of the team. At my first right turn, Colonel Black’s voice floated from an open door.

“…can’t spare Brandt, Captain. Africa’s too unstable. There’s been four suspicious deaths this week alone.”

“Yes, sir,” Parker said wearily. “It’s a lot of ground to cover, though, and with each day that passes it will be tougher to find the major. Having another wielder on hand would be ideal. Maybe Jorge could be persuaded—”

I stepped into the open doorway of the conference room, finding Colonel Black, Captain Parker and Uncle Mike in the middle of a meeting. “What about me? I could stay. You need me, and I don’t mind dropping out of school for a few months. I could do one of those online tutoring programs.”

“No, Chief,” Uncle Mike said, not even looking up from the papers he was reading. “You’re going home tomorrow. That’s an order.”

“But—”

“No.” Mike met my gaze. “I’ve been up all night thinking we should put you on reservist status until summer. These battles take too much of a toll on you.” His voice broke a little, and he paused before saying, “You’re too young to be facing this much pressure. The things you’ve seen…it’s not right.”

I couldn’t believe we were having this argument again. “I promised that little girl. And Captain Parker’s right; we’d stand a better chance of finding Ramirez if there are two wielders looking.”

“Matt,” Colonel Black said, “as much as I agree with you, we’re skating the edge enough by running you part-time. Your involvement is risky on a number of levels and we’re breaking about a dozen federal laws by having you here. What would happen if you fell prey to one of these monsters? Or went missing? It’d be a disaster for the program, but worse, how would your mother take it?” He put a hand on my shoulder. “How would Mamie take it?”

Mike chimed in, “Or Ella?”

Talk about hitting me where it hurt. Fine, they could play dirty, but I wasn’t giving up. I crossed my arms and stood my ground. I had a responsibility to the team, to Ramirez; didn’t they see that? I’d risked my life plenty of times already—why should this be any different?

“Matt, we’re done here,” Uncle Mike said, his tone indicating I was dismissed.

Parker stared at me over Mike’s head, understanding in his eyes. “You hungry? Mess hall is through the causeway—there are signs pointing the way. Some of the other guys went down there a while ago.”

I gave them a terse nod before stomping out of the room, grumbling the whole way to the mess hall. It wasn’t hard to find; all I had to do was follow the signs and the smell of overcooked food.

Carrying a tray of chili and cornbread, I wandered through a sea of round tables and searched for a familiar face. Most of the other soldiers, guys here on regular deployment, didn’t pay any attention to me. Guess I looked close enough to eighteen that I didn’t stand out. Ironic for a guy who’d just been told he had to go back to school like a good little boy.

“Archer,” a man breathed in my ear.

I jumped about a foot, nearly dropping my tray. My dish of green Jell-O wobbled at the edge before I slid it back with my free hand. “Dang it, Schmitz!”

He laughed. “Still not watching your back well enough. We need to work on improving your Spidey-sense.”

“Yeah, well, I didn’t expect to be jumped in the mess hall, Master Sergeant.” I stalked to a free table. When he looked surprised at my tone, I felt bad for being a jerk. “Sorry, I’m just pissed about the op.”

“Understandable,” Schmitz said, pulling a chair out for me before taking a seat. “Bad missions suck. No two ways about it. I’ve been on Major Tannen’s team for a while now, and if he went missing, I’d be spitting nails. I can’t imagine how Ramirez’s guys feel.”

Visions of the little girl’s tear-streaked face crowded my thoughts. “Yeah.”

Schmitz nodded slowly, like he’d read my mind. “Civilians are worse. Especially kids. To be real honest, I get worked up watching you and Cruessan run around out there. Recruits have to be at least twenty to join the Green Berets, and here you are, barely sixteen.”

“We’re young, sure, but we’ve been trained,” I said. “It’s different when it’s a six-year-old in her nightgown.”

“Not to me,” Schmitz said. His expression was blank, but his eyes were still for once, focused on mine. “Why do you think Johnson and I stick to the two of you like shadows? We asked to be on Major Tannen’s team,
your
team, to help keep you safe.”

“Uncle Mike wants to put me on reserve status.” I broke off a corner of my cornbread and dipped it in my chili, feeling totally useless. “Am I putting people in danger by being here?”

Schmitz snorted. “Kid, we were in danger already. Everyone is, what with monsters roaming the countryside. I’m just glad we have the chance to do something about these…things. Remember that—even when the mission goes tango uniform, think about how bad it’d be if we weren’t there at all.” He chucked me on the shoulder. “Maybe you should remind the major, too.”

Schmitz got up then, leaving me to eat my dinner. He had a point. If I hadn’t stepped up when the knife picked me, monsters would still be killing campers in Montana, or worse, they might’ve moved into town. As I polished off my Jell-O, I came to a conclusion: they needed me, period. Ready to argue, I returned my tray to the dishwashing station and hurried back to the meeting room.

Colonel Black and Uncle Mike were still conferring with Parker, poring over a large map spread out on the table, when I burst into the room without knocking.

“Jorge made five knifes for a reason—five is a powerful magical number, remember?” I said, fists clenched at my sides. “Ramirez is already gone. You put me on reserve status, and you weaken that power even more. Plus, for whatever weird reason, I have a tighter bond with my blade-spirit than the other wielders, and we all know it. Benching me would be like benching Eli Manning before the Super Bowl.”

The colonel let out a bark of shocked laughter. “I think that Super Bowl analogy needs some work, son. Either that, or your ego needs a check. But I get what you’re saying, and I respect it.” He turned to Uncle Mike. “Major, he’s right. We can’t afford to limit his play. With Ramirez missing, we need the other three wielders in the field as much as possible.”

“Limiting play?” Will stood in the doorway in rumpled BDUs, looking gut-punched. “Matt, what are they talking about?”

“I was making a case to cut school to help look for Ramirez,” I said, not taking my eyes off Colonel Black. “But Major Tannen thinks things are too rough and that we should be on reserve status until summer.”