Flee (The Aurora Lockette Series, Book 1) (17 page)

“Yes, sir.”

“You will all have your usual weapons. For
our new girl,”—he paused and nudged my shoulder playfully—“that
means I want you to have two guns.”

“Yeah, I know. A semi-auto as my primary, a
small revolver as a secondary,” I finished for him.

“And a knife,” he said. “You’ve had enough
training to handle it. Wear it on your torso.”

By the time I went upstairs to finish
packing, it was 1:00 A.M. I crawled into bed, exhausted and
dreading the early alarm I needed to get to the airport in time. I
closed my eyes and tried review the mission information one more
time in my mind. Of course, my brain disobeyed my commands and
returned to the painful image I saw in the magazine.

I gave up and stayed awake until it was time
to leave for the airport.

I slept fitfully the entire way to Seattle,
nodding in and out of consciousness during the long flight. From
Seattle to Orleans I was wide awake.

Konstantin sat next to me in the plane,
Carmen on his other side.

“Welcome back,” he joked. “Feel the
adrenalin? You probably won’t sleep much from here on out.”

“True story. I’m wired.”

“Don’t worry. You’ll be safe. The blockers
from Houston have already checked into the hotel.”

“Thanks. I feel okay about it.” It was true.
I wasn’t afraid. I didn’t feel anything really, just kind of dead
and numb inside. I’m pretty sure that was a bad thing, but I was
okay with it anyway.

By the time we landed in New Orleans, night
had fallen. We drove through the dark streets of the city still
bearing the visible scars of Hurricane Katrina. The highway twisted
by the eerie above ground mausoleums.

“Why are graveyards like that?”

“They’ve tried to bury their dead here
before, but the soil is too swampy and they wouldn’t stay buried.
After a heavy rain, bodies would become unearthed and float down
the streets,” Carmen said.

“Oh, wow.”

The French Quarter wore a different dress
than the rest of the city. The narrow one-way streets were marked
by the courtyard style buildings with their balconies overlooking
the street. As expected, there were plenty of people walking
around, toting their drinks.

The hotel was located on Bourbon Street,
smack in the middle of the action. In another setting, it would
have been the perfect place to stay and live it up. The historic
building had a pretty façade with green iron balconies. The inside
lobby was furnished with cream-colored furniture.

I was sharing a room with Konstantin and
Carmen. I thought it was odd, but said nothing. The room was
connected by a door to a suite on either side. The blockers were
staying in the adjoining suites, creating a mini-wall of protection
around me.

I sank onto one of the soft queen beds. There
used to be a time when I could travel without a posse of blockers
to protect me from a sinister force.

Carmen sat on the other bed in silence, her
red hair forming a curtain around her face. She had her eyes closed
and her chin was dropped to her chest. I learned to leave her alone
when she was doing this. After a few minutes passed by, she opened
her eyes and tilted her head side-to-side, stretching out her
neck.

“Well?” Konstantin asked, walking out of the
restroom. He sat by his wife, rubbing her shoulder.

“They can sense we are here, but they have no
idea where. They won’t be able to get a fix on Aurora while we are
all with her. It’s working.”

There was soft knock on the door. Konstantin
let Dennis in and updated him.

“Excellent.” He walked into the room and
folded his arms across his chest, all business. “The locals are
staying inside their home nearby until they get a signal from us.
Once we give them the all clear, they are going straight to the
airport. Me, Ben, Damien and Karen are two doors down from here, in
another suite like this one.”

He stood near the window, gazing outside,
hands crossed behind his back. “We’ll do surveillance tomorrow to
see if we can pinpoint them. Aurora will stay here with the
blockers. If all goes well, tomorrow night we make our move.

We all nodded solemnly.

“Against my better judgment, I suggest we all
go out for dinner, together.” He gestured to the rooms on either
side with a quick nod.

“Oh, if it’s easier, I can just stay
behind.”

“No. You must go where the blockers go, and
they need to eat too. Plus, you need to get out. How else are you
going to meet your handler?” Dennis asked.

Dinner was in a hole in the wall Cajun place
with live Zydeco music. The mood was cheerful, but still subdued.
We were there on serious business. No one touched a drop of
alcohol.

Hours passed back in the room. It was dark,
the T.V. was off and Carmen and Konstantin were asleep, but I
wasn’t. Sounds floated through the window: music and the occasional
drunken yell or car horn.

I must have drifted off at some point because
the next morning, Carmen shook me awake. She was already dressed.
“We’re getting ready to leave. Get up in case we need you.”

As soon as the door closed behind me I jumped
up and got in the shower, relieved I could at least do that in
private. I glanced at the doors leading to the adjoining suites,
wondering what the blockers were doing.

I dressed quickly and brushed out my hair. It
tumbled down to my waist now. My arms and shoulders were clearly
defined with compact muscle. My eyes were different too. Sad.

I gave up on my reflection and entertained
myself by staring out the window. It was 9:30 in the morning and
some very intense tourists were already walking around with the
famous hand grenade drinks. I entertained myself by imagining what
their individual lives must be like, inventing identities and
dramas in my head. I envied them and their simple, Shyama free
lives.

Keith, the blocker from Houston I had met the
night before, knocked on my door. He was tall and muscular with a
shock of auburn hair. “Hey, I thought you might be hungry.” He
handed me a plastic wrapped sandwich. He plopped himself on my bed
and flipped on the T.V.

“Thanks, Keith. Make yourself at home.”

“Will do.” He smiled, which made me notice he
was damn hot.

We ate in comfortable silence, watching a
stupid comedy on the T.V. I was relaxing and doing nothing, but I
knew he was active as he used his ability to protect me. I let my
mind remain blank, refusing to visit the dark parts today.

Carmen and Konstantin returned late in the
afternoon.

“What’s the latest?” Keith asked as soon as
they walked in.

“We didn’t see them. We need to draw them
closer. Aurora, let’s go. You’re up,” Konstantin said. “You’re just
going to walk around with me and Carmen, like a normal tourist. If
I say go, run. We need to get them down to this neighborhood.”

I grabbed my purse. “Wait,” Konstantin said.
He walked to the bathroom and returned with a gun and a holster for
my pants pocket. “You must always arm yourself when they are close
like this.”

I put the holster in my pocket and tugged my
bulky sweater over it. “Okay. I’m ready.”

We walked out into the breezy bright
afternoon. Tourists were bundled up in jackets, but we were
comfortable in our sweaters. This was almost tropically warm to us
Alaskans. We walked from store to store in the French Quarter. Out
of the corner of my eye, I spotted familiar faces in the crowd. I
saw Dennis once and Damien twice.

We made our way down to Jackson Square. I was
admiring the small artist booths set up on the perimeter, when
Carmen grabbed my arm, stopping me in my tracks. “Go. Now!” She
roughly spun me in the direction of the hotel.

I sped walked, weaving my way through the
packed crowd. I was afraid of drawing too much attention to myself.
Out of nowhere, Damien appeared at my shoulder, winding his arm
through the crook of my elbow.

“Run,” he said in my ear, then loosened his
grip and gave me a gentle push.

I felt the tiniest stab of fear as I jogged
back to the hotel. I glanced at my side and saw I was now trailed
by Karen, as well as Damien. “Faster!” Damien shouted, not
bothering to be discreet.

I broke into a dead sprint to the lobby of
the hotel. Damien appeared at my elbow and guided me to the stairs
as soon as I came through the doors. The four blockers were waiting
outside my hotel room. They opened the door and pulled me in as
soon as I was within grabbing distance.

Damien and Karen came through the door a
second later. Karen whipped out her gun and stationed herself next
to the door. Damien pulled out a large firearm, slammed the
magazine into the bottom of the gun and pulled the slide in one
smooth movement. He stood in front of the four trackers, facing the
hotel door.

I sat very still on the floor where Keith had
shoved me as soon as I came in. Now, the fear was clear, the
cobwebs of numbness wiped out of my brain.

Tension tightened the air. Two taps made us
all jump. “It’s Carmen, let me in.” Karen threw open the door, not
lowering her firearm.

Carmen came in, Konstantin behind her. “They
didn’t see her. Thank God. They’re on this block, but they can’t
tell which hotel we are in.” She was breathless as she spoke, her
fingers tightly wound with Konstantin’s. “That was close.”

Karen pulled a chair up to the door and sat
down. Damien sat too, keeping his firearm in his hand. “How did
they get so damn close without us knowing?”

“I don’t know. They usually don’t go near
crowds like the one in Jackson Square.” Her voice trailed off. “I’m
sorry, Aurora. For a second there, they were closing in on
you.”

“Don’t we want them around here so they’ll
follow us to the river?” I asked, keeping my voice detached and
steady. It frightened me to run away from something without knowing
exactly what it was.

“Yes,” Konstantin answered me. “You did
well.” He turned to Carmen, putting his hand on her face. It was an
intimate gesture that made me look away. “Carmen, what’s going on?
Are you okay? They were really close before you saw them.”

“There’s a distraction at the perimeter of my
thoughts. I can’t put my finger on it.” She placed her hand on top
of his. “I won’t let it happen again. They’ll be here when Aurora
leads them to the river.”

Awkward didn’t even begin to describe the
rest of the afternoon. Afraid to leave me alone, the blockers
stayed in the room. Karen and Damien eventually moved into an
adjoining suite to watch T.V., but they left the shared door open
and their firearms in easy reach.

I reclined on my bed. I tried to ignore the
two blockers sitting at the foot of my bed, but was unsuccessful.
Maybe under different circumstances it would be nice to have two
good-looking, brawny guys in my hotel room.

And boy, did I notice them. Especially Keith.
He was handsome in a generic, all American sort of way. I admired
his bulging biceps from my vantage point. I had been so out of it
yesterday I failed to notice his assets at dinner the night
before.

Carmen shot me a glance out of the corner of
her eye with a small smile. I smiled back. I was glad we could
share the secret without saying a word, though I was embarrassed to
be caught with less than pure thoughts.

We ordered room service for dinner and ate in
silence. The blockers were concentrating and no one wanted to
distract them.

After dinner, I plopped on the bed and stared
at the ceiling. To my surprise, Keith re-seated himself on the bed
right next to me. He briefly pressed the outside of his hand gently
on my cheek.

“You feel a little warm. You okay?” he
asked.

“I’m okay.” There was the tiniest of sparks
with his touch. “I think I’m just a little freaked out by all
this.”

“Okay. Try and get some rest. You’re on next.
I won’t let anything happen to you.” He scooted back down to the
foot of my bed, next to the other blocker.

The hours dragged on. There was no rest, just
the passage of time.

“It’s time,” Konstantin said.

Adrenaline moved through my body, setting
every nerve ending on fire. I glanced at the beside clock; 1:55 in
the early morning.

The room was a flurry of activity. Damien
pulled a large machete out of a protective sheath and examined it
briefly in the lamplight before putting it back.

The blockers left the room and headed to the
river ahead of my arrival. Konstantin handed me the semi-auto and
holster for my pocket. I took the small revolver and placed it in
my special boot holster. I held my shirt up while Carmen deftly
strapped the large knife to my torso. I let it drop when she was
finished.

“Okay. I’m ready.”

She leaned forward and kissed me on the
forehead. “Okay. Be careful. We’ll be close.”

Konstantin gave me a quick hug. “Get moving.
Everyone is in position waiting for you.” He and Carmen slipped out
the door.

I made my way down the stairs, following the
faint red glow of the exit sign. I took a deep breath and then
pushed the door open.

The cool night air felt fresh on my skin,
but the fear was cold in my chest. I began the six-block trek to
the river, my footsteps quiet on the pavement.

Tourists occasionally strolled down the
streets near the hotel, but after a few blocks, I saw no one.

I was alone in the dark night. I passed near
the beignet café, the river front only a block away. I glanced
behind me as I crossed the road.

I saw them.

The reaction in my body was violent. My
subconscious grasped the danger before I had a chance to process
it. My mind went into instinctive red-alert mode.

Just your average guys at first glance.

But they were anything but. Their steps were
jerky and unnatural, as if they didn’t know how to operate the body
they were walking in. As I paused to watch, they moved ten feet
with one step, in a jerky, almost glitchy motion, but with perfect
unison. I’d seen it before, the weird movement and felt the strange
feelings that came with it. I’d seen it in the trees and shadows of
San Antonio.