Shiva (63 page)

Brandt rolled up, intending to get the hell out of the road
,
when a cry from the crowd warned hi
m. Three bulls, side-by-fucking-
side
,
charged toward him.

Without even bothering to curse, Brandt just ran for it.

* * *

Davidson crept along the game trail, scanning for trip wires. The sniper
’
s perch was nearby
,
and he
would never
leave it unprotected. There. The slightest bend to a leaf and Davidson found the wire. The sniper was good, but Davidson wasn
’
t new to the game.

Lifting one foot over the wire, Davidson felt the sat phone vibrate against his hip. He forgot to take the damned backup battery out. Fumbling for the phone, he nearly stepped on a secondary trip wire. No, not just a secondary, but a third and even a fou
rth. The entire trail was criss
crossed with them.

Shifting his weight, Davidson startled a bird
,
who squawked, fluttering up, barely skimming past his head. If the sniper hadn
’
t heard the sat phone, he definitely heard that. S
o it was no great shock as David
son felt a bullet tear through his sleeve. His only recourse was to throw himself backward
,
past the trip wires
,
then scramble for cover.

Swinging his gun up, Davi
dson let off a few shots
. High up in the tree
,
he got a fleeting glimpse of the sniper jumping from one tree to the next. Davidson would have loved to track him on the ground, except for the honeycomb of trip wires.

Finally
,
he lowered his gun and answered the phone.
“
Not exactly the best timing, Bunny.
”

He didn
’
t even ha
ve time to process her words
.
H
e just secured his gun and set off at a run, in the opposite direction of the sniper. In the direction of the town center.

* * *

“
Brandt!
”
Rebecca screamed as he disappeared around a corner, but Levont pulled her toward the alleyway.
“
No,
”
she protested.

“
We
’
ve got to get to the car,
”
Levont said.
“
It
’
s his only chance.
”

Yes, the car. Lopez. He could outrun a bull. And the car was right there in the alley. Perfect. Levont helped her slide down the wall until her toes touched the roof of the car. She landed there, slid down the windshield
,
onto the hood of the engine,
onto the pavement,
and
then into the backseat. Levont was right on her tail, loading into the passenger
’
s seat.

Lopez didn
’
t even wait for the point man to close the door as he hit the gas, speeding them backward down the alley.

“
Leave you guys alone for five minutes and look what happens,
”
Lopez joked as he slammed on the emergency brake, spinning them into a tight ninety
-
degree turn. He then released the brake and hit the gas, nearly slingshot
t
ing them down the street.

“
So is Talli taking care of Vakasa?
”
Lopez asked.

Levont went to answer
,
but Rebecca overrode him.
“
Something like that.
”

They needed Lopez
’
s attention focused on one thing and one thing only.

Catching up to Brandt.

* * *

Frellan gave a rare smile as the sergeant hurled himself down the street, desperately trying to stay ahead of the bull. Perhaps it was time to put the man out of his misery.
Prove this soldier was no god.

He gave the nod
,
and Ugudo raised his gun, s
et
ting
his sight on Brandt
’
s chest
,
when a loud honking interrupted him. The crowd on the other side of the street dove to get out of the way as a car careened toward them. It broke through the wooden barricade just ahead of Brandt. The sergeant flung himself up onto the hood of the car as it accelerated in front of the bulls.

No,
this could not be happening. God could not be so cruel. Ugudo fired, his shot ric
oc
h
eted off the hood, slicing Brandt
’
s temple. The car swerved as it pulled around the next corner.

“
The car
,
”
Frellan barked to the men standing next to him. They turned and ran down the side street. The doors were already opened by Monnie. Once loaded, Frellan ordered,
“
Go!
”

Everyone gripped their seat as the car leapt forward. Well
,
everyone but
Benedicto
,
who smiled congenially.
“
Spain. Such a rich cultural history.
”

The hardware on Frellan
’
s face jingled as his facial muscles twitched
.
“
You could have warned us.
”

“
And miss the look on your face?
”
Benedicto
responded.
“
I think not.
”

* * *

Brandt clung to the front of the hood as his legs swung back and forth behind him. It wasn
’
t helping his grip to have Lopez squirting down the windshield
,
trying to wash his blood off of it.

But they were good. They had pulled away from the bulls, dodged the Disciples. All they needed to do was get far enough ahead and he could get into the car and they would be on Vanderwalt
’
s six.

Then, through the windshield
,
he saw Lopez
’
s eyes dilate. Anything that caused the corporal
’
s eyes
to
dilate was something
serious
. Brandt risked a glance over his shoulder
,
to find the lone bull standing in the middle of the street, facing them. Apparently
,
he wasn
’
t done with Brandt.

With a pawi
ng motion, the bull prepared to
charge.

L
opez
,
of course
,
didn
’
t s
low. Instead
,
he started honking, angling toward the next barricade. Townspeople leapt for sa
fety as the corporal gunned the car
through the wood. Splinters flew up
,
adding to the debris already lodged in Brandt
’
s hair.

They
had
nearly made the sharp turn when the bull hit their rear end. Brandt was nearly thrown clear as the car swerved to the left
.
T
hen Lopez
course
corrected, pushing Brandt
’
s body back onto the car.

That had been too fucking close.

Lopez accelerated again, putting some serious distance between them and the bulls
that
charged
behind
them
.

Brandt looked up to find Rebecca smiling at him. He grinned in response.
They were home free.

That
’
s about when the other car hit them.

* * *

Rebecca
’
s head hit
the
windshield as the other car slammed into their side. The two cars were locked as they raced down the all
eyway. Metal screeched
as Lopez tried to get them
un
tangled.

“
Gun!
”
Levont shouted as he raised his own, aiming at the other car. Lopez leaned back as Levont fired past him.

Rebecca ignored the gunfire and looked to Brandt
,
whose left hand was slipping
off the hood. He was falling
. And that wasn
’
t the worst of it. A huge dumpster, heaping full
,
blocked their side of the alley.

“
Roll down your window!
”
Lopez yelled.

Rebecca didn
’
t even question the order. Not as Lopez slammed onto the brakes. She hand
-
cranked the window, even as everyone was
tossed
forward. The brakes screaming in protest. Brandt flew up the windshield
,
then onto the
roof
and down the back window. His hand lashed out, catching the rear doorjam.

The two cars separated as Rebecca reached out and grabbed Brandt
’
s hand. Levont leaned over the front seat, helping her haul Brandt inside the car. Lopez cornered around the dumpster, hitting the gas.

“
Now let
’
s see how you like it,
”
Lopez growled as he steered toward the car ahead of them. Only
,
they didn
’
t move forward. In fact
,
they started
tilting
forward.

“
That bull really wants a piece of me,
”
Brandt groaned. Then Rebecca saw what he meant. The bull had used
its
horns to pick up the back of the car. Their wheels spun useless in the air.

“
Four
-
wheel drive!
”
Levont shouted.

Lopez ground
the
gears as bulls surged around them. The smell of burning rubber filled the air. Finally
,
the front wheels
found traction
, grinding into the cobblestone. Brandt used the butt of his gun to break open the back window. He fired
,
but the bull
didn
’
t seem to mind in the least.

* * *

“
Let
it go!
”
Brandt yelled at the beast.

Whether it was his appeal, the multiple gunshots, or the
fact that the
front wheels finally got some purchase,
the bull dropped the car and the
rear wheels hit the ground spinning. The car popped
up
, racing forward amongst the other bulls. One slammed the side of
its
horn into their side, denting the car.

“
I know this is tense and all,
”
Levont said,
“
b
ut oh my gawd
,
this is awesome. Talli does
not
know what he is missing.
”

Unfortunately,
he did not.

“
Take the next right,
”
Brandt urged.

“
I
’
ve got a side of beef in the way,
”
Lopez informed him.

“
Exactly,
”
Brandt answered.

Lopez
’
s hand went to the emergency brake
,
preparing for a hairpin turn. Slamming on the brakes, they turned to the right. The closest bull continued ahead, getting knocked in the hindquarters by a car nearly its own weight. The bull spun out, falling to the ground in
a
tangle of limbs.

The car streaked to the right, ducking into a side alley. The rest of the bulls tried to follow, but the cobblestone was too slick and they ended up in a nice big steak pile.

“
Get us
—
”

Brandt didn
’
t finish his sentence
,
as the Disciples
’
car
had
tagged them in the rear, sending them spinning.