The Eighth Day (26 page)

His command didn't affect Balin at all. With Miller gone, Balin turned his gun on this new threat, and Riley, who'd started in Evangeline's direction, was forced to turn and dive behind Wylit's sedan chair for shelter. “Get over
the side, Jax!” Riley yelled.

Jax scooped up Miller's walkie-talkie, scrambled to the edge of the summit, and rolled down the incline. The stones bruised and pummeled him as he dropped to the terrace below. Behind him, he heard more shots fired, and his heart thudded with fear for both his friends on the summit.

But a moment later, Riley slid down beside him, unharmed. “Throw your clansmen down the stairs!” Riley shouted at three men who were running up the pyramid steps from below. Jax shivered all over, sensing the magic in Riley's desperate command, although it wasn't aimed at him. The man in the lead turned and bashed the second one in the head with his rifle, knocking him off the stairs. The third man, Angus Balin, put his rifle to his shoulder and fired. Jax flinched as a bullet ricocheted off the rocks above his head. Then the man under Riley's control barreled into Angus, and the two of them disappeared over the edge of the terrace.

Jax turned to look above him, worried about the other Balin shooting at them. The angle of the pyramid sheltered them, but if Balin came down after them . . .

“He won't leave Wylit,” Riley said, guessing Jax's thoughts. “And he's still got Evangeline as hostage. I couldn't reach her.”

Riley looked every bit as stricken as Jax about that. And as if flying bullets weren't bad enough, Jax could hear Wylit's voice above them. The crazy Kin lord was
still trying to cast his spell. “What are we going to do?” Jax asked.

Riley looked around wildly and for a moment didn't seem to have an answer. Then a low chopping sound rose above the sound of shouts and gunfire on the other side of the pyramid, and he went limp with relief. “Reinforcements,” he gasped. “It's about time.”

Over the pyramid, a helicopter appeared. It was as ugly as a flying turkey, an old model that probably dated all the way back to Vietnam. How had Riley gotten a helicopter?

“Where's Miller?” Riley yelled over the noise.

“He went over the other way,” Jax shouted. “Is he really on our side?”

“Of course he is!”

The floodlights on the Pyramid of the Sun went out one at a time, leaving them in darkness. Wylit's men were shooting out the illumination that made them easy targets from the air.

“Miller kicked you,” Jax protested. “He told them to sacrifice Tegan!”

“He kicked me so Balin would think I was down,” Riley said. “He handed Tegan the knife, and put my instructions into her head. They were meant for you, but Balin moved you out of reach.”

“This was all
on purpose
?”

“Would've worked better if the Morgans hadn't been late.” Riley looked up at the helicopter, which was making
another turn around the pyramid. A searchlight swept over them, and Riley held up both hands, signaling
It's me! Don't shoot!

“The Morgans?” Jax repeated. Someone waved a hand in salute before the helicopter banked away.

“Yeah. Congratulate me. I'm engaged.” Riley twisted around to look toward the top of the pyramid. He'd traded himself for the use of Deidre's clan and their weaponry, Jax realized. He'd let Miller beat him up and offer him as a sacrifice so the two of them could get close enough to rescue Jax and Evangeline.

Another series of explosions erupted along the Avenue of the Dead. Jax's head buzzed as intuition combined with magic. “That's the Crandalls, isn't it?”

“And Donovan. He joined up with us to get his daughter back.” Riley grinned briefly at Jax. “They crawled here through tunnels A.J. and I learned about on TV.” Jax nodded his understanding. Tegan had screamed for her father because she knew he was here. “It's only a distraction,” Riley said, “but it keeps them guessing how many people we have—and where.”

Jax squirmed in worry as the helicopter circled again, shooting at the lower levels of the pyramid. “I don't know where Tegan went.”

“She's under the table.” Riley glanced upward again. “It's safest there. The Morgans aren't supposed to fire on the summit unless I okay it. That's part of the deal I
made with them.”

Light streaked across the sky again, longer and farther than before. It snaked across the purple heavens, breaking into branches and widening. A wind rose around them, swirling tiny pebbles. Jax half expected the sky to shatter like glass.

“On the other hand,” Riley muttered, “if Wylit keeps trying to cast this spell, the Morgans aren't going to care about our deal. They'll kill everyone up there to prevent him succeeding.”

“Evangeline has no cover,” Jax said. Unlike Tegan, she couldn't hide beneath a table.

“I know.” Riley twisted around again, peering up at the summit.

“Miller said he'd kill her if we couldn't rescue her.”

“He won't.”

“He said he would,” Jax insisted.

“You don't know him. He
won't
.”

The helicopter scattered reinforcements running up the Avenue of the Dead. Seeing it fly nearer to the other pyramid, Jax grabbed Riley's arm. “They've got M2s on the Moon Pyramid. They'll shoot the copter down!”

Riley cursed and stood upright, waving his arms at the helicopter. They didn't see him.

Jax held up Miller's walkie-talkie.

Riley spared him one incredulous glance, then snatched the radio. “Deidre, this is Riley. They've got anti-aircraft
guns on the Moon Pyramid. Stay out of range. Over!”

Jax cringed. Was Deidre
on
that thing? It was her voice that responded. “You certain? Over.”

“Our man on site confirms it. Over.” Riley glanced at Jax again, and Jax realized he'd been promoted on the field from
you idiot
to
our man
.

Instead of flying away from the Pyramid of the Moon, the helicopter turned directly toward it, bearing down on the summit at full speed. Light erupted from the top of the smaller pyramid as the M2s laying in wait fired back, revealing their position. But the helicopter was on them in seconds, silencing the big guns with their own fire.

Riley stuffed the radio into his back pocket and spoke to Jax. “Quick, go around the side and cut Evangeline loose. Get her under cover before the Morgans lose patience with me.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Create a distraction.” Riley waved him off to the right, then scrambled the opposite way.

Jax eased around the side of the pyramid until he could see the altar on the summit. Evangeline stood out in her white dress against the purple sky. Wylit was still shouting his insane statements, trying to bully the Eighth Day Spell into obeying him. He flinched whenever the light from the helicopters passed over him, but it didn't seem to affect him the way Evangeline's intensely magnified candlelight had done.

“I have foreseen this death from the sky . . .” Wylit's voice carried on the wind that billowed the train of Evangeline's dress. “. . . more sacrifices to feed the power of our will . . .”

Jax caught a glimpse of Balin, gun in hand, and pressed himself into the cobblestones as flat as he could. Gripping his dagger in a hand slick with sweat, Jax gathered his nerve to haul himself up that incline and cut Evangeline free before Balin could react.
Riley would do it
, he told himself.

No sooner had he thought it than Riley
did
do it. He appeared over the crest of the summit and snatched up a fallen gun before ducking behind Wylit's sedan chair. Balin reached under the hotel table and dragged Tegan out. He twisted her arm behind her back and held her between him and Riley.

“Hiding behind a girl?” Riley hollered. “You coward!”

Balin apparently didn't care what Riley thought of him. He forced Tegan forward as a shield and fired over her shoulder. Bits of wood, fabric, and stuffing flew in all directions, while Riley slid onto his back, hunkering down.

Jax crept closer to the summit. Riley had seconds, if that much, and cracks were still spreading across the sky.

“Go to sleep, Tegan!” Riley yelled. Tegan's knees buckled. She pitched forward despite Balin's grip on her arm. Balin tossed her aside with a curse. Riley took the opportunity to pop up and fire at Balin, winging his shoulder. Riley next aimed at Wylit, but the old man ducked behind Evangeline.

“Come out where I can see you, Wylit!” Riley commanded.

Jax could feel the force of Riley's magic from where he stood, but Wylit merely laughed. “You haven't got half the power of your father, boy. If you want to shoot me, put the bullet through
her
!”

Riley cursed and ducked as Balin fired at him again.

Ignoring the gunfire, Wylit ripped the gag from Evangeline's mouth and grabbed her by her braid. “By my will this shall be done. Say it!” When she didn't obey, Wylit slashed her other arm with Excalibur, then held the blade poised over her right eye. “You don't need two eyes to serve your purpose for me. You don't even need one. Say it.
By my will this shall be done
.”

Evangeline pressed her lips together and shook her head.

Jax clambered to his feet and surged upward, holding his dagger out in front of him. “Let her go, Fishface. Or I'll put this through
your
eye!”

Wylit laughed at the sight of Jax. “You dare threaten me, whelp?”

“Let her go,” Jax repeated. He hadn't quite made it to the level surface of the summit, and he struggled to keep his balance on the incline. Pebbles shifted beneath his feet.

Wylit noticed his trouble, and his mouth widened in his ugly smile. “I'll kill her first.”

“Kill me and you have no spell caster,” Evangeline called out.

“I haven't run through all your family members yet,” Wylit hissed. “Your brother was too weak. He died mewling. And you're too stubborn. Perhaps your sister will be the one I need.”

Evangeline gasped. Jax growled, “You monster.”

“My lord!” Balin left the cover of the table, his gaze fixed on Jax. The exchange of gunfire between him and Riley had stopped. Jax caught a glimpse of Riley lying motionless behind the bullet-ridden chair. Either he'd been hit or he was out of ammunition.

Or he was playing possum.

Balin wasn't certain either. He moved cautiously, keeping one eye on Riley while trying to find an angle to shoot Jax without risking Wylit. “My lord,” he said. “Hold very still.”

Balin raised his gun, taking aim just as Miller charged the top of the pyramid, yelling like a berserker and running full tilt into Balin's side. Balin fell with Miller on top of him. Someone's gun went off.

Jax lunged forward and sliced his dagger through the twine binding Evangeline's right hand. She snatched up Riley's blade from the altar and hacked through the binding of her other arm. Then she grabbed Wylit's shoulders with both hands and shoved him.

They tumbled past Jax, over the side of the pyramid.

UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE

HarperCollins Publishers

..................................................................

EVANGELINE AND WYLIT HIT
the stony hill with enough force to send them somersaulting down the incline in a tangle of arms and legs. Jax skidded after them, heedless of the winds still buffeting the pyramid. Wylit's headdress flew off, and he landed on his back on the fifth-level terrace. Evangeline's body struck him first before rolling off and coming to a stop inches from the edge.

Jax fell to his knees beside her. Her forehead was gashed, and her limbs were limp. “Evangeline!” He knew it wasn't good to move someone with a head injury, but that didn't apply to people fleeing homicidal maniacs, right? He slipped an arm under her shoulders and tried to lift her up.

Then her whole body jerked. She sat up, looking around wildly. “Where—?” Evangeline recoiled when she saw Wylit lying beside her.

Jax hadn't given the old man a glance in his rush to
reach Evangeline, but now he sucked in his breath when he saw what had happened. Somewhere in her tumble down the hill, Evangeline had lost her grip on Riley's honor blade—and it ended up in Wylit's chest.

To Jax's astonishment, Evangeline reached out and grabbed the dagger as if Wylit were trying to steal it from her. It didn't come easily; she had to tug twice before she managed to pull it out of his body.

“You two all right?”

Jax looked up to see Riley limping down from the summit. He was bloodied, but his injuries looked more like grazes from flying debris than bullet holes. As he descended, he slammed a new magazine into the grip of his pistol with the palm of his hand. “Get back,” he said grimly, extending his arm and taking aim.

But it wasn't necessary. Wylit stared sightlessly at the sky, the blue of his eyes already dimmed. Riley lowered the gun, his shoulders sagging in relief as he realized he wasn't going to have to make his first kill after all. Jax sucked in a lungful of air and looked up, only to discover that the heavens still seemed seconds away from shattering into a thousand pieces. “Evangeline,” he whispered in horror.

“I see it.” She wiped the Pendragon dagger clean on the train of her dress and then turned it around and offered it to Riley hilt first. “Thank you for the use of your blade.”

Riley didn't take it. “You can hang on to it if you like. I want
this
one.” He bent and picked up Excalibur.

Evangeline watched him examine the ancient relic. “Wylit didn't complete his spell,” she said, “but it's activated.”

“I know.” Riley gave her a sideways glance and said in a low voice, “Spell casting's not my thing. I don't know how to fix this.”

A figure appeared at the edge of the summit. Riley whipped around, Excalibur in one hand, the pistol in his other, and Jax stood in front of Evangeline, shielding her.