The Templar's Legacy (Ancient Enemy) Read online

  “I’m not touching her underwear, you perv.” Jen scowled and continued her search.

  Dave treated us to a sly half-grin. “Well, why don’t you send it back here, and I’ll see if I can get some sort of connection with it.”

  “Ewwww. you’re just being gross.”

  “Dave,” I said. “You’re here as muscle, leave the thinking to us. Just lie back and go to sleep.”

  “Yes, my master.” He didn’t move.

  Jen held up Colette’s toothbrush. “It’s not very good, but I think this is the best we are going to do. Dave, give me your bear.”

  “What? No!”

  She rolled her eyes. “I’ll give it back to you, you baby. It’ll give our connection here a boost.”

  “Nope, no way, not gonna happen.”

  I understood how he felt. Like the Caduceus, the animal totems were kind of addictive. It gave me a new sympathy for Gollum.

  “Okay Finn, park the shadow on Dave for a bit and let me use the Caduceus.”

  Dave did move for that one. He scooted back into the back seat. “Hey, that’s not fair!”

  I grinned at Dave. “Don’t worry Dave, without the Caduceus, it can’t force you to eat anyone, and when I pull it off, it’ll only take a little bit of your soul.”

  “Okay, okay. Sheesh.” He handed the red pipestone bear whistle to Jen with a scowl. “You guys suck.”

  “Oooh, I like this.” Jen grinned and wiggled in an interesting way. “It’s all tingly and stuff.”

  “That’s from all the manhood it’s been soaking up from me,” said Dave. “Just think of it as me intimately caressing your warm and supple—”

  “Shut up, blondie.”

  Apparently satisfied that his honor had been upheld, Dave refrained from further comment.

  Jen held the toothbrush in her hand and closed her eyes.

  We watched her intently. I enjoyed the excuse to examine her fine, even features and full lips. She had a sexy little pout of concentration going that I found quite engaging. There wasn’t a blemish on her skin.

  Dave asked, “How’s it going Jen? Getting anything yet?”

  She opened up one eye and glared at Dave with it. “It’d be going better if you’d be quiet.”

  Dave scowled, reached over the seat and grabbed the bag. He muttered to himself. “I still think underwear would be better.” He started removing everything from the bag.

  I was torn between watching Jen or watching Dave, but Jen won out.

  “I got it!” said Dave in triumph. He laughed. Jen, you are going to love this!”

  I looked back at him and couldn’t see what he had pinched between his fingers.

  “What is it?” I asked.

  His face reflected nothing but glee as he brought his hand forward till both Jen and I could finally see that he was holding a short and very curly brown hair—much curlier than the hair on her head.

  “Eeeww, gross, Dave,” said Jen. “I’m not touching that.”

  He waved it under her nose. “Come on Jen, it’s just a hair.”

  Jen backed away. “We don’t even know if it’s hers.”

  “Who else’s would it be?” He shoved the hair at my face. “That’s her hair-color below the belt, isn’t it, Finn?”

  I backed away from it as well. “Um, well, maybe.”

  “Forget it blondie, stuff it up your nose, or eat it if you’re so fond of it, but I’m gonna use the toothbrush.”

  Of course, after another ten minutes of trying get some sort of connection from the toothbrush, Jen scowled back at Dave and put out her hand. “Okay, hand it over, you perv.”

  Dave’s laughter was seriously contagious, but I did my damnedest not crack a smile.

  She glared at me as she took the hair. “You too, penis breath!” I guess my straight face wasn’t very good.

  After an hour of driving, following Jen’s directions, and ignoring my cell phone while trying to find the road that went where Jen’s psychic GPS pointed, we ended up north of town sitting at a wide gravel path leading into the woods off of Horns Hill Road.

  I drove a little bit farther and pulled off onto the berm.

  I looked at my two friends. “Okay boy and girl, this is it.”

  “Right, give me back my bear, Brunhilda.”

  “But, we haven’t found her yet,” she said.

  “If I’m getting out of this car to hunt down a crazy French pastry with a thing for knives and guns, I’m going armed with Bear,” said Dave.

  When I backed Dave, Jen handed the totem over. She sat back in her seat and exhaled. “I feel like the sun just went behind a cloud.”

  I nodded. “Yep, that’s a good way to put it.”

  We crossed over the bit of open field along the side of the road till we hit the woods.

  I’d been thinking about the best way to approach our sneakery. “I think we should stay away from the drive and stick to the woods.”

  Dave eyed the exuberant tangle of underbrush on the edge of the tree line dubiously. “If you say so, boss.”

  “Don’t worry, it’ll clear out when we get in a little way.”

  After about a half hour of fighting our way noisily through the woods, we surrendered and walked back to and along the edge of the long drive. I’d taken lead, followed by Dave and then Jen, who was the least bulletproof of the three of us. I’d only taken a shot to the arm once from a small caliber gun, but Dave had been shot on two separate occasions. The last time it had been Detective Hunter, who’d hit him five times with a considerably larger caliber weapon than Erik’s handgun. I’d been there to help heal him both times, but it still made him a little cocky. Me, I was a bit more scared. I figured a shot to the head and that would be all she wrote. Besides, it hurt like hell, and I didn’t want to have to compel a doctor to remove the bullets without alerting the police again. I still felt bad about doing it the one time.

  “I think you need to learn how to cast invisibility, Finn,” said Dave. “That would make sneaking a whole lot easier. And think of the fun you could have in the girl’s locker room.”

  “You’re such a pig,” muttered Jen.

  I could practically feel Dave’s grin radiating mirth at my back.

  “Dave, there is no way you could do invisibility, you’d have to—”

  “One more step and I’ll blow your head off!”

  I squeaked in fright at the unexpected command barked from only three feet away in the trees, and I nearly fell over trying not to take another step. I saw the rifle pointed at my head and raised my hands halfway into the air.

  Finding Colette

  “Don’t move, blondie!” the man behind the gun barked to Dave without taking his eyes off of me. Hearing him use Jen’s nickname for Dave would have been hilarious if it weren’t for the gun.

  Silence descended, and I focused past the gun to the gunner. He was an unassuming, stocky man dressed like a farm hand in jean overalls. I gathered my strength and pushed. “Um, sorry sir, but there is no need for that, we’re—”

  Blam!

  Pain shot through my leg, which promptly gave out. I hit the ground in agony and saw blood pouring out from my brand new leg hole.

  “On the ground blondie, or you’re next. You too, little girl.”

  Spring!

  I’m working on it Finn. It looks like he grazed your femur, but didn’t sever your femoral artery. I’d suggest you don’t piss him off any more.

  I wish you’d put that idea forward a little earlier.

  How was I supposed to know he could sense your mental mojo?

  I clenched my teeth, tried to relax into the pain, and get it a little bit under control.

  The man, who from my new perspective looked a lot larger and meaner, stepped up to me and pointed the barrel of his gun right at my nose. “Try anything like that again, and I will shoot you in the head. Do you understand me, pretty boy?”

  I nodded as submissively as I knew how. Pretty boy? Trigger-happy and insane—a bad combin
ation.

  “Alright,” I said. “You don’t need to shoot anybody else.” I looked at Dave and Jen, who were both face-down on the ground. Dave’s arm was tucked under his chest, and he was looking at me. It would only take him about thirty seconds to play the pipe and change. Unfortunately, it would only take our farm-boy here about two seconds to pop us all. I shook my head at Dave.

  “None of that!” Farm-boy smacked me hard in the head with the butt of his rifle. Since both my hands were clenched around my wound, I fell over on my side and belatedly tried to protect my head with my arm. I struggled to shake off the pain and the dizziness while Spring yelled at me to stop getting hit.

  A new voice shouted out, “Brian! You idiot! I told you not to hurt him!” I looked down the gravel drive to see Colette trotting around a bend a hundred feet away. She was dressed in a white shirt tied off above her waist and short shorts. Both of these showed off the smooth tan skin of her stomach and legs in a manner that helped distract me from the pain. Some day something would happen to me that would trump my obsession with pretty women’s bodies, but this wasn’t it.

  Without taking his eyes off of us, Brian snapped back at her, “I had to do something, he was trying to coerce me! You wouldn’t believe how strong he is!”

  Colette increased her pace, and her eyes grew bigger. “You shot him?”

  “I told you, he...”

  “Shut up, cochon!” Colette ran up to me and dropped by my side. She grimaced with concern and addressed me in a much gentler voice. “Put your leg down, Finn, let me check it.”

  I shook my head and immediately regretted it. I fell onto my back and put my hand to the side of my head. I quickly discovered that hadn’t been a good idea either. I bit down a yelp and snatched my hand away.

  I tried to focus on Colette’s light touch as she examined my leg. She was incredibly gentle.

  “The bullet, she has gone completely through the leg. Your bleeding has already slowed down.”

  There was only one thing I had to say to Colette, and I couldn’t keep the hurt from my voice. “Why did you stab me?”

  She pursed her lips as she tore off her light cotton summer shirt. It left her wearing nothing but a lacy bra. That helped take my mind off the pain as she wrapped it around my leg. She glanced at me, then continued her impromptu bandaging. “I am sorry, Finn. Brian is an idiot, but he is correct. The power of your coercion is terrible. It took all my strength to break free, and when you grabbed me, I panicked.”

  “But why—”

  Dave interrupted me with his yell. “Damn it Jen, not so tight! That hurts!”

  I looked over to see Jen crouching over Dave. Both his arms were behind his back and secured there with a zip tie.

  Jen snapped at him. “He told me to make sure they were tight or he would shoot you. Would you rather be dead?”

  Dave’s response was cut short by farm-boy Brian. “Okay girly, shut up and lay down next to blondie.”

  Jen glared at him, but did as he said. As soon as she was down, Brian closed the ten feet he’d left between himself and my friends.

  “Leave her alone!” I yelled. I pushed myself up on my elbows.

  Brian didn’t even glance at me, but Colette said, “He will not hurt her. But, we cannot allow her to cause more mischief. Your friends will be tied up, but no more. I promise they will not be hurt.”

  “But why—?” My question was again cut short when I heard the crack of a rifle and simultaneously a large fountain of blood sprang from the back of Brian’s head, and he went down hard. Over me, Colette dove away, but another shot rang out, blood splashed from her chest, and she landed face down in a heap on the ground.

  I screamed, “Colette!” I scrambled on hands and knees to help her while my back itched in anticipation of the next bullet.

  Finn, run away!

  No, I wouldn’t get very far on this leg, and I have to help her.

  She tried to kill you, you idiot!

  She didn’t mean it.

  What!?

  I got to Colette, who was still awake and weakly trying to crawl away. I put my hands over the wound on her chest. “Lie still, Colette!” My panic gave my command power and she stopped moving.

  What about Dave and Jen?

  Oh, shit! I whirled my head around and saw Dave still face down on the ground, trying to inch off the trail, but Jen was nowhere to be seen. No more shots seemed to be forthcoming, so I turned my attention back to Colette’s still, bloody form beneath me. I dove in with my sight to assess the damage. It was a mess.

  The Mad Scientist’s Lair

  Finn! Wake up!

  Spring’s panicked cry woke me from one nightmare and dumped me into another. I sat up with a start, a shout, and a blinding headache. It was difficult to think through the pain, and it took me a moment to see past the monstrous remnants of my dream to the reality around me. It took another moment for what I was seeing to click into place. I was in a metal cage. It was about eight feet square with finger-sized steel bars spaced every few inches. The bottom of the cage was covered in a layer of rank straw. The cage sat in a white room with white tile flooring, stainless steel tables, and whitewashed cinder-block walls. The back side of the cage was part of the room’s wall. The room, which seemed to be some sort of lab, was mercilessly lit by long bare fluorescent lights hung from an acoustic tile ceiling. To my left sat another cage, which contained a large mountain of black fur. It looked like someone had piled a big black carpet in the cage’s far corner.

  That was as far as my inspection got before the horror from my dream squirmed deep within me. The creature, which had been pounding on my bedroom closet door in my dream, was still here, and it was trying to escape from its prison in my mind. I immediately looked to the golden cage buried there. It was unraveling, and pseudopods of darkness were pushing through growing gaps and licking hungrily against my mind. I panicked and pulled on the Caduceus to shore up the disintegrating structure only to find nothing there. My Caduceus was gone. Its familiar and comforting beat was absent, leaving my brain filled with silence.

  Spring! She didn’t answer my call. She wasn’t there. My panic on top of the pain throbbing in my brain made it nearly impossible to think coherently. I looked around, grasping for anything that might help me. There were other, empty, cages around the perimeter of the room and a few plastic bins but nothing that would help me. I threw my own strength into the glowing cage within my mind but my reserves were severely depleted. It would not be long before the cage failed, and I had to deal with Wendigota again. I couldn’t allow that to happen.

  I found Colette lying behind me wearing a long white lab coat. It lay open, exposing the bloody bandages wrapped around her torso. I scrambled to her side, brought up my Sight, and checked her health.

  After a moment, I convinced myself that she was unconscious or asleep, but not dying. I pulled myself back. A weird shock ran through me when I realized she had no other clothes on. Her shaved nakedness demanded my attention, and it made me feel like a complete looser. Sheesh, maybe I needed psychiatric help. I wrapped the loose coat more tightly around her.

  I told Spring,Why would they strip her naked? Those bastards, whoever they are, will pay for this. Then I remembered she wasn’t there. I was so going to kick someone’s ass when I got out of here.

  I sat back and tried to breathe against my anger and the pain in my head. I found myself staring at the mound of carpeting in the other cage again. It opened up brown eyes and looked back at me. My perception lurched, and I was looking at a large mountain gorilla. Its fur was dull and unkempt. It sat passively in the far corner of its cage watching me without any indication of curiosity or interest.

  My grasp on my shadowy prisoner kept slipping. It wouldn’t be long before it broke free. I had to move it somewhere. Somewhere it couldn’t do much damage. I looked back to Colette and discarded that idea. I wouldn’t wish this monster on anybody.

  That left me with one choice, and I had no time to consi
der it. Working against the pain, I focused enough to create a golden shield around the cage and then pulled on the threads of power that comprised the cage. It unraveled and instantly, the shadow within exploded out and ran into my shield. Its cold hunger pierced me, and I almost lost my concentration. With everything I had, I pushed it out of me, into the adjoining cage, and onto the gorilla. I had no time to make sure the shadow attached itself to the orange aura that flared around the great ape before my shield gave out.

  I gasped with relief and exhaustion when the shadow poured over the ape’s aura, eclipsing its glow with oily blackness. I flopped bonelessly against the bars of my cage. The gorilla reacted in the opposite way. It exploded into a fury of sound and motion. It started to throw itself against the bars of the cage and bellowed out howls of rage and fear. The cage shuddered with each impact, and I was sure it would break under the terrible onslaught.

  I struggled against the sticky fingers of exhaustion pulling me down into a black sea. If the gorilla’s cage failed, the consequences would be dire. I kept a tenuous grasp on consciousness long enough to see the bloodied gorilla subside back into the corner. Guilt and remorse added their weight to the exhaustion, and the dark sea swallowed me.

  ***

  A sudden crash and scream brought me awake again. I sat bolt upright and discovered that there was a young man in a white lab coat in the room with us. He cowered on the other side of the room from the gorilla, who pounded the bars of its cage with both hands and howled like the damned. I could see the young man shaking from ten feet away.

  The gorilla stopped howling, seemed to collect itself, and looked down to the pile of fruits and vegetables, which was spilled half in and half out of its cage. It abandoned its anger, sat down, and devoured the food with single-minded concentration. The sight of it eating alerted me to my own raging hunger, which had replaced my headache as the bane of my existence.