Legacy of Olympus (In the Gods' Secret Service) (8 page)

“Let us pass.” Her voice deepened to a seductive pitch.

The young man pretended to yawn. “I have Aphrodite’s blood too, sweetie. That shit won’t work on me. Look, I haven’t got all day. I don’t care about the chick, but you’re coming with me.” His “cousin” reached behind him and withdrew a wooden arrow from his strange-looking sack.

Alec stared in morbid fascination before realizing the punk’s intent. “You’re threatening us with that?”

Eleni stepped between them, facing the punk. “Put it away.”

“Weren’t you paying attention, bitch? That voice shit don’t work on me. Now get the hell out of the way.” He shoved Eleni, forcing her to take several wobbly steps before falling to the pavement.

Pulse pounding in his ears, Alec lunged. The punk’s mouth dropped open in surprise as Alec’s shoulder struck his chest. Pain spiraled through Alec’s arm.

He felt the punk’s arrow knocking harmlessly against his back. Ignoring the annoying taps, Alec hooked his leg behind the kid’s in a schoolyard maneuver, then planted his hands on the punk’s chest and shoved, jerking his leg forward at the same time.

The kid grabbed the front of his shirt, and they both tumbled to the asphalt with a series of grunts. Alec heard the arrow clatter to the pavement a few feet away.

The kid landed a hard punch on his solar plexus. Alec panted, then tried to draw a deep breath. Mistake. Nausea bubbled to the surface. Alec lashed out again and struck the side of the kid’s face. They were evenly matched, blow for blow.

They staggered to their feet, fists raised. Alec tasted blood at the corner of his mouth, and his cheek felt swollen. At least he wasn’t the only one hurting. The kid’s face was starting to turn a myriad of shades of blues and purples.

“Alec.”

At the sound of Eleni’s voice, he thrust his head in her direction. “Dammit, Eleni. Go.”

The kid threw another punch toward his head.

Alec ducked. A brief swell of satisfaction filled his chest. Punk got nothing but air. Not bad for an old guy. He swung again, then felt the satisfying crunch of bone as his fist made contact with the kid’s cheek. Pain radiated across his knuckles. The kid’s jaw dropped open, and he clamped a hand over the injured area, swayed for a few seconds, then toppled backward.

Time to end this. Alec snatched the arrow, turned it tip- side-down, then stabbed the end into his “cousin’s” calf, just below his Achilles tendon.

The kid let out a wild cry, and his eyes rolled back in his head.

Still on his haunches, Alec did a slow sweep of the area, his gaze immediately honing in on Eleni standing a few feet away. Her lips had formed an almost perfect oval, while fear and admiration played in quick succession across her face.

He tore his gaze from her and scanned the horizon. Still no one else in sight.

Using the kid’s abdomen to brace himself, Alec leaned forward, close enough to smell the punk’s sour breath. “Stay away from us,
cuz
, if you know what’s best for you.”

The punk nodded rapidly, fear and pain fixed on his face.

Alec shoved himself to his feet, fighting the temptation to use the arrow embedded in the kid’s thigh as leverage.

His pulse slowed as he focused on Eleni, who stared at their attacker. He wanted to pull her into his arms and reassure her that he wasn’t a fighter. Never had been.

But the truth was, putting an end to the punk’s attack had felt great.

He’d kept an eye out for a tail, but so far, so good. However, racecar red with white stripes wasn’t a great color scheme for a vehicle if he was trying to remain inconspicuous.

They’d stopped at a fast-food drive-through. Eleni opted for a salad, which she devoured as he drove, while he chowed down a couple heart attacks in a bun, thinking that fast-food chains had gotten a bum rap in the past few years.

Alec steered toward a parking spot farthest from one of the dozen lampposts. His Mustang would be recognizable, but he had no choice. As eager as he was to check out Stephanos’s story, he had to make a quick stop. He’d left all his paperwork on global warming in his office, never thinking he’d take a day off. He’d grab his files, and get out. Simple, but not foolproof.

“No one should be here at this hour. Most people are at the television studio.” Alec glanced at Eleni in the passenger seat. “Even if someone happens to come by, you could convince them they hadn’t seen anything, couldn’t you?”

“Yes.”

He’d meant it sarcastically, but Eleni obviously hadn’t taken it that way. A chill crept up his back. She really believed she had a special power.

He exited his Mustang and swiftly made his way to the back entrance, swept his News Team Seven I.D. through the scanner, and held his breath. Surely Klingerman wouldn’t have cancelled his access already.

Click. He blew out the breath he’d been holding and entered. The back hallways were always dark, but they seemed even more so now.

What was he doing, sneaking around like a fugitive? He should be working on his report, finishing up his obligations to Klingerman, so he could leave for CNN in a couple weeks.

But once he got his files, he
could
work, between trying to figure out what the hell to do about his current situation.

He walked swiftly to his office, unlocked the door, and quickly located his files in his bottom right hand desk drawer, where they always were. A quick scan through the papers confirmed everything was as he’d left it. Satisfied, he re-locked the door, which made a resounding click. He paused, his gut a cold knot of dread. He got the unshakable feeling he’d never be back again.

Eleni watched Alec disappear into the place where she’d spent nearly a month trying to figure out if Alec had any special abilities. It was only the last day or so that had showed her Alec might have what they needed, and the last hour that had convinced her he did.

But to deliberately provoke Dorian Mallaki...She’d never met him, but his reputation was well known at Amalgamated. She shivered, not knowing if the thought of Mallaki’s reaction or the rapidly cooling night air had caused the tingle of apprehension spiraling along her spine.

Where was Alec? Of all places Mallaki’s men would stake out, this would be at the top of the list. She got out of the car. The air felt damp, as if it might rain. She drew her sweater tighter, trying to stem the sense of unease that had somehow taken hold of her.

Something wasn’t right. She headed for the front door. She could hasten Alec out of there, then go meet Stephanos. By now, Stephanos had to have come up with a plan.

Before she had a chance to get out her day pass, Alec exited, briefcase in hand.

Relief sagged her shoulders. “What took you so long?”

He looked surprised, then checked his cell phone. “I’ve only been gone a few minutes, Eleni.”

It had felt like forever. What would it feel like when he was truly gone from her life? She shoved the distressing thought aside. That was something she’d deal with later. For now, they had to get to Stephanos.

Alec grasped Eleni’s elbow and hurried her toward his car, their rapid footsteps crunching on the gravel. A part of him was flattered she’d missed him. Another, concerned as hell because he, too, sensed something sinister in the air.

His body still thrummed with energy, and he felt like he could take on anyone. Too bad Mallaki wasn’t here. He’d deliver, in spades.

And Stephanos, well, Stephanos had better hope to whatever gods he prayed to that he had a good reason for getting Eleni involved in this.

“Alec?” Eleni placed a hand on his arm, stopping him beneath a lamppost. “Are you all right?” Her anxious gaze scanned his face.

Did he appear as hyped up as he felt?

“I’m fine.” He attempted a reassuring smile, but could tell from her skeptical expression she wasn’t convinced.

A sudden gust of wind whipped Eleni’s silly wig around. It lay lopsided on her head, like a Barbie whose owner had dressed her too hastily.

Without thinking, he shifted the brown mop back into place. He met her wide-eyed gaze, and something in him released, then softened.

“Did I scare you?” Could he blame her if he had? He wasn’t a violent person. How could he explain how right it had felt to put that punk in his place?

He smoothed down the wayward strands of Eleni’s straw-like hair, hating that he might have frightened her.

Her brows furrowed. “I think Stephanos is right about you. You’re the one we’ve been looking for.”

His jaw tightened at hearing Stephanos’s name. She just had to bring him up again.

A light at the opposite end of the parking lot flickered on and off. For some reason that irritated him. Couldn’t the station afford to replace a damn light bulb?

He caught a whiff of ozone, and the tiny hairs on the back of his neck rose and separated. But there was no one in sight.

Eleni glanced behind them, and bit her lower lip. “Alec, something’s wrong. Do you think we should go inside?”

Before he could reply, a man about five-feet tall, plus or minus an inch or two, appeared directly in front of them. He wore a black business suit, bowler hat, and dark sunglasses, bringing to mind Jim Belushi and The Blues Brothers. But he sincerely doubted the man was about to break into song.

Alec took Eleni’s hand, ready to sprint the remaining distance to his car. The man had come out of nowhere.

As he turned, another man, tall and lanky, dressed in the same strange manner as the first, stood in their path. Where had they come from? Had his
cuz
, or Mallaki, alerted them?

The short man distanced himself from his cohort, leaving them nowhere to go except backward.

With a challenging stare, the squat man tipped his hat. “I believe you got a phone call from an associate of mine.”

A chill swept over Alec, followed immediately by a flash of anger so intense, it was difficult not to just lunge at them and take them down. These men had stolen his life, and he wanted it back.

“You could have saved us a lot of trouble by agreeing to meet Master Mallaki.” The thin man advanced. “Now we have to do this the hard way.”

Alec refused to budge. He’d fight, rather than give them the satisfaction of thinking they’d intimidated him. Hell, he welcomed the chance to beat the crap out of these assholes. He’d seen what they’d done at Amalgamated and knew what they had in store for them. He gave Eleni a little push. “Go. Get help.”

She took a stumbling step backward, then opened her mouth.

“Don’t.” The tall man wagged a finger at her. “Master Mallaki mentioned your ability. We know your kind, and you’d do best to keep those pretty lips of yours closed. You never know who might get hurt if we’re forced to do something rash.”

“Eleni, go. Now.” Alec tried to meet her gaze, but she refused to look at him.

“We just want to talk to you, Mr. Androulakis.” The second one circled around behind Eleni.

If she made a run for it, either man could easily catch her.

“The way you talked to Stephanos?” Alec edged closer to Eleni. If she wouldn’t leave, then he’d have no choice but to fight again. Well, bring it on.