“Well, not in Times Square.”
“Yeah, not there.”
Shay chuckled. “Anyway, where is she? We’re on a mission here, not filming a travel show. I need to know her location.”
“Sure thing, Boss Lady.”
“Don’t call me that.”
“Roger. She’s southeast on Avenue Gabriel. She’s almost to the intersection with Rue Boissy d'Anglas.”
“Flying? Zooming? Jumping really high? What?”
“Nothing. She’s just walking kind of fast, but not super fast. You know, like normal speed-walking. Maybe that’s why no one cares.”
Shay snorted. “I care.”
She yanked on the wheel and made a hard right, cutting off another car. Their harsh horn cut through the night, but she ignored the other driver and barreled down the street, occasionally weaving between other vehicles. If she ended up getting a ticket later, her fake identity could deal with it. From what the Professor had told her about the Scepter, traffic shenanigans in defense of a major city would be worth it. Those, and the millions of dollars the Professor was offering.
Her car zoomed around a fountain, and Shay took another hard turn before screeching into a parking spot along the street. She whipped her head to the side just in time to catch a glimpse of a form outlined in blue light turning the corner.
You got sloppy, and I’ve got you.
The tomb raider bolted out of the car and sprinted after her target. She turned the corner. A young woman in a loose summer dress and ankle boots stood on the other side. A cerulean glow surrounded her, thin arcs of twisting energy extending from the glow’s source: a golden rod topped with a hand holding the Earth and a bird. The Scepter of Dagobert.
“I’ve got eyes on the witch,” Shay reported.
“I’ve got you both on the drone feed from three hundred feet up. No reinforcements coming her way from what I can see, and not a lot of people around.”
“Good. Maybe I can stop this from getting too messy.”
The witch spun toward Shay, sweat coating her arms and face. Her eyes glowed a solid azure, and her mouth twitched.
“It’s not working,” the witch spat in French. “I don’t understand.”
“What’s not working?” Shay answered in English, hoping to draw the woman into switching languages.
The witch waved the Scepter, her eyes frantic. “The portals won’t open for me now. I don’t know why.” Her English was French-accented but otherwise perfect.
“You’re glowing,” Shay pointed out. “Not a good sign. I’m not an expert, but maybe you’re using too much power or some shit like that.”
“Too much power?” She narrowed her eyes. “You don’t seem surprised by this. Who are you? Is this your fault? Did they send you to stop me?”
“I’m about as magical as your typical rock in the park.” Shay shrugged. “But, yeah, I’ve been looking for you—not that you’ve made yourself that hard to find with all the bullshit you’ve been doing.”
“I needed to practice.” The witch stepped back, taking Shay in with a sneer. “But you’ve come to take the Scepter from me, haven’t you? You’re lying, aren’t you? You’ve done something, maybe poisoned the magic. Because you’re jealous.”
“I don’t want it, but I know some people are concerned about it.” The tomb raider’s hand inched toward her holster. “Look, I’ve got nothing against you, chick, but I’d prefer you just hand it over. It’s too fucking dangerous for you to run around with. Too fucking dangerous for anyone, from what I hear. Let me take it and hand it off so they can bury it at the bottom of some enchanted lake or pit or under a dragon’s butt.”
“Give up the Scepter of Dagobert?” The witch let out a cutting laugh. “Do you know how long I’ve been mocked? They told me I would never have great power?” She lifted the Scepter. “But I have it now. I found it—something they said was already gone—and I…I…” She shook her head and grimaced. “I will control it. I just need more time. No one will stop me. No one.”
Killing the woman was the obvious solution, but Shay balked at the idea of gunning down someone who didn’t seem to be a complete garbage fire of a human being. James’ influence, perhaps.
Yeah, not the time to get soft.
Shay shook her head. “Just hand it over, and we can all walk away from this without anyone getting hu—”
A blue energy orb shot from the tip of the wand and Shay threw herself to the side. The orb passed over her and slammed into a nearby brick wall, the energy spreading out in several crawling strands.
Sonofabitch! Okay, so much for the nice-girl approach.
Shay whipped out her 9mm and opened fire, but the bullets disappeared in a puff of blue mist as they struck the witch’s body.
The witch didn’t stand and fight. Instead, she rushed across the street.
“Now I wish I would have brought the damned sword. If these French people can ignore a glowing crazy woman, they could have ignored that.”
The tomb raider sprinted after her, narrowly missing being hit by a car zooming down the road. Another car slammed on its brakes to avoid the fleeing witch.
Shay vaulted, rolled over the vehicle, and continued after the witch even as the driver shouted obscenities at her. A quick middle finger was her only response.
Her quarry ducked into a side street.
“Shit. I can’t see her. Tell me you still have eyes on her, Peyton.”
“Yep. She ran down the street about thirty feet in front of you and then broke left.”
“Got it.”
The sound of Shay’s boots striking the asphalt echoed through the narrow alley. She emerged from the alley, her gun still out.
Years of instinct saved the tomb raider when she spotted a bright flash out of the corner of her eye. Throwing herself to the ground, she avoided the bright glowing lances flying across the street.
They didn’t explode as they hit a wall. A loud buzz followed instead, along with a pungent but sweet scent. Irregular patches of different types of wood
