Excitement swelled in Shay.
For all the talk of the creepy Warlocks, she might be able to snag the artifact without much trouble in the end. Getting a payday would be sweet enough, but being able to do it without breaking a sweat?
That was a big-assed bonus.
Shay chuckled to herself, thinking about Brownstone as their footsteps echoed and mingled in the narrow passageway. Even though the gay bounty hunter insisted he had nothing but respect for her skill, he probably still carried some doubts. Recovering this artifact would prove to him that she had what it took, and then…
Then what? Shay furrowed her brow. It wasn’t like the man was going to eat his words. He’d already said that he trusted in her skills. She gritted her teeth. It was frustrating when she was ready for a fight, but the other person wouldn’t play.
Damn it, Brownstone. Be less frustrating and more openly annoying.
Shay shook it off and focused on the job.
Brownstone walked beside her in silence, step after step. The sound was hypnotic when she focused on it.
It took her a few moments to accept what she was hearing. A strange buzzing that had not been there before. She was sure of it.
In any other place, the slightest background noise would have swallowed the buzzing. Birds tweeting or the slight rustle of the wind would have been more than enough to mask it, but there in the shadows of the tomb with nothing but the eternal silence of death, the quiet sound stood out as if someone were screaming.
Shay’s heart rate kicked up and she froze in place for a moment, slowly turning around, her hand dropping to the holster. Taking a slow, even breath, she pulled her weapon out.
Brownstone had already drawn his pistol. “You heard it too. I’m impressed,” he whispered.
Shay arched an eyebrow, ignoring the comment and peered into the darkness, holding her flashlight arm under her pistol arm to help better steady both. Her beam joined the bounty hunter’s in piercing the darkness.
We’re close to something.
It didn’t take long to find another anomaly. Her beam caught a faint shimmer near the entrance, just past where they’d entered the tunnel. Her partner’s beam caught something that made her let out a hiss.
Brownstone changed his angle toward the floor while Shay illuminated the shimmer. Bloody footsteps marred the floor.
The shimmer vanished, and three men in scarlet robes winked into sight.
“If you leave now, you won’t die. You cannot defeat the Brujos Rojos. Your greed has brought you to your doom.” The figure spoke in a deep voice that echoed in the space.
“Okay, that confirms we found the bad guys,” Shay muttered. A little clarity always made things a lot easier.
Brownstone holstered his pistol. “Yeah, I’d worry a lot more about your own doom there, assholes.”
“What the hell are you doing?” Shay whispered. “Are you planning to talk them into submission?”
Brownstone chuckled. “If only that would work.” The bounty hunter shook his head, even as he kept his gaze locked on the three men. He spoke in a whisper. “I’ve dealt with the Brujos Rojos before. They like to get close. If they can get a good cut on you, their blood magic is fucking vicious.”
“Isn’t that more of a reason to shoot them from very far away?” What is the line between confident and cocky?
“Nope.” He shrugged. “Go ahead and take a shot.”
Shay frowned. The men’s threat had made their identity clear, and even if they were willing to let Shay and her support go, they’d get control of the zombie rod. She wasn’t about to lose her payday and let some asshole Warlocks get a free artifact. She pulled the trigger.
One of them men jerked, and Shay waited for the payoff and a groan, followed by a body drop. She had plenty of confidence in her weapons skills, and it was satisfying to see a bad guy go down.
Except that he didn’t. The struck warlock remained silent as he dropped his robe to the ground and pointed to the new, large wound on his shoulder. Even though his face was contorted in pain, the flesh was already repairing itself.
“Something about soul proximity or some shit.” Brownstone kept his focus on the Warlocks. “Overly complicated crap. All I know is that they are dangerous up close, but they are also weak up close. And if they are out cold, their magic is worthless.”
Brownstone sprang at them suddenly, surprising Shay. The Warlocks recoiled, just as surprised. Their fingernails grew into glistening claws as the charging bounty hunter had already closed the gap.
He slammed a fist into the head of the closest warlock, crashing him into a wall with an echoing thud before he fell to the hard stone that paved the floor of the tunnel. Taking advantage of his momentum, he landed a spinning kick square on the chest of a second warlock. The man smashed headfirst into the tunnel wall opposite the first warlock.
Brownstone grinned. Shay didn’t mind. There’s nothing wrong with enjoying your work. It’s not like she didn’t get satisfaction out of taking a mark down in her old job.
The only remaining warlock was Shay’s bullet sponge.
His wound had already sealed itself.
The bastard offered James a sickening grin. He’d taken the time to cast a spell while his friends were getting the beat-down. A bloody film now covered the warlock’s eyes, and they glowed with a soft crimson light.
His newly-grown claws dripped with a dark liquid.
Shay slammed her pistol into her holster and unsheathed her knife. She didn’t want to let Brownstone show her up, but she didn’t have to be an expert mage to recognize that the warlock was sporting poison-tipped claws. The power of blood magic couldn’t be easily dismissed.
Brownstone stared at the man for a second before shaking his head. “Still not too late to surrender, asshole.”
Apparently, Brownstone was a little less impressed. If he ended up getting his ass wasted, it wouldn’t be her fault. Walking
