Page 54 of Circle of Death
Now it’s just the two of us. Like the old days.
Margo takes a slow look around the airfield. “Lamont, look at this wasteland. Do you think it’s a trap?”
I shake my head no. “Think about it. If Tapper wanted to set us up, he didn’t need to fly us all the way to France to do it.”
Then I feel a tremble. A slight vibration in the air.
I squint into the distance, past a line of trees. Just below the clouds, a small speck appears in the sky. My heart starts thumping. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe itisa trap. Maybe Tapper meant to leave us here like two sitting ducks.
“Drone!”
CHAPTER 65
I PULL MARGO by the arm. We start running toward the hangar—the only cover in sight. Margo stumbles. I catch her just in time to keep her from falling. I gauge the distance. No good. The drone is moving too fast. Margo looks over her shoulder. Sees it coming.
“Lamont!”
I look around. Nothing but flat ground. No cover. I take Margo by the shoulders and push her down onto the grass. “Don’t move. Protect your head!” She curls into the fetal position and squeezes her forearms against her temples.
The drone is heading straight for us. I whip my arm around. A fireball blasts out of my palm. The drone swings to the side. Quick and nimble. The flame shoots right past it and flickers out in midair. The drone dips lower. Point-blank range.A wall!We need a wall! I try to shape-shift, but my energy is drained. My body tightens up. I drop to my knees.
“Lamont!” Margo shouts. “Go! Run! Disappear!”
Maybe I could. It’s my simplest skill. But there’s no way I’m leaving my wife. If our time is up, we’re going together.
The drone is only a few yards away now, hovering about six feet off the ground. It feels like it’s taunting us. The rotor blades sound like a hornet hive. I feel around for something to throw. A stick. A rock.Anything!But there’s nothing but dry grass and hard-packed dirt.
The drone starts beeping. Like a bomb counting down.
I wrap myself around Margo and whisper into her ear, “I love you.” I feel her body tighten as she squeezes my hand.
“Joined at the hip,” she says. “Forever.”
The beeping stops.
I look up.
A slot on the underside of the drone slides open.
A small envelope drops out and falls to the ground. It lands just a couple of feet from our faces. Margo turns around and looks up at me. I stretch out to pick up the envelope. I can feel the hard wind from the rotors on the back of my neck.
Margo uncurls herself and gets onto her knees. “What the hell is this?”
I open the envelope and pull out a cream-colored card. Elegant script. All in French. Margo translates.
“It’s an invitation,” she says.
“From?”
Margo points to the bottom of the card. The signature is also in elegant script, but bolder.
Destructeur de Mondes.
“I’ll give you one guess,” says Margo.
There’s a quickthipfrom the drone. Margo crumples back onto the tarmac.No!
Anotherthip. I feel a sharp sting in my neck.
