Blood Trust - Eric van Lustbader [155]
He was in a darkened bedroom. Closing the window behind him, he looked around for Annika, but she was nowhere to be seen. Cursing under his breath, he stepped out into the hallway, looked both ways, then went to his right. He soon found himself in the large kitchen with its line of windows overlooking the garden. Two guards lay sprawled on the floor. Three down. Two were outside with the dogs. That meant one last guard left. He had to find Xhafa and the Syrian before the other two guards grew suspicious and decided to check the interior of the house. He unslung the AK-50.
Moving stealthily, he came upon the vast living room with its prayer rugs, modern task chair, and desk. He soon discovered that the computer was without its hard drive. He saw a connection for a high-speed modem but the modem itself was missing. He turned. Had Xhafa somehow known they were coming? Had he and the Syrian abandoned the house, leaving the guards as bait?
Then he heard the gunshot and he broke into a run.
* * *
THATË, HIS hand around Alli’s arm, was met almost immediately by an Albanian thug who was clearly higher up the crooked ladder than the guards outside.
“A new cherry,” Thatë said. “And a feisty one.”
The thug grinned. “We have a cure for that.” He ogled her openly. “We’ll break her spirit soon enough.” Laughing at her expression, he grabbed at one of her breasts.
Thatë pulled her away before she could receive more of a mauling. “Absolutely not. Now that Edon is gone, Arian wants this one for himself. Where are the special cherries housed?”
“Third floor in the rear.” The Albanian frowned. “But I didn’t hear anything about another special.”
“What d’you mean?”
“We have Edon’s sister up there. She belongs to Xhafa.”
Thatë sighed. “I only do what he tells me. Call him, if you need to.”
“That’s just what I intend to do.”
The Albanian pulled out his cell and Alli jammed her elbow into his kidney. Thatë used the barrel of his handgun on the Albanian’s neck, cracking several vertebrae. The Albanian crumpled to the floor. Thatë nodded at Alli and, together, they raced down the corridor and up the central staircase.
Behind them, the Albanian’s cell activated with an incoming call.
“Ilir, are you there? Ilir, check in.”
* * *
ANNIKA FOUND Xhafa in a small room, perhaps a study, because there were piles of books on the floor. He was sitting in a chair, a Sig Sauer in one hand.
“I knew you’d come,” he said. “Like a dog to its own stink.” He lifted the handgun and pulled the trigger.
Annika, in shadow, was already moving. The bullet whizzed by her ear. Then she kicked out with her right boot, connecting with the point of Xhafa’s chin. The chair tumbled over backward. Reaching out, she plucked the Sig Sauer from him and pulled the chair back onto its feet. Xhafa sat dazed, blood drooling from a corner of his mouth.
“Sure I came back,” she said. “You’re the dog, you’re the stink.”
That’s when the barking of the dogs rang through the house.
Xhafa smiled through his pain. “Bang, bang,” he said. “You’re dead.”
THIRTY-ONE
THEY WERE pounding up the safehouse stairs when Alli felt a breeze on her cheek, cold enough to make her shiver.
“They’re coming.”
It was Emma. Alli fought down a certain terror. Emma spoke to Jack only when he was near death or in dire straits. Was it the same with her?
“Prepare yourself, Alli.”
“Company,” Alli said to Thatë.
—Emma, stay with me.
Two men appeared on the second-floor landing. The moment they saw Alli and Thatë, they opened fire with AK-50s.
“I guess our cover’s blown,” Alli said as she scrambled out of the way.
Thatë opened fire with his assault rifle and the