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“This way,” she said.
Despite her bruised ribs and the vest of armor, she moved quickly. They found seven of Kenzo’s people but no sign of Kenzo or the NUMA team.
“Is anyone else here?” Akiko asked.
One of the men shook his head.
“We have to go back,” Akiko said.
For the second time, Kurt grabbed her by the arm. By now, the smoke was beginning to creep down into the garage. Some of the rafters were smoldering. “The floor above us has to be an inferno. Joe will get them out. Trust me.”
She shook loose and turned to the others.
“Tell them to get in the cars,” Kurt said. “We’re going to drive out of here.”
Akiko gave the command in Japanese, then added, “I’ll lower the drawbridge.”
She ran to the wall, pulled one lever to the side and then down.
The drawbridge fell with surprising speed. It banged into place. The bridge beyond was already in flames.
* * *
• • •
JOE AND THE MAN who’d tackled him landed in the sand and separated. They got up simultaneously, forgot about their own fight and focused their attention outward, looking for the Komodo dragons.
Two of the smaller animals were coming at them from one side. A third was holding its ground far beyond, and the fourth, the largest of the group, was lumbering toward them from the other direction.
The animals were agitated and far more aggressive than any Joe had seen before. The fire, smoke and cinders probably had something to do with that.
One of the smaller ones came forward and Joe stood as tall as he could, raising his arms in a sudden motion.
The predator stopped in its tracks, dropping lower to the ground on its oddly bent legs. It moved again and Joe repeated the motion, but the animal seemed less impressed.
“Where’s your gun?” Joe shouted.
The assassin looked at Joe oddly before shoving him to the ground and running for the wall.
Joe leapt to his feet, flung some of the gravel at the dragons and dashed for the pike he’d been using. He quickly grabbed it from the ground, spun and swiped the first animal in the face.
The beast hissed and backed away.
Meanwhile, Joe’s assailant was running for his life. His movement had attracted the attention of the largest dragon in the moat. The ten-foot-long, three-hundred-pound monster moved with surprising speed.
The man sprinted without looking back, leapt into a gap in the wall and scrambled upward. The Komodo dragon rushed up behind him, reared up on its back legs and thrust its head into the gap. It managed to rake its teeth along his shoulder and arm, tearing the man’s shirt off and gouging some of his flesh. It came down with the back of the man’s shirt in its mouth but had missed out on a meal.
The man kept climbing, his bare back displaying a colorful tattoo that covered every inch of skin.
Joe felt a begrudging respect as the man reached the top of the wall and disappeared over it. But he was now alone with four of the most lethal animals in the world.
“I’d like to see them eat,” Joe whispered, recalling his words from an hour ago. “Why do I say these things out loud?”
The animals moved toward him. As Joe saw it, the big one was the problem. The others were small enough to ward off with the long metal spear, but the big one would probably yank it out of his hand and use it as a toothpick once it devoured him.
He tried to outflank it, but it blocked him and forced Joe to back up.
A thunderous crash startled all of them and Joe turned to see a section of the burning pagoda tumble into the moat. A shower of sparks sent the lizards back a few yards.
