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As a helicopter sounded in the distance, all hell broke loose. Gunfire came from the direction of the beach. Lightning tore through the sky, followed by an explosion. The trees on the border of the forest went up in flames.
The aircraft grew bigger until it was hovering right above them. He sheltered Asia’s body from the wind of the blades, pressing her tightly against his chest. As the helicopter touched down, Maya ran up to them, weapons trained at the jungle around her.
The hatch lifted. A slender woman with short, black hair jumped from the back.
“I’m Eve, the team doctor,” she said over the noise of the engine. “Lift her into the back.”
Sean laid Asia gently across two backseats. A doctor’s case stood ready on the floor. Eve got in and kneeled next to Asia. Grabbing a pair of scissors, she cut the dress from Asia’s shoulder.
As he made to get inside, Maya held him back with a hand on his arm. “We need you.”
He jerked free. “She needs me.”
“She’s in good hands. We’re under attack.” Maya looked over her shoulder. “And I’m not referring to normal soldiers.”
Sean stared at the woman he loved. “I’m not leaving her.”
“She’s safe now.” Her voice was hard. “We all feel what you feel, Sean. Some of us have people waiting for us at home.”
He felt for Maya and for Tim, but he belonged at Asia’s side.
“There’s nothing you can do for her,” Eve said as he planted a boot on the step. “It’s a flesh wound. It’s not fatal.”
Lann’s voice cut into the comm system. “They’ve cornered Clelia. Maya, we need you back here.”
Without another glance at Sean, Maya turned and ran back toward the beach.
Torn in two, Sean stood rooted to the spot. He didn’t want to let one of the team members die, but they’d blackmailed him into this situation, and now Asia was paying for it. His woman was bleeding.
“She’s unconscious,” Eve said. “Won’t come to for a while. Go help them. You’ll see her soon enough.”
Fuck! He hated leaving Asia, but Maya had saved his ass.
“Take care of her,” he said with a warning in his voice.
Eve nodded. His heart nearly ripped in his chest when she closed the hatch and the helicopter lifted off. He looked up at the sky, hands fisting.
“We’ve got her,” Bono said into the link. “You better go.”
As Sean followed in Maya’s steps, elements exploded around him. Fireballs shot into the sky while fish and other sea creatures rained on the ground.
“What’s going on?” he asked when he caught up with Maya close to the river.
“Joining the party?” She gave him an approving look. “Godfrey’s hydromancist decided to gatecrash.”
More arts practitioners? After Armelle, he’d had his fill for the day.
They ran until the beach came into sight. Sean stopped in his tracks. Trees were charred and smoke hung heavy in the air. Dead fish littered the sand.
Joss and Lann crouched behind a dune, returning the soldiers’ fire. Juan’s men were at a disadvantage, exposed on the beach, but Joss and Lann were outnumbered.
The Russian operated as a sharpshooter, obviously skilled. Over and over, he aimed through the telescope of his rifle and pulled the trigger with efficient calm. Joss’s manner was the opposite. He shot an automatic rifle randomly into their attackers. Sean took stock of the situation quickly, and then he understood why Josselin was shooting so frantically. Clelia, Joss’s wife, stood on the south side of the beach, protected by a mere wall of flames. The white-hot tongues curling into the air would stop both a man and a bullet. The metal would melt before it could penetrate the firewall. A short distance from her into the sea, a man stood on the water.
Maya rushed to her team members and took shelter behind the dune. “What the fuck is Clelia doing out there alone?”
“We got separated by their fucking bullets,” Joss gritted out.
“She’ll be fine,” Lann said without pausing his shooting. “Focus on the men on the ground.”
When a hand grenade exploded near Clelia, Joss said, “That’s it. I’m done playing fair. Lann, use your art.”
Lann almost looked disappointed. “It’ll be too easy.”
Joss cursed under his breath. “Just do it.”
Lann straightened his black-rimmed glasses and lifted an arm to the sky. A second later, hailstones the size of golf balls pelted the small army on the beach. The men who weren’t knocked down sprinted for the cover of the trees, but the gale force wind that appeared from nowhere had them running in one spot.
The wind blew some of the soldiers to the edge of the water. They weren’t firing their guns any longer, but the bullets weren’t Clelia’s biggest worry. The biggest threat to fire was water. Sean realized the hydromancist’s intention just as a wave lifted from the sea and rolled toward Clelia. Before they had time to blink, the wave crashed, killing the flames around Clelia and knocking her off her feet.
