Smythe looked at the carnage strewn across the stone platform. Some of the bodies were missing parts, but he estimated there were about thirty corpses. Judging from the horrific wounds, it appeared Ethel had done the lion's share of the killing. He was unhappy to find that Harbinger was not among the dead.

Smythe sighed and almost pa.s.sed out. Ethel caught him before he could fall over.

"We need to get you to a hospital," she said.

"They took a lot of my blood," he said.

"For what?"

"The nectar..." He looked at the next table and discovered the crystal flask was missing. "s.h.i.t! It's gone! Harbinger claimed there was enough poison to kill a hundred thousand people. This is a disaster!"

"Don't panic," Ethel said. "Who is Harbinger?"

"The leader. Tall and blond with scars on his forehead. A real s.a.d.i.s.t."

"We'll watch for him. Marina, you have to fly Smythe to the nearest hospital."

"But I'll miss the action, ma'am," Marina said.

"You're our only helicopter pilot," Ethel said.

"Please," Smythe said, "don't make her go, ma'am. I'll live. We need all our manpower here in case the enemy comes back with reinforcements."

Ethel raised her eyebrows. "So be it. Can you stand?"

She helped him off the table. His legs were as limp as overcooked spaghetti, but after a moment he could support his own weight. The tingling warmth was spreading, and it seemed to give him extra strength. However, walking would still be difficult.

"I saw something strange today," he said. "A glowing ball of green mist. It wasn't natural."

"A messenger from G.o.d's enemy," she said.

"Harbinger took it as a warning."

"Then he should've fled immediately. Staying here was stupid, and this is the result." Ethel pointed towards the corpses on the ground with a machete. "We have to get moving. Do you want to wait here until we're done?"

"No, ma'am, I'll come with you. I want to stay involved. I'll help any way I can."

"There could be more fighting," she said.

"Just give me a gun. I'm strong enough to pull a trigger."

Aaron gave him a Beretta Px4 Storm. The compact pistol was just right for a man in his weakened condition. It seemed to be Aaron's emergency backup piece.

Smythe chambered a round. "Let's roll."

Chapter Twenty-three.

The ceremonial platform was a quarter-mile away from the central part of the "Farm" where most of the buildings were located. Aaron saw the distant buildings as a cl.u.s.ter of angular shapes in the darkness. He had studied a satellite photo during the helicopter flight, so he knew the general layout. There was a very large farmhouse, big enough for dozens of people. Silos, barns, and sheds surrounded it.

Aaron, Ethel, and Smythe walked together towards the buildings. Smythe moved slowly and leaned on Aaron's shoulder with every step. Aaron admired the man for coming at all because it was obvious he could barely stand. n.o.body would've thought less of Smythe if he had decided to hang back and rest.

Aaron couldn't see Marina, who was scouting ahead. Like him, she wore black and gray camouflage, which made her invisible in the shadows. Her movements were as quick and silent as a ghost. Her job was to make sure the rest of them didn't stumble into an ambush.

An ambush was likely because some of the Eternals were probably still in the area. Aaron tried to look in all directions. The open fields made him feel exposed but also gave the enemy little cover to hide behind. Every few steps he peered through the thermal scope of his sniper rifle.

Ethel's presence soothed his anxiety. She still carried her famous machetes, and her gray robes were soaked with the blood of her enemies. The smile on her face was unpleasant to behold. If there was trouble, she would deal with it.

Watching her work tonight had caused him to feel the usual conflicted emotions. On one hand, her abilities were extraordinary. He was very happy they were on the same team. She was like a true guardian angel. On the other hand, she was also frightening as h.e.l.l. When she fought, G.o.d's wrath flowed through her like a billion amps of rage.

"How do you feel when you kill, ma'am?" Aaron asked in a very quiet voice.

"I'm at peace," she said. "I'm focused."

"You never show any emotion. Do you think about anything?"

"Only about who I'm going to attack next."

"But you move so fast. How can you think at all?"

"The world moves in slow motion for me," she said. "I always have plenty of time to contemplate my choices. Too much."

"What does that mean, ma'am?" he asked.

She looked at him. "Some days I get tired of being the Lord's instrument of vengeance." She turned away. "It's a lonely existence."

"You regret your life?"

"No, but I could use a break from it sometimes."

"Then take a vacation," Aaron said. "Marina and I can hold down the fort. After we're done with this mission, go to Tahiti for a week. Soak up some sun. Relax."

She smiled. "Thanks, but I don't know how to relax. I'll have a long vacation when I'm dead. Besides, I don't think G.o.d wants me to take time off. He has plans for me. For both of us, actually."

He heard a twig snap. He stopped walking and looked around but couldn't see any movement. He used the thermal scope and spotted a rabbit hiding in the brush.

"How do you know what G.o.d wants, ma'am?" Smythe said. "Do you communicate with Him?"

Ethel turned to him. "Not with words," she said, "but I feel His presence sometimes. I can sense His intentions. I can't really explain it."

Smythe furrowed his brow.

The farm buildings loomed large in the night. Plenty of places for bad guys to hide, Aaron thought. This will be difficult.

"How do you want to do this, ma'am?" he said.

"I'm sure the Eternals have a grand plan," Ethel said. "They still intend to kill a huge number of people even with the carnival gone."

"I agree," Aaron said.

"Definitely," Smythe said.

"So," Ethel said, "we have to figure out the grand plan and stop it quickly. Along the way we'll kill as many as we can."

Aaron noticed flickering orange light in the windows of the farmhouse. "d.a.m.n. It's on fire."

"The Eternals are destroying the evidence," she said.

The fire was spreading as he watched. There was no way to stop the wooden structure from burning to the ground.

Marina emerged from the shadows. She had smudged dirt on her face to augment the camouflage covering her entire body. Even from just a few yards away, she was hard to see in the poor light.

"We have a problem, ma'am," she said.

Ethel nodded. "We noticed."

"We still have a few minutes to gather evidence," Smythe said. "I can guide you to Harbinger's office and show you his secret safe."

"You want to run into a burning building?"

"Do we have a choice? Our best leads are going up in smoke."

Ethel reached up and grabbed the air in front of Aaron's neck, as if she were catching a mosquito. A knife appeared in her hand instead. He realized somebody had thrown it, and her supernaturally quick reflexes had saved his life. She ran off in the direction the knife had come from.

"Get the evidence!" she yelled over her shoulder.

"Wow," Smythe said.

"Tell us where to go," Aaron said.

"Second door from the right."

Aaron and Marina supported Smythe on both sides. They ran over to the huge, black farmhouse. Aaron kicked open the door.

The interior was already hazy with smoke. The warm air felt good but also reminded him they didn't have much time.

Smythe directed them up a flight of stairs and down a hallway. They entered a dark office. Aaron tried the light switch and fortunately, it still worked.

Two dozen cardboard boxes were taped shut and stacked beside a steel desk. Apparently, Harbinger had packed up his office.

"We have to get all those boxes outside before the fire reaches this room," Aaron said.

Marina grabbed a box from the top of the stack and heaved it through the window. Panes of gla.s.s shattered. The box fell to the ground outside and landed with a thump.

"I'll deal with the boxes," she said. "You open the safe."

She threw out another box.

Smythe went to a blank, wooden wall and pushed one of the planks. A hidden door popped open, revealing a large safe. "Voila!"

Aaron walked over and examined the safe critically. The door had three, oversized hinges. He felt confident he could dissolve them, but bolts also held the door in place. He doubted he had enough saliva in his mouth for the entire job. There was too much hardened steel to cut and not enough time. Already, the smoke was getting thicker and the air was getting warmer.

He had an idea. The bottom of a safe was usually the weakest part because it was inaccessible. He spat at the floor around the safe, and his saliva quickly burned big holes in the wooden planks. It didn't take long for the weakened floor to sag and splinter under the enormous weight. Suddenly, it gave way. With a great crashing noise, the safe fell through and toppled over on the floor below.

Without hesitation he jumped through the hole. He seemed to be in a bedroom. The safe had crushed a bunk bed.

The bottom of the safe was a single, metal plate held with eight large rivets. He spat at the rivets and they disintegrated in a cloud of yellow smoke. Then, the entire plate fell off, exposing the interior of the safe.

There wasn't time to be picky. He dumped out a footlocker to use it for storage. Then, he transferred the contents of the safe to the footlocker until smoke started making him cough.

"We have to go!" Aaron yelled up.

"We'll jump out the window!" Marina said. "The hallway is on fire! I'll meet you outside!"

He opened the bedroom door, and a wall of flame forced him to close it right away. The wave of intense heat left him bleary eyed. He looked around for another escape but the bedroom had no windows. Maybe it had been built as a storage room. d.a.m.n, he thought. I have to make my own hole.

He launched himself into a flying kick and struck one of the walls. The wood cracked under the blow. It took four more hits before there was a hole big enough to see through. Cold, fresh air was drawn into the room, giving him some relief. Wall studs were in his way, so he used his saliva to weaken them, and then ripped them out with brute strength. Marina widened the hole from the other side by prying it with a knife. Finally, he was able to push the footlocker through.

Flames entered the room just as Aaron was escaping. He took a deep breath of night air. It had never tasted so good.

"Whew!" he said. "That was a little more intense than I prefer."

Smythe was lying on the dirt. He was alive, but clearly, the fall from a second story window had hurt him. He had lacked the strength to land safely.

Many cardboard boxes were scattered across the ground. They had rescued a lot of very valuable evidence, maybe enough to complete this mission. It had been a good night.

Aaron was trying to catch his breath and clear his head when he glimpsed movement in the shadows behind a shed. His sniper rifle was still slung over his back, and he slid it around to firing position. He discovered the thermal scope had fallen off. c.r.a.p. The weapon was nearly useless without sights.

Standing in the open, he suddenly felt very exposed. His only protection was a lightweight Kevlar vest. He didn't even have a combat helmet.

"We need to move," he said.

"I'll get the helicopter and land it here," Marina said. "You and Smythe find some cover. Guard the evidence until I come back."

He wasn't excited about this plan, but he didn't have a better one. "OK."

She ran off.

Aaron looked around for the nearest place to hide. He needed a good, defensive position. His gaze settled on an old barn.

Grunting, he picked up Smythe and slung him over his shoulder. Aaron shuffled over to the barn and deposited Smythe on a pile of hay. He moaned softly.