Beyond the Gates of Evermoore

And now here I was.

“Wait! Hold up!”

One of them yelling again. Wasting their breath. I should’ve saved mine, but I couldn’t help it.

“Fuck off!”

I turned left at the next nameless junction. All of these alleyways were the same. A new series of cobblestones spun out before me, jagged and narrow, looking exactly like every other godforsaken alley I’d sprinted through in the last few minutes.

I hated this part of the city for its cleanliness. Its complete lack of anything to hide behind or jump into — a doorway or an alcove. Shit, I’d give anything for a dumpster right now.

Paris was nothing like New York.

“You’re to stay inside the hotel, Ms. Weston. Don’t fuck around. Sit on your hands like a good girl and wait to be contacted.”

Xiomara’s words rang loudly in my ears. It was the ‘good girl’ part that got me, I think. That, plus the fact that I was never any good at sitting on my hands.

Besides, I really wanted a drink.

It wasn’t the first time I disobeyed the Head of the Order. It sure as hell wouldn’t be the last. If Xiomara found out though, the ass-chewing I received wouldn’t be worth a hundred nights of drinking.

Well… maybe a hundred.

Footfalls. Close. Closer than before.

Shit.

Up ahead the alley forked sharply. I let instinct pick my direction just a split-second too late

. The indecision cost me; for a moment I lost my footing, pinwheeling wildly, taking on even more speed as I tried to regain my legs. When I finally did, I risked a quick look back. A quick look was all I could afford.

They were almost on top of me now.

You’ll just have to do it, the little voice in my head said sternly. Don’t even think twice.

It was a dumb move, picking these darker streets. Trying to lose them here, rather than gain the safety of a more public avenue. But damn, it was almost midnight. It was unbelievable how early people went to bed here. Again, nothing like New York.

A hand touched my shoulder. Time was up.

“Gotcha!”

I dropped to the ground, curling myself into a tight ball. The momentum rolled me painfully. I could feel the cobbles stabbing across my back, my elbows slamming hard as I skidded to an ungraceful stop.

My move however, had the desired effect. Asshole number one went sailing over me, his legs completely taken out by my body. I watched as he went cartwheeling into the street, yelling in pain as he locked his arms out to protect himself from eating the pavement.

I was up quickly, and spun around to face my other pursuer. The guy with the greasy ponytail — the one who’d attacked me initially — looked almost surprised to see me. He slowed for a second, probably trying to figure out what happened to his companion, before sprinting directly my way.

Do it.

My arm shot out.

It happened in a flash, the way it always did when I went hard with it. One second I was focusing on my target, and the next I was flat on my ass… and it was all over.

The guy didn’t just fall backwards, he flew. I saw his body bend into a ‘U’, his chest collapsing inward as it took the full brunt of the impact. His ponytail flew forward as the rest of him sailed back, his face contorted into an almost comical expression of fear mixed with complete, unbridled astonishment.

That was my favorite part. I loved that part.

Then he hit the wall, harder than I’d even intended. And to be honest, I’d intended pretty hard.