White Death (NUMA Files 4)

Ryan smiled over his anger. "You're a difficult man, Mr. Austin."

"I try to be."

The waiter arrived just then with their dinners.

"Well, I won't spoil your evening," Ryan said. "It was fun talking to you, Mr. Austin. I'll give you a call later, Them."

With a jaunty wave, he joined the throngs moving past the restau- rant.

Austin watched Ryan depart and said, "Your friend takes an ex- alted view of himself. I thought the oceans already had a god. Nep- tune or Poseidon, depending on your language of choice."

He expected Therri to defend Ryan, but she laughed instead. "Congratulations, Kurt. It's nice to know that Marcus isn't the only one who has a talent for irritating people."

"It comes naturally to me. You should tell him that the next time you set up an accidental meeting."

She glanced at the Ferris wheel, avoiding his steady gaze, then toyed with her fork before answering. "Was it that transparent?"

"Any more transparent and it would be invisible."

She sighed heavily. "Sorry for the clumsy attempt to deceive you. You didn't deserve it. Marcus wanted to meet you so he could thank you. He was sincere about that. I didn't expect you to get into a spit- ting match. Please accept my apology."

"Only if you'll have a nightcap in the Palace lounge after we take a long walk around the neighborhood." "You drive a hard bargain." Austin gave her a devilish grin. "As your friend Mr. Ryan said, I'm a difficult man."

18

COPENHAGEN SEEMED TO be in the midst of a major cel- ebration, but the bash was only a normal night in one of Eu- rope's liveliest cities. Music issued from dozens of cafes. The parks and squares along an expansive pedestrian mall named Stroget teemed with strollers and street performers. The party atmosphere was fun, but it was hard to carry on a conversation. Austin suggested that they turn down a quiet street lined with closed boutiques and make their way back to the hotel.

The deserted street was dark except for a few shop windows and softly glowing gas lamps. Austin was listening to Therri tell an an- ecdote about Becker, when he noticed movement ahead and saw two figures step out of the shadows into a puddle of yellow light.

Austin knew the Danes to be low-key and extra polite, and Copen- hagen was relatively crime-free. It didn't bother him when the two men took up a stance blocking the sidewalk. Maybe they'd had too much Akavit. He took Therri s arm and prepared to walk around the pair. He reassessed the situation when the men produced long clubs from behind their backs.

Hearing a scraping footfall, Austin glanced over his shoulder. Two more men, also wielding clubs, were approaching from behind. Therri had become aware of the threat without comprehending it and had stopped talking. In what looked like a rehearsed strategy, the men began to encircle them.

Austin looked around for a weapon. Figuring that anything was better than nothing, he grabbed the lid from a row of trash cans. The heavy-duty cover was made of thick, solid aluminum, he was glad to see. He stepped protectively in front of Therri and used the lid like a medieval infantryman's shield to fend off a clanging blow from the nearest attacker. The man brought the club up to strike again, but Austin went from defense to offense and straight-armed the heavy lid into the attacker's face. The man yelped with pain, and his knees buckled. Austin lifted the lid in both hands and brought it down on the man's head, where it made a sound like a gong. His hands hurt at the shock of the impact, but the attacker was even worse off, crum- pling onto the sidewalk in a dark heap.

Another attacker swiftly closed in. Austin jammed the lid in his face, but the attacker anticipated the move, stepping back out of range and clubbing the lid harmlessly aside. Austin was trying to keep the tender left side of his rib from being hit. The assailant sensed a weakness and landed a glancing blow to Austin's head. Austin saw whirling galaxies. At the same time, he heard Therri's scream. One attacker held her while the other pulled her back by the hair to expose her throat. A hard blow to her windpipe could be fatal.

Austin blinked the stars from his eyes and tried to go to her aid. His assailant stepped in front of him and brought his club down as if he were wielding a two-handed broadsword. Austin deflected the blow, but it knocked the lid from his hand, and he lost his balance. Down on one knee, Austin raised his arm to protect his head. He saw wide faces and glittering eyes, clubs raised in the air, and braced him- self for a shower of blows to rain down on his skull. Instead, he heard thuds and grunts and men yelling in two different languages, one in- comprehensible, the other Spanish. The attackers who had encircled him melted away like snowflakes.

He struggled to his feet and saw figures running away from him. Clubs rattled to the pavement. Shadows were moving in every direc- tion, and he was reminded of the scene in the movie Ghost where the shades of the dead take the damned to the underworld. Then the shad- ows disappeared. He and Therri were alone, except for the slumped form of the man he had clouted. The attacker's friends had apparently abandoned him.

'Are you all right?" Austin said, taking Them's arm.

'Yes, I'm fine, but as you can tell, I'm very shaky. What about you:-

He lightly touched the side of his head. "My head feels like raw hamburger and my skull is full of twittering sparrows, but other than that I'm fine. It could have been worse."

"I lnow she said with a shudder. "Thank goodness tho

se men saved us."

"What men? I was a little busy with my imitation oflvanhoe." "They came out of nowhere. I think there were two of them. They went after the others and chased them away."

Austin kicked the battered trash-can lid. "Hell, I thought I scared them off with my head-masher." He brushed the dirt off his ripped and dirty pants. "Damn, this is the first new suit I've bought in years."

Therri couldn't help laughing. "Incredible. You narrowly missed being beaten to death, and you're worried about your suit." She em- braced him in a warm hug.

Therri was holding him tightly. He didn't even complain about the pressure of her body against his knife wound. He was thinking that she smelled very good, when suddenly she stiffened, backed away from him and looked over his shoulder with horror in her eyes.