“If I don’t kill you, Zenos will.” Fayez, gripping the knife, took one step toward Sam, then caught sight of Remi’s shadow. She slammed her Gorgon flowerpot over his head. The earthenware broke, blue-enameled shards falling to the ground. Momentarily stunned, he turned to her, lifting his knife. Sam grabbed his shoulders, spun him around, pulled him forward, ramming his knee into the man’s stomach, then shoved him into a chair. As he landed, Sam pushed the chair back. Fayez landed hard, slamming his head on the ground. Stunned, he rolled and turned to one side, trying to right himself. Sam drove his boot down against Fayez’s knee, shifting his entire weight. The bone cracked, and Fayez screamed in agony.
Sam looked down at the broken Gorgon pot as he took Remi by the hand, the two racing from the courtyard. “Guess that thing does ward off evil. Your knife throwing, on the other hand, is definitely not your strong suit.”
“At least I hit him this time.” She looked back as they ran down the alley. “Shouldn’t we call the police?”
“From somewhere a lot safer than here.” They stopped at the corner. Sam looked around it, and seeing it was clear, he drew Remi out. They reached the main thoroughfare, thinking there were enough tourists to keep them from standing out. Or so he thought until he saw Zenos at the end of the street.
“To your right,” Sam said to Remi. “Our friend from the ferry.”
She glanced over. “How’d he know we’d come back here?”
Sam nodded at their motorcycle parked on the opposite side of the street. “We left a giant calling card.”
“Tell me you have a plan.”
“I might. Depending. There was this time in Cambodia—”
“You’re telling me a story?”
“Not a story,” he said, pulling Remi quickly across the street and handing her one of the helmets before putting on his own. “It’s my plan.”
“I hate that plan.”
“You don’t even know what it is.”
She shoved on her helmet, then looked back over her shoulder. “Whatever it is, work on it faster. He’s in his car, coming this way.”
She climbed onto the motorcycle behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist. He started the bike. The rear wheel skidded out on the smooth pavers.
Remi craned her neck around. “Sam! He’s catching up.”
Sam drove faster, trying to put distance between them and Zenos. The car gained on them, its reflection filling the rearview mirror. “Hang on,” Sam shouted, then opened the throttle wide.
CHAPTER SIXTY-THREE
Remi held tight to Sam while he navigated around the cars, leaving Zenos stuck behind a line of other vehicles. Within a few short minutes, they were out of the town, passing the airport, heading out into the country. She looked in the rearview mirror and saw the blue car in the distance.
Sam never slowed until they reached the small village of Mitilini. A van pulled out from a side street. Sam braked, steered around the vehicle, then continued down the narrow road, having to slow several more times as cars appeared from both directions. After they passed through the village, he picked up speed, continuing on until they reached a small house sitting by itself on the right. He braked, stopping in front of it, studying the road up ahead, then looking back toward the village. Pulling into the drive, he glanced back at her. “Get off. We’re not going to outrun him. I need to let him catch up to me.”
Reluctantly, she slid off. “What are you talking about?” she asked.
“The Cambodia thing. This road was made for that.” He nodded up the hill. The highway stretched out, then curved right before a bridge.
“Sam—”
“Get down. Here he comes.”
She ducked behind a bush on the side of the house as Sam sped up the hill, then stopped in the middle of the road, waiting. He revved the engine, watching in the rearview mirror. The blue car finally appeared in the distance. It continued on a short way as though the driver expected some sort of trap. Sam took off, speeding up the narrow two-lane road. He disappeared momentarily as the road dipped down, then rose. Once again, he stopped. Looking back at the car, he gave a taunting wave.
It worked. Provoked, Zenos hit the gas, racing after him. Sam sped down the middle of the two lanes, playing cat and mouse, increasing his speed just enough to keep Zenos from catching him, until he neared the curve and the bridge. Remi’s breath caught, her heart thudding in her chest, when she realized Sam was going far too fast. He braked into the turn, his rear tire slipping out from beneath him. The bike went sliding onto the bridge, back end spinning around until Sam was actually stopped, facing the oncoming car. Zenos drove into the turn, tires screeching, back end shuddering. His rear fender scraped against the stone wall leading up to the bridge. Sam started driving toward him. At the last second, he veered the motorcycle to the opposite side of the road and the inside of the curve. Zenos yanked the wheel, trying to hit Sam. The overcorrection sent his vehicle spinning. It hit the wall, flipping up, over, and down the embankment. Sam, steering around him, was wrestling for control of his bike. The back end wobbled. Remi wasn’t sure if he jumped or fell, but suddenly Sam was on the ground. The last thing she remembered was seeing him rolling in one direction, the bike sliding out in the other.
Remi had no idea that she’d actually jumped up and was racing down the street toward him, until a small pickup from the village came up behind her. The driver pulled over. All she could do was point. “Accident,” she finally managed.
“Get in.”
Somehow, she managed to climb into the truck. When they neared the bridge, she saw the motorcycle lying on its side. About a hundred feet farther up, she saw Sam sitting on the side of the road. She threw open the car door and jumped out, running over. “Sam!”
He pulled off his helmet, looking down at his torn shirt and a long burn on his right arm. “Could be worse. You think the bike’s okay? Something tells me I forgot to purchase the extra insurance.”