Hydromancist (Seven Forbidden Arts 4)

Ilano regarded Tim from under his eyebrows. Every one of his words were measured. “If another one does, I’ll interfere again, whether you like it or not.”

Lee opened the door for Tim, and they disappeared through it with Felicity. A short while later, the trio exited onto the front porch and made their way to the buggy. Tim laid Felicity down in the back. He removed his jacket and draped it over her before getting in next to her and pulling her head into his lap.

His voice drifted up to Maya where she crouched in her hiding spot. “Take the wheel.”

“Where to?” Lee asked.

“Home.”

“What about her?” Lee motioned at Felicity.

“We’ll take her home when she wakes up.”

“She all right?”

“She will be. She just needs to eat.”

Lee started the engine and pulled off. Maya didn’t move until the taillights disappeared around the corner. She should stick around to see if she could learn more about Ilano and the arms.

At that moment, the door next to her opened. She sucked in her breath and made herself flat against the wall.

Ilano, Victor, and the third man exited onto the balcony. Ilano had a cigar in his hand. He leaned on the rail and peered down at the garden.

“Are we hanging around?” the third man asked.

“No point. I don’t have to be back until the gala dinner, and I don’t like this house. The security’s not on standard. We fly out to Mozambique tomorrow. Tell Sam to have the jet on standby.”

Maya closed her eyes for a second. If they turned around, she was screwed. She could fight off the three of them, maybe put a bullet in at least two before either managed to draw a gun, but not the whole nine yards in the garden below. Besides, the idea was to get out of here without being noticed. A trickle of perspiration ran between her breasts.

“I’m on it,” the man said.

“Oh, and Eduardo?”

“Yes?” the spiky blond replied.

“Keep an eye on Tim until we go.”

“Yes, chief.”

It was now or never. Maya swung herself over the rail and gripped the ledge. Her legs dangled down into a portion of light, exposing her to anyone who had the hunch to lift his head. She heard footsteps on the balcony, retreating to the house. Two, three pairs. The sound of a door shutting had her blow out a sigh of relief.

Careful not to make noise, she climbed up the gutter pipe and back onto the roof, leaving the same way she’d come. She didn’t stop until she was two blocks from the house. No taxis serviced in this area, so she was stuck a few miles from the village. Everyone who lived here drove a luxury car, most of which came with drivers. There was only one option. She was going to have to make it back on foot.

As she started walking, she checked her smartwatch. The red dot had passed the village and was moving in the direction of Tim’s condo. She thought about Tim in the back of the buggy with the girl lying in his lap. She was damn happy she hadn’t slept with Tim tonight, or she would’ve kicked her own ass right about now, all the way home. Tim had said he wasn’t into sharing. Even if she wasn’t the commitment type, neither was sharing her thing. She was a fool, a fool for caring about Tim’s deceitful bed manners. Who he screwed was none of her business. Darren would’ve laughed his ass off, and he would’ve had reason too. This was exactly the wake-up call she needed.

Perspiration beaded on her body as she jogged into town. It was late, and there were no more taxis around. From here, it wasn’t far to the tree house anyway, and she needed the jog to get what happened tonight with Tim out of her system. She glanced at the watch again, and stopped dead.

No.

Tim was on the move, heading straight for the Tree House Lodge.

Chapter 5

There was no way Maya would make it back in time. Her unit wasn’t hard to break into. If Tim had any notion of going through her things, he’d find her weapons and communication equipment.

Fuck.

She broke into a sprint.

She was still a ten-minute run away from her place when the red dot that was Tim collided with her unit. Damn! He was there, at her house. He was going to demand to know where she’d been. Instead of going through the main gates when she arrived at the lodge, she jumped the pedestrian gate that gave access to the iguana farm and skirted around the garden to the beach. She put her gun and smartwatch in the backpack and left it in a dark spot under a tree close to the dive center. She stripped naked in the run, discarded her clothes at the edge of the water, and ran into the ocean. She knew where the rocks were situated and with the moonlight peering through the clouds, it wasn’t hard to keep from bashing her head or cutting her foot on a sharp stone.