“Are you ok?” he asked. “Can you walk?”
Grace nodded mutely. Sam helped her to her feet and he retraced his steps back along the corridor, Grace sticking close to him. They found Joshua in the last room, locked but easily dealt with. Unlike Grace, he was neither tied to the chair nor suffering from the same treatment that had been inflicted on her.
Joshua looked surprised to see him but his expression quickly changed to happiness.
“What took you so long?” he asked.
“A few of Jonah’s men got in my way,” Sam replied. “They won’t get in my way again. Why weren’t you tied up? How come they didn’t hurt you like Grace?”
Joshua shrugged. “Beats me. Maybe they were starting with Grace and were going to get to me later. Probably saw her as an easier target.”
Sam nodded. That made sense. But something was niggling away at the back of his head again. “Let’s get out of here. Did either of you two see which way was out when they brought you here?”
“I did,” said Grace. “Outside those glass doors is a set of elevators. They’ll take us back down to the lobby.”
“Good idea,” said Joshua.
“No,” she said. “That won’t work. There will be guards downstairs. There’s no way we’d get past them all.”
“Fair point,” said Joshua. “Besides, when Jonah hasn’t heard from his guards in a few minutes, all hell is going to break loose. Forgive the pun.”
Sam was hardly listening. He was thinking furiously and then, suddenly, he knew what to do.
“Come with me,” he said to the others. “I’ve got a plan.”
The two desk clerks behind the lobby’s reception desk looked up when they heard the elevator chime. Two men and one woman dressed in guard uniforms strolled out. The clerks lost interest and returned their attention back to other matters.
Sam deliberately walked slowly, not willing to draw attention to himself. Joshua and Grace did the same, keeping their heads in the direction of the front doors and ignoring the other people in the lobby.
The doors slid open as they approached. Outside, it was dark. The city had come alive again. There were lots of people on the streets and at least two dozen milling around outside the hotel.
There were two guards still on duty outside. Unfortunately, it was the same two guards that had let them in earlier. Despite their disguises, the guards immediately recognized Sam and his friends.
Sam saw both of them open their mouths to raise the alarm. He stepped in close and punched the first one so hard in the stomach that he dropped to his knees instantly. Sam grabbed the second one and brought him close enough to whisper in his ear.
“Make a sound or any sudden movements and they’ll be the last you ever make,” he hissed, forcing the tip of the iron baton concealed in his jacket pocket into the guard’s side.
The guard gulped nervously and nodded his understanding, sweat starting to bead on his forehead.
“I only want two things from you, and then I’ll let you go,” said Sam quietly. “Do you know what those two things are?”
The guard nodded again. “Your swords?”
“My swords,” Sam agreed. “Where are they?”
“They’re in a storage room off the lobby,” said the guard.
“Good,” said Sam. “Take us there. Grace, Joshua, you stay here.”
Sam held the man by the arm as they re-entered the hotel. The lobby clerks favoured them with some curious stares but Sam waved at them reassuringly. “He’s feeling sick,” he said, indicating the other man. “Just helping him find his medication.”
The guard guided Sam to a small door adjacent to the lobby desk. He fumbled around in his pocket and brought out a key with which, after three attempts, he managed to unlock the door. Inside, the room was just a series of aisles containing racks and shelves, all filled with various confiscated or lost goods.
Sam pulled the door to behind them and the guard led him to a section that was obviously where all the weapons were stored. Sam saw his swords immediately, jutting out of a metal cylinder filled with all manner of long, thin weapons, including Joshua’s baseball bat. Relief flooded through him. His swords were a part of him; he hadn’t felt whole since they had been separated.
Dropping the batons, he tucked his wakizashi into the belt of his borrowed pants, feeling better already, then tried to conceal the katana and the baseball bat underneath his jacket. The end of both weapons poked through below the material of the jacket but it would serve. He only had get through the lobby then they would be clear.
There was a knock on the door. The guard turned away and Sam used the opportunity to touch a nerve point on the man’s neck. Nerve points were always a bit touch and go — certainly not something to be used in combat. You had to strike with precision and pick your spot carefully. Thankfully, it worked. Sam supported his body to avoid any alarming thuds as the guard slumped silently to the floor.
He moved to the door and opened in such a way that the body of the guard was concealed behind Sam’s own bulk. He slid outside and found himself confronted by one of the desk clerks.
“Is everything alright in there?” she asked.
“Fine,” said Sam.
“It’s just that you said something about that guard needing his medication. I know for a fact that he doesn’t keep it in here. He leaves it in his locker.”
“My mistake,” said Sam, trying to push past her, silently cursing his bad luck.
Her eyes narrowed with suspicion. “Where is he, anyway? I’ve seen you around here before, haven’t I?”
Sam decided to take his chances. “Sorry, gotta go.”
He sidestepped around her and she cried out in alarm. “Stop. Stop that man,” she yelled.
He raced through the lobby and out through the main doors, roughly pushing anyone that got in his way. “Let’s go,” he said to Grace and Joshua, handing Josh his baseball bat.
The crowd were looking around in confusion as the woman’s yells carried outside. Sam ignored them. Just in front of them, a car pulled up. Finally, something was going their way, thought Sam, as a well-dressed couple got out of the Bentley.
“We’ll take it from here,” said Sam. “Josh, you drive.” The man started to protest but the cries died in his throat when he saw Sam remove his katana from under his jacket.
Joshua pushed the man aside and tumbled into the driver’s seat. Sam climbed in the passenger’s side while Grace hopped into the rear. “Go!” cried Sam.
Josh sped off, frantically waving people out of the way.
“Do you know where you’re going?” Sam asked.
“Sort of,” confessed Josh. “I think I can get us out of the city.”
Sam nodded. He started to relax. Their getaway seemed to be almost too easy though; he would’ve expected Jonah to be better prepared than this. Then he felt it — the familiar sensation of demons. Jonah had released the demons from whatever confined them to the churches. They were coming.
“Drive faster,” he ordered urgently. “They’re after us.”
“I’m trying,” protested Joshua. He didn’t ask who was after them, probably assuming the worst.
They sped through the city at high speed, Joshua seemingly taking turns at random but Sam realized that they were gradually heading north. They turned a corner, the tyres squealing in protest and found themselves at an intersection. Before them, illuminated by street lights and moving as one great mass, were hundreds of grey bodies. Every direction was blocked by a horde of Lemure. Sam could see the bulky shapes of other, larger demons mixed in with them.
“Back,” he yelled.
Joshua brought the car screaming to a halt and slammed it into reverse. It was no use. More demons were streaming onto the street behind them.
“Keep going,” said Sam. “Straight through them.”
Joshua continued to reverse at high speed, slamming into any Lemure bodies that got in the way. They threw themselves at the car, clawing and scratching at the windows. The rear window shattered. Grace screamed but Josh could see her striking out with her feet at any Lemure who tried to push through the window. Fortunately, the Bentley was an extremely solidly built and heavy machine and the attempts for the Lemure to slow it down were destined for failure.