Skyfire by R.J. Johnson

Author:R.J. Johnson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: fantasy, twelve stones, Wyndham, Martin, urban fantasy, apocalypse
Publisher: Babylon Books
Published: 2022-11-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 19

The plane hurtled through the air above the Pacific Ocean at five hundred knots. After nearly being thrown out of an aircraft, Tate shouldn’t have been able to eat. However, he decided to attack his food (prepared by the gourmet chef in the galley below) with gusto since it was becoming increasingly clear that he may not survive the full length of his employment contact with Kline.

He may as well enjoy the perks while they lasted.

He speared a thick cut of steak that the chef had prepared for him and ate it, satisfaction spreading across his face. The perfectly steamed vegetables sat untouched on his plate.

Javier watched him eat, becoming angrier every second Tate was still alive. He smiled at his subordinate, enjoying the man’s discomfort.

“Do you ever watch Shark Week, Javier?” Tate asked the man sitting across from him.

Javier tilted his head suspiciously. “No.”

“It’s fascinating really. They set aside an entire week for special programming on Discovery to teach everyone all about the wonderful world of sharks. Lovely creatures, sharks. Do you know anything about them?”

“Just what I learned from Jaws,” Javier said, shifting his weight in the leather seat.

Tate chuckled. “Maybe that’s why people like Shark Week so much. They like the idea of being afraid when they go to the beach.”

He took a healthy drink of the wine set out next to him, swallowed, and then continued. “The last thing sharks like is competition in their waters. Did you know that?”

“No,” Javier replied, trying to sound bored.

“In fact, did you know that a shark’s greatest competition are dolphins?”

Javier ignored him and only stared out the window at the bright blue of the Pacific Ocean below them.

“It’s true,” Tate nodded. “Those playful little bastards are extraordinarily lethal towards even the fiercest of sharks. They chase off potential predators who might dare step into their territory by repeatedly slamming their nose into the soft underbelly of the shark.”

“Thanks, Professor,” Javier replied in a dull tone of voice. Tate briefly wondered if the man’s eyes could roll any farther back in his head.

“You don’t understand, do you?” he asked, as he cut another piece of meat on his plate. “Just because something appears friendly one moment, doesn’t mean it won’t slice your throat the very second it thinks you’re the competition.”

Javier looked up to see Tate lunging forward, the steak knife in his hand. It sliced through the younger man’s throat and Javier was unable to do anything but stare in shock as his hand flew to his throat, hoping to stem the blood flooding out of his carotid artery.

Tate leaned back in his seat, wiped the knife off with the napkin, and cut off another piece of steak as he watched Javier die. He chewed the piece of meat as Javier grew pale, slouched forward, and finally collapsed on the tray table that lay between them, blood pooling on the table and seat.

There was a sound from the back and Kline stepped out of his private office holding a satellite phone in his hand.

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