The Spirit Banner. Alex Archer

scar started beneath his right eye and curled down to the edge of his mouth. Unlike the other soldiers, he was only armed with a handgun, a handgun that was currently pointed absently at the rest of the dig team who were kneeling in a semicircle in front of him. He did not appear to be happy with the cooperation he was getting, but he was clearly distracted, as well, glancing back repeatedly over his shoulder at the trailhead that led to the cenote.

      Annja smiled grimly to see his unease.

      Sorry, buddy, but there won’t be any help from that direction.

      She knew she was going to have to use the gun this time, for the sword would be far too conspicuous and there would be too many questions about it afterward. While it wasn’t her preference, she’d handled guns before and shouldn’t have any problems.

      As the captain began shouting in anger at the captives, Annja checked to see that her weapon was ready to fire and then strode out of the darkness and into the light.

       4

      “Put down the gun!”

      Annja stood just inside the circle of light, the automatic rifle in her hands pointed unerringly at the rebel commander standing in front of her.

      He started in surprise at the sound of her voice and turned in her direction, the gun in his hand coming up slightly toward her.

      Annja didn’t wait to see what he was going to do with it, but stitched a row of bullets across the dirt at his feet.

      “I said put down the gun,” she said, “or I’ll fill you full of holes.”

      It surely wasn’t the first time the captain had had a weapon pointed at him and his sense of machismo wouldn’t let him surrender to a woman that easily, it seemed.

      He didn’t drop the weapon, but neither did he raise it any higher in her direction. Instead, he glanced behind her while trying to stall.

      “You are making a mistake, señorita . A very big mistake.”

      Annja shook her head. “I don’t think so. And you can stop looking over my shoulder. They aren’t coming.”

      “Pardon?”

      “Your troops. They aren’t coming.”

      He scoffed, but after a moment or two more of silence, he frowned. As more time passed and help still didn’t arrive, he began to realize that he was on his own.

      Here it comes, Annja thought.

      The rebel leader had been backed into a corner. He could either surrender to a woman, something his masculine pride objected to strongly, or he could try and fight his way out of his current predicament.

      Annja had little doubt which option he was going to choose.

      When he made his move, she was ready for him. He snapped his arm up toward her as he turned to the side, hoping to present a smaller target for her to shoot at while giving him enough time to kill her and thereby save himself.

      Anticipating just such a move, Annja put two bullets into his upper chest before he could complete his turn.

      An expression of surprise crossed his face and then he fell to the ground, dead on impact.

      Silence covered the scene in its heavy embrace and then her companions were shouting her name and cheering. She dropped her weapon and moved to their sides, untying them and then directing those who were free to do the same for the rest.

      Under Annja’s supervision, the rebels were rounded up by the archaeologists and other camp staff, the hands and feet of those soldiers who were still alive tied securely with the ropes that they’d just taken off their own wrists. They were placed under the lights by the mess tent, where they could be watched until help could arrive. The dead were brought over, as well. Annja caught more than one of her dig mates watching her when they thought she wasn’t looking—after they saw what had been done to the soldiers. Annja didn’t care. She’d done what she’d had to given the circumstances. She’d spared lives when she’d been able to and so her conscience was clear.

      When they were finished, everyone gathered in front of the mess tent, arguing about what they should do next. Annja had just managed to get everyone settled down so they could discuss things rationally when Evans, the cook, pointed back over Annja’s shoulder and shouted, “Look!”

      Annja turned to see multiple sets of headlights coming down the narrow dirt track that served as the only entrance to the camp. They were moving rapidly and it only took a few minutes before they were close enough to see the vehicles were American-made military Humvees painted in green camouflage.

      As the trucks braked to a stop, armed soldiers in blue jumpsuits, black flack vests and helmets poured out and took up defensive positions around the camp while Annja stared openmouthed in surprise.

      A short, muscular man in an officer’s uniform climbed down from the passenger seat of the lead vehicle, looked at the rebel soldiers, all carefully bound and gagged, and then marched over to where Annja stood. He stared at her for a moment, his expression grim, and then said, “Who is in charge, please?” in heavily accented English.

      Annja had no idea who these men were, what they were doing here, or even if they might be allied in some way with the rebels that she’d just defeated. Her hand curled ready to summon her sword, but she didn’t draw it. Not until, at least. Not till she knew who they were or what they wanted.

      Deciding her friends and teammates had had enough for one night, Annja bit the bullet and answered his question. “I am,” she replied.

      His grim expression broke into a toothy smile. “Then my compliments to you, señorita . You and your people have saved me considerable time and energy in tracking down and detaining these dogs.”

      As he explained, the officer in question was Major Enrique Hernandez, of La Policia Mexicana, and he and his squad had been tracking this particular group of rebel soldiers for the past several days. Unfortunately they had lost them a few miles to the south of their present position. Hernandez had been trying to pick up the rebels’ trail again when they had intercepted an emergency radio signal from the camp indicating it was under attack. The major explained that it had probably been just bad luck that the rebels had stumbled onto the excavation site, but their leaders weren’t fools and the chance to add any artifacts that could draw good money on the black market had likely been too good to pass up.

      Surprisingly, Hernandez didn’t ask many questions about what had happened to the rebels or how a few archaeologists and graduate students had managed to overpower six soldiers armed with heavy weaponry. He seemed happy just to have the problem dealt with and in so final a manner. Perhaps he felt he was better off not knowing.

      Either way, Annja wasn’t going to complain. The last thing she wanted was more attention from the law enforcement community, in this country or any other. She’d certainly had her fair share of that lately.

      As the major began ordering his men to secure the weapons and pick up the bodies, Annja excused herself and went looking for a hose. She could stand the stench of the muck she was covered in for only so long.

       5

      “They say that you single-handedly defeated the rebels. Is that true?”

      The voice was male, with a clipped British accent, and decidedly unfamiliar to her.

      Annja used one hand to shield her eyes from the glare of the floodlights and looked toward the speaker.

      The newcomer was tall and good-looking, with dark curly hair and a five-o’clock shadow that somehow made him look more carefully groomed than if he had been simply clean shaven. His white shirt and tan suit had yet to pick up any of the telltale streaks of red dust that quickly covered anyone who had been on location more than a few minutes, which meant that he’d just arrived.

      He stood in a relaxed, easygoing manner, but something about him still set her radar to tingling.

      Ever