The Black Coats(43)
She shot forward like an animal released from a cage, her feet flying underneath her, her coat flapping as she pounded past the pool, gaining on him easily. Raphael was crying, his hysterical sobs rising as she gained speed, until she felt the ground disappear underneath her feet. The chase intoxicated her. Come closer, she thought, I’ve got you. Compared to Sahil, Raphael was practically a snail. The gap between them was closing.
Jagged breaths tore at her rib cage as the pool chairs passed by in a blur. Closer. Her legs were cycling in a fury, no rhythm, just speed, everything in her pushing faster. Raphael was almost at the end of the property now. His shaking hands had just reached out for the latch when Thea snarled in his ear. He turned just a moment too late, and it was all she needed. Her speed propelled them forward into the stone gate. Thea put out her hand and twisted them both sideways, protecting them from the impact of the stone. Using that same momentum, Thea grabbed his collar and spun her body, flinging him backward, her power lifting him off his feet. He flew into the pool with a guttural scream as she roared in return. The water around him turned crimson as the blood from his nose and chest seeped into the pool. Raphael waved his hands once above the surface before he sank underneath the water, his head disappearing in a cloud of red. Thea leaped in after him feetfirst, her body plummeting into the deep end.
After the initial shock of the cold water, she kicked her legs and swam toward him as he flailed below the surface. A small pocketknife in his hand waved around desperately. Thea paused underwater, watching the cruel irony of the situation unfold. Raphael Amadoor, a man who had hurt God knew how many women in his lifetime, now needed one to save his life. His pleading eyes were on her now, his body jerking in fear, his mouth open and swallowing water. She could leave him there, watch him sink ever lower, drowning in the weight of his many sins. But I won’t.
She gestured to the knife and he dropped it without hesitation. He reached for her desperately, and her hand met his own. Thea quickly wrapped her arms around his waist and let them sink down for just a moment, just enough so that her feet touched the bottom of the pool. The second she felt the sea-glass tiles brush her boots, she pushed up with all the remaining strength in her muscled legs.
They surfaced a second later, both greedily sucking air as Thea pulled Raphael over to the side of the pool, her arms wrapped firmly around his limp form. In her blurry peripheral vision, she could see her teammates running to the side of the pool. Thea spun Raphael around to face her. He looked defeated, his skin bloated and pale, his body quivering with exhaustion. “You saved me. You didn’t have to and—”
Thea let her fist fly, the way Nixon had taught her, connecting with Raphael’s jaw. He slumped against her in the water with a moan. Mirabelle reached her first, pulling them both out of the pool. Thea leaned over, her hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath. Casey and Bea struggled to pick Raphael up. “Is everyone okay?” Thea sputtered.
Mirabelle’s face fell. “Not really. He had a knife in his back pocket; we didn’t know. He must have cut his hands free when Bea started working on him. He could have killed her! Thank God Louise saw him move and threw her arms out to protect herself.” She shook her head. “He cut her forearm, but it’s not too deep. She’s not going to die or anything.”
Leave it to Mirabelle, Thea thought, to minimize a stabbing.
They carried a limp Raphael back inside. Louise sat by the door, a towel wrapped around her bloody arm. She shook her head when she saw Thea. “This is my fault. I shouldn’t have lost control.”
“This is no one’s fault,” reassured Thea. “Only his.” Mirabelle slammed him down into another chair, his body limp, defeated. His eyes opened partway, his whole posture sagging when his eyes met Thea’s. She recognized the look; all the fight in him was gone. She knew exactly how that felt; it was the way she had felt before the Black Coats had come along.
Casey glanced up at the clock. “There are maybe twenty-five minutes before his guests start arriving. We needed to be gone ten minutes ago.”
Bea stepped forward, her brown eyes blazing. “I only need three. And he’s going to get a very special gift from me.” She pulled up her hood and kneeled before Raphael, her voice changing to its commanding cadence. She thrust her hands out toward him. “Raphael Amadoor, look at me. Do you trust me?” He nodded. “Then surrender.” This time, without hesitation, he did.
They left wearing the same cleaning uniforms that they had arrived in, leaving behind a house painted with a man’s guilt and that same man sleeping peacefully inside. At the end of his driveway a black sedan lingered. Thea approached the window, which lowered just enough to see Nixon’s dark eyes. “Anything to report?”
Still dripping wet, Thea tilted her head, preparing to give the full details of the near disaster that had just occurred. Then she thought better of it. “Team Banner handled all conflicts. The Balancing is complete.”
Nixon lowered the sunglasses perched on her head over her eyes. “Good. See you girls on Monday.” Then she gave Thea a sly wink just over the tinted glass. “I was never far away. And, Thea—nice sprint.”
A happy flush ran up Thea’s cheeks. “Thanks.”
Team Banner pulled away from the house, Casey quickly putting as much space between them and the Amadoor residence as possible. The team was giddy with delight as the golden Texas sun set in their dusty windshield. Mirabelle cranked up the music and they flew back toward Austin. As Mirabelle began singing along with a country song, Thea turned to Bea in the back seat. “What exactly did you do to Raphael?”