The Lost Continent by Percival Constantine Read Free Book Online Page A

pathetic is what it is.”
    Seth slid the sword into a sheath concealed beneath his overcoat. “You've been a great help today, Mr. Stubby. Trust me when I say that I won't forget this.”
    “Yeah well how about you just don't tell Elisa about all this?” asked Stubby. “I really don't feel like getting my ass kicked again.”
    Seth grinned. “But Mr. Stubby, you do it so well. Good day to you, kind sir.” He offered an extravagant bow before leaving the back office. Stubby grabbed the bottle of gin and poured some of it over the sword wound.
    “Ow! Goddammit...”
    He took a swig from the bottle but then realized he hadn't heard the bell go off at the front of the store yet. Stubby set down the bottle and reached for the Magnum on the desk. Slowly he went to the office door and opened it, peering out into the shop.
    Seth was still there, casually looking around the shop. Stubby, keeping his distance, raised the gun carefully. The pain from the wound only made holding the gun even harder but he had to try and keep steady. He would only have one shot at this while Seth's back was turned. Stubby lined up his shot as perfectly as he could and when he was convinced he had the myth hunter in his crosshairs, he pulled the trigger.
    The Magnum went off like a cannon but Stubby no longer cared about the noise. By the time Seth heard it and reacted, his brains would be decorating the shop.
    A flash of metal, however, quickly crushed Stubby's confidence. Although it all happened in an instant, for Stubby it seemed as if time stopped. Seth drew his sword as he turned, the blade slicing right through the bullet and the two halves harmlessly passed by him.  
    Seth jumped, sailing across the gap between him and Stubby. As he landed, the blade sliced right through Stubby's wrist. The Magnum hit the floor with Stubby's hand still wrapped around it.
    “YOU SONNUVA BI—!”
    Seth elbowed Stubby in the nose. “What did I tell you about language, Mr. Stubby?”
    “My...you just...”
    Seth sighed. “I cut off your hand, yes. Quit being such an infant.” He knelt down and picked it up, pulling the gun free from the fingers and throwing it behind him. Then he offered the hand back to its owner. “Here, would you like it back?”
    “You sick, twisted—”
    “Oh please, you tried to shoot me, it was self-defense,” said Seth. “Now if you don't mind, I have a plane to catch.”
    Seth sheathed his sword once more and went to the exit. He opened the door but before walking out, he gave one final glance back at Stubby. “One more thing, good sir. Do you know what's good for a wound like that?”
    “What?” asked Stubby. Then he remembered the gas cans nearby. Seth struck a match and smiled.
    “Cauterization.”
    “NO!”
    Seth tossed the match at the gas cans and it fell perfectly inside the open cap. They instantly burst into flames. Stubby ran for the office and out the back door just in time to watch his shop completely go up in flames.  
    He was able to make it to the front of the shop, wrapping his vest around the stump of a hand. But by the time he got there, Stubby fell to the ground, passing out from the blood loss.  
    As he drifted into unconsciousness, he only prayed that Elisa had been able to find the tablets by now so hopefully, she wouldn't have to contend with Seth as well as Davalos and the Order.
    Unfortunately for her, Stubby knew the odds were definitely not in her favor. Elisa was going to have a lot of trouble on her hands and he hoped she had someone on her side.  

C HAPTER 8

    Lucas Davalos stood on a street in Mumbai, watching as the police dragged the car from the water beneath the bridge. He removed the cigarillo from his mouth and flicked it into the water, turning away and finding his unfortunate shadow standing on the street corner. Dressed, just as before, in a Hawaiian shirt with an oversized straw hat and large sunglasses.
    “Wade, inconspicuous as always,” said Lucas as he passed by the