The Peregrine Omnibus, Volume Two by Barry Reese Read Free Book Online

for Pasarin himself, who had taken a profitable company and made it even more so.
    Pasarin glanced away, wanting to see where van der Decken was. The pirate stood a few feet away, with the four zombies. Pasarin had been angry at first, not pleased that the sea captain had not followed his instructions, but upon reflection he was pleased to have the opportunity to kill Max himself.
    Now they all stood on one of the highest peaks in Atlanta, the nighttime sky filled with stars overhead. Dawn was still a couple of hours away, and the wind had a crispness to it that surprised Pasarin, who had always thought of the Deep South as an overly warm place. Winter in Atlanta could definitely pack a punch, he realized.
    The Peregrine was tied to a tree at the edge of the clearing where Pasarin’s men were assembled. His head hung at an uncomfortable-looking angle, dried blood caked on the side of his head.
    Pasarin gestured towards van der Decken. “Bring me his weapons.”
    The cursed seaman came forward holding a large cloth. Inside were the two pistols the Peregrine usually wore, as well as the Knife of Elohim. The presence of the blade was the reason that the captain didn’t touch them directly—though he could wield it without screaming in pain, something about it was unnerving enough to make him take caution. “Here you go. Are you going to kill him with his own weapons?”
    “An interesting idea,” Pasarin admitted. He unrolled the cloth and examined one of the guns. At first, it looked unremarkable; when he opened the gun chamber, he found that it had been modified to hold several hundred mini-shells, each packing enough punch to be the equivalent of an explosive bullet. “Such interesting toys he has. The man must be a genius.”
    “He’s a dangerous one, no doubt,” van der Decken agreed. “Best to kill him quick so you can focus on getting me my crew back.”
    Pasarin sighed and looked the pirate straight in the eyes. “I don’t plan to revive your crew,” he simply stated.
    “You lied to me, then. All these months.”
    Pasarin laughed. “If you want to call it that. You have no choice but to do what I command. If I change my mind later on and need more servants, I might go and get them… but honestly, they’re probably no more useful than you, and that means it wouldn’t be worth my time.”
    Van der Decken shouted so loud that spittle flew from his lips. “You damned stinking dog! If I could, I’d keelhaul you from one end of the ocean to the other!”
    “But you can’t. Such a shame, isn’t it?” Pasarin moved away from the pirate, pleased that van der Decken didn’t even try to strike him. Evidently, the seaman was capable of learning from past mistakes. When he turned back towards the Peregrine, however, he froze in place, his face falling slack. The robes that had bound the hero lay in a clump on the ground, and there was no sign of the vigilante…
    * * *
    The Peregrine had feigned unconsciousness for several moments before making his escape. While Pasarin and van der Decken were exchanging harsh words, Max was calling upon several tricks he had learned during his world tour that had preceded the creation of his Peregrine identity. In the Far East, he’d studied under a master escape artist, one who had taught him how to contort his body in such a way as to escape any bindings imaginable. After taking several deep breaths, pushing his chest out as far as possible and then exhaling completely, the Peregrine managed to slip one arm free, and then another.
    When the ropes had fallen away, the Peregrine had slipped into the woods. The zombies watched him, dark hunger in their eyes, but their primitive intellects didn’t allow them to shout warnings to their masters. They merely stared as the vigilante disappeared into the surrounding shadows.
    The Peregrine couldn’t avoid smiling when Pasarin finally took notice that his prisoner was gone. The look on the man’s face was priceless.
    Max