Free Rogue Angel 46: Treasure of Lima by Alex Archer Page A

came over the edge of the outer rail, followed half a second later by a male face. The pirate had long, tangled hair and a tribal tattoo covering one side of his face. As he sensed motion to his left, he turned to look at her and his eyes went wide as he saw her sliding toward him, sword already on its way down.
    Speedy reflexes saved his neck. He yanked his head back just as the sword came whistling past. Even a fraction of an instant later and he would have taken the blade through the back of the neck.
    But Annja hadn’t been aiming for his neck, but rather the hand that held him securely to the side of the ship.
    Down came the blade and the man’s fingers proved no more difficult for its edge than the two ropes before them had. The blade slashed right through them, sheering them off as if they’d been amputated by a professional surgeon. The blade’s downward arc also took it through the rope attached to that final grappling hook. The pirate didn’t even have time to scream before he dropped back over the side and disappeared from Annja’s view.
    She’d done it!
    The gunfire stopped as the patrol boat arced away from the Pride, but she knew they’d be back. They’d gained a few moment’s respite, no more.
    Knowing she could retrieve it in the blink of an eye, Annja released her sword back into the otherwhere. She didn’t want a crew member stumbling on her while she was carrying it, though if one did she would simply claim she’d picked it up from one of the pirates who had gotten too close for comfort. Their attackers were carrying plenty of bladed weapons of their own, so the explanation should stand up to scrutiny.
    From the far side of the boat, she heard cheers and knew that Marcos and Claire, perhaps with the help of the others, must have succeeded in repelling the attempted boarding, as well.
    It suddenly struck Annja as highly ironic that they were being attacked by pirates while on an expedition to recover pirate treasure. She wondered how prevalent piracy was in this part of the world; she was used to hearing news reports about pirates operating off the coast of Africa and Indonesia, not Central America. Leaked to the wrong individuals, news of Dr. Knowles’s expedition could provide quite a fair bit of incentive for piracy on the high seas.
    The more she thought about it, though, the more Annja realized that news of the expedition wasn’t necessary in this case. A ship like the Neptune’s Pride was prize enough on its own, as she’d noted earlier. Getting a few captives was just a bonus.
    The roar of the patrol boat drew closer again and Annja chanced a quick glance over the side, trying to discover just what they were up to this time.
    The gunfire started the minute her head popped up, and she was forced to dive for the deck without really seeing anything.
    So much for that tactic.
    She was going to have to find some other vantage point from which to spy on their activities.
    Annja rose to a crouch, preparing to try to make a run for a door about ten yards from her current position, when the crack of a rifle sounded from close by. Not knowing where the shot had come from or who was doing the firing, Annja threw herself to the deck and hugged the exterior bulkhead while glancing wildly about in an attempt to find the gunman.
    It didn’t take long. Behind her, at the far end of the walkway, one of Claire’s other hired hands, the steely-eyed one named Reyes, was leaning around the jamb of an open bulkhead door, using a rifle to fire upon the approaching patrol boat. He took two more shots in rapid succession and then shouted to her.
    “On the count of three, run for it. I’ll cover you.”
    Annja didn’t know him from a hole in the wall. Dare she trust he was a good enough shot to do what needed to be done?
    “One.”
    She glanced over the side, saw the patrol boat closing in once more. Saw the menacing looks on the faces of the pirates standing boldly in the bow, brandishing their weapons