Elemental Assassin 03 - Venom

same troubling thoughts that I’d had on the drive up here. But there was one more thing that we both had to think about before we made our decision.
    “And what would Fletcher do if he were here?” I asked. “What would the old man say?”
    Finn stared up at the mountain a few more seconds, before turning to face me. “He’d say that we made a promise to Roslyn, and that you can never go back on your word.” A smile tightened Finn’s face. “And he’d grouse that it’s about damn time somebody gave Elliot Slater exactly what he deserved.”
    “Exactly,” I replied. “I gave Xavier my word. More importantly, I gave it to Roslyn too. Even if she might not be alive to appreciate it.”
    “I know.” Finn reached over and squeezed my hand. “But I’ll be with you, every step of the way. I love you, Gin.”
    “I love you too.” I squeezed back. “Now let’s go kill the bastard.”
    I climbed into the backseat of my Benz, peeled off the clothes that I’d been wearing at the Pork Pit, and pulled a fresh set out of the duffel bag that Sophia Deveraux had handed me. Thick, black cargo pants, a long-sleeved black turtleneck, a tight-fitting black vest with numerous pockets, boots, socks. I gathered my dark brown hair into a ponytail, then pulled a black watchman’s cap over my head as low as I could and still have a clear field of vision. In the front seat, Finn donned a similar set of black clothes.
    Once I was properly attired for the evening’s activities, I took a small tin of black grease out of the bag and smeared it all over my face. Wouldn’t do much good to dress in black from head to toe and have my pale faceshining like a beacon in the night. When I finished, I passed the tin over to Finn. He wrinkled his nose but dipped his fingers into the grease and darkened his own face.
    I got out of the car and shouldered the duffel bag with its remaining contents, including Finn’s maps, my flashlight, and Owen Grayson’s two long swords. I also slid a pair of night-vision goggles on over my head. A moment later, Finn did the same, bringing his own bag and goggles with him. Our heavy boots crunched on the gravel of the gas station’s parking lot. Under my feet, the sharp stones whispered of the roll of tires over them, the
chug-chug-chug
s of the gas pumps, the chime of the bell over the door of the station. Normal sounds. Nothing to be worried about—so far.
    Finn and I left the parking lot behind and slipped into the woods on the far side of the station. It didn’t take us long to find the dried-up creek bed, and we stepped down into the shallow rut and started working our way up the mountainside. By walking up the creek bed, all we had to worry about stepping on were loose stones, and the lack of trees and branches in our path let the two of us move quickly and quietly at the same time. We didn’t speak as we walked, saving our breath for the terrain.
    We’d only been hiking about twenty minutes when Finn put his foot down on something that snapped with a loud
crack.
We both froze. The sound reverberated through the immediate area before the wind whipped it down the mountain. Finn and I dropped to the ground, waiting, but no one came to investigate the noise.
    When I was sure we hadn’t attracted any unwanted attention,I shone my flashlight on the ground underneath Finn’s boot. To my surprise, Finn had stepped on what looked like a long, brittle femur bone, snapping it in half. Definitely a human bone, probably belonging to a giant, from the length of it. Looked like Fletcher Lane had been right about the mountain being a dumping ground for the bodies of Elliot Slater and Mab Monroe’s enemies.
    Finn raised his eyebrows. He knew a bone when he saw it too. I shrugged. Nothing we could do for whomever it had been attached to, so we moved on.
    The air grew colder, sharper, the higher we climbed, burning my lungs like liquid fire. I kept my mouth closed and breathed in only through my nose, trying to minimize the sensation. The metallic scent of snow gusted on the night breeze, and heavy clouds clung low to the ground, partially obscuring the moon and stars, before being pushed on by the wind. I wanted all the cover I could get, and for once, luck, that cruel, capricious bitch, seemed to be smiling on me. I knew it wouldn’t last.
    A few birds rustled in the thick branches of the maple, elm, and pine trees over our heads, but our footsteps and movements were small and quiet enough for them