"You're sure he's got room for us to get some sleep?" Adriana asked.
"Oh yeah. He's got a ton of space. Lives on a ranch not too far from here," Tommy reassured her.
"Ranch?"
"Reece doesn't do any farming or anything like that. Just has a bunch of property. Not sure why. Seems like an awful lot of upkeep."
"Maybe he's into the whole self-sustained living thing," Sean commented.
"Oh, Reece can survive on his own. That much is certain. He just chooses not to. Speaking of Reece, I haven't heard from him in nearly two days. He won't return my calls and hasn't replied to the three emails I sent."
Adriana turned away from the window and stared across the car at Tommy. "Wait a minute. So this guy doesn't even know that we're coming?"
Tommy's silence didn't exactly instill a ton of confidence in her. "Tommy! We can't just barge in on someone's home like that."
"Relax," he said. "Reece goes way back with Sean and me. He'll be happy to see us. Besides, he invited me. Remember? I'm more concerned about why I haven't heard from him in the last two days than I am about him telling us we're not welcome."
His argument didn't convince her, but there was nothing she could do about it. He turned on the blinker and veered off the main road onto a stretch of gravel that meandered up a gently sloping hill and disappeared over the other side.
"This is his place, so it's probably too late to turn back now anyway."
She shook her head and put her elbow on the door rim as she resumed staring out the window.
"Not that I disagree with you, Tommy," Sean reentered the conversation, "but it is strange for us to fly all the way across the world like this to see someone we don't even know is home or not."
"Well, we'll know here in a minute whether or not he's in town."
"Doesn't he run an adventure tour company? I'd imagine this part of year would be fairly busy."
Tommy shook his head. "Not lately. He's been struggling. Last I talked with him, he was considering taking some work with one of the other companies."
"Might not be a horrible idea."
"What makes you say that?"
"Reece has never been one to play by the rules. Might do him some good to get a little structure in his life. That's all."
Tommy could see his point. He steered the car over the last rise and began the descent down the hill toward the ranch house.
The home was a modest two-story building with a corrugated tin roof and wooden siding painted an ordinary brown. A wraparound porch provided a 360-degree view of the country.
As the car drew closer, Tommy tapped on the brakes. "What in the world?"
The other two noticed it as well.
"That can't be good," Sean said.
Reece's home looked like a war zone. The shattered windows and splintered siding gave testament to what happened. It was clear to the Americans. Someone had shot up the place.
"Who did this?" Adriana said in an absent tone.
Tommy stopped the car near the end of the driveway and put it in park.
Sean's eyes darted around the property in case the shooter, or shooters, was still around. He reached into his gear bag and pulled out the Springfield XD 40 nestled in the bottom. A second later he was on the ground, staring at the demolished front door.
Tommy and Adriana found their weapons and stepped out as well. They joined Sean at the front of the car where he was evaluating the best way to go in.
"You think they're still here?" Tommy asked.
"Doesn't look like it," Sean said. He took a fast look at a machine shed off to the left. It was still completely intact. "Follow me. Stay close."
He moved quickly across the gravel drive, staying on his tiptoes to make as little noise as possible. Adriana kept close behind, followed by Tommy. The latter accidentally tripped and kicked a short pile of rocks, making way more noise than he would have liked.
Sean froze at the base of the steps and fired a chastising glare at his friend.
"Sorry," Tommy mouthed.
Sean twisted his head back and forth with derision.
Tommy urged him on with a wave of the hand.
Sean turned his attention back to the front door. He cautiously moved up the steps until he reached the doorway. The ravaged wooden door and its frame were full of holes. Splinters of varying sizes littered the threshold.
Sean reached out his free hand and twisted the doorknob. It turned easily. "Still open," he whispered.
He pushed the door open gently and took a wary step back, using the doorframe for cover. Nothing moved inside the house. Three thoughts immediately went through his mind: there might be a body inside, the killer might be inside, or if Reece was still alive and in the house he might start shooting.
Sean needed to make a split-second decision. Based on the fact there were no other cars around and no one had started shooting at them, he went the safe route.
"Reece?" he called through the crack in the door. "It's Sean and Tommy. You in here?"
No response. Given the circumstances, not good.
Sean pushed through the doorway and into the first room. Shattered glass littered the floor. Bullet holes dotted a nearby sofa. The interior walls wore a smattered array of more tiny craters. In the kitchen beyond the living room, drinking glasses and plates had exploded all over the counter and floor—more collateral damage from the shooting.
"Reece," Sean said again. "Anyone in here?"
Tommy moved around to the left and checked a narrow hallway. Adriana stayed near Sean as he continued forward through the kitchen to a laundry room and small guest bathroom.
"Find anything?" Tommy asked.
"No. All clear," Sean said.
"At least we didn't find a body," Adriana added.
"True. But that could mean they took him."
The words barely escaped his mouth when the house was rocked by a thunderous boom.
The few pieces of mirror that remained on a wall just beyond Sean's position shattered as a bullet ripped through the wall and smashed into it.
The three instantly hit the deck, diving for cover behind whatever they could find. Sean instinctively stuck out a hand to shove Adriana to the floor, but her reaction was just as fast as his.
They curled up behind the dishwasher while Tommy took up a position behind the tattered sofa near the big front window.
Sean's immediate thought was that whoever came to kill Reece must have come back for them. But how would they know the Americans were coming unless they'd been monitoring them somehow? Sean scratched that thought out of his head. The killers had to be working in tandem with the bombing suspect in Atlanta. If that was the case, they'd most likely be operating under the notion that Tommy was already dead. It was unlikely they knew anything about Sean.
Then there was the fact that no car had pulled up. With the noisy gravel driveway outside, even an electric car would have made at least some noise as it pulled in. That meant the shooter was on the premises when the Americans arrived, which narrowed the possibilities considerably.
Either the killer decided to hang around on the property to make sure no one came looking for Reece—or Reece was the one who'd just fired.
Another shot rang out, and a piece of drywall exploded five feet above Tommy's head. It was followed by another five shots, each tearing through random points on the wall. The rounds zipped through the air and harmlessly out the other side of the house.
Sean listened closely. As the echo of the gunfire dissipated, he could hear movement just beyond the front of the house. The shooter was moving around to enter the building.
He had to act fast, and it was going to require a gamble.
"Reece!" he yelled out. "It's Sean and Tommy! If that's you out there, you better stop shooting at us! Not cool, man! Not cool at all!"
Tommy looked back at his friend, who was peeking around the edge of the kitchen cabinets. "What are you doing?" he mouthed.
Sean held up a finger and pointed
at the front door.
Tommy crouched next to the sofa and took aim at the door in case the shooter decided to come through. Tommy had always been a decent shot with guns of all kinds. At this range, he'd never miss.
Footsteps tapped on the stairs leading up to the front porch. Tommy gripped his weapon a little tighter. Sean and Adriana stayed in their position, ready to fire if the person on the outside was an enemy.
The sound of footsteps stopped just short of the threshold, and the companions froze, waiting to see what would happen.
"It's about time you guys showed up!" Reece yelled through the crack in the front door.
Tommy visibly relaxed, the gun drooping slightly in his hand. "Reece? You okay?"
The door swung open, and the big Australian stood in the opening, silhouetted by the blazing light of the sun.
"Look at my house, Tommy. Does it look like I'm all right?"
Sean let out a short laugh and stood up from his hiding place. Adriana rose right behind him.
"Boy, are we glad to see you," Sean said.
"Yeah," Tommy agreed as he straightened up. "Although I don't appreciate you shooting at us just now."
Reece grinned with pride. He shoved his .45-caliber SIG Sauer back in its holster. "Maybe next time you'll let a bloke know when you're comin' to visit."
Tommy was incensed. "I tried calling, emailing, and texting you."
"Did you try my beeper?"
Reece flashed a quick glance over at Sean and then winked.
"What?"
"I'm just havin' a bit of fun with you, mate. How are ya, Tom?"
Tommy shook his head and put his weapon away. The others did the same, tucking their pistols in their holsters.
"I'm fine now that I know you're okay. When I hadn't heard from you for a few days..."
"You thought I was dead? Me? Aww, that's sweet, old Tom. But you should know me better than that."
"Actually," Sean cut in, "his first thought was that you were doing a tour."
Reece rolled his shoulders. "I wish that was the case, mate. But things haven't been so good on that front lately. It'll turn around sooner or later." His head circled from one side of the room to the other as he surveyed the damage. "My house, on the other hand—pretty sure she's a goner."
Sean stepped closer with Adriana in tow.
"Any idea who did this? Did they say what they wanted?"
Reece noticed Adriana and took his trucker hat off for a moment. "Brought a sheila with you, Sean?"
"Oh sorry. Where are my manners. This is Adriana. Adriana, Reece Skelton."
The Aussie gave a curt nod and put his hat back on his sweaty head.
"Pleasure."
"Wait a minute," Tommy said. "How come you automatically assumed she's with Sean?"
Reece raised an eyebrow, shared a short knowing glance with Sean, and then looked back at Tommy. "Come on, Tom."
Before Tommy could protest, Reece went on while Sean fought back the laughter. "To answer your question, no. I have no idea who they were or what they wanted. All I know is I was sitting here watching rugby and having a beer when I heard the SUV drive up."
"So you got a look at the vehicle?" Sean asked. "You didn't happen to see the shooter?"
"Nah," Reece said. "Didn't see them. Their SUV, yeah. But I doubt that'll be much help now. I heard 'em rollin' up, went to see who it was, and by the time I looked out the window, they started shooting. Nothing I could do but duck for cover and slither out the back like a snake. Been hiding in the machine shed for the last two days."
"You've been sleeping out there?" Adriana asked, entering the conversation.
"It's not that bad. Got a cot out there and an old Land Cruiser. If it gets too cold, I can just climb in that thing. You might have noticed cold isn't really a problem here right now."
"Definitely not," Sean agreed. "You've gotta be hungry. We need to get you something to eat."
Reece waved a dismissive hand. "I'm fine. Got plenty of stuff out there in the freezer and a camping stove with plenty of fuel."
"So have you been staying out there because you're worried the shooters will come back?" Tommy asked.
"It's not that I'm scared. It's that I want to get the drop on those nasty buggers. If they were to come back, I'd have the perfect angle to take them out. They never did come back, though. Figured I'd give it a few days before I migrated back to the house to start fixing things."
Adriana assessed the damage. "Looks like that might take a while."
Reece nodded. "Yeah, well, since I don't have any tours lined up in the next few weeks, I've got the time."
Tommy tried to redirect the conversation back on track. "So someone tried to kill you and you don't know why?"
Sean interrupted. "Since you've been hiding out in the shed, I don't suppose you heard about the bombing in Atlanta."
Reece's face scrunched into a frown. "Bombing? What kind of bombing?"
"Someone blew up the IAA building," Tommy said.
"We figure they were trying to take him out," Sean added.
Reece's eyes went from one guy to the other. "That's pretty deep. Odd someone would try to kill you and me in the same week, eh, Tom?"
He slapped Tommy on the back and enjoyed a good chuckle. Reece stopped laughing when he realized no one was laughing with him.
"Reece, don't you see the connection?"
"Connection? Nah. You're all the way on the other side of the world. I doubt anyone here wanted anything to do with you. Or the other way around."
"Except there is a connection," Adriana said. "You both received messages about the Baiame Cave."
The Americans stared at Reece until they saw the light go on in his head. His eyes grew wide with the realization. "Wait a minute. You're tellin' me that those guys who came by and shot up my house did it because I read a bloomin' email?"
"I got your message, and a day later someone blew up IAA headquarters. We were lucky the building was empty."
"Reece," Sean said, "what can you tell us about the message in the email Annie sent?"
The Aussie shrugged. "Sorry, mate. I don't know much about it. I read it a few times, but I'm not sure what it means. Sounds like that Mathews guy was on some kind of treasure hunt. From what the note said, he didn't finish the job."
"Do you know anything about Baiame Cave or what the treasure might be in relation to that deity?"
Reece thought for a moment before responding. He put his hands on his hips as if that would help him dig through his memory banks. "Sorry, Sean. I don't know what it could be. I could take you there if you like. Might not be a bad idea to get out of the area for a while." A mischievous grin crossed his lips. "It'll be just like the old days, right, Tom?"
Tommy appeared reluctant. "That's what I was hoping to avoid."
"Old days?" Adriana asked.
Sean glanced at her with a smirk and shook his head. "You don't want to know."
Reece's jovial expression faded, and he looked down at the floor for a moment. He slowly raised his head. "You got me thinking, Tom. If they came after me because of that message, and they came after you, I wonder what they did to poor Annie."
Tommy's face remained like stone. "If she's still alive, we need to get to her."
"Unless they got to her already."
"Right. And if that's the case, we need to get moving."
7
Sydney
The door to the little room opened, and a hulking figure of a man stepped in. He moved off to the side and allowed another man to enter. The second man stood a few inches shorter than the first but had an imposing physique—muscular and toned. He clearly spent more time at the gym than the average person.
The first man left the room and closed the door behind, leaving the second man with his new companion. A dim light shone from the center of the room from a cheaply made dome fixture. She had several like it in her home.
Before the guy sat down across from her, Annie started begging. "I don't kno
w what you want, but please, let me go. I haven't done anything to anyone."
Shadows seemed to follow the man's face until he reached the center of the room and a simple wooden chair. Annie sat in a similar one. A mattress in the corner was the only other thing in the room.
"I know you haven't, Annie. And believe me, we don't want to hurt you, either." He turned the chair around backward and eased into it, propping his muscled arms on the back's top.
"Then why am I here? I've already told the other men I don't know anything about the Baiame treasure other than what I read in that journal entry. I have no idea where the treasure is. If I did, I would have already told you. I don't care about any treasure. I just want to get back to my life."
She started to sob.
The man stood up and walked over to the corner where a box of tissues sat next to the mattress. He picked up the box and handed it over to her.
Annie took it and pulled a tissue out. She wiped her eyes with it and then blew her nose.
When she'd collected herself, he returned to his chair.
"I mean, what are you guys, some part of the government or something?" she asked.
There was an angle he'd not considered. He'd only spent two minutes in here, and without saying more than a sentence, he'd gained a foothold. All it took was a little listening.
Paying attention like that was something at which Jack Robinson had become particularly adept through the years. It had served him well as he rose through the ranks of the Australian special forces. It still paid dividends for him in the private sector.
"Yes, Annie. We are part of the government. And we desperately need your help."
"If you're part of the government, you can't hold me against my will like this unless I'm being charged with a crime."
Jack raised an eyebrow. "Do you want me to charge you with a crime, Annie?" He called her bluff. "Because I can make that happen. We could start with a little tampering charge, throw in a little treason. Why, if I didn't know better, I'd say you were responsible for the destruction of government and historical property."
The Sean Wyatt Series Box Set 4 Page 5
