“Put that away,” Dusty ordered.
“We should do them where they sit. They know too much.”
“I’m not into murder,” Dusty answered. “They’ll keep until tomorrow. Once we’re gone it won’t matter how much they know. We can take them to the shack and hold them there until the plane comes.”
Raymond shot him a dark look, but put the knife away. “I don’t like leaving behind loose ends.”
“Yeah? Well there’s one loose end you’re sure as hell leaving behind. And, that’s that damn book.”
Zack felt like he’d been punched in the gut.
“I searched that fucking room in the ruins,” Raymond said. “It wasn’t there.” He glared at Zack. “You didn’t get it, did you kid?”
“Not hardly,” Zack said. “We’ve been stuck in this crappy tunnel ever since this morning. And, I didn’t have a lot of time last night. ”
Dusty glanced at the scar on his thumb. “I bet that damn book is cursed.”
“Why do you say that?” Maria asked.
“’Cause that book has caused us nothing but trouble. Including the bite I got by one big-ass spider.”
Zack swallowed.
“Enough of this,” Raymond said. “We need to take care of business. Let’s load up this last box, then we can come back and get them.”
Zack waited until Raymond and Dusty had carried out the crate. “Whew,” he said. “That was close.”
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t want them to notice . . . you know.” He jerked his head towards the backpack nestled next to the wall by the pit of vipers.
“What?” Maria whispered. “Why?” The impact of what he was saying hit her. “The codex is in your backpack? That’s the safe place you told me about? Your backpack!”
Zack nodded grimly.
Dusty returned to the chamber. “Okay sweet cakes. You first.” He stuffed a gag into Maria’s mouth, put his hand underneath her arm and pulled her to her feet. “Shit! Where the hell have you been? God almighty, you stink,” he said, slinging her over his shoulder.
Zack watched in horror as Dusty carried her out.
Within a few minutes they came back for Zack. Dusty held a red rag in his hand. “Open your mouth,” he ordered.
The rag tasted oily and Zack fought the urge to swallow. Dusty grabbed him underneath his armpits while Raymond picked up his feet. Together they carried him out of the cave and threw him in the back of a truck. He was shocked to realize that it was nighttime. He could hear the chirping insects and the howler monkeys. He landed with a thud on the steel bed. They slammed the tailgate shut and threw a plastic tarp over the truck bed.
The engine started and Zack felt the truck move. He winced as he slid against the tailgate, and then grunted as Maria slid into his back. He got the idea that if he could only get to his knees he could roll himself over the tailgate and drop to the ground. He tried to get up, lost his balance and fell onto Maria. He tried it again and fell again, this time hitting his head on the side of the truck bed. Maybe that wasn’t such a good idea after all.
The truck bucked and rocked as it drove over the irregular terrain. More than once Maria rolled into him, hitting him in the nose with the back of her head or kneeing him in places that were already tender and sore to begin with.
It was impossible to judge how long the ride lasted. It seemed like forever, and since he didn’t know their starting point, he had no idea in what direction they were traveling.
Finally the truck came to a stop and the engine shut off. He heard the cab doors slam and then the tailgate being lowered. Dusty tossed the tarp back, reached in, grabbed Zack by the shirt and slid him to the rear of the bed. Raymond grabbed one arm. Dusty grabbed the other.
Together they dragged him into a small one-room storage building and dumped him on the wooden floor. Then they went back out for Maria. Zack noticed that they were gentler with her. They removed the gags and he took a deep breath.
The smugglers left again and returned carrying the wooden crate. They placed it with the others that were stacked against the wall. Next to the wooden crates, two wicked-looking automatic rifles lay on top of a cardboard box.
Dusty looked down at them. “Make yourselves comfortable. It’s gonna be a long night.”
“Water,” Maria asked. “Could I have some water?”
Without answering, Dusty went to the corner of the room, moved the automatic rifles, and pulled a bottle of water out of the cardboard box. He uncapped it, took a long drink and then held it up to Maria’s lips. Then he let Zack drink as well.
“Is the rest of the Treasure of Santa Elena in those crates?” Maria asked.
“Yep,” Dusty answered.
“And the stolen artifacts?”
Dusty nodded. “They’re in there, too.”
“So, after all is said and done, you’re just a common thief,” Maria said. “How could you do this? Dr. Collins trusted you.”
Dusty smiled. “Money, honey. What do you think?”
“You’ll never get away with this,” Maria spat. “You’ll be hunted down. They’ll find you even if you go to South America or Europe.”
“Honey, with all the crap that’s going on around the world right now, do you really think a pair of smugglers is high on anyone’s list of priorities?”
Raymond opened the door. “Come out here a minute will you?” Dusty left, closing the door behind him.
Zack twisted his hands, but stopped at the first twinge of discomfort. His body was so abused that he couldn’t tolerate any more pain. He turned to Maria. “Do you have any idea where we are?”
“We’re away from the ruins, but I don’t think we’re out of the park. So, I’d guess that we’re somewhere beyond the hotel restaurant area.”
“By the old runway?” Zack asked. “They mentioned a plane.”
“That sounds reasonable. Way out at the end of nowhere,” Maria said. “If we yell there’s no one to hear us. We have to get out of here.”
“I know,” Zack said. “I know.”
Raymond came back in and settled on the floor against the opposite wall. “Make any noise and I’ll knife you where you sit,” he said. “In fact, contrary to what the cowboy says, this is your last night period.” He slid his hat down over his eyes and leaned his head against the wall.
Maria glanced at Zack and sighed. He leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes. Dusty was wrong. It wasn’t going to be a long night. It was going to be a very long night.
###
Dusty returned right before dawn. In his hands he carried two cups of coffee. He handed one to Raymond. “Morning, compadres,” he said, taking a sip of the hot brew. “Hope you slept well.”
Zack grimaced. He hadn’t slept at all. Well that wasn’t completely true. His arms, legs, and butt were asleep and he’d lost all feeling in those parts of his body. He stretched as much as he could. Next to him Maria was stirring. She opened her eyes.
“Hey,” he said.
“I was hoping all this was a dream.”
Dusty laughed. “Not hardly sweetheart. Not hardly.” He stood watching them as he sipped his coffee. When he finished, he crumpled the Styrofoam cup and tossed it into the corner. “Time to get busy.”
Raymond looked at his watch, grunted and drank the last of his coffee, setting the cup down beside him. Then he stood up and stretched. “I’m ready. Let’s get to it.” He slid one of the automatic rifles over his shoulder and tossed the other one to Dusty. Then they picked up one of the crates and carried it outside.
Zack calculated their absence to be a little over five minutes.
When Raymond and Dusty left with the second box, Maria began squirming, trying to loosen the rope binding her wrists. She looked at him and shook her head.
“The rope’s too tight,” she whispered. She curled her body up into a ball, then worked her arms around her hips and under the backs of her thighs until her wrists were beneath her knees. Pulling her knees up to her chin, she st
retched out her arms as far as they would go and brought her wrists under, up and over, and then around her feet, until her hands were in finally in front of her.
“How did you learn that trick?” Zack asked.1
Ignoring him, Maria tore at the ropes with her teeth. Zack tried to do the same maneuver. This must be a short thing, he thought watching Maria get her wrists untied. There was no way he could do what she’d done and trying was too painful.
“Turn around,” Maria said.
“Wait,” Zack answered. “I hear them. They’re coming back.”
Maria stuck her hands behind her back and leaned back against the wall. When Dusty and Raymond had left with another crate, she untied Zack’s wrists.
He wiggled his fingers restoring the circulation before reaching for the ropes around his ankles. Maria tried to get her feet, lost her balance and fell down.
“No,” Zack said, massaging his arms and legs. “After they take the next crate. We’ve got to get the feeling back in our legs, first.”
They wrapped the ropes around their ankles just as Dusty and Raymond returned. Zack glanced at Maria’s ankles. The end of the rope lay out in the open. He held his breath. But Raymond and Dusty walked straight to the next crate, picked it up and carried it outside.
Zack crept to the door, opened it a crack, and peeked out. The morning light was pinkish purple from the rising sun. They were about two hundred feet off the runway. On the other side of the runway was a large cleared field, filled with weeds. He opened the door wider and peered down the side of the shack. On this side of the runway the vegetation had been cleared as well. There was no jungle cover.
Raymond and Dusty had almost reached the runway. In seconds they would be setting the crate down and returning for the next one.
“Let’s go,” he whispered. They slipped through the open door and ran alongside the wall of the shack.
Just as they reached the corner, Raymond yelled, “They’re loose!” Zack looked back in time to see them drop the crate and sling their rifles in front of them.
Zack and Maria rounded the corner and came to a halt. Behind the building a tall fence separated them from the field beyond.
They zigzagged back towards the runway, hearing the report of automatic weapons firing. Zack wondered if it was true that it was the bullet you didn’t hear that killed you. He grabbed Maria’s hand, pulling her behind him. His feet pounded the pavement as they sprinted down the broken concrete runway. Along with the sound of bullets whizzing past, he could hear the drone of an airplane’s engine.
Suddenly, Maria fell to her knees and he lost his hold on her.
“Zack,” she screamed, “I’m hit!”
He scooped her into his arms, and ran as bullets peppered the ground in front of them. The airplane was louder now and Raymond and Dusty ceased firing. Zack looked back over his shoulder at the old single engine Piper Cub coming in for a landing.
Zack heard Raymond curse, then yell, “That’s not the right fucking plane!”
Zack took advantage of the diversion and carried Maria off the runway. Her arms hung loosely from her sides and her head bobbed up and down. Blood soaked the shoulder of her blouse.
She grew heavier by the second as he lumbered through the weeds and up and over the rise of a small hill. When he was sure they were out of sight of the runway, he gently set her on the ground. She opened her eyes.
“I’ll be right back,” he said. “I want to see what’s going on.”
He crawled to the top of the hill and peered over the edge.
Dusty and Raymond were standing on the runway facing the incoming aircraft. It flew lower and they pointed their weapons and began firing. The plane continued to descend and Raymond and Dusty hit the ground. The prop driven Piper flew over them, and then pulled up and turned, passing over Zack and Maria.
“That’s my dad!” Maria screamed.
Zack looked back at her. “What?”
“My dad!” Maria repeated. “My dad’s flying the plane!”
Zack watched the plane rise up and over, then circle, coming back to the runway.
He lowered his gaze to the group of men running down the hotel road that intersected the runway. At the head of the group was his uncle’s tall, lean form. The other men were dressed in the brown uniforms of the park police.
Still on the runway, Raymond and Dusty were back on their feet and Zack realized that, unknowingly, his uncle and the park police were running right towards the smugglers.
Zack jumped to his feet and waved his arms over his head.
“Go back!” he yelled. “Uncle Clifton! Go back! Go back!” No one seemed to hear him. A bullet whizzed past by his head and he took off running. Just as his uncle came into range, Zack tackled him, slammed him to the ground, and covered him with his body.
There was a new round of gunfire as Dusty and Raymond exchanged shots with the police.
Once again he heard the airplane’s engine as it came in for a landing. Zack rolled off his uncle and watched as it flew over Dusty’s crumpled form. With the plane behind him and the police advancing in front of him, Raymond fled from the runway, sprinted across the cleared field, and disappeared into the jungle brush.
Zack got to his feet and went running back for Maria. He picked her up, cradling her in his arms and carried her back down to the runway.
The old piper had come to a stop. The door opened and a tall blond man climbed out of the cockpit. He saw Zack holding his daughter, and his eyes widened in horror.
“Put me down,” she said weakly. Zack gently set her on her feet and she stepped towards her father. He reached for her and she fell into his arms. He picked her up and hugged her to his chest.
He looked at Clifton, at Zack, at the park police, at Dusty’s body on the runway, then at Maria, once again.
“What’s going on?” he barked.
“Smugglers,” she said, her dirty face streaked with tears. “Oh, Daddy it’s been awful. They shot me.”
One of the policemen drove up in a jeep. “Get in,” he said. “We’ll take her to the doctor.”
Still holding Maria, her father climbed into the vehicle. Zack watched them drive away.
“Smugglers?” Clifton looked at Zack. “Dusty?”
“Yeah,” Zack answered. He led them past the dead cowboy and over to the crates. The police got a crowbar and with a screech, pried off the lid. Inside, nestled on a mound of straw packing was a carved statue of the Maya god, Itzamana.
To Zack it looked like the ugly little bugger was actually grinning.
Chapter Twenty-four
“Another egg?” Mrs. Sanchez asked.
Zack nodded, his mouth already stuffed with a combination of toast, eggs, and bacon. He chewed, swallowed and took a sip of the most wonderful coffee he’d ever tasted in his whole life. Then he shoved his last forkful of egg into his mouth.
Behind him, Mrs. Sanchez broke three more eggs in the skillet of hot bacon grease and put two more slices of bread in the toaster. Zack swallowed again and took a long sip of orange juice.
He’d had a shower and afterwards, he’d told his uncle and Dr. Collins almost everything. He’d started with the murder in the alley in Guatemala City and ended with their abduction by Raymond Morales and Dusty. He did omit a few things, like the map, the visions, the jaguar, Chajul, and especially the codex still in his backpack by the viper pit.
He heard the sound of a car engine, scooted his chair back and ran to the window. It was a jeep like the one that had taken Maria to the hospital. Two men sat in front seat and the man on the passenger side looked like Maria’s father. Then he saw her, sitting in the middle of the back seat.
He whooped for joy, ran out to greet her, and had the car door open before her father had even stepped out of the vehicle.
She smiled at him, took his hand, and climbed out of the car. Her right arm was in a sling.
Unabashedly he hugged her. “Are you okay?” he asked, “God you smell wonderful. Absolute
ly wonderful.”
“You clean up pretty good yourself,” she laughed.
Maria’s dad stood by, watching. “Young man?” he said, offering his hand. “I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Bob. Her father.”
Zack set Maria down and turned to face her father. “Yes, sir,” Zack said, shaking Bob’s hand enthusiastically. “I’m pleased to meet you.” He added quickly, “I’m Zack.”
“Yes, I know. I’ve heard quit a bit about you.” Bob smiled broadly at his blushing daughter. He and Maria had the same soft brown eyes. “I’m very pleased to meet you, too.”
Zack grinned and a weight lifted from his chest.
“I understand that you saved Maria’s life,” Bob said.
“Mine, too,” Clifton said, coming out of the house. “The boy saved mine as well. Plus, we were able to recover all the stolen artifacts. Because of that we managed to save the season.”
Maria looked at Zack. “Didn’t you tell him?”
“Tell him what?” Zack asked.
“About the temple.”
Zack smiled. “No, I didn’t tell him. I thought you’d like to do that. It’s your find.”
“Temple?” Clifton asked. “What temple?”
“Zack and I found an undiscovered temple,” Maria said. “With undisturbed artifacts.”
“Where?” Clifton asked.
Maria wrinkled her brow and looked at Zack. “I’m not sure,” she said, “are you?”
He shook his head. “No, I haven’t a clue.”
They went into the house and back to the kitchen. Mrs. Sanchez had put the eggs and toast on Zack’s plate. She beamed when she saw Maria.
“You hungry?” she asked.
Maria shook her head. “I’d love some coffee, though.” Mrs. Sanchez poured her a cup and set it on the table, then poured two more for Clifton and Bob.
While Maria drank her coffee, she told them about the temple they’d found and the artifacts she’d seen. And, although she mentioned the pit she’d fallen into, Zack noticed that she left out any mention of the vipers that were in the pit.
“Now that we know it exists, we’ll find it,” Bob said. “Looks like Dr. Collins is assured of funding for a few more seasons anyway.” He looked at Zack. “Seems like everyone owes you a huge debt of gratitude.”
Ninth Lord of the Night Page 21
