In Too Deep - 39 Clues 06

by Jude Watson

  But you came through and gave me that clue. So I owe you."He soared to the far end of the beach, coming in near the shallow water.

  "There's a road at the end of the beach," he told her. "You can find your way back."

  "Looks like I owe you one now," Amy said."You bet. I'll collect one day. Don't forget the Hammer.

  The Holt brigade is behind that hill, so they won't see you if you run fast. Keep your knees bent when you jump and run like a hurricane wind. I'm going to take off again."He gently steered the paraglider down. "Now!" he yelled, and Amy let go.

  She bent her knees as she hit the soft sand and took off. Hamilton rose, catching an updraft, and was soon sailing high above her.

  Her legs were shaking, but she managed to run up to the road. She slowed to a walk when she knew she was safe. She tried not to think about the sharks and the bloody water.

  Jamming her trembling hands into her pockets, she started to walk. Images bombarded her -- fire, blood, sharks, Isabel's lipsticked mouth like a scar. The sun around Isabel's head had looked like fire....Damp grass against her bare legs.

  Smoke. Fire. Her mother bending over her, her hands on Amy's cheeks ...Amy shook her head hard. She didn't have to remember! She didn't want to! The images made her feel sick and dizzy and scared.You don't remember what you should never forget.

  But what if she didn't want to remember? What if she wanted to lock away a memory forever?

  CHAPTER 11

  Mummy wasn't happy. That was never good.

  But this time, it was sour-faced Spasky getting the heat. That was sweet.

  Natalie kept her posture straight, even though it was difficult on the cushy sofa. She kept sliding forward on the slippery satin. But even while Mummy ranted, she could spot slumping shoulders.Ian sat next to her.

  He'd come back seasick, his face the color of her new chartreuse Prada purse."This is your fault." Isabel's voice had taken on the cool, precise tone that Ian and Natalie privately called the scalpel.

  It sliced you open and left you bleeding. She paced in front of Irina, her high heels making dents in the thick carpet of the hotel suite.

  Her heavy charm bracelet jangled along with her agitation. "I had to soak for an hour to get the smell out. I had to throw away my entire outfit. And it was Chanel!"Natalie shuddered. Nothing worse than losing couture.

  "Not to mention that the girl got away!" Isabel put her hand to her throat, where Amy's jade necklace gleamed against her sleeveless white dress.

  Natalie had no idea why she was wearing it when she could be wearing diamonds."Excuse me, but I don't see why this is my fault," Irina said.

  "Reminder: I was not on boat."Ian stiffened beside her and Natalie stared at Irina, fascinated. Didn't she have any idea how to handle Isabel when she was angry? You had to agree with everything she said and apologize, no matter how unfair the accusations were. Otherwise, you were toast.

  Isabel wheeled and approached her.

  Natalie knew that look. Irina was about to get it.

  Both barrels between the eyes. This was going to be very good."Excuse me," Isabel said witheringly.

  "You had one simple assignment. Find Amy. Bring her to the boat.""Excuse me for second time," Irina said.

  "She did go aboard boat, which was the objective. I do not see -- ""You do not see because you are a fool!" Isabel let her contempt drip from every word. "You were supposed to deliver Amy at three-twelve exactly.

  And you were supposed to arrive by Argyle Street so that Ian could spot you with the binoculars and I could prepare the boat.

  You didn't do any of it! You were fifteen minutes late. Fifteen minutes! That gave the Holts enough time to get organized.

  Even those thick skulls don't need too long to figure out a plan!" Isabel planted herself in front of Irina. "They had us under surveillance.

  And you are responsible for counter-surveillance. So add it up, Irina. Not only did you fail ... you failed miserably."Natalie smirked.

  Why shouldn't she let Irina know how much she was enjoying this? Irina had never gotten it into her head that she wasn't the boss. Ian and Natalie were the personal representatives of Vikram and Isabel. They were the de facto Lucian leaders.

  Irina couldn't bear that.Isabel held up her thumb and index finger a fraction apart. "I was this close to getting her to tell all the clues they had. This close! That little mouse was terrified."

  "What if she didn't?" Irina asked."What if she didn't what?"

  "Cooperate. You would throw her to sharks?"

  "Don't bore me with what ifs," Isabel said, turning and waving a hand. "I am about results. And now we've been defeated.

  By the Tomas. Unacceptable!"Isabel's narrow, toned shoulders lifted up, then down. When she turned around, her expression was calm.

  Not that her face ever showed much emotion. Isabel kept the best plastic surgeons in London very busy. She'd been pulled, pricked, smoothed, and plumped.

  Natalie wished her mother wasn't quite so obsessed, but she guessed that once you were in your forties, it was a gigantic amount of work to keep yourself up."The thing is, Irina, this isn't the first time you've failed to achieve our objectives," she said. "You're slipping. You're ... well, frankly, you're old."

  "Reminder," Irina said. "We are the same age.""Old thinking," Isabel said. "You don't keep up. You were once the best spy in the business. I give you that. But if you don't shape up, you're going to be out. Do you understand? It's crunch time, as the Americans say.

  There is no such thing as failure for a Kabra."

  "Don't you mean, no such thing as failure for the Lucians?" Irina asked.

  Isabel looked uncertain for a moment. "Of course that is what I meant."

  "Because this contest is about power for the Lucian Cahills, not the Kabra family," Irina said. "Unless I've been misinformed.""Well, naturally." Isabel's fingers drummed on her leg.

  Somehow, Irina had succeeded in making Mummy uncomfortable. Isabel flicked a piece of lint off her dress as though it were a missile. Natalie hoped her mother would demolish Irina, or they'd be in for a very bad afternoon."And I would also argue that perhaps Kabras do know failure occasionally," Irina continued, keeping her voice bland. "Your children, for example."You hateful witch, Natalie thought. She waited for Ian to say something,

  but he was like a statue next to her.

  Irina smiled. "It seems that Amy and Dan Cahill have bested them at every turn. How many clues have you two collected?" she asked.

  "I mean, the two of you, alone. How many?" She put a finger to her temple.

  "Let me think ... oh, I remember! One.""Mummy!" Natalie half rose. "She can't talk to us that way!"Irina turned back to Isabel.

  "The truth is that those two have turned out to be much smarter than we expected. And what if they discover what really happened to their parents?

  Now, they are resourceful. If they have an even greater reason to win-revenge - they will be dangerous.

  "Suddenly, Isabel undid the clasp of the jade necklace and threw it at Irina's feet."That is what I think of those Cahills. Not to mention your ridiculous obsession with Grace Cahill. She was a batty old lady who thought she knew best.

  Well, she and her grandchildren won't get in our way-- no matter how much they know."Irina picked up the necklace. She ran her fingers along the carved dragon in the center.

  "You thought it was important," Isabel said. "Another one of your mistakes. I had it thoroughly checked this morning.

  It's just a necklace. A cheap piece of sentimentality that the girl clings to. It was a waste of my time to steal it. Well, I'm done wasting time. Now, if you could manage to do one simple thing." Isabel tossed her cell phone to Irina. "Call the Fixer.

  "Who's the Fixer? Natalie wondered.

  Irina cleared her throat. "I am no longer sure of his reliability."

  "Of course he's reliable," Isabel countered. "We've used him many times. Tell him I'm in Sydney and I need a few things. I'll contact him later with a lis
t."Isabel picked up her purse. "Ian, Natalie. Come.

  We're going shopping."Natalie popped up.

  At last!"Let yourself out, Irina."The door slammed behind them. Natalie had to practically skip to keep up with her mother's fast pace.

  "Irina is just jealous of you," she said. "She wants to be leader, and she's just hopeless at it.""Right," Ian said. Natalie shot him a look. He was supposed to sound enthusiastic. Isabel counted on them for support.

  She expected her mother to smile and agree, but Isabel just stabbed the elevator button. "Shut up, Natalie, I'm trying to think," she snapped.

  Natalie rubbed her fingers along the fabric of her sweater.

  Cashmere. Her mother had bought her one in every color. Whenever she felt upset, she thought of them stacked in her huge closet at home in London. She had the best mother in the world.

  Isabel stabbed the elevator button again.

  "Call the concierge, Ian," she barked. "First, order a car. And second, tell them to fix their elevators.""Yes, Mummy.""And don't speak to me, either of you," Isabel said as the elevator doors opened. "I have to think."

  CHAPTER 12

  The echo of the door slam faded. Irina stared at the phone. She would have to call the Fixer. He could be out of the country on a job, but that would be too much to hope for.

  There was one in every city, she supposed, a person who could get anything you needed. Passports, cars, explosives, poisons.

  The Lucians found such contacts valuable. The Fixer was one of the best. He did not balk at anything, he could get anything, and he asked no questions.

  She had used him herself.What would Isabel need from him this time? What was she planning?Restlessly, Irina paced the room. She had lost Isabel's confidence. She no longer knew the plan, only parts of it.

  She ran her fingers over the cool green stones of the necklace. Isabel's insults had washed over her like water. They hadn't stung.She slid the necklace into the pocket of her black jacket and zipped the pocket shut. She never felt sentimental. Ever.

  Yet she understood sentiment. Having something a loved

  one had touched. Keeping it near.

  When she had finally made herself clean out Nikolai's room all those years ago, she had folded his favorite pair of pants and found something in the pocket.

  Her own school medal for First Place Vaulting Championship. The metal was tarnished, the ribbon tattered and faded. But Nikolai had carried it with him. He had touched it every day. A reminder of his mother.

  She was away so much. He needed something real to keep her with him. She hadn't known.

  She hadn't known.

  That had been the moment she had broken. She had held the pants against herself and sobbed. She had screamed out her agony. She had put herself back together slowly, but she was never the same. She was still broken. She had lost her son.

  She slid her hand into her other pocket and touched the medal. Now it was her turn to keep something close as a reminder. To touch something he had touched.

  Irina, the problem in Helsinki needs your attention. My son is sick. It's not a good time. She still remembered Isabel's brittle laugh.

  Children are sick all the time. No, it is more than that. The doctor said... Don't bore me with details. Do your job. The tickets are waiting for you at the airport.

  So she had kissed him, kissed his golden curls. She had whispered that she would be gone for only two days.

  Anna, her neighbor who watched him, whom he adored, Anna would be by his side. Irina would bring him back anything he wanted.

  A monkey, he said, and she had laughed.

  She had to go undercover. No communication, no phones, nothing. So she did not collect Anna's increasingly frantic messages. She did not get the doctor's call. She touched down in Moscow two days later and discovered that her nine-year-old son was dead. She was holding the stuffed monkey, an expectant smile on her face, when a weeping Anna told her the news.

  Now Irina rose.

  Once Isabel had forced her to do something that she regretted with every waking breath. It would not happen again.

  CHAPTER 13

  The delicious smells of good things cooking greeted Amy as she wearily pushed open the door to Shep's house.

  It had taken her over an hour to get back. Plenty of time for her to digest what had happened. But it still hadn't taken away her fear.

  It was still there in her stomach, a cold, hard ball.

  When she closed the door, she began to shake. Now that she was safe, the horror of what had happened truly sank in. What if Hamilton hadn't saved her? She saw herself falling into that water, saw the sharks circling with their dead black eyes - She felt so cold.

  She couldn't take a

  step, she was shaking so hard.

  In the kitchen area, Nellie was cooking, a bright bandanna wrapped around her hair. She stirred something in a pan while outside Shep tended to the barbecue.

  Dan was playing one-person Foosball, running back and forth to each end of the table.

  Nellie looked up. Her welcoming smile faded as she took in Amy's appearance.

  She dropped the wooden spoon, splattering tomato sauce on the stove. Amy saw it bloom like blood in the water. Dizziness swept over her, a buzzing in her ears. The room started to spin- Nellie caught her as her knees gave way."Dan, get a blanket!" Nellie's voice was steady, but it rang through the open space. She half carried Amy to the couch.

  The only thing Dan could find was the leather jacket. He brought it over and Amy gratefully wrapped herself in it."What happened?" Dan asked, his small face looking pinched. She'd spooked him."They didn't hurt me. I mean, if I'd been thrown into the bloody fish water with the sharks, who knows? But Hamilton came by on a paraglider, so-"

  "What?" Nellie exclaimed at the same moment that Dan yelled,

  "Sharks?"Quickly, Amy recounted how Irina had led her through the tunnel and warned her about Isabel, yet she'd wound up on the boat anyway.

  She explained how Isabel had offered them Lucian protection and what had happened when she'd said no. When she described Isabel calmly ladling the fish parts into the sea, Nellie turned white.

  But the funny thing was that as Amy told the story, she stopped shaking, and her fear went away.

  She told them everything, including the rosemary Clue that Irina had given her. But she didn't tell them the most important thing. That Ian, Irina, and Isabel all told her that Hope and Arthur had been murdered.

  And that Isabel had accused the Madrigals and Irina of the crime."Oh, man," Dan said, throwing himself back on the cushions. "I missed it! If I'd been there, Isabel Cobra wouldn't have had a chance. We could have pushed her into the water.

  Or I could have gotten fishing line and tied her up. Or we could have used Ian as a battering ram!""Dan," Nellie chided. "This isn't a game."The thirty-nine clues are like game to your brother, yes?

  Dan jumped up and began pretending to paraglide over snapping sharks. Amy made a decision as she watched him. She couldn't tell him about their parents. There was a soft, secret spot in her brother that he covered up with jokes.

  It was all about losing his parents so young -- before he could even have memories of them. She would have to try to figure it out on her own. At least for awhile.Amy touched her throat, momentarily forgetting that Grace's necklace was gone.

  The absence of it made her feel more alone than ever. This feeling inside -- that there was something she needed to remember -- was big and scary.

  She'd have to hide that from Dan, too.

  He hates when I act like a big sister. But I am one.Nellie patted her knee. "Food. That's what you need." She got up and went back to the kitchen.

  Amy wrapped the jacket more tightly around herself. She felt the lining tear and she groaned softly. The only thing she had from her mother, and she'd ripped it! She moved her fingers along the lining, searching for the tear, and heard something crackle. Sitting up, she examined it more closely.

  The jacket had already be
en torn along the seam and repaired again. She reached inside the tear and took out a brittle piece of lined paper-- something ripped from a notebook."What is it?" Dan asked, coming closer.

  "A piece of old notebook paper hidden in the lining." Her heart pounding, Amy read the words aloud.28 June 1937

  Each stronghold I was able to enter seems shaky now.

  War is on the horizon, nothing seems simple or safe, from Natal to Karachi. They fear us; that is good.

  Left Bandung and flew to Darwin.

  Here we sent back parachutes to lighten load so I am including this jacket as well. GP has been instructed to pass it along to you.

  Tomorrow we go on to Lae. Then it is off across the Pacific to Howland.

  I'm sorry to report that I failed to find our assassin H, or any real clues to his whereabouts. I was able to get to Batavia from Bandung and managed to find our contact.

  He told of a "scarred white man" who the natives believed had escaped the mountain. His body was intact but not his mind. What he had endured was terrible enough to break it.

  Here in Darwin our informer turned out to be a dead end. It was soon clear that the gentleman -- and I use the term loosely, because he was quite a charlatan-- was just looking for another payoff. All he offered was riddles.

  He even had the audacity to try to sell me a ring -- it will bring you luck, he said, so I bought it in hopes it would gain me information. It didn't. When I asked again if he knew H, he said both of them were in a hole but not to worry. Then he cackled a laugh and that was the end of it. Clearly he enjoyed giving me no information ... and making me pay for it. I am off into the blue. No more strongholds to penetrate. Only sky. AE"I don't get it," Dan said. "Who do you think AE is? Some Australian dude who flew a plane?"

  "Not a dude," Amy said with dawning excitement.

  She sprang up and ran to Shep's bookshelves. Naturally, she'd already checked out his library. Shep had whole shelves dedicated to aviation history. It didn't take long before she found what she was looking for.

  She thumped the book down on the surfboard table.90Dan hurried over. "Amelia Earhart?""It's got to be!" Amy said.