“This I promise you,” Jakub replied sincerely.
“Then you must go now. You have a long journey ahead of you, my friend. I officially pass The Magic Belt of Poland to you.”
Jakub Banyon, renowned architect, knight of the commonwealth, protector of Poland, and Freemason, left the general. In his possession was The Magic Belt.
Kościuszko died two days later.
For almost two centuries, Jakub Banyon, his friends, and descendants protected The Magic Belt, but now things have gotten more complicated.
Chapter Two
PRESENT DAY
Colton Banyon awoke with a start. His first thought was; where am I? His second thought was; where is Loni? He didn’t try to move for several seconds as he struggled to regain consciousness. At first he had trouble focusing as a major-league headache throbbed in his head. After about a minute, the ache subsided. He began to take in his surroundings. The room was dark, but some light filtered in from two high windows on the back of the far wall. He quickly noticed that the windows were barred like a jail cell. As he turned his head he noticed that there were many objects in the room. They looked like old furniture. In fact, the room could only be described as a cluttered storage area. The walls looked aged and were unpainted white stucco. He realized that the room had been finished before there was wall board.
He was prone on his back on some kind of a cot. As he attempted to sit up, he found that his legs were tied together at the ankles. His arms were also secured behind his back. Some kind of tape covered his mouth. My god, I’ve been kidnapped, he thought. Panic began to set in, but he fought it off. I must find Loni.
After some maneuvering, he was able to swing his legs over the side of the cot, and eventually sit up. He then began a thorough search of the room with his eyes. Everything he saw appeared to be very old furnishings. He finally saw her stretched out on another cot in the corner of the room. She wasn’t moving.
With much difficult he stood up, and hopped towards her. His shoes slapped at the concrete floor loudly as he made his way towards her. He studied her body as he approached. Her eyes were closed. She didn’t react or move as he approached. She was unconscious. He searched her body with his eyes for any serious wounds and realized that she was beaten up pretty badly. She had put up a strong fight, but had lost. Her beautiful long hair was all disheveled. It splayed out around her small head. Her beautiful Chinese face had a scratch on her cheek and dried blood covered her puffy lower lip. Her pretty dress was covered with dirt. It was ripped on one sleeve. There were several bruises forming on her bare arms, legs, and feet. As he approached the cot, he noticed that her red high heels were neatly positioned by her cot. Why would a kidnapper take her shoes? Maybe this is something else? He decided to take a closer look at Loni. He couldn’t call out to her because of the tape on his mouth.
With horror, he realized that the front of her low cut gown had been deliberately pulled down. Her left breast was completed exposed. Banyon immediately saw red before his eyes. If they have touched her I’m going to kill whoever is responsible for this. He increased his hopping so he could be by her side.
He soon recognized the cot. It was a World War II army cot. The color was faded, but looked to be dirty brown. No one has used these in many years, he thought as he reached the seemingly flimsy bed. She was also trussed up just like he was, and this gave him hope that she was still alive, otherwise, why tie her up. She looked small and fragile on the cot. Soaking wet, Loni was only one hundred pounds while standing a diminutive five foot-two inches tall. It broke his heart to see her look that way.
He nudged the cot with his thigh. He was soon relieved when suddenly her dark, almond shaped eyes flicked open. They seemed unfocused. He believed she had been subdued, just like he had been, by some sort of injection.
He gave her time to recover her senses while he sat down calmly on the edge of the bed. After a few minutes she began to struggle against her bonds. She eventually turned on her side. Her mouth was inches from his hands tied behind his back. She mumbled something, but because of the tape on her mouth, Banyon could not understand her. She whacked her head against his fingers and he then understood. It took him a few minutes, but he soon had the tape in his grasp. She pulled her head back. He heard a ripe as the tape peeled off.
“Those bastards ruined my new dress,” she shouted vehemently. “If it’s the last thing that I ever do, I’ll get them for that.” Banyon was not surprised that her first concern was her personal appearance.
Within seconds, she was on her feet, standing over Banyon. She turned around and wiggled close to him. Using her fingers to search his face, she found the tape and gripped the edge. She then hopped forward. Banyon felt a sharp pain as the tape was removed, but it quickly disappeared.
“Loni, are you hurt?” Banyon quickly asked with concern.
“Only my pride,” she briskly replied. “I should have been more alert.”
“I mean, did they do anything to you?” Banyon said as he searched for a way to ask if she had been molested.
“No, I don’t think so,” she said pensively as she thought back to the struggle. “But I was knocked out some of the time.
“Are you sure? You left breast is hanging out.”
“Oh!” Loni exclaimed. After a few seconds she continued. “But I think I still have my panties on,” she said clinically.
Banyon felt somewhat relieved so he now concentrated on freeing themselves. “You didn’t by chance wear your jade ring today, did you? I could use a box cutter.” Loni had been given a jade ring by her father many years ago. The ancient Chinese good luck ring could sometimes conjure up almost anything that Banyon asked it to produce. They had used the ring several times before during their adventures.
“No, I didn’t Colt,” she answered with frustration. “This event was supposed to be a celebration not a war.”
He now stood up and they faced each other. She in her ripped dress with her breast hanging out, and he in his fine tailored suit without a wrinkle.
“Too bad,” he absently replied and tried to think. “Maybe we can find something sharp to cut our bonds. Let’s search the room. You go left, and I’ll hop right and…”
“But I do have a knife,” she interrupted him with a bit of mischief in her voice. Loni was always remarkably resourceful.
“What?” Banyon cried out as he wondered where she had hidden it.
“It’s small, but will be able to cut these ropes,” she announced.
“Where is it?”
“It’s taped to the inside of my left thigh,” she announced. “I can still feel it there. You just have to go in there and get it.” Now understanding that she had not been groped or they would have found the knife, Banyon felt completely relieved.
“You wore a knife under your party dress,” Banyon said incredulously.
“Of course,” she spat back. “That’s why this dress is longer than usual. Colt, didn’t you notice? It almost reached my knees.”
“You brought a knife on purpose?”
“A girl has got to be prepared, you know. We are in a foreign country,” she said defensively.
Thinking of the logistics, Banyon asked his resourceful partner a question. “How can we remove it? Our hands are tied behind our backs.”
“Well,” she said with a smile. “It will be fun. I can still spread my legs. You just have to go in there and rummage around for it.”
“How?”
“I’ll sit on the edge of the cot. You can kneel in front of me facing away. It might be a little awkward for you, but I’ll guide your fingers.” One of the reasons that Banyon loved Loni was because she approached everything like a fun adventure. She rarely became flustered under pressure. She could deal with most anything thrown at her. She also became sexually stimulated by danger. He could tell that she was heating up.
She immediately hopped over to the cot and sat down on the very edge. She then opened her legs as far as she could. “I’m ready,
” she announced. Banyon dropped to his knees and moved in close. He could clearly see a three inch knife in a sheath taped to her toned thigh. He studied the position of the tape.
“This could be tricky, I don’t know if I can lift my arms high enough with them behind my back,” he acknowledged.
“Quit admiring the view and get to work,” she chided him. “I’ll squat down. I’ll be closer to the ground.” She then slipped off of the cot with her legs spread. Banyon turned around and positioned himself between her legs, then shuffled back towards her. Soon he found her thigh. He ran his hands along the inside until he found the tip of the sheath. His arms were in torturous pain, but he didn’t complain.
“I’m almost there,” he announced.
“Me too,” she replied in a husky voice. Banyon continued along the sheath until he had a firm grip on the knife, he then leaned forward. The knife ripped away.
Quickly standing back to back, Banyon used the knife to cut her bonds. In seconds, they were both free. Loni immediately rearranged her clothes. Her breast disappeared back under her dress. They quickly hugged. Banyon handed her a comb that he pulled from inside his suit pocket. She ran it through her long black hair.
“I’m a mess!” Loni exclaimed.
“You look just fine now,” he said to bolster her confidence.
“Do you have your phone?” She quickly asked.
“They took my phone, but left my wallet and everything else,” he replied as he searched his pockets.
“That’s curious?” Loni responded.
“We need to find some weapons and a way out of here,” Banyon said.
“I can’t wait until I get my hands on that professor,” Loni promised.
Chapter Three
An hour earlier, Colton Banyon had stood in the early-morning bright sunshine. It was late spring in Europe. The trees and many flowers were already in bloom. He was admiring the view. Loni Chen, his partner, companion, and the best lover a man could ever have, stood very close, her arm locked with his arm. There was a broad smile on her Asian face. She was clearly proud of her man on this special day.
Banyon was dressed for a ceremony, and she was accompanying him. Banyon had recently discovered that he had a famous ancestor. It happened when he received an invitation to a ceremony. He was slated to dedicate a new section of the Banyon Arcades. He had on a new charcoal grey suit with a white shirt. He wore black Italian loafers. His tie was bright red. He looked like the epitome of a successful man.
Banyon stood six feet tall and towered over Loni. While he was over sixty years old, time had been kind to him. He looked much younger. He was also still in pretty good shape, thanks to Loni. He looked down at her with a smile.
He realized Loni’s dress matched the color of his bright tie. She always knew how to compliment him. The dress was more formal than she usually wore, but hugged her fit, toned, body. She looked lovely. The dress ended just above the knees, which for her was very modest. She wore bright red high heels, and did not carry a purse. As a couple, they made many people look twice.
Banyon and Loni had flown into the capital of Poland, Warsaw, the evening before. Their journey had started from their home in Chicago. They stayed at a nice hotel in the old town section of the capital of Poland. The hotel was within walking distance of the Royal Castle, where the ceremony was to take place. Banyon was expected to make a speech and then a dedication for the new wing of the Banyon Arcades.
During the evening, they had met with the professor who had sent the invitation. Over cocktails and a light traditional Polish dinner they discussed the ceremony. He promised that all would be ready. They just had to show up. He asked them to be early.
In the morning, they got up, had breakfast, and decided to walk over to the Royal Castle an hour before they were expected. The professor had told them to be there around 10:00 a.m., but Banyon wanted to scope out the surroundings and get a look at the preparations. He had never seen the Banyon Arcades before, and now he was expected to dedicate a new section in just a few hours.
They stood about thirty feet from the entrance on a grassy mall well below the Royal Castle. “What do you think of the Banyon Arcades?” Banyon asked Loni with a proud gleam in his eye.
“I don’t know what to think,” she replied. “It is so massive that it takes my breath away,” she diplomatically replied as she opened her arms as wide as possible. “It is certainly very impressive. It has an unusual design.”
“It was built during the age of ‘classicism’ in Poland,” Banyon said knowingly. “My ancestor, Jakub Banyon was the architect. He built it while renovating the Royal Castle. He was the leading Polish architect of his day, you know.”
“Can you explain classicism for me?” Loni grudgingly asked. To her, architecture was boring.
“The classicism style is a throwback to the ancient Greek and Roman style of construction. It was very popular during the late seventeen and early eighteen hundreds. It is characterized by massive arches, porticos, lots of large windows, and clean straight lines. The buildings are usually made of brick. This one is red,” he said proudly.
“Okay,” his partner said and pointed. “But why is this one underground?”
“It’s not actually underground,” Banyon replied and then chuckled. “You see, the Royal Castle was built around fourteen hundred. It is at the edge of an escarpment, a small cliff, usually near water. It probably was placed there for protection from invaders. It overlooks the river. Invaders would have to scale the cliff to reach the Royal Castle. See how the ground drops off over there to the left and right of the structure,” he pointed.
“I see,” Loni replied. “There is a small cliff.”
“That’s correct,” Banyon agreed. “It looks over the Vistula River behind us to the east. The land on the east side is well below the Castle. As a result, there was no room for gardens, a requirement of classicism architecture. Jakub came up with the idea for the Arcades to solve that problem. See the Royal Castle gardens,” he once again pointed. “They are actually built on the roof of the Banyon Arcades.”
“Very clever,” Loni admitted.
***
After a few minutes, Loni suddenly spoke. “Let’s take a look inside. I want to see what they are planning for you.”
“Shouldn’t we wait for the professor?” Banyon asked as he looked at his watch. It wasn’t quite nine-thirty yet.
“We won’t tell anyone your name, silly” Loni promised. “What could go wrong? Besides, I want to get away from those creepy statues,” she added and pointed to the eighty-three metal figures of children without heads that were lined up outside the entrance to the Banyon Arcades.
“Oh!” Banyon exclaimed. “Loni, you’ve seen her work before.”
“Who? And where?” Loni now had her hands on her hips, signaling Banyon that she didn’t believe him.
“The name of the artist is Magdalena Abakanowicz,” Banyon told Loni. “I have read up on her. She is world renowned, and from right here in Warsaw. She has over 200 exhibits around the world including a piece in Grant Park in Chicago. The piece in Chicago is called Agora. It consists of 106 figures of headless people that stand about nine feet tall. We went to see the exhibit last year. Don’t you remember?”
“Maybe I do remember,” she admitted as she brought her small hand to her chin in thought. “We have been very busy the last couple of years, I guess the statues were not remarkable to me. But I don’t understand something,” she added. “Why are they headless? I mean, did she run out of money or something like that?”
“I think that they were meant to be headless,” Banyon patiently replied.
“The statues are very disturbing to me,” Loni said with a cringe.
“I think that was the idea,” Banyon said. “Every viewer sees the sculptures through their own perspective. They decide what they see. To you, they are disturbing. It’s modern art, what more can I tell you,” he said with a shrug.
“Well, I want to go insid
e, anyway,” she exclaimed while pulling him towards the huge structure.
As they slowly made their way towards the entrance, Banyon noticed that there were very few people around. The area was basically deserted. He wondered why? When Banyon and Loni finally reached the front glass opening, he pulled on the entrance door. He found it was locked. He couldn’t read the sign on the door, it was in Polish, but he could read the times that the entrance was open. It said: ten o’clock.
“I think we will just have to wait outside and admire the view for another half-hour,” he said cheerfully, but Loni didn’t answer. She seemed preoccupied with something else. His senses were also suddenly on alert.
“Something is not right here,” Loni whispered into Banyon’s ear as she leaned in close. She suddenly shed her high heels. It made her even shorter next to him. He knew she was preparing to do battle. Banyon quickly looked around. He noticed three large men in track suits milling around the statues. They didn’t look like tourists. One man spoke to the others as he kept a watchful eye on the American couple. The men suddenly began to run towards Banyon and Loni.
“What could they want?” Banyon said in panic.
“I think they want us,” Loni replied grimly. She took a fighting stance. She was well aware that kidnapping and ransoming of American tourists was a big business in many countries, even docile Poland.
The men split up, two went after Banyon. One went after Loni. It was a big mistake. Loni was a world class fighter. She just hoped that Banyon could hold out until she finished off her attacker.
As the man approached her, he said something in Polish. Then he attempted to grab her in a bear hug. Loni wanted none of that. She immediately kicked out with her leg. She caught him squarely in the groin. She then whirled on one leg and smashed her other leg into the side of his face. The big man seemed stunned and then fell to the ground. She planted her foot in his mouth. He was down and out without even touching her.
Loni quickly turned towards Banyon. She saw that the remaining two men each had a hold of Banyon’s arms. They were trying to pin them behind his back. Loni hit the man closest to her with a vicious jab to the ribs. He howled in pain. She followed that move with a kick of her leg to his midsection. He began to stumble away from Banyon. But before she could recover, the third man pushed Banyon to the ground. He charged like a linebacker. He hit her midsection, driving her to the ground. The man outweighed her by over a hundred and fifty pounds. He had no trouble controlling her despite her frantic attempts at counter measures.
The Polish Discovery: The Society of Orion 1-3 (Colton Banyon Mystery Book 17) Page 3
