by Jude Watson
One of the men pressed in closer and grabbed his sleeve. “Need some wheels, dawg?”
Hamilton turned. Behind the sunglasses he saw his friend Jonah Wizard. “Dude!”
“Dawg!”
They bumped fists, then high-fived.
“What are you doing here?” Hamilton asked. “Nellie told me to meet you at the private terminal.”
“We got in early. I’ve got the crew in a van, waiting for your esteemed presence. We’re taking off for Antalya on the coast. Then we head for the mountains to track a leopard.”
Hamilton was unphased. “Lead on, dude.”
The rest of the drivers drifted away, knowing they’d lost a fare. Jonah steered Hamilton toward the doors. Neither of them noticed the muscular man in sunglasses and a black T-shirt who followed them outside.
Their driver, Adil, told them that the city of Antalya was part of what was called the “Turquoise Coast,” and Dan knew why as he glimpsed shimmering blue-green sea and golden sand as they drove. Palm trees were fanned by a warm, light breeze, and they rolled down the windows to smell the sea.
Adil turned onto a wide divided street in Antalya. On one side, Dan could glimpse the curving turquoise bay and the glorious backdrop of the shadowy stacked peaks of the Taurus Mountains. They whizzed by palm trees and tourist vans just like theirs as they headed toward the harbor. In the evening light the bay was flushed with pink, and the sky was streaked with purple. People were out strolling, checking out the different café menus or simply sitting outside sipping coffee. Danger and leopards seemed very far away.
Why am I always arriving at places like this, and never really seeing them? Dan wondered. For once he’d like to go to an awesome place without looking over his shoulder. He’d like to travel the world again, this time without being chased or shot at.
If there’s a world left once Pierce gets his hands on it.
When they’d asked Adil for the best place to find mountain guides who were both trustworthy and could keep their mouths shut, he had directed them to a coffee shop in Antalya and told them to ask for Sadik. They checked into the hotel overlooking the beach, which was crammed with happy tourists. Then they headed out.
The sun had set by the time they navigated their way to the old city, called the Kaleiçi, an area of twisting streets and alleys. They took several wrong turns, despite using the GPS on their phones. Finally, they located the alley.
There was no sign outside, but several tables were out on the sidewalk, where people sat sipping coffee and eating pastries. The group pushed into the shop. Smoke curled in the air, and the buzz of conversation was energizing. The coffeehouse was mostly filled with men sitting at small tables, sipping black coffee out of delicate cups. There were several couches positioned facing each other, and glass-globed lamps in jewel-toned colors hung from the ceiling. Carpets hung on the wall, and mirrors reflected curling smoke.
They stopped for a moment as people turned to regard the newcomers, then turned back, and the buzz of conversation revived.
They sat at a table in the corner. “Do you think I can order a double-shot decaf grande no-whip mocha with a pump of hazelnut here?” Dan asked.
“Try it,” Jake suggested. “I’d like to see how far you’d get kicked out the door.”
They ordered coffee, which came several minutes later in small, elegantly patterned cups. The coffee was thick and dark, with foam floating on top. Glasses of water were also put on the table, along with a small bowl of sugar cubes.
Jake asked the waiter if Sadik was there. The waiter pointed to the opposite corner. A middle-aged man sat alone, occasionally taking a small sip of coffee. There was something daunting about him. He looked rougher than the urban, sophisticated men around them. He was wearing corduroy pants stuck into heavy boots and a white shirt, open at the neck.
“He looks like he could capture a leopard with one hand and pluck out the whiskers with his teeth,” Dan whispered.
“Can you tell him that Adil sent us?” Jake asked.
The waiter headed over to the other table. He bent and spoke. The man flicked his gaze over to their table. He took a long moment to study them.
He made his way over, holding his coffee. He put the cup down precisely, then sat. “Adil told you about me?”
“He said you were a mountain guide,” Jake said. “We need one to lead us through the Taurus Mountains. We’re zoology students. We’re looking for a leopard.”
He shrugged. “There are no leopards anymore.”
“We have reason to believe that there is one.”
He shook his head. “Impossible. I have been all over those mountains and have never seen evidence of this. Just stories that evaporate into fairy tales.”
“We don’t think so. And we’re willing to pay well for your time. We need someone to take us to a certain spot and let us see if we can track the leopard.”
“If you are so sure you’re right, hunting leopards is a dangerous game. What will you do if you see one?”
“Shoot it with a dart to paralyze it so we can photograph it.”
He gazed at Jake with impassive brown eyes. “I see.”
“We would pay double your rate.”
He inclined his head to the side.
“With a fifty percent tip if we locate the leopard.”
He took a sip of coffee.
“Can you get your hands on rifles with tranquilizer darts?” Jake asked.
“I make it my business to get my hands on anything if the price is right.”
Jake waited. They all did. Dan took one sip of the strong coffee and it took all his will not to choke. He took a gulp of water, watching the man’s face as he considered them. Dan tried to look mature and ready for anything.
“We will set off at dawn,” Sadik said.
Chapter 34
Sadik showed up at the hotel in a battered Jeep. Now that it came time to part from Pony, Jonah, Atticus, and Jake, Amy felt uncertain. She realized that she hadn’t been entirely honest with herself. She had taken a stand in Ireland and said she didn’t need Jake. It had torn her up to say it, but she had done it. But now that she was here . . . she suddenly needed him desperately. She hated the feeling.
They said good-bye standing by the Jeep. “We’ll text you as soon as we get into the museum,” Jonah said. “So don’t worry, homeys, we’ll have your backs.”
“I don’t know about this,” Jake said. “Maybe we shouldn’t split up.”
“You don’t think we can handle a leopard?” Dan asked. “Have you taken a good look at Sadik? He’s Darth Vader and Han Solo combined! Chances are we’ll be together back at the hotel in a day or so.”
“Right,” Jake said, though he didn’t seem to mean it one bit.
“Come on, Amy,” Ian urged. He took her hand to help her into the van, and Jake turned away.
Amy faced forward as Sadik took off. She refused to look back. She didn’t want to see Jake dwindling in the distance. She didn’t want to cry.
Suddenly, the passenger door opened. A backpack thumped inside, followed by Jake, who swung himself into the seat, breathing hard. “Jonah and Atticus can handle the museum,” he said. “I’m coming along.” He met her eyes in the rearview mirror. “I think you can handle mountain climbing and a leopard. But maybe not both at once.”
They stopped in a small village to pick up two friends of Sadik’s, Orhan and Derin. The Taurus range loomed against a bright blue sky, snow still on the high peaks. Sadik took a mountain road that led around a series of switchbacks that had Amy clutching her seat. He pulled over in a small parking area in a high mountain pasture. They were the only car.
“If you want to find a leopard, we have to take the less-traveled path,” he said. “Difficult climb.”
“We can do it,” Amy said, jumping out of the car.
Sadik led the
way. The three guides didn’t speak much. They walked ahead of the group, as sure-footed as goats on the trail. Amy and the others struggled on the loose rocks and sliding soil. It was hard to keep their footing. Only Hamilton was able to keep pace with the guides.
Climbing was exhausting. They made camp the first night and the guides spread out sleeping bags around a fire.
They were up at dawn, eating toasted bread, oranges, and a wonderful cheese Sadik called beyaz peynir for breakfast. The guides brewed the strong black coffee that Amy was now almost used to.
They set off, climbing steadily upward, pointing out the goats clambering over the rocks. The air was clear and cold, with snow patches dotting the landscape. The trees began to thin out, and conifers defined the landscape. They came across a field of snowdrops, and Amy began to feel she had ascended into a magical, mystical world.
“The mountains of Turkey are full of legends,” Jake said. “You could say that the first beauty contest took place on Mount Ida. Paris had to choose the most beautiful goddess — Hera, Athena, or Aphrodite. Aphrodite told him that if he chose her, he could have the most beautiful mortal woman in the world as his wife. That was Helen.”
“Ah,” Amy said. “And so the Trojan War began.”
“The gods watched the fall of Troy from Mount Ida,” Jake went on. “You can feel the legends here. The history is in the stones and the ground. Even in the scent of the air. The same wild herbs grew here then. You can almost think we can find a leopard.” He grinned.
“With the help of the gods, of course.”
Jake’s words revolved in her head as they climbed. She, too, felt something in the air that she couldn’t define. For Jake, it was history and legend. For her, it was a presence lurking behind them. There were times she felt as though the leopard was tracking them.
She stumbled on the path, and Jake caught her. “Are you okay?” he asked.
She realized that she felt a bit dizzy, and her head ached. “I’m fine,” she said.
Their guides spoke in low voices, and she caught them, too, looking over their shoulders.
They were close to the GPS coordinates now. Dan was struggling a bit and had to use his inhaler. They were in a rugged landscape of boulders and scrub. Above them were tall cliffs, rising like a wall in front of them. Odd shadows played on the surface.
“Caves,” Sadik said. “The cliff is limestone. Porous rock. We could be standing on an underground river right now.”
“Is there a way up?” Hamilton asked.
“There is a trail. But we need to make camp here. The trail is narrow and can be dangerous at dusk. Tomorrow.”
Orhan said a few words in Turkish to Sadik and began to walk farther up the trail.
“Where is he going?” Jake asked.
“To scout for tomorrow,” Sadik said. “Sometimes there can be rockslides that block the way.”
They began to set up camp. Night was falling fast. Sadik went to an overlook and stood for a long time, looking out.
“Do you think someone else is out there?” Amy asked when he came back.
“There is always someone else out there,” Sadik said. “We don’t own the mountain.” He squatted by the fire. “And then there are the things not seen. The spirits of the gods. The ghosts of leopards. Perhaps that is what you are chasing. A ghost who walks.” He winked at her.
Amy felt a chill down her spine. Jake drifted closer. “He’s teasing you,” he said. “Don’t let him spook you.”
But she was spooked. She felt tired and drained, and when she pressed a hand to her forehead she realized it was warm. Probably from the fire.
It was close to dark now. Derin asked a question of Sadik. Sadik gestured up the path. Probably Derin was asking about Orhan.
Suddenly, they heard the noise of footsteps, rocks sliding down the hill. Orhan was moving fast, hurrying toward them. He said a word in Turkish.
“What did he say?” Dan asked.
Sadik ignored Dan. He listened intently to Orhan’s rapid speech. He shook his head, but Orhan just spoke more insistently.
“What is it?” Jake asked.
Sadik turned to them. “A paw print. Orhan swears it is a leopard print. Not a lynx, not a jackal. A leopard.”
“He is sure?”
“He is sure. We’ll sleep with our rifles tonight. And you should have dart pistols as well. We should all be armed.”
The museum turned out to be a private house that had been set up as the Museum of Historical and Ancient Curiosities. A faded sign read WELCOME TOURISTS! Another: KNOCK NEXT DOOR FOR CURATOR.
“This feels way sketchy to me,” Jonah said.
“If Pony were here, he’d probably say it smells like bogosity,” Atticus said. “Lucky he stayed in the hotel.”
“High on the bogusmeter,” Jonah agreed. “But here we are.”
They walked next door to a small house and knocked sharply. After a few moments, a middle-aged man with lively eyes and dark hair streaked with silver opened the door. He was carrying a newspaper. “Can I help you?”
“We’d like to see the museum.”
He burst into a wide smile. “Excellent! I shall fetch the key.”
He disappeared for a moment and then reappeared. They walked back to the museum and he fitted the key into the lock. The door stuck, and he shoved it with a shoulder. “Excellent security, you see,” he said. “The door sticks!” Chuckling, he led them inside and switched on the lights.
Inside, it did look like an actual museum. The walls were whitewashed and lined with cases. Atticus paused by a display of Roman artifacts.
“You know, some of the most interesting artifacts you can find are in these little museums,” Atticus said.
“Exactly,” the curator said. “This area is so rich in ancient cultures. You can’t go for a walk without tripping over a Roman coin. Heh. And we have some fine pieces of amber that have preserved ancient insects. . . .”
“Fascinating,” Atticus said.
“Bro,” Jonah said, excitement in his voice, “I see our prey.” He nodded to the very back of the museum. A diorama had been set up with an approximation of the landscape around them. A stuffed leopard was caught midstride.
“Yes, our Anatolian leopard,” the curator said. “One of the last of its breed.”
They approached. “I’m interested in taxidermy,” Atticus said. “The eyes . . .”
“Glass. But they look like the eyes of the leopard, do they not? Green and piercing. Mystical . . .”
“The whiskers?” Jonah asked. “Are they real?”
“Plastic. So lifelike!”
Jonah and Atticus exchanged a glance. Defeated. They turned to go.
“We have a gift shop! Don’t forget!” The curator hurried after them. “Lovely pieces of amber, replicas of Roman coins, lots of gifts to bring back!”
They kept on walking.
“And if you are interested in leopards — and who isn’t, magnificent creatures! — I have some artifacts preserved in amber — leopard whiskers. . . .”
They stopped.
“You have leopard whiskers preserved in amber?” Atticus asked.
“Yes! In the ancient amber display, right . . .” The curator stopped. He reached out a finger. He pushed the front door of the display case. It swung open.
There was a short pause. Then he shouted, “Nooooo!”
“What’s missing?” Atticus asked, but he already knew the answer.
“WHERE ARE MY LEOPARD WHISKERS?”
Chapter 35
Amy dreamed of Aphrodite and Athena, and of Olivia, snipping herbs, steeping them in spring water. Bathing her forehead. Placing a cool hand over her lips. The hand was . . . bigger and rougher than she expected.
Amy opened her eyes. Jake had his hand over her mouth.
“Something�
��s going on,” he whispered.
She struggled to rise. “What?”
“I heard noises. There are lights on the trail below. I think we’ve been found.”
“What? Where are Sadik and the guides?”
“They took off,” Dan said, coming up. “We have to hide. It’s the guys that attacked us in New York and London. Six of them. I saw them through the infrared binoculars.”
“But where will we go?” Amy asked.
“Only one direction,” Hamilton said. “Up.”
They quickly rolled up their bags. Amy felt as though she was moving through water. It was like a nightmare, except she was completely awake. She pulled on her fleece and her shoes and quickly followed Dan, Jake, Hamilton, and Ian as they made their way as quietly as they could up the path.
The path narrowed as they twisted and turned. The lights behind them moved relentlessly forward. Their breath clouded in the frosty air.
“They’re moving fast,” Dan said. “We could get trapped on the summit. I can see the headline now. CAHILL KIDS LOSE ALTITUDE FAST.” She could hear the fear underneath the joking tone.
Hamilton looked up at the cliff face rising above them. “Think we can get up to those caves?”
“In the dark?” Dan looked up.
Suddenly, a bullet thudded into the dirt only inches from them. They all dove for the dirt and hugged it.
“Um, I can do it,” Dan said. “For sure.”
“They must have infrared scopes on the rifles,” Hamilton said, training his binoculars down the mountain.
Another bullet thudded into a boulder nearby.
Hamilton fishtailed on his belly, crawling away. “Follow me!”
