The Atlantis Cipher (The Relic Hunters Book 2)

by David Leadbeater

  “A few trees over there,” Gunn said dubiously.

  “You think those trees mark a ten-thousand-year-old temple to the god of the seas?” Jemma asked sharply, still smarting from Cassidy’s comment.

  “Who knows? Maybe they used trees back then. Maybe it’s rudimentary. Maybe—”

  “Stop.” Heidi walked across five meters of flat, green grass to the edge of what was the second crater they’d seen that day. Bodie saw straggly bushes and vegetation stretching down to a narrow sandy beach and a large expanse of water—yet another blue lake. Fingers of scrub dotted by a few unkempt trees extended toward each other on both sides of the lake. The SEAL commander signaled them to the ground immediately, radioing that his team needed to do a full reconnaissance before allowing them down.

  Bodie understood. They might not be the first team to find this place.

  Cassidy stared at the dirt. “So, we’re on the ground again. Didn’t take long.”

  Lucie crawled over to Heidi. “Does the GPS pin the location down?”

  “Oh, yeah,” the curly-haired American said. “It’s in the middle of that friggin’ lake.”

  “How deep is it?” Lucie asked.

  “They’re all volcanic lakes,” Heidi said. “Not surprisingly, this was a largely volcanic area many thousands of years ago. So they now shape this tropical paradise, which is, thank God, still spared from mass tourism. We’re lucky it isn’t covered in clouds. The lakes around here range between three hundred to almost a thousand feet deep. I guess, judging by the color of the water, this is one of the deeper ones.”

  “You should send back for gear.” Lucie’s thought processes were spinning into overdrive. “Contact the main town and keep it quiet. They will surely have some top-notch diving gear here.”

  Bodie understood what she was saying. That those who could were about to take a trip underwater. Before he could inform the others, the SEAL commander crawled in beside them.

  “Bad news,” he said. “Your Chinese are already here. Good news? They’re right across the lake and unaware of our presence.”

  “Can you take them out?” Gunn asked. “The last thing I want is another fight.”

  “That would be unwise. We can’t be sure of the outcome, or how we would fare at this stage. Also, their resources could be as deep as ours. They could have more men here very soon. Best to let them think they’re alone.”

  “That’s the plan?” Jemma asked. “Wait and watch? That’s not why we’re here, why we put ourselves in harm’s way. I’d say your plan’s inadequate.”

  Bodie stepped in to stop another argument. “Don’t worry,” he said, waving them down. “I have a plan. It needs some work, and it’s risky. It also means the soldiers will have to watch our backs.”

  The commander gave no indication of his thoughts. “I hear you. What did you have in mind?”

  “First, Heidi rustles up the gear from a trusted local. Then we have to send somebody to collect it. Next . . . well, I’m sure you know our backgrounds. What do you think we would do?”

  The commander pondered it, then nodded with a look of respect. “That just might work. Risky, though.”

  Bodie nodded and gestured at his team. “Just the way we like it.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

  That evening, the sky turned from blue to deep crimson and gold as the sun died over the horizon. The far waters swallowed it in a matter of minutes, and the black silhouettes of birds flying home at dusk disappeared completely.

  Bodie watched the small waves, saw them lose all definition, and spoke into his comms. “Ready here.”

  An affirmative came back from Cassidy and Jemma. They had determined from the Azores Diving Academy that the absolute maximum depth of this lake was one hundred and seventy meters—about five hundred and fifty feet—which meant using a rebreather with open-circuit bailout cylinders. They would have to use hypoxic breathing gas to ward off the effects of nitrogen narcosis, and carry a large volume to compensate for decompression stops on the way back up. For somewhere like the Azores—where tourism is more likely than research—the equipment was a rarity and Heidi had managed to source only three pieces.

  In the dark, Bodie waited, feeling slightly ridiculous. He was a good diver, reluctant at first, taught by one of Jack Pantera’s marine instructor pals. Initially, he couldn’t see the point, but when Pantera demonstrated the many ways diving would prove useful for egress and ingress to properties all over the world, he quickly saw the light.

  Cross was also a good diver, but his head was still not on the mission. Instead, Bodie chose Cassidy to accompany him because he trusted her absolutely, along with Jemma because she was highly competent and clearly wanted to get into the field more. Suited up, they presented an unlikely trio.

  Cross approached Heidi as they waited. “Any news on the Bratva yet? I mean, we’re just a couple of hours flying time from their coast.”

  “And that’s one of the reasons I’m guessing they’re interested in the compass,” Heidi said. “But no. Nothing yet.”

  Bodie studied the map they had made together. It broke the lake into zones, five in all, which they hoped to scour as quickly as possible. To do it right they would have to do it painstakingly slow, which increased risk, but that was why the SEALs were there.

  From their hidey-hole ten meters from shore, Bodie, Cassidy, and Jemma crept toward the water. They carried their own gear, already secured. Bodie eased in first, adjusted his face mask, and slipped below the surface. They each carried industrial-strength through-water ultrasonic transceivers in their masks, enabling communication.

  Of course, they could prepare all they wanted. The real test was finding clues in the deep waters of the lake.

  Bodie felt frustration as they started their first meticulous sweep under the water. It took some time to systematically map out the zones they’d recorded. A live feed sent everything back to base, where Heidi, Gunn, and Cross watched for anything the divers might miss. Bodie sank through the murk, not especially claustrophobic but definitely feeling the black nothingness press all around. Everything was different underwater, and some of his muscles started to ache again, compressed by the increasing density underwater. They kept to the sloping shores at first, ranging left and then right and then moving farther down, but it was hard work, taxing work, and unfamiliar. Nobody expected to find a temple on the slopes of the lake, but they couldn’t risk missing a clue either. Bodie stopped often and made the others pause too. He knew that unrelenting focus could make a mind turn to autopilot, so he relaxed them by chatting through the comms system. Underwater life came over to investigate, but the shadows were small and soon darted away. Other than that, their new world was darkly oppressive.

  Hours passed. The divers found nothing. They emerged carefully, still under the cover of night, made their way up the bank and into a comparatively safe area. Cassidy immediately stripped off her suit, showing not an ounce of embarrassment in her tight-fitting underwear before slipping on loose canvas pants and a jacket. Bodie was slower and Jemma slower still, the pair stopping to rest even before they escaped their suits.

  “No luck,” Bodie said, disconsolate.

  “Don’t worry. We came up with a plan,” Heidi told him, trying to avert her eyes from his broad chest. “The SEALs reported that the Chinese are out diving too. All of them. On the far side of the lake.”

  “Good thing we didn’t bump into them down there,” Jemma said, laughing.

  “Hold on, Frizzbomb.” Cassidy was watching the CIA agent closely. “You do realize the more you stare at his chest, the tighter those curls get?”

  Bodie blinked and looked surprised. Heidi turned quickly to the stars, finding a particularly bright celestial body to study. Cassidy laughed.

  Bodie changed the subject to save Heidi further embarrassment. “This chase to Atlantis is really coming down to the wire.”

  Heidi looked momentarily grateful for the intervention, but then her face clouded over. “Ye
ah, and that really worries me. If what we hear about Atlantis is true—that it was a highly developed, almost futuristic civilization—then those who find it could take a giant leap right through today’s technological advances.”

  “You’re saying they could rule the world,” Bodie said.

  “It’s not as radical as it sounds, believe me.”

  Lucie took over. “The SEALs will lead you to the empty Chinese camp. Maybe you can find something useful.”

  “We can do that but I also have another idea. Where exactly is that waypoint? I know it’s under the lake, but where? Can you find that?”

  Lucie nodded. “Of course I can.”

  “Please have it ready for tomorrow night.”

  Bodie stood up and threw some clothes on. Within minutes they were following the SEALs to the deserted camp.

  By the time they returned, the Bratva had arrived at the lake, slipping noisily down to a far shore. It would remain to be seen how they fared. Bodie imagined the Chinese would leave them alone in order to maintain their own secrecy and spirit any findings away undetected.

  The next day passed uneventfully, leaving Bodie to relate what they had found in the Chinese camp and stay well fed and hydrated.

  “Nothing telling,” he said. “But they do have very high-tech gear. Whoever they are, they’re well funded and well connected. I’ve never seen anything like it, and even one of the SEALs said the same. We took photos of what notes we could find, but obviously couldn’t read them. Also, we couldn’t move anything or go where we may leave footprints. They’re too good not to notice.”

  “So you’d rather have been sleeping?” Gunn asked.

  “Yeah. How’s Eli?”

  Heidi nodded at Cross, who was sitting with his back to a tree. “About the same.”

  Bodie slipped over and took a seat on the hard ground. “Hey, how are you?”

  “What she said.” Cross nodded at the CIA agent.

  Bodie lowered his voice. “We’ve come a long way together, mate. I trust you more than anyone. Accept your judgment without question. Don’t disappear on me now.”

  “I’m still here. I’m with you, Bodie. Trust that I will do the right thing.”

  Bodie did trust Cross, but it was becoming harder to do without question. He wanted to ask about Yasmine, but didn’t want to delve into the complexities around why she worked with the Bratva. And why she’d threatened him. All that mattered was that they make it through this job and get the chance to break with Heidi Moneymaker and the CIA once and for all.

  Night returned and the underwater search continued. The best tracker they had, a SEAL expert, departed to keep a closer watch on the Chinese. They didn’t expect to hear from him, save checking in, unless something major occurred. The Moroccans were watched intermittently, seen as amateur but dangerous.

  Bodie felt like they were floundering through the mire. It helped seeing the grid being checked off properly, but still one could only stare at, feel, and reposition a rock so many different ways. The darkness sometimes made it hard to know if they were going over a previously checked area. Lucie’s isolating of the coordinates put the temple seventy meters down and ten meters out from the position they were at now, so the team had decided to continue where they left off. They should reach it tonight.

  Time passed. The Chinese progressed on the other side. A SEAL crept over near the Bratva camp and reported seeing them wading into the water with their own diving gear. He didn’t expect they’d make much progress. He also mentioned they’d completed a recon of their own, coming dangerously close to Heidi’s well-camouflaged hideout but passing right on by.

  By the time exhaustion set in, Bodie and the others were far from their goal.

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  Bodie was far too wired to sleep that night, brimming with disappointment and tiredness, nerves stretched taut at the chance of discovery. He sat back against a tree and stretched his legs out, inviting the others to sit and talk under the black canopy of sky. Heidi brought a liter bottle of bourbon, and if it wasn’t for her odd reaction earlier, he’d have pretended to kiss her.

  “Who’s starting?” she said. “If you want to drink, let’s hear it from the heart.”

  Bodie reached out. “I spent two hours at an eighth birthday party,” he told them after taking a swig from the bottle. “It was six minutes from my home. My parents dropped me off and left me there because it was for my best friend, Darcey. It was interrupted by the police toward the end. They asked for me and sat me down, told me what happened. I didn’t cry. It didn’t hit home. I didn’t believe them. Darcey’s parents and others said they would look after me for a while and they did. It was a blur. I don’t remember any of it. But what I do remember was the cold on that first night in the orphanage. The cold that was solely in my head and heart, because they kept that place at boiling point. It was the coldest night of my life.”

  Cassidy swigged from the bottle and went next. “All the horror stories you hear about kids are worse than mine. I had two parents who wanted me. But they never loved me. I was an ornament, a necessary object you take along to shows and parties. The thing is—and you should all hear this—a child knows. They know when love isn’t reciprocal. They know when a parent or grandparent loves one child more than the other. They know at a very early age, and why would you, a grown-up, want to put an innocent child through that kind of trauma? The pain of realization. The pain of knowing. You will change them for life. I knew, and I cried myself to sleep every night. I fought it, denied it, finally accepted it. I tried to change them.” She shook her head, the memory causing a tear to sparkle in her eye. “Imagine that . . . a child so starved of affection she tries to change her parents. But I wasn’t strong enough. No child is. I ended up leaving them and never once looked back.”

  She passed the bottle on. A raft of stars painted the lightless vault with a pale, glittering patina above their heads. Jemma was up next.

  “I can’t match any of you guys. Honestly, I don’t deserve to share the same bottle. My upbringing was fine, my choices all good. Maybe I was a loner; some kids thought I was different. Shunned at school by the prom queen and her pals,” she said with a distinct eye roll. “I had normal kids’ problems, I guess. Go figure.”

  Heidi wrenched the bottle from her. “You’re right. That’s not even trying. Spit that out right now!” She laughed and continued quickly. “Hard upbringing for me, but not dreadful. My father was tough, loud, and unfair. Taught me a lot, though, about life. He was a cop. Some gangbangers shot him in a convenience store. They didn’t have to. He didn’t pull on them. Didn’t even move, just told them he had a daughter waiting at home. They gunned him down for sport, for a scalp. Later it made me want to become a cop of some sort. Maybe . . . maybe it shouldn’t have. Because I’m sure not cut out to juggle work and family life. Not this kinda work, anyway.”

  “They catch those bastards?” Gunn asked.

  “Yeah, caught ’em. Judge and jury’d ’em. Of course, they’re back on the street while my dad rots in a grave.”

  Heidi took a second swig.

  Bodie looked around the circle. Only Gunn and Lucie remained, since Cross hadn’t joined them, and neither looked ready to accept the bottle. He sighed and took it again. “Best friends before the accident,” he said, smiling now, although he didn’t know it. “Scott, Brian, Jim, and Darcey. We formed this gang, a fun one. We did dares and had adventures and looked out for each other. We were the Famous Five, you know? We were untouchable, unbreakable, like all happy kids are. We were the Forever Gang.” He raised the bottle.

  “To you, my friends, wherever you are now.”

  “You never told us about them before,” Cassidy said, interested.

  “I know, and the more I think about them the more I understand why. You guys remind me of them, and the memory is . . . painful.”

  Heidi took the bottle back, draining another mouthful. “My daughter, the best thing that ever happened to me, the one who h
olds my heart in her hand, thinks I do this job because I don’t love her.” She stared at Cassidy. “I do. More than life. More than breath. But she’s reading it wrong.”

  Cassidy held up a hand. “Then tell her. Face-to-face. There’s no instant messenger or text between true family and friends. Between real partners. It has to be personal.”

  One of the SEALs came up to them. “Keep it down,” he said. “Or go to bed.”

  “Yeeees, Dad,” Lucie said to everyone’s surprise, and gave him a salute.

  She reached for the bottle.

  Heidi kept it from her, staring, and lowered her voice. “You get it, right? You can only drink with us if you share something intensely personal.”

  “I understand perfectly.” Lucie plucked the bottle away and swigged deeply. The circle sat forward, curiosity high.

  She placed the bottle between her legs and stared at the ground. “My whole family are dead,” she said. “My entire lineage. Every one of them has died from either natural causes or accidental death. Nothing sinister. But now, every day, every minute, I expect to go next.”

  Bodie swallowed hard, seeing the personal effort it took for Lucie to get those words out. He also saw what she felt: expectation, knowledge, and fear. How could you ever move on and forge a life, a career, friendships when you expected to die any moment.

  “You can’t let what happened to them ruin your life,” he said. “No matter how bizarre.”

  “I know that,” Lucie said. “And yet here I am.”

  “No.” Heidi scooted over and shared the rest of the bottle with her. “Here we are. Broken souls. Tortured, even. Where do we go from here?”

  Cassidy spoke for them all. “Fuck it,” she said. “Let’s go to bed.”

  “Yeah, who brought the fucking bottle out, anyway?” Heidi threw it aside.

  Bodie rolled over to get comfortable under the tree and tried to get some sleep.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE