The Lost Power: VanOps, Book 1

by Avanti Centrae

  “Can I go play with Damien?” AJ asked.

  “You mean the dog? Squirrel?”

  “I call him Damien.”

  “Sure. Have fun!”

  AJ ran off and she sat down next to Will.

  “How you holding up, sis?”

  She let out a long deep breath. “I’m okay, a little tired is all. And my shoulder sure is sore. The service was beautiful but long. And there were a lot of people to catch up with.”

  “I’m glad Bella, Marty, and the kids decided to take an off-grid family vacation to stay safe.”

  “Me, too. The photos of the kids in the river were priceless.”

  “Think Dad would have liked the service?” Will asked.

  “As much as one could like such a thing.”

  “I hear ya,” Will said.

  They sat in silence for a minute.

  Will sighed. “I think he and Maria would be glad we tracked down their killers.”

  “I’m sure they’re glad we found the truth about why they were killed, and that justice was served in the end, although technically the killers tracked us down.”

  “True. We were hunted. Maybe Bear will have some insight on that when he joins us.”

  Maddy poured some wine for herself. “Hope so. And I’m glad we were able to stop the Russians from being able to fuel that e-bomb.”

  “No kidding. I’m just getting used to having internet again. Can you imagine if they had knocked out several military radar installations?”

  “Scary. Bear said if they’d knocked out our eyes and ears, they could have deployed a high atmosphere nuke, which would have wiped out electronics over a wide part of the country. That would have allowed them to waltz right through our borders to wreak havoc. Grandfather’s Russian friends would have been war heroes.” Maddy shivered. “When I start to feel guilty about killing those two men with the obelisks, I remind myself of the lives we saved.”

  “Guilty? Those men were trying to kill us!”

  “I know, which is why I did it, but it goes counter to all my aikido training.”

  “Sis, aikido seems great for hand-to-hand combat, even disarming an opponent at close range, but against guns from a distance?”

  “I know. I want to discuss that philosophical conundrum with my sensei.”

  Will toasted the sky and drank. “Philosophy is a grand mental exercise. In the meantime, since it was kill or be killed, I’m glad to be alive!”

  “Me, too,” Maddy said. “I just wish there had been another way.”

  In slow motion, Will twirled his flashlight around his index finger. “While we’re on the subject of killing, why do you think Grandpa did it?”

  “You mean the whole thing? Killing Dad so we’d go on the quest?”

  “Yes, what do you suspect was his motivation?”

  “Well, I think he was obsessed.”

  “I’m thinking more about what drove him. What do you think drove that obsession?”

  “Sounded as if he were a selfish, greedy bastard with no empathy whatsoever, who believed the Power and throne were his divine birthright, even though he failed the tests.” Maddy sipped her wine. “Did I tell you the test he failed was the duel?”

  “No.”

  “Yeah, Edith told me.”

  “Figures. No compassion there.”

  “Nope. And maybe helping Prince Carlos kill his twin when they were kids twisted his young mind into thinking he somehow deserved the throne. Or maybe he went off the deep end when Grandma died. Did you hear him call me Emma?”

  “No, I missed that.”

  “Yes, and I’ve been meaning to tell you--when you and I were kids, whenever he and I were alone he used to lock me in the closet.”

  “What? When?”

  “After Grandma died. In Spain, the king said I looked like Grandma Emma, so maybe Grandfather was punishing me somehow because he couldn’t have her anymore. And I reminded him of that loss.”

  “That’s weirdly insightful.”

  “It’s just a theory.” She paused. “He warned me he’d hurt you if I told anyone. But that’s why I freaked out when you locked me in the bathroom before the Olympic games. Why I had a meltdown.”

  Will lowered his eyes. “Maddy, I am so, so sorry about that. I knew you didn’t like to be confined and I did it anyway.”

  “Will. It was a prank. Then I broke my foot trying to break down the door, couldn’t compete, and held a grudge for years. I blamed you. I’m sorry about that, too.”

  “But I knew it would mess with you. I guess I was mad since I always ended up playing second fiddle. You’ve always been a rock star. I’m sorry. You could have won gold.”

  “Maybe. I felt betrayed and held onto that resentment way too long. But, hey, we can laugh about it when we get old.” She smiled.

  He lifted his eyes to meet hers. “So, we’re good?”

  “Yes, we’re good.”

  “So, you going to tell me about the secret you’ve been hiding since the castle?”

  How’d he figure that out?

  She swatted him with her napkin. “You’re smarter than you let on.”

  “Sometimes.”

  “It was Catherine.”

  “I thought you guys had buddied up after that screaming incident in the Troubled Tower.”

  “We did. She turned out to be a bit of a wild old coot, but she gave me the missing page from the codex.”

  “What? The missing page? The one from the codex? No way!”

  “Yes, way!”

  “I want to see it!”

  “I’ll show you later. It’s hidden in the house. I just wonder why it was created.”

  Will’s eyebrows shot up. “Oh?”

  “Well, it shows what I think is a group of stars, a constellation that I’m not familiar with. Perhaps it leads to the source of the obelisks. That’s what Catherine thought and why she hid it.”

  “That’s intriguing.”

  “Yeah, she was worried about Prince Carlos and trusted me to keep it safe and out of his hands.”

  They both drank a sip of wine. The warm, late afternoon and the wine made her feel mellow and happy. Maddy was glad she and Will had finally put their high school disagreement behind them.

  A dog barked. She turned to watch AJ play with Squirrel. They were having so much fun.

  Her heart melted, and she made a decision and turned to Will to fill him in, “Such a cute kid and he’s been through so much. I’ve decided to adopt him, whether or not things work out with Bear.”

  “Sweet! That’s awesome! So, I get to be an uncle?”

  She smiled. “Yes, you do.”

  Maddy turned back to watch AJ and the dog, but while she watched, AJ tripped and then headed their way, crying a little.

  “Maddy--sensei--I hurt my knee.”

  “Let me see it, little man.”

  She bent down and took a good look at the scrape, then dabbed a napkin in a glass of water and patted it on his knee. “There’s only a little blood, you’ll be okay.”

  AJ sniffled and wrinkled his freckled nose as if he were trying to get his emotions under control.

  “It’s okay to cry, you know,” Will said.

  Maddy looked at Will with suspicion. This was a new side of him. He’d seemed overly stoic as an adult, but she did remember he’d felt things deeply as a child, crying over a lost blanket, throwing a tantrum when their dad threw away his favorite shirt. He seemed serious now, though.

  AJ looked up at him. “But I’m a boy.”

  “Boys cry too sometimes. And sometimes it’s better to cry, feel it, and get over it, than to let it build up.”

  Maddy raised one eyebrow at Will over AJ’s head, questioning. Will flashed her an “I’ve learned a thing or two, as well” smile.

  “It hurts,” AJ sniffled.

  “Yep. And it will only hurt for a minute,” Will said.

  Maddy hugged AJ, who slumped in her arms, cried for just about ten seconds, then brightened.
/>   “You’re right. I feel better. Can I go play some more?”

  Maddy waved her hand at the dog. “By all means.” She turned to Will and teased. “Watch out or you’ll make a good dad someday.”

  A shadow passed over Will’s eyes. He scrunched his face and looked at the sky for a minute through his long lashes. “She was pregnant. Maria. I found out a week before she died. I was going to tell you--we were going to tell you when we met Dad here.”

  She reached out and held his hand. “Oh, Will.”

  “I’m okay. I finally let myself cry when we were at the monastery in the clouds.”

  “Good.” She took a deep breath. “That’s horrible. And I don’t know what to say.”

  “Me neither. But at least I’ve learned a thing or two about emotions.” His tone lightened. “Speaking of feelings, here comes Prince Charming.”

  She swatted him again.

  Bear sauntered out of the French door, beer in hand, looked at Maddy in a way that made her blush. “Hey, beautiful.” He walked over to her and gave her a tender, lingering kiss, which lasted until Will cleared his throat.

  Bear winked at her, tipped her hat off her head, and impishly rubbed his hand over the stubble that was her new hair growth.

  She grabbed the hat from his hands with a smile. “Hey, stop that! Give me my hat back.” She could not wait until her hair grew back.

  He sat down across from Will.

  “So, am I still a wanted man?” Will asked Bear.

  “Stick with me, Argones, and I’ll hook you up.”

  “Sounds dangerous. But what’s the scoop? Were ‘your people’ that you told me about while Maddy was in the hospital able to do anything about Pete, the crazy, local, walrus-mustache cop?”

  “It’s your lucky day or lucky year. In a nutshell, yes. Since you both cooperated with the...um, friends...who visited us in the Cairo hospital, they’ve convinced the local Napa police that the true villains were subdued in a hush-hush operation overseas.”

  “There are many elements of truth to that,” Will said. “And, regarding the ‘cooperation,’ there was a lot of natural lightning that night. Too bad it killed the sniper and your dirty director. We had to keep the obelisks secret to honor Ramiro’s wishes.”

  “I understand. And no, they don’t know about the Order either. But, by the way, the intelligence community doesn’t always lie through their teeth.”

  “Sure,” Will and Maddy said, sarcastically in unison.

  “I hope you don’t hate them too much. I have more news.”

  Maddy’s heart sank. “They’ve offered you a job?”

  “They have. Turns out the new director of VanOps was impressed by all our roles in the situation. He, the head of Department of Extreme Threats, the Director of the CIA and the DNI--”

  Maddy shot him a blank look so he added, “Director of National Intelligence. They all realized the old director was dirty as mud and had been in it up to his elbows as a mole for the Russians for some time. Too bad he died on the pyramid and his secrets with him. Much of the VanOps group is going to have to be rebuilt, as many of the players were compromised. The new director apologized that I’d been sent in that way and said it was a total farce. There is no such thing as that kind of testing.”

  “I’d wondered about that,” Maddy said.

  “Wondered? I remember you called bullshit on it at the monastery. I should have thought it through a little more, but I was excited, both to see you and to be workin’ undercover. I’m ashamed to admit they tracked us through me and a chip in my new credit card. That’s why he had me tag along.”

  Will took another sip of wine. “Bastard. We didn’t think to sweep your stuff.”

  Bear reached into his pocket, pulled the silver chain out, and swung the lion around in circles. “It’s good that you destroyed your phones. However, the Russians also bugged Maddy’s necklace.”

  Maddy grabbed his arm and pulled the pendant from him. She looked at it. “Is it safe now?”

  Bear clasped the jewelry around her neck. “It is. But the other news is he--the new director, that is--would like to interview you both, to see if you’re interested in coming on board, too.”

  Maddy couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “What?”

  Will echoed her. “Are you serious?”

  Bear smiled. “Yeah, it’s somethin’ to think about. D’Angelo had a dossier built on you both. Will, Sir Skeptalot, he thinks you might be a good fit for the ‘red team,’ which they use to challenge ideas. Your skeptical nature makes you a perfect fit for a job like that. And he likes your language skills. Maddy, he said your abilities to think on your feet, understand information technology, and defend yourself are a rare package. I tend to agree.” He grinned.

  Maddy felt thunderstruck. She would have to ponder the offer. She wasn’t sure she trusted the lot of them but she was ready for a change.

  She looked at AJ playing tag with the dog. There were considerations. If she got the job, she would miss spending time with AJ. Also, her dream of becoming an aikido teacher was within reach--she was ready to test for her next dan, nidan.

  Bear must have noticed where she was looking, as he also looked at AJ before he said, “Lots of time off between assignments.” Bear paused. “Anyway, he also gave me some background on your grandfather.”

  Clandestine organizations might be untrustworthy, but they could be useful. “Go on.”

  “The CIA was keeping an eye on him because he turned up in Russia alive after his supposed death. Not a lot of American Spaniards over there running with nefarious crowds. Sounds as if he had some contacts from when he was younger, but when he showed up, they tortured him to see if they could trust him. That’s how he lost those fingers.”

  “I remember he told us that,” Maddy said.

  “Well, he must have earned their trust. He married a Russian woman and worked his way up in a government organization designing weapons and making contacts high in the government, which he used in this final scheme. They suspect your grandfather’s Russian son was the pilot of the helicopter. The only body recovered was a VanOps agent who matched the description of the guy Will thought he saw following us in Vilnius.”

  Maddy looked at Bear. “So VanOps was watching us, too.”

  “Yeah. That agent was as dirty as the old director.”

  Maddy frowned, unconvinced. “You sure you want to work for them?”

  “I do. Most of them are the good guys. The new director also confirmed they were the group that had found out that the e-bomb weapon that went off in China was indeed made in Russia.”

  “What about the obelisks?” Maddy asked.

  “Per your request, I sent the shards to Elena, and her friends in a German company ran some tests for me. Nice that she agreed to help out--I think VanOps would have been the better choice since they suspected the obelisks existed anyway, but I understand your concerns. At any rate, the obelisks we found were made from an extremely rare superconductive material called lorandite.”

  Will scratched at his scruffy new beard. “Did I tell you or what?”

  Bear turned to Will. “You sure did. The Germans have already found that it’s a high-temperature superconductor, the highest found yet.”

  Bear looked at her. “Maddy, as your brother told us, the higher the temperature a superconductor works at, the more useful it is, since most of them work at temps well below zero.”

  Looking at them both, Bear continued, “The obelisks and this mineral are a great example of ancient technology that should not fall into enemy hands. That’s what VanOps is all about, keepin’ this kind of technology safe.”

  Will leaned forward in his seat with excitement. “Blah, blah, VanOps. You sound like a commercial. But superconductive and high temperature to boot! Ha!”

  “You were spot on. Too bad they’re now useless as a weapon. The director also strongly suspects that the Russian e-bomb does require superconductive material as fuel. My theory is that’s how y
our grandfather talked them into killin’ your father. Your grandpa figured the obelisks were superconductive and knew your father’s death would set you on the path to find the obelisks. They must have intended to track you all along.”

  Maddy took a sip of wine. “Crazy. He sure was obsessed with the obelisks, to have realized they were superconductors.”

  “Well, the codex had many of the clues,” Will said. “I suspected as much, too.”

  “You do have more modern, scientific training.”

  “He was a scientist, too.” Will paused. “So, lorandite, huh? How rare is it?”

  “It’s extremely rare. And dangerous. Not naturally occurring. Probably came from a meteorite. Elena indicated that a cache of that material would be worth a fortune.”

  Will and Maddy exchanged a fleeting glance while Bear took a drink of his beer.

  Maddy removed an errant leaf from the table top. “And it could have fueled one of those e-bombs?”

  “All three e-bombs like they had planned. The director has taken AJ’s story about their intentions very, very seriously. VanOps and other agencies are taking steps to safeguard our early warning system assets and to make sure they track down everyone involved in the plot.”

  Maddy laughed. “Glad we stopped it. I’m just getting used to my phone again.”

  Bear smiled. “The inscriptions carved into the obelisks that the GoPro camera captured are intriguing. I’m sure the director could offer some help translatin’ the inscriptions if you change your mind about giving him access.”

  “Not likely,” Maddy said. “How old were the things?”

  “Well, the German testing indicated the obelisks were produced hundreds of years before Alexander the Great, so those images that we saw in the castle’s codex could have been of him.”

  “You figured that part out, Bear. Alexander found the key to using them. With his military skill and having the obelisks as an advantage, he was unstoppable. And the obelisks somehow got from Alexander to Ramiro, who was clever enough to hide them,” Maddy said.

  “Yes, you saw what they did in the wrong hands.”

  “A weapon for the ages,” Will mused. “If only they could have told us their stories.”