She shook that thought aside, knowing that nothing Mara felt had any sway over her any longer. Kelsey calmed her racing heart and met Josh’s gaze. His blue eyes were misty and smoldered with longing.
She shrugged helplessly, knowing she was going to hurt him. “I’m so sorry. You know I can’t do this. We just can’t start something right now. I’m not ready to give up on him yet.”
She expected Josh to be upset, to beg and plead, but to his credit, he didn’t. He simply took a step forward and tenderly brushed a strand of hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ear. Then, he leaned in and gave her the gentlest of kisses on her forehead. “It’s okay, Kelsey. I know I’m not him. But maybe, one day, in another time and place, that will be okay. I can wait.” He picked up his wallet from the table. “I’ll catch you tomorrow. Want to head to the gym before breakfast?”
She shook her head, knowing he wanted so much more than she could possibly give. “I don’t think we should. It really isn’t a good idea.”
He raised his brows in surprise and then laughed. “It isn’t a good idea? Why? You think this is going to scare me off? I’ve had a hard-on for you since high school, Kid. This is nothing. I’ll pick you up at seven. We’ll grab breakfast after.”
She snorted, but then smiled. “Kid. You’ve been calling me that for years. Fine, I’ll be ready.”
Kelsey walked him out. When she finally shut the front door behind him and leaned her head against the door frame, she thought about her mother for some reason. It startled her for a moment because it was the first time she’d thought about her within the past two months without a sense of hurt and anger. Kelsey had not yet been able to process the discovery of how her saint of a mother had cheated on her father with one of their college professors. It had been a one-time fling, and Margaret had regretted it mightily the next day, but it resulted in her getting pregnant with Kelsey and created a whole other boatload of problems Kelsey was still working through. It was then that a fresh thought came to Kelsey and she knew it to be true.
I’ve been too hard on you, Mom. I need to forgive you. Kelsey finally realized how easily Margaret’s indiscretion could have happened. How she could have gotten caught up in a momentary lapse of judgment, even though she’d been madly in love with her husband, Benjamin. The same thing could have just happened between her and Josh and it would have been so easy to let him continue his caresses and lead her to her bedroom. Kelsey had no illusions about how much she loved Desmond, but sometimes your body took over your mind. Kelsey wasn’t even drunk like her mother had been or had an infatuation with Armand that stretched way back to her college days. She could have simply just melted away and let desire overtake her and just live in the moment. It would have been as easy as breathing.
Kelsey realized she wasn’t mad at her mother any longer and a huge weight lifted from her shoulders. She glanced at a photo of her parents on the side table next to the door and turned it around so the photo now faced her. She ran her fingers over the face that resembled her own. She had the same thick black hair and dark blue eyes. “I forgive you, Mom.” Kelsey would swear that the blue eyes staring back at her understood and believed her.
She pursed her lips. Maybe Josh is right and I’m being too stubborn. Maybe I need to do more forgiving--with everyone. With a resigned sigh, she picked up the phone and dialed Ari’s cell phone number. As soon as she heard the first ring, though, she clicked it off. No, not yet. I’m not ready to forgive you. Maybe if Desmond was by my side and in my bed, alive and safe, I could. But he’s not. I’m still so hurt you did this to him. To me. Instead, Kelsey called her best friend, Julia, to have her book a morning flight to get her to Skagway, Alaska. It was going to be a long night and a very long next day.
She texted Josh that she couldn’t meet him in the morning, and then returned to the dining room and her laptop to find out more about Rajiv Sitaula. What she found was more confusing than anything else.
Bianca had disappeared from the face of the earth.
Chapter 3
Ari knelt in the dirt behind the beat-up Jeeps parked in the compound. The air smelled of dust, body odor and self-righteous, holy stupidity. He should have been crammed in the back of a van with the jihadists, wreaking havoc on a neighboring town where his unit was determined to destroy yet another mosque or school and behead every innocent man, woman and child they found inside who didn’t align with their beliefs. Just like yesterday, he’d feigned illness and remained behind. He spit into the sand to clear the grit from his mouth. He hated how dusty this part of the world was. Soil was in everything and the people were horrendous pieces of shit. He held no love for any of them and he’d be glad when he finished this job and could get back to New York, where at least the chaos held a meaning that made sense.
A US-made M16A4 assault rifle rested on his lap, while he quickly and meticulously transferred seeds from one cylinder to another. A slight breeze picked up and he froze. He kept the vials close to his body and held his breath for nearly forty-five seconds until the wind died down. He couldn’t risk breathing in any of the fumes the seeds made when they were mixed together with the liquid compound. When the air stilled, only then did he take a breath and return to the vials. He swirled the contents together and placed it back in his knapsack where it nestled next to the other fifteen ampoules stored there.
A flick of a match sounded, followed by the acrid scent of tobacco. A guttural, phlegmy cough followed as one of the terrorists came into view. Ari’s hand quickly disappeared into his vest and removed a flask. He took a quick, sloppy sip and dribbled an ample amount of the liquid, letting the cheap alcohol wet his mouth and seep into his two month-long growth of beard. He knew alcohol was forbidden, but he also knew this would save him from getting caught.
An aging soldier came into view, and Ari feigned drunken surprise. “Hello, friend, you caught me.” He slurred in perfect Arabic.
The senior militant squinted. “Drinking? You are a poor excuse for a Muslim. I should report you to Butrus. You’ll be good for forty lashes, easy.” He coughed and spat into the dirt.
Ari knew the old man would do no such thing. He hated Butrus and he also shouldn’t have been smoking himself. Not to mention, the man was a closet alcoholic. “How about you join me and we toast Allah and the death of all infidels?” He handed the liquor to the soldier.
The man’s eyes gleamed and he plucked the flask from Ari’s outstretched hand. He took a deep pull and then another. “To Allah,” he echoed and then put the flask back into his own uniform’s pocket. “Now get out of here before someone sees you and stomps on your head as punishment.”
Ari grunted, pulled the black mask down around his head, hoisted his back pack and rifle and skirted around the old man. In minutes he was deep within the cragged hills, making his way towards the site he’d spent the past two weeks drilling. A well with a vein that emptied right into the underground water supply that supported the life of the entire compound and surrounding villages. Every single one of them supported terrorism. His conscience was clear.
He found his marker and removed the scrub to reveal a well-concealed opening with a circumference no wider than nine inches. The machines to drill the hole had long been removed and dumped in a deep crevice in an abandoned cave a quarter mile away. He was not in an active war zone, but a terrorist stronghold. As such, they traveled to commit the atrocities they pursued. It was why no one had yet noticed or attacked him as he worked.
Ari set down his pack and continued to prepare the vials, meticulously mixing, shaking and measuring. When he was satisfied, he dumped them all down the shaft and then covered the opening with large rocks and old tree roots until he was certain it wouldn’t be discovered. The geographic satellite surveys he’d paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for had netted him everything he needed these past few months, and so much more.
Ari disposed of the empty vials in the abandoned cave along with the discarded drilling equipment, and then made his way to the border. In
another day, he’d be dancing in a hotel nightclub with a hot chick in Tel Aviv, and in another two days, everyone in the town would be dead.
Step two, complete.
Chapter 4
The first leg of the trip to Alaska was uneventful, and Kelsey slept most of the way on the first flight. After a quick stopover, she boarded the second flight and stayed connected with Dennis and Julia via the plane’s Wi-Fi connection. They spent the next hour hashing out the details about Rajiv Sitaula.
Kelsey gave the steward in first class her tray and then began typing again. “Have you guys been able to locate Bianca yet? I spent hours searching and I can’t find any trace of her anywhere.”
“I haven’t either, which is odd,” Dennis texted. “It’s as if she vanished from the face of the earth once her father pulled her out of school.” He paused. “It’s just like what happened with Desmond, Kelsey. She vanished into thin air.”
Kelsey bit her tongue. She could practically hear the awe in Dennis’s voice via text, and she could envision the astonishment of those wide brown eyes behind his huge glasses that were always slipping down the bridge of his nose. While the world she lived in was unusual, she couldn’t jump to the conclusion that every missing person’s case stemmed from otherworldly actions. “No, it’s not just like Desmond,” she typed back. “Bianca didn’t have a twin sister who obviously had some sort of secret mission to bring her brother back to her homeworld.” She grimaced, remembering her one meeting with Desmond’s twin sister, Finley. Kelsey recalled the only words Finley had said to her: “I’m sorry.” Her expression had been one of extreme sadness. What was she sorry about? Taking him from me, or something much worse? It didn’t matter. One moment Desmond was there, and the next he was gone, and no matter what she did, she couldn’t figure out how to get him back. Kelsey balled her fists in frustration.
Dennis interrupted her stormy thoughts. “True, I’m sorry I jumped the gun. I blame it all on Seung. He just gets into my head and gets me carried away with this type of stuff.”
That was true. Seung, another of their good friends, loved nothing more than to create and debunk conspiracy theories. He’d have been all over this if he wasn’t in Florida visiting his sick grandmother.
More text popped up. “Maybe she died and he never reported it. I haven’t been able to find any death records, and I’ve been checking all the cities where Sitaula resided throughout the Pacific Northwest. It seems he couldn’t settle in any one place for too long, but he’s now been in Skagway, Alaska, for the past few years. As for Bianca, there’s no sign of her and hasn’t been since she left school.”
“Do we know what Sitaula is doing up there in Skagway?” Kelsey texted.
“You won’t believe this, but he’s the owner and head monk of a Buddhist retreat. Gives classes on meditation. I guess it’s not such a long shot, his being Buddhist. His family was originally from Nepal.”
Kelsey thought about that. But why settle in the tiny town of Skagway and not Juneau or Anchorage with a larger population? Was he trying to peddle his ideology to the tourist cruise crowd?
Julia’s text popped on. “Maybe he’s looking for enlightenment, or some sort of absolution. He was a senior level partner for The Korgin Stanley Group, but quit suddenly seven years ago. Sold his house, pulled Bianca out of school and started traveling.”
“Was he having money issues? What sort of things did the company invest in?” Kelsey asked.
“Typical stuff. Oil, utilities. Even land for drilling purposes. Maybe that’s why he was checking out the Pacific Northwest. From what I can see, some of the ventures he was involved in for Korgin concerned property up that way. In fact, he’s listed as a board member on a few conservation boards throughout Canada and the Pacific Northwest. But the company got a lot of bad press. There are rumors they paid off hundreds of thousands to people to keep their mouths shut about the company’s atrocities. Maybe Sitaula had a change of heart and got tired of being one of the people responsible for destroying all of the world’s forests or poisoning the water supplies. And no, he has no money issues. The guy is loaded.”
Maybe he’s running from something and Ari actually knew about it. Maybe even back in high school, Ari was checking him out. Checking the guy out ever since the man jumped ship with his girlfriend.
Kelsey closed her eyes. Oh, Ari, why did you do this to me? I expected so much more of you. You let me down.
The name and address of the Buddhist retreat popped up on her screen and for the moment she let the pain of her brother’s transgressions rest in the back of her mind.
Noble Path House? Interesting choice of name. I guess it’s time to see just how far from the path you’ve strayed, Mr. Sitaula.
And let’s find out what you’re running from.
Chapter 5
Ari burst into the conference room and slammed the door open with a bang loud enough to make one’s teeth chatter.
“What the hell are you doing?” He stormed over to Julia, glanced at her screen and ripped the laptop out of her hands. With a violent heave, he threw it to the ground, shattering it on the concrete floor.
Julia jumped back and stared at him as if he’d gone insane. “What the hell is your problem? Do you know how expensive that was? You owe me four thousand dollars, you jerk! Not to mention I stored all your stupid documents for your recent project in there. I haven’t made a back-up yet, you idiot.”
He took a threatening step towards her and balled his fists. “Where… is… Kelsey?”
Dennis quickly stepped his slender five-foot seven, one hundred and forty-five pound frame protectively in front of Julia. “She’s traveling, Ari,” he said coolly. “Now, why don’t you calm yourself down and tell us what’s wrong.” His pushed his glasses up to the bridge of his nose.
Julia pushed him aside. “Thank you, Dennis, but I don’t need your protection.” Her emerald eyes flashed and she placed her hands on her hips and jutted her chin out challengingly. “What are you going to do, big shot? Hit me? Throw me to the floor like a piece of garbage just like you did to my laptop, because you’re upset about yet another thing and you’re absolutely incapable of controlling your temper? What are you even doing home? You were supposed to be in the Middle East for another week.”
Ari gritted his teeth. “I came back early once I found out Josh gave Kelsey some documents I told him not to. Idiot let his dick lead him again.”
Julia scoffed. “Like you’re one to talk. When has that ever stopped you from getting your way with a girl?” She tossed her flaming red hair and crossed her arms. “Looks like you’ve been off getting a nice tan. What, something make you mad and hurt your little feelings and it broke up your beach orgy?”
Ari turned his glare to Dennis. “Before I say something to Julia I’m seriously going to regret, I’m going to ask this one more time. Where… is… she?” He said the words quietly and methodically and Ari knew it scared Dennis more than when he yelled. The two of them had been close since middle school, but when Ari got upset, Dennis always stepped in to calm him down. He also knew Dennis would tell him the truth, finally. He always knew when he lied.
“She’s on her way up to Alaska to try to find a guy who might have had some connection to the Voynich Manuscript.”
Ari squinted his eyes tight and blew out a frustrated breath. “I knew it. She’s going after Rajiv Sitaula, isn’t she? Dammit to hell!” He leaned forwards and slammed his hands on the table. With a groan, he paced the room and ran his hands through his hair.
Dennis and Julia gave each other a silent look and then Dennis spoke again. “Ari, what is going on? What is so dangerous about Rajiv Sitaula that would make you freak out like this?”
Ari sat down heavily in Julia’s chair. With his foot he kicked the broken pieces of the laptop aside in disgust. “What’s so dangerous? How about him wanting something so badly he’d sacrifice his own daughter to find it? How’s that for dangerous? And now he’ll be after Kelsey if he thinks she’s
asking too many questions. She has no idea what she’s stepping into. Julia, book me a trip to Skagway – the fastest way to get there. Now.”
Chapter 6
Ari sat in the first class cabin and stared out the window. He couldn’t relax. Thick, endless miles of clouds drifted by, but all he could think about was Kelsey. They had been through so much together and he refused to let this thing with Desmond destroy them. He refused to let Sitaula destroy them. That man had already ruined the one thing he’d truly cared about besides Kelsey. Ari knew in his heart that Sitaula had something to do with the disappearance of his old girlfriend. She hadn’t just gotten married, changed her name, had a bunch of kids and moved off the grid.
He opened his wallet and pulled out a well-thumbed photo of Bianca with him at their prom. She wore her dark hair pinned back, and her cascade of loose curls fell down over a delicate lace dress. She’d been a vision in white and pink, and he loved how she had wrapped her arm around his and leaned back into him for the picture. The two of them smiled for the camera. His father, Martin Goldman, had taken the shot and Ari remembered that in this photo, he’d been genuinely happy. Oh, Bianca. She’d been so beautiful and gentle. He’d seen her for the first time across a crowded cafeteria and he’d been instantly smitten. The way she moved, like she floated through the air. And she hadn’t pined for him the way all the other girls had. She appreciated him for himself and not because he was good-looking or rich. She’d laugh at his jokes and loved how his mind worked.
His feelings for her startled him because back then he’d still been secretly crushing on Kelsey, something he’d done ever since she’d come to live with his family. He knew there was no way his sister would ever consider a relationship with him, even though they really weren’t blood, but it didn’t stop him from desiring her from afar. And of course now that he was older and far more knowledgeable about her, he knew why. The way she was spiritually wired caused everyone around her to desire her. With their living together and being so close, he’d had to do everything in his power to fight and control his yearnings for her. Not an easy feat for a teenage boy living under the same roof with a girl who was the embodiment of sex. It didn’t help that she walked around half naked all the time, and was uninhibited in that regard. Not to mention she was gorgeous, brilliant and by the time she was sixteen had blossomed a set of D-cups that could grace any booty magazine and sell a million copies. The girl simply oozed sex appeal. His friend, Josh, had the same problem. He’d wanted her since high school. The guy had only backed off these past few years because Ari told him he’d beat the shit out of him if he ever tried anything with his sister.
The Call of Mount Sumeru Page 3
