The Stone of Secrets

by K. L. Nelson

  Pointing the gun at the door as she listened to the footsteps coming down the hall, she looked over her shoulder out the window. The moon was enough to see everything in the yard, and it showed another figure emerging from the trees and moving toward the house. Two men, thought Skye. Maybe more. She struggled to breathe. There were ten in the clip, and two more clips. If there were a third man, that gave three bullets for each before she needed to reload. Emmett had trained her to shoot to kill. There could be no hesitation. The silencer would give her the chance to kill the first without the others knowing she was awake. She backed away from the window into the corner behind her bed. This was where she would make her stand. No one was getting near her without taking three bullets.

  She went over the reloading procedure in her mind. Emmett had made her go through it at the firing range at least a hundred times to develop the muscle memory needed to perform the action in the heat of a firefight. She carefully set the extra clips on the bed within easy reach and kept her eyes moving between the door and the window. As soon as one of them entered, a click of the flashlight would reveal their intent. A split second would be all she would need to identify the intruders. As soon as she was sure of their ill intent, she would let bullets fly.

  She felt her stomach tighten as the doorknob began to turn. Slowly the door opened and a black figure entered. Time seemed to stop as Skye stared at the man. Could he see as well as her in the darkness? Were his eyes adjusted? Skye realized the moonlight shining through the window made it impossible for the man to see her in the dark corner.

  Skye pointed the flashlight at the man and quickly pressed the momentary button, giving him a short burst of light. It was enough for Skye to identify him. As he moved towards her, Skye put three bullets in his chest. He fell lifeless to the floor, and Skye wondered if the sound had alerted the other man. She stood silently and listened. She crept to the window and looked outside. The yard was clear. Not knowing where the other man was, or if there were more than one, drove Skye crazy. She decided it was time to move. She threw on her robe and put one extra clip in each pocket. Gripping her weapon, she carefully peeked down the hall. It was clear. She moved silently to the kitchen, avoiding the creaky spots in the floor. She moved to each window to try and find the others, but she saw nothing outside.

  Suddenly the lock on the back door began to move. Someone was picking the lock. She realized the kill had not been heard. She took courage at this advantage she had on the intruders. She would exploit it to the fullest. She took her position in the front room, where she could see all the way down the hall to the back door. Standing at the corner by the hall, she could take out anyone coming through the front while she waited for the rear man to enter. She would wait until he was well inside before she killed him. If she did this right, any others outside would still not know she was armed and awake.

  She heard the second intruder obtain entry through the back door. She could hear his footsteps coming up the hall. She knew exactly where he was. There was no need to identify him. She moved around the corner and put one in his head and two in his chest before he knew she was there. In seconds she had the spent clip ejected and a full one in, just like Emmett had made her do it a hundred times at the range.

  Skye ducked behind the corner as a third man entered. Seeing the dead body on the floor, the man quickly disappeared into another room. Skye had lost her advantage. Now it was a fight. She cursed silently as her mind raced.

  Sitting still was not an option. She could exit through the front door. Maybe she could run for the trees. That was no good; she’d be a sitting duck if they saw her run. She decided it was better to defend her house from the inside. She knew the floorplan better than her assailants.

  That’s it. Skye quickly made her way to the basement. On the way down the stairs, she carefully slid the loose tread over to one side. She was glad she never got around to nailing it down. She hid behind some boxes in the basement and waited. Her heart raced even faster when she heard footsteps on the stairs. In the darkness she barely made out a wooden baseball bat leaning against the wall next to her. It was a godsend. When the man stepped onto the loose board it gave way, sending him tumbling down the stairs. Skye gripped the bat in her hands and let the animal instinct to kill overcome her. As she landed it squarely on the back of the man’s head, she heard the crack of his skull between her weapon and the concrete floor. It was one thing to put a bullet into a man. But it was entirely another to crush someone’s skull with blunt force. Skye fell back and dropped the bat in horror. She knew she would never forget the subtle vibration she felt in the bat’s handle as it bludgeoned a human skull.

  Suddenly Skye heard a car approaching the large door at the end of the basement at full bore. She jumped out of the way just as the car crashed through the door, sending debris everywhere and filling the basement with a cloud of dust. The car impacted the main support in the center of the room, causing a large section of the upper floor to come down in a massive collapse. Broken lumber from the floor above fell everywhere. Skye was knocked to the floor as debris came crashing down on top of her. When things stopped falling, she was entangled in the pile of splintered wood and material. She tried to move, but her leg was caught under a large joist. She could feel blood run down the side of her face as she pushed with all her might against the beam. But it seemed like the weight of the entire house was on the beam. She knew her leg was not broken, but the pressure caused pain to shoot through her entire body.

  As she looked around, she saw that she had a bigger problem. Light began to appear as the assailant searched for her. She watched the rays from his flashlight moving through the debris towards her. She tried one last time to free her leg, stifling her cry of pain. It was no use. When the light grew near, she froze. She turned her face away and lay perfectly still as the light fell upon her. She was found. As she played dead, she could hear the man begin clearing debris to reach her. Or perhaps just enough to get a clean shot at her.

  As Skye waited for death, she thought of her parents. They would be heartbroken and bitter. When they learned of how she was killed, they may become vengeful. She hoped they wouldn’t get tangled up with The Pact. No one deserves that. She thought of her students and the faculty at the university. And she thought of Emmett. She would never feel the warmth of his embrace again. There was so much she wanted to tell him. How much she had wanted to see his gun collection that night, how much it tore her apart to tell him no. She wanted to be with him forever. And she wanted to be a mother. The pain in her body was nothing compared to the ache she felt in her heart.

  She stared into the darkness and contemplated her fate. Strangely, she felt at peace. She did not fear death. But something inside her told her that she would not die that day. But how?

  At that moment, the man’s flashlight shined through from a different angle and gave Skye a glimpse at something sitting in the rubble beneath her. She knew what it was the instant she saw it. It was the grip of her weapon.

  Slowly she moved her arm around and reached for the gun. She could just touch it with the end of her finger. She thought of her father teaching her to catch a football when she was just a girl. “If you can touch it, you can catch it,” he told her.

  “Come on dad,” she thought as she stretched with all her might. “Get that ball closer and I won’t have to reach so far!” She knew the man was seeing her move now. No more playing dead.

  She got her finger to the texture on the handle. It was enough friction to slide it closer. She wrapped her fingers around the handle and smiled. She turned to face the man. With his flashlight shining in her face, she could only see his silhouette. But she imagined his expression of surprise when he saw the barrel of her gun. “Hello there,” she said. Before the man could retrieve his own gun, Skye squeezed the trigger and put one into his chest. She saw the flashlight fall and the man reel backwards onto the hood of the car.

  That was four. Skye lay there motionless, silent, listening for several
minutes. There was no one else. Relieved that she’d gotten all of her attackers, she turned her attention to getting her leg free. She found a board that she could move. With great effort, she pulled it out from the pile and got it wedged under the beam that entrapped her. With the lever, she got it to move just enough to pull her leg out. More debris began to fall as she struggled to crawl from the pile. Squeezing herself out, she exited the building just as the whole thing came down. Limping out onto the lawn, she looked through the window and saw pieces of the house falling inside. She knew the gas lines in the house were surely leaking with so much carnage. She started for the electrical main, but as she walked toward it the cover blew open shooting sparks out. The junction on the pole by the street exploded at the same moment. Her leg still stinging with pain, Skye ran for the street as the house suddenly became engulfed in flames. Glass and wood shot every direction from the explosion.

  Bleeding and exhausted, Skye slunk down and leaned on her car. She was quite unconscious of anything as neighbors began to appear. She wondered if Emmett had gotten her text. Her phone was in the house, so that was of no use. And there was something else in the house that Skye was even more worried about.

  Emmett arrived before the fire department. He jumped out of his car and ran to Skye. She didn’t hear his frantic questions. She just fell into his arms. She said one thing before passing out: “The stone.”

  “Don’t worry,” Emmett replied as he held her. “I’ll take care of it.”

  Skye woke up in a hospital bed the next day. The last thing she remembered before she passed out was Emmett’s face. And that was the first thing she saw when she woke up.

  Emmett took her hand. Neither spoke for a long time. Sometimes there’s so much to say that there are no words for it.

  After several minutes Emmett broke the silence. “Dax wants to know how one woman can make such a big mess.”

  “Did you get the Marnoch Stone? How is it?”

  “It’s fine. It’s sitting in a government warehouse under guard.”

  Skye stared out the window. “They’re never going to stop.”

  “We have an agent posted outside. When you get back on your feet we’ll get you out of here. There’s another place…”

  “And sit there and wait for them to find me again?” Skye snapped. “I’ve already decided where I’m going: to find who’s trying to kill me. I don’t care how long it takes or what I have to do, I will find him.”

  Emmett drew a breath. He knew she was serious. There was no use asking her to let the FBI take care of this. So far the FBI was striking out at keeping her safe.

  “Ok, where do we start?” he asked.

  “I can’t ask you to go with me,” Skye replied.

  “You don’t have to. You made your decision, I made mine.”

  Emmett’s phone rang. It was Maddox.

  “You have got one hardcore girlfriend there, Emmett,” he said. Skye could hear Maddox’s strong voice in Emmett’s receiver. She rolled her eyes.

  Emmett looked at her and smiled. “Yeah, they picked the wrong girl to mess with,” he told Maddox.

  “How is she?”

  “A little beat up, but she still has that look in her eyes.”

  “Well you tell her we are going to get to these guys. We’re not backing down. And if she needs anything just let us know.”

  “We may just take you up on that,” Emmett replied.

  “Name it,” Maddox said.

  “Looks like I’m going to need a little time off…”

  “You’re going after them? Emmett you know I can’t have you going vigilante.”

  “You may not have to. I have a plan. I’ll talk to you later.”

  After Emmett was off the phone, Skye looked up at him. She knew she could count on him. She took his hand and said, “Thank you.”

  Emmett returned her gaze. “Skye…” he began. But somehow he was unable to say what was on his mind.

  “What is it?” Skye asked.

  Emmett drew a breath and patted her hand. “I just…I’m just glad you’re alright.”

  “Oh,” she replied flatly. “Well thank you for your concern. Yes I think I will be up and around before long.” She thought about the previous night when she was on the brink of death; all the things she wanted to tell Emmett. She knew things were going to get worse before they got better, and she resolved not to have any regrets if the unthinkable happened. It’s funny how coming close to death makes you examine your priorities.

  “Emmett,” she said, “we may not be around a month from now. I just want you to know that I couldn’t have asked for a better man than you.”

  Emmett held her hand tighter as tears came to his eyes. “No matter what happens, I will be there for you. Skye you’re…”

  “I’m what?” she asked. The one true love of his life? His reason for living? The picture of his third grade teacher? Why doesn’t he just say it? His emotional incompetence was driving her crazy.

  “You’re…going to be fine,” he finally said.

  Skye fell back into her pillow. She reached over and pushed the button for the nurse. “Well this hardcore girlfriend needs some more morphine.”

  One Week Later

  Maddox was a master of balancing the political nature of his position with the ability to get the job done. He didn’t give Emmett time off. He was too valuable a resource for the Bureau to cut him loose at such a critical time. He simply assigned him to protective custody for the professor while she worked as field analyst on the case. He told Emmett his assignment was to keep her safe until they got to the bottom of this. And he was to coordinate with the operation to find the director of The Pact.

  Maddox assigned a team of agents to go undercover on a massive international investigation to find the head of the organization. The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 makes it illegal for foreign entities to engage in illicit activities involving the U.S. To help track down these crimes, the FBI employs dedicated foreign corruption squads across the country by working with foreign law enforcement agencies. It was a brilliant move for Maddox to employ the foreign corruption squad to find the head of The Pact. And it gave the professor exactly what she wanted: the resources to do what she does best.

  Skye took Emmett back to Dunbar Castle. She told him there was something in that cave she thought might help them find the director. Emmett knew better than to question her.

  They scaled the cliff by the sea and entered the cave where they’d kissed months before. “Remember this place?” Skye asked as they walked into the cave.

  “How could I forget?” Emmett replied.

  “Yeah, well you can just keep your lips to yourself today, hot rod. We’ve got a job to do.”

  “You know what they say about business and pleasure,” Emmett said.

  “No,” Skye muttered softly as she stepped over the jagged rocks and shined her light at the inscriptions on the wall. “What do they say?” She was focused on the carvings more than the conversation. She handed Emmett the light and retrieved a notepad.

  “Well,” Emmett continued as he performed his duty as holder of the light, “they go very nicely together…”

  Skye settled in and started studying. She took copious notes, going back and forth between her notepad and the wall. “Is that so?” she replied after quite some time, not taking her attention from her work.

  “Yes,” Emmett said, watching her. “Some say they even complement each other.”

  “I see…” Skye worked for several more minutes before putting her pen down and turning to Emmett. “This is just what I suspected,” she said. “When we came here before, I noticed the Pictish inscriptions on this wall. Scholars have simply concluded that the cave was inhabited by Picts before the castle was built, in the Pictish period. But that doesn’t make sense. This is too far south for a Pict settlement.”

  “So how did the writing get here?” Emmett asked.

  “It was The Pact, or their predecessors. This text ment
ions people and events from the Holy Roman Empire during tenth century. Look here: the coronation of Otto I by Pope John XII.”

  “The Picts wouldn’t have been interested in things happening on the continent,” Emmett observed.

  “Correct. But these Picts were. Who were these Picts and what were they doing here? I believe by the tenth century this breakoff group already had a secret society flourishing. They must have had outposts all over Europe. Dunbar Castle was one of the strongest holds on the island at the time. Being such an important center of power, it would have attracted the attention of The Pact. One of them was probably advising the lord of this castle from the beginning, perhaps even down to the time of Black Agnes.”

  “Ok, so they were here. How does that help us?” Emmett asked.

  “An excellent question,” Skye replied. “There’s not a lot of information here, but look at this inscription over here. This appears to be carved much later. It tells of a place they called the cave castle.”

  “Cave castle,” Emmett repeated. “What’s the significance of that?”

  “The Pact was probably corresponding between here and this cave castle. There are lots of castles in Europe. How many do you know of that were built in a cave? The uniqueness of the description should narrow down the list considerably.”

  Emmett pulled out his phone to do an internet search, but he had no signal. He went to the mouth of the cave to see if he could get service. As he looked out of the cave, he saw the shadow line from the top of the cliff in the sea water. There was someone up there. Dunbar Castle was not open to the public. Suddenly he realized he’d made a tactical error. Their position inside the cave was defensible, but it would be extremely difficult to scale the cliff and escape. They were trapped. He went back inside.

  “We’ve got a problem,” he said. “We were followed. It’s time to go. You got what you need?”

  Bad news didn’t surprise Skye anymore. She packed up her things.

  “Didn’t you say this cave was used to smuggle supplies into the castle during the siege?” Emmett asked.