Arkana Archaeology Mystery Box Set 2

by N. S. Wikarski

  Inside he discovered cameras, a laser microphone, recording equipment and monocular spyglasses. Obviously, Hunt had been watching someone or possibly several people. When Joshua opened the shallow center drawer, it revealed photos of the subjects of that surveillance. Sitting down in the desk chair, he rifled through the images. The pictures were of a farmhouse in the suburbs and an old woman who presumably lived there. Those images held no meaning for the spymaster, but the next one did. It was a picture of his father’s youngest wife, Hannah, looking into the mailbox of that same farmhouse. She was almost unrecognizable with her make-up and cropped hair—both abominations in the eyes of the Nephilim. She was dressed in a skirt much too short for a modest consecrated bride to wear. Joshua’s eyes narrowed in disapproval. She had clearly embraced the ways of the Fallen and taken refuge with an old woman out in the countryside where she thought nobody would find her.

  The next photo showed her descending from a school bus. A school bus! As if the wearing apparel and customs of the Fallen weren’t bad enough, Hannah was imbibing the corrupt notions that passed for knowledge in their world. He was appalled. His father would be speechless with rage when he saw these images.

  There was one more picture beneath. It caused Joshua to gasp audibly. He always prided himself on maintaining his composure, but this image shocked him to the core. In the final photo, Hannah was kissing a boy—a youth of about her own age. They were standing beside an old car. As if her other sins weren’t bad enough, she had completely forgotten her marriage vows. How could she be so lost to heaven that she could forget being sealed to the diviner as his spouse for all eternity?

  Joshua leaned forward over the desk and rubbed his forehead. What did all of this mean? Hunt was plainly aware of the spot where she was hiding. Why hadn’t he given that information to the diviner? What game was he playing at? The spymaster briefly entertained the notion that Hunt might be blackmailing Hannah in exchange for keeping silent about her whereabouts. Then he dismissed the idea. The old woman in the first picture didn’t look prosperous enough to buy the Fallen man’s cooperation.

  He turned his attention to the computer screen. He needed to find out where this farmhouse was located. Opening a browser window, he checked the sites Hunt had visited last. The Fallen man had been looking up an address and map directions to find it. When Joshua checked a street view photo of the location, he knew he’d found the right house. He wrote down the address.

  Then he stood and paced around the room, considering how he might best use these facts to his own advantage. While the spymaster would certainly disclose what he’d found to his father, he might also be able to shake his father’s belief that this Fallen man could be trusted. If Hunt were out of the picture, Abraham would have no choice but to send Joshua on these mysterious missions with Daniel in order to protect him. Joshua would become even more central to the plans of the diviner. Perhaps, if he handled the situation correctly, he could eclipse Daniel entirely in his father’s affections. Then, who knew? The title of scion might yet be his.

  Chapter 35—Leroy and the Bandits

  Cassie and Griffin marked time fretfully in Padang City while the duplicate artifact was being fabricated. The minute it was ready, they headed back to Lugu Lake to rejoin Rou and Rabten’s twin brother Rinchen. It took several flights and a bus ride over winding mountain roads before they once more found themselves in Luoshui Village. Much to their surprise, Rou and Rinchen were waiting at the bus stop to meet them.

  “Hey, guys. What are you doing here?” the pythia asked.

  “No time to talk now.” Rou glanced nervously over her shoulder.

  In a low voice, Rinchen said, “I just got word from Maddie. Your friends arrived a couple of hours ago. They’ve got a Chinese Nephilim guide with them who knows the mountain roads, and he drove them here. That’s how they shaved a few hours off the travel time from Lijiang. Hunt phoned Metcalf to say they were going to check out the cave this afternoon. For all we know, they might already be on their way there.”

  “Holy cats!” Cassie exclaimed. “We need to get there first.”

  “Yes, we must find a boat right now!” Rou tore off toward the town dock, expecting the others to follow.

  “They aren’t staying in this village, are they?” Griffin scanned the surrounding hotels warily.

  “Nope,” Rinchen reassured him. “We caught a break. They’re at a place on the northeast shore.”

  The scrivener checked his watch. “Nearly three o’clock. Even though we took the early bus from Lijiang, it may not prove to be early enough.”

  “Hurry!” Rou was shouting and waving at them from the stern of a pig-trough boat. Its owner was untying the mooring line.

  The other three ran to catch up and climb aboard. Since the boat was long and narrow, only one person could fit on each bench. The boatman took the prow. Rou sat on the bench after him, followed by Cassie, Griffin, and Rinchen.

  In a few moments, they were en route to the cableway across the lake.

  Rou dug into her backpack and produced a set of binoculars. “I thought we would need these.” She immediately began scanning the opposite shore.

  Cassie turned to face Griffin. “Is it my imagination or did she get amazingly fluent in English since we’ve been gone?”

  The scrivener regarded their guide with a baffled air. “Her language skills do seem to have improved immensely.”

  The pythia called out, “Rou, your English is really good now.”

  The girl beamed at Cassie. “Rinchen said I have no need to be embarrassed. He told me my English is perfect.”

  “Did he indeed?” Griffin swiveled his head toward the Arkana agent.

  Rinchen blushed. “Well, it is,” he protested awkwardly. “She talks better than some American-born Asians I know.”

  Griffin shifted forward to whisper in Cassie’s ear. “Apparently, she only needed the proper encouragement to come out of her shell.”

  “Such as the brave young Arkana agent sent to protect her?” the pythia murmured archly.

  The two lapsed into amused silence.

  “Aiya!” Rou gasped.

  “What!” the other three demanded at once.

  She put down the binoculars. “Two men climbed into a boat across the lake. One is wearing a cowboy hat.”

  “That’s not so unusual around here,” Rinchen countered.

  “He is also wearing a denim jacket and a piece of string tied around his neck.”

  “You mean a bolo tie?” Cassie asked tensely.

  “Perhaps that is what you call it. See for yourself.” The girl pointed across the broad expanse of water toward a speck of a boat just leaving the dock.

  Cassie raised the field glasses, scanning the distance until she brought the object into focus. “Rats! It’s Daniel and his evil sidekick.”

  “Is anyone else with them?” Griffin asked.

  “Just the two of them and the boatman.”

  “We must go faster,” Rou muttered. She crept toward the prow to have a discussion in the local dialect with the man rowing their boat. It went on for several minutes.

  Cassie watched the boatman’s expression. He seemed mildly surprised and made protests, but eventually gave a nod of grudging consent.

  Rou moved back toward the others. “Rinchen, you row too.”

  The agent carefully balanced his weight as he stepped over Griffin and Cassie to change seats with Rou. The boatman handed him an oar. It took a few minutes for the two men to synchronize their movements, but soon their craft began to gain speed.

  “Too bad there’s not a second set of oars,” Griffin remarked. “I could have lent a hand as well.”

  “I promised the owner we would pay double to get across the lake fast,” Rou informed them. “At first, he said we are on vacation and should relax. Then I told him we are meeting friends at the Goddess Cave and must not be late.”

  Griffin’s startled expression mirrored
Cassie’s own surprise at Rou’s resourcefulness. The pythia said, “You really do think fast on your feet. Your grandfather was right.”

  The girl appeared not to have heard her. She’d reclaimed the binoculars and was keeping tabs on their enemies. After a few moments, she concluded, “I do not think they have seen us. They would need spy glasses for that.”

  The combined rowing power of the boatman and Rinchen allowed them to pull ahead of the other skiff. As a result, they arrived in Nisai Village first. The minute the boat touched the dock, they all clambered off while Rou handed the owner a wad of bills. They didn’t wait to receive his thanks as they dashed off toward the cableway.

  All the way up the mountain, they uneasily charted their enemies’ progress across the water. When they disembarked at the Buddhist temple, Rou used her binoculars to scan the area below.

  “They are on the chair lift now,” she reported.

  “We won’t have enough time!” Griffin exclaimed in dismay.

  “Guys, we have to try anyway. If they see that hole in the wall, we’re done for.” Cassie made a dash up the stairs to the cave entrance with the others following.

  ***

  Daniel trudged up the stone stairway leading to Gemu Goddess Cave.

  Ahead of him, Leroy Hunt was voicing a steady stream of complaints. “‘Kingdom of Women,’ my ass! There ain’t no truth in advertisin’. Where’s all the loose females who live in these parts? That’s what I’d like to know. Ever since I got here, I been waitin’ for a proposition to do the horizontal bop with somebody of the feminine persuasion. And I’m still waitin’!” He paused to curse under his breath and kick a rock out of his path. “And here’s another thing. It sure would be nice for a change to go on a junket that don’t wreck my boots.”

  “Shhh!” Daniel cautioned.

  “Look around, son. Ain’t nobody hereabouts for miles.”

  The scion paused to listen. “I don’t like this. I can’t help feeling that someone is watching us. Perhaps we should have brought Brother Yu along with us to the cave.”

  The cowboy swung around on the stairs to stare down at him. “Brother Yu drove us here. He’s got his orders to sit tight at the hotel and watch out for them three suspicious characters in case they’re followin’ us. That’s as much as he needs to know about this salvage operation. The less folks that know, the less I’ll have to kill later.”

  Daniel solemnly regarded his companion. “I wish I could believe you were joking.”

  The cowboy resumed his upward march. “It’s bad enough we had a third party drive us here at all.”

  “Do you really think you could have managed some of those hairpin curves yourself?” the scion challenged.

  “I reckon not,” the cowboy admitted. “Between loose gravel and switchback trails for hours on end, it was like to make a feller dizzy. All I can say is Yu better be keepin’ a sharp eye for them three thieves in case they’re down in the village.”

  Daniel, who hadn’t been listening closely to Hunt’s rant, paused in bafflement. “How am I supposed to do that when I’m up here on the mountain?”

  Hunt stopped cold, trying to process the question. Once more he turned toward Daniel. “Not you. I said Yu!”

  “What?”

  The cowboy rubbed the back of his neck in irritation. “Lord Almighty! This ain’t no time to play ‘Who’s on First.’”

  Daniel squinted up at him uncomprehendingly.

  “Never mind, son.” Hunt waved his arm wearily. “Tryin’ to explain would only give me a worse brain cramp than I already got.”

  The two climbed onward in silence until they reached the cave entrance. Once there, they paused just inside the doorway to catch their breaths. Without warning, a dark shape hurtled forward, attempting to dart between them and escape.

  Daniel was caught off guard, but Hunt’s reflexes were lightning-quick. He grabbed the runner by the shoulders.

  “Now hold on there. It ain’t polite to shove folks. Where I come from a body says, ‘Excuse me’ when they—” The rest of the sentence died in his throat.

  The light streaming in from the cave entrance revealed a face that Daniel knew all too well. “Great God in heaven!” he exclaimed.

  “Well, well.” Hunt chuckled and tightened his grip. “If it ain’t little Miss Cassie.”

  “Oh crap!” the female thief muttered.

  The cowboy drew one arm across her windpipe and pulled out his pistol with the other. Then he pressed the gun against her temple. “Brother Dan’l, would you kindly search this gal for bug zappers? I ain’t fallin’ for one of her tricks again.”

  The scion complied. “Sorry,” he whispered apologetically as he patted her down. He then made a thorough search of her backpack. “She isn’t carrying a stun gun, Mr. Hunt. No weapons of any kind.”

  “Gettin’ cocky, ain’t we?” the cowboy remarked to his captive. “You figure I’m so toothless that you don’t need to pack no heat? Pride surely goeth before a fall.”

  “You ought to know considering the number of times I’ve dropped you like a sack of dirt!” Cassie grumbled.

  Ignoring the comment, Hunt continued. “Where’s your friends? Blondie and the Limey.”

  “They’re not here. I’m working this job alone,” the young woman replied sullenly.

  “Now how come I got trouble believin’ that?” The cowboy’s tone was sarcastic.

  “I told you, I’m alone!”

  “No, she isn’t.” Another voice emerged from the shadows along the side wall of the cave.

  “Well, well. If it ain’t the Limey.” Hunt’s voice held a note of wonder. “This surely is my lucky day.”

  “The name is Griffin actually. Please do try to remember it in future.” Although he advanced forward a few feet, he took care to remain blanketed in shadow.

  “So, where’s Blondie?”

  “Otherwise occupied,” came the impassive reply. “Only two of us will be pummeling you today.”

  Daniel fancied he could see the glint of a gold object in the thief’s hand.

  “Let her go,” Griffin commanded.

  “Boy, I tell you what. If brains was leather, you ain’t got enough to make a saddle for a junebug. Can’t you see my gun pointed at her head?”

  Griffin allowed his hands to emerge briefly into the light. “And can’t you see my gun pointed at your artifact?”

  Daniel gasped.

  Hunt guffawed. “What you fixin’ to do? Kill it deader?”

  “I intend to kill your quest. Right here. Right now. Gold is a surprisingly soft metal. A bullet fired at close range will obliterate the inscription entirely.”

  “Mr. Hunt!” Daniel thundered, sounding very much like the diviner himself. “Lower your weapon this instant. Don’t you understand? We need the lettering on that artifact to find the Sage Stone. Without it, we’re finished.”

  The cowboy remained motionless, apparently judging whether he had a clear enough shot to dispatch the thief before the relic could be destroyed.

  “I’m prepared to offer you a trade,” Griffin continued. “You may have the artifact if you let Cassie go.”

  “Griffin, no!” she shouted. “We worked so hard to find it!”

  “Hush, love,” he replied softly. “It’s nothing compared to your life. Let them have it.”

  Daniel noticed the female thief’s eyebrows shoot upward in surprise, but she lapsed into silence.

  “Your terms are acceptable,” the scion concurred.

  “Like hell they are!” Hunt objected.

  “Mr. Hunt, if you refuse to obey me, be assured this will be the last job you ever do for the Nephilim.” Daniel’s voice contained a steely resolve that brooked no opposition.

  His words had a curious effect on the cowboy. For whatever reason, Hunt flinched as if he’d been struck. His hand wavered, and he lowered the gun.

  “Release my associate and give her your pistol,” Griffin
ordered, still keeping to the shadows so Hunt couldn’t get a bead on him.

  “I ain’t givin’ her the chance to shoot me with my own gun,” the cowboy protested.

  “Unlike you, Cassie and I aren’t murderers. We simply want your weapon to guarantee that you don’t shoot us in the back as we make our escape.”

  “Do as he says,” the scion ordered.

  Hunt remained frozen.

  “Now!”

  The cowboy grudgingly released his stranglehold on Cassie and handed her his gun.

  Griffin finally stepped into the light.

  Cassie retrieved her backpack and ran to stand beside him, taking care to keep the gun pointed at Hunt.

  “You’ll have to allow us twenty minutes’ head start,” Griffin told Daniel. “Agreed?”

  “You have my word,” the scion assented. “We won’t leave this place for twenty minutes.”

  Hunt snorted in disgust but held his tongue.

  Griffin handed Cassie the artifact and, with a look of deep regret, she brought it to Daniel. “What a waste,” she murmured dolefully.

  Giving the cowboy a wide berth, the two thieves scuttled out of the cave.

  “See you at the finish line,” Cassie called back before darting out of sight.

  Hunt made a move toward the entrance. “What you waitin’ for, boy?”

  Daniel hastily put the artifact on the ground and rushed forward to block his exit. “Didn’t you hear me promise them twenty minutes’ head start?”

  “I don’t recollect hearin’ no such thing. Feller stole my pistol, and I mean to get it back.” Hunt was on the point of shoving Daniel aside when a noise made him freeze in his tracks.

  Voices were approaching rapidly. It sounded like a heated conversation in Chinese between two people.

  The men exchanged baffled looks.

  “Must be tourists,” Hunt speculated.