Chaos

by Iris Johansen

  “Elders, heads of the village, chiefs. You can’t say the Berbers aren’t individualists. Gilroy tells me almost every Berber village he’s run across up here has its own particular council and titles. Akbar has its elders.” He added mockingly, “As well as its own thriving criminal element that sometime interacts with the elders for the greater good.” He helped her across the rough road to a large rock at the shoulder. “And interacts with almost anyone else for their own commercial good if the price is right. That’s why Gilroy chose Akbar to begin his search.”

  “Information? Then why didn’t Gilroy find out more about Jubaldar when you sent him here before?”

  “He would have, if they’d known anything. Gilroy is very good, speaks the language, knows the customs. But he came up with zeros when he tried. He was almost sure that no one in the village knew anything about Masenak and Jubaldar.” He smiled. “But that was months ago. Gilroy makes contacts wherever he goes, rather like you. He lays the groundwork and then finds ways to persuade people to bring him the answers he needs.”

  “If there’s time to do it.” She carefully sat down on the rock and kept her back very straight so he wouldn’t realize the effort it took to remain upright. It hadn’t been only pain that she’d been having to fight but also the tension induced by that call from Masenak. “I’m beginning to think Jubaldar might not even exist. Screw the castle. Right now I’d settle for just having proof Sasha’s alive and somewhere, anywhere, in these mountains.”

  “Baldwin thought it existed and described it in detail under the influence of zantlatin.”

  “Except how to get to the damn place. I’d think that Gilroy could have nudged him a little more in that—”

  “Complaints. Complaints.” Gilroy was turning on his flashlight as he came around the curve of the road. “You’re being completely unfair, Alisa. It would have been like nudging a slug, with about as much brain power.” He shone the beam on her face. “But I’ll forgive you because you probably have a right to be crabby. You still look a bit pale and fragile. Though not as bad as you did when Korgan whisked you off to Geneva.”

  “I’m not fragile.”

  “But definitely bad-tempered.” He turned to Korgan. “It would probably be better if I talked to you. You might be bad-tempered, but I don’t have to worry about damaging your ego by accusing you of being fragile.” He was walking toward them. “And I really don’t have time for all this at the moment. I have to get back on the road.” He was pulling a piece of paper out of his pocket and unfolding it. “And no, this isn’t a map to Jubaldar. Even I’m not that good.” He pointed to two X’s on the map that appeared to be some distance apart. “Samlir and Kabada. Two villages that looked most promising to the elders. They’re both high in the mountains and cut off from the other Berber villages for most of the year. That’s why they didn’t know much about them.” He paused. “Except my contact, Roj Cazvar, whom I dealt with when I was up here before searching for Masenak. He’s a trader who travels through the mountains and brings supplies and goods to the tribes. At that time he said he didn’t know anything about Masenak, but I paid him to be on the lookout for anything I might find interesting and let me know. He might have come through for me this time. Again, no word about Masenak, but Cazvar says that both those villages are clearly barely able to eke out a living. Yet lately they seem to have a decent enough income to purchase his goods with practically no bargaining. But they’re very vague about where those funds come from. And nervous, very nervous. You’d think that they’d be bragging about any sudden influx of wealth.”

  “Unless they were told they’d get their throats cut if they talked too much,” Korgan said. “You think it’s worth exploring?”

  “I thought I’d head for Samlir after I leave you tonight. Cazvar is going to take me to meet a few friends he made among those villagers thanks to your extreme generosity. One or two of them are on the village council. With a few more bribes, you can never tell where it will lead me.”

  Alisa was gazing at the map. “I’m going to go with you.”

  “Not possible,” Gilroy said. “You’d blow it for me. If you want to help, go check out the other village, Kabada, and see if it pans out.”

  Samlir seemed a much better prospect, but there was no way she’d chance blowing his mission. “Okay, as soon as Margaret gets here, we’ll head for this Kabada and see what we can find out.”

  “You’ll have to leave the Land Rover and be on foot for the last fifteen miles of the trip.”

  “What a terrible fate for someone as fragile as I am,” she said ironically. “Perhaps if I ask nicely, Korgan can help me make it through.”

  “I might,” Korgan said. “But only if you stop baiting Gilroy. I realize you’ve gone through a lot today, but he did a good job getting that info and he can’t help it if you’re feeling weak and frustrated and want to strike out.”

  “You’re defending me?” Gilroy murmured.

  “Don’t let it go to your head,” Korgan said. “Everyone does a good job occasionally. And I’m really feeling like we’re kindred spirits at the moment. I’ve been stepping back and watching her try to be Wonder Woman for the past three days and it’s beginning to piss me off.” He looked at her. “So admit that through no mistake you made, you’re not physically perfect at the moment, and let me help you now and then.”

  “I don’t need your help.” She added jerkily, “And you’re wrong. You screwed up with those calculations, but I did make mistakes. If I’d been more alert and not distracted, I’d have seen Masenak in that tent behind us. He should never have been able to put me down and take Sasha.”

  Korgan cursed beneath his breath. “I should have known you’d be going down that road as soon as you started thinking about it. But this time I can’t let you do it. No one is responsible but me. I promised you a positive outcome and I didn’t give it to you.” He glanced back at Gilroy. “And you did give her as positive an outcome as she’s going to get for the time being, and she knows it. She told me she thinks you’ve been terrific as far as Sasha is concerned. She might even be swallowing that bullshit you hand out to all and sundry.”

  “I don’t need you to interpret for me, Korgan.” Alisa turned toward Gilroy. “And if that’s an apology, I’ll make my own.” She paused and then said stiffly, “Which I might be doing now. Sometimes I’m a little impatient.” She hesitated. “And scared. It makes me say things that I…” She stopped. “Thank you for what you’ve done so far. I’ll be grateful with my whole heart for anything else you can do for Sasha.”

  “It will be my pleasure, Alisa,” he said gently. “Take care of yourself. It was bad enough we let you get shot before. Sasha can be pretty fierce defending you. I don’t want her to go after me with daggers drawn if she believes I screwed up again.”

  “I’ll put in a good word with her.” She smiled at him and turned back to Korgan. “You see? I did it much better than you possibly could.”

  Gilroy nodded. “She’s right. It made me want to go to battle. You only handed me a weapon and a signed check, Korgan.” He added quickly, “Which I took with supreme gratitude, but there’s something to say for inspiration.” He turned away. “I’m out of here. When it comes time to ditch the Land Rover, you’ll find there are a lot of caves in these mountains where you can shelter. But keep an eye out for scorpions and snakes. I’ll be in touch.”

  She watched him walk away. Damn, she wanted to go with him and not wait here for Margaret. Gilroy was doing something constructive. He might be getting something done. She looked back down at the map Korgan was still holding. “What are we waiting for? Shouldn’t we get back on the road?”

  “If you like, until you admit that it would be better to wait until it gets lighter. Losing a few hours is better than driving off the mountain.” He held out his hand and pulled her to her feet. “It’s pitch dark and we’re not going to run into any cozily lit villages anywhere along the way. As Gilroy said, these Berbers are principally nomads
and live rough.”

  “We can try to get as far as we can,” she said quietly. “If it gets too bad, I won’t insist. It would be stupid of me to risk your life.”

  “Only your own? Because you think you made a mistake?”

  “That might be part of it. But it’s because I can’t bear it if I don’t do everything possible to keep her alive.” She added, “You know that, Korgan.”

  “Yes, I know that.” He was pulling her across the road toward the car. “Okay, I’ll leave it up to you. We’ll go as long and as far as you tell me go.” He smiled recklessly. “I won’t stop until you tell me to do it. I’m in this for the long haul.”

  She gazed at him uncertainly. “That’s not like you. You always want control.”

  “But tonight I’m yielding it to you. That means I’m going to have to trust you, aren’t I?” He opened her door. “I’ll even let you determine how fast I should go.” The next moment he was behind the wheel and turning on the headlights. “Because I do trust you. You’re smart and you won’t let me die out here because you’re in too much of a hurry.” He was pulling into what served as a center lane on the rocky road. “How fast, Alisa?”

  She frowned. “Are you daring me?”

  “No, I just want you to know that I’m totally at your disposal. That’s what you’ve been telling me since you came into my life. Now the roles are reversed, and I want to make certain you’re aware of it. I’m the one who put Sasha in danger. The sensible thing would be for us to work together to save her. But if that’s not the way you want it, then I’ll handle it however you do.” The headlights were spearing the darkness ahead, and she could see both the crumbling edge of the road and the darkness of the valley five hundred feet below. “I’m not playing chicken. I just want you to understand.”

  She was tempted to tell him to speed up just to see if he’d do it. But that would have been incredibly stupid. She could tell this was no bluff. He meant every word he’d said. So make the decision how to handle it.

  She only waited until he’d driven around the next bend in the road before she said, “Find us a place to park that won’t mean this Land Rover might end up crunched like a tin can in that valley below. We’ll crawl into our sleeping bags and nap in the back of the van until it gets light.”

  “If that’s what you want.”

  She didn’t say anything else until after they were settled in the back of the van fifteen minutes later. She was huddled in her sleeping bag on her side of the van, her gaze on the darkness outside the side window. “You’re crazy, you know. They call you this renaissance man, but you’re no da Vinci, you’re just plain crazy. Why?”

  “We have to trust each other. I won’t have you thinking you’re alone in this. You have to know there’s nothing I won’t do to make this right for you.”

  “You’ve said that before.”

  “But now I’ve taken one more step in making you believe me, haven’t I?”

  “Maybe.” She suddenly chuckled. “Or maybe I was just afraid that markets would come crashing down all over the world if I was responsible for Gabe Korgan biting the dust.”

  “Well, then you’ve prevented economic Armageddon. Feel proud of yourself.”

  “Crazy,” she repeated.

  “Hey, look, I know you’re impatient and what we’re doing seems slow and ineffective right now. But it’s not the only arrow to our bow. We have Reardon.”

  “What?”

  “Vogel isn’t only on standby to bring Margaret and her pooch here when she says the word. He’s monitoring the team hacking Reardon’s business and personal devices. Masenak might have been able to close us out at Jubaldar, but that doesn’t mean Reardon can. He’s smart and hired the best to maintain his cyber privacy, but he doesn’t have a mountain to run interference with signals. It took us over two years to break through his firewalls, but we finally did it. We’ve had a tap on Reardon’s phones for months, and if there are any calls between him and Masenak, we’ll know about it. If Reardon goes to see him, there’s a good chance we’ll be able to locate Jubaldar through him. Since Masenak is in trouble now, I’ll bet one of those leads will come through. Does that make you feel better?”

  It did make her feel a little more relieved. Of course Korgan would have taken this step to tighten the noose around Reardon. It would have been his first move after he’d begun to suspect collusion between him and Masenak.

  “I can see that being more promising than those Berber villagers.” Her gaze was still on the night sky beyond the window. She felt strangely safe here next to him in this cocoon on the mountain. His scent that seemed more comforting than sexual in this moment. The light sound of his breathing…She knew he was watching her intently but felt no threat. It wasn’t unusual for him to watch her. She had noticed he was always curious about people around him, and because of the circumstances she supposed he found her more interesting than most. He was just familiar and there, and for the first time since she’d opened her eyes this morning, the panic and fear began to subside. “I’d swear the sky is getting lighter in the east. Do you suppose that’s true?”

  “No, I think you just want it to be true. It won’t be light for another few hours. Close your eyes and try to sleep.”

  “You could be wrong.”

  “I wouldn’t dare to disagree after I swore I’d let you have your way in everything. But it’s only a little after two and it’s not likely.”

  “What time is dawn here?”

  “Around six A.M.”

  “Then I suppose you’re right.”

  “It happens sometimes.” He went still. “You’re suddenly stiff. Okay?”

  “No. Yes. I was just wondering what was happening to Sasha right now.” She added unsteadily, “What’s been happening for the last few days.”

  “Do you want to talk about it?”

  “No, it wouldn’t do any good. I’ve said what I have to say. I just have to trust that she’s well and that we’ll get to her soon.” She swallowed. “You’re right, I’ll close my eyes and go to sleep. In a few hours we’ll be able to start after her again.” She shut her eyes. “You said six, didn’t you?”

  “Yes.” His hand reached out and gently squeezed her good shoulder. “It will be here before you know it. Six A.M.”

  * * *

  Jubaldar

  6:14 A.M.

  “I didn’t expect the stable to be this busy.” Sasha’s gaze wandered over the dozen or so stable boys working in the horses’ stalls. They were all moving with almost frantic alacrity on the sharp orders of a tall, gray-haired man standing at the exterior stable doors at the end of the aisle. “Though I suppose I should have. You made it clear that the horses are the only thing important to you. Is it like this every morning?”

  “If it’s not, the stable help isn’t allowed to repeat their mistakes. Davidow has his orders to keep his staff efficient and productive. I decided it would be easier and safer for me not to bring any labor up here other than guards. Any other help comes from the villages near here, and it’s worked very well. Living is very hard for them here in the mountains, so I had my pick of men, boys, even a few women I thought might be trainable for entertainment. It didn’t take them long to learn that as long as they obey and keep their mouths shut, money would regularly be sent to their families. If they turned out to be troublemakers, they had unfortunate accidents in the stables or on the track and their bodies were returned to the villages. Davidow knows his job is on the line if I’m not pleased.”

  “Some of those boys are only teenagers,” she said bitterly. “What is it with you? Is dealing with adults too difficult for you? And if they grew up in the mountains, some of them probably know practically nothing about horses. Even if they wanted to please your trainer, they wouldn’t be able to do it.”

  “Some work out, some don’t.” He shrugged. “I admit, since I sent up the horses from St. Eldon’s, Davidow’s been having problems with keeping and training quality staff. But now that you’r
e here, I fully expect that might be resolved.”

  “And he’s supposed to keep me efficient and productive, too?”

  “He might try now and then, but he realizes you’re in a special category. Though I don’t deny he might be happy if you proved to be a failure. That would also make him look good in comparison.” He called out to the trainer, “Are you ready for us, Davidow?”

  “Of course, sir.” Davidow’s accent was British and his smile polite but forced. “We’ve been out here since three. As I told you, it’s a problem dealing with that stallion. Chaos is on the track and waiting for—”

  You’re here. It is good. You should not have left us.

  Zeus!

  She whirled toward the white Arabian stallion in the stall they were passing as she caught the thought. Memories and affection suddenly flowed through her as she saw this old friend of her childhood. Zeus had been one of the first horses Zeppo had bought for her and her father when she’d joined his act.

  I know I shouldn’t have done it, Zeus. I couldn’t help it. Stop staring at me like that. I know you don’t like this place. I can feel it. But I’m here now and I’ll take care of everything.

  “Sasha!” Masenak said sharply.

  “I’ll be right there,” she said over her shoulder as she moved toward Zeus. “I just ran across an old friend.” She was standing before Zeus and rubbing his muzzle.

  Zeus closed his eyes with pleasure, but he was still disapproving. You’re going to Chaos. You should stay here with me. He’s angry and will probably break you as he did that boy yesterday.

  He won’t break me.

  He almost broke you before. He was angrier than the rest of us when you left us this time. He’s young and doesn’t understand that breaking you would make you leave him forever.

  Then I’ll have to make him understand. She gave him a final pat. Stop worrying. We’ll all be together soon. She started back toward Masenak. I’ll see you later.

  Zeus was not convinced. He’ll break you.