The Traitor's Gold, page 21
‘Then you have nothing new.’
Miura stiffened at the angry tone. He wanted this man’s job. No, he wanted something loftier. The boss sat in a windowless office, in a sweaty, dark basement, in a concrete-shrouded, funereal building in the heart of busy Paris. Miura wanted much more than that.
The man said, ‘You have an aptitude for this kind of thing. Show me.’
Miura knew he had more than an aptitude. He lived and breathed war and death. The weasel snapping at him couldn’t hope to comprehend how powerful and lofty Miura’s aspirations went.
‘We are under cover. We creep from place to place. This country, it is turning into a European cousin. Difficult to negotiate, to talk to people, to make them understand, even though we share similar ideals. I do not make excuses.’
‘Do you have another move?’
‘Yes, I am working on it.’
‘Do you need more men?’
‘No, that is good to report.’
‘I don’t care. I only care about results. Do you understand?’
‘Yes, and I will have them soon.’ Miura held his breath then, hoping the boss wouldn’t just summon him home and get someone else to take his place. That would sound a terrible death knell for his career. He thought briefly about his wife, visiting her sick mother in Paris, pregnant. Amelie would be feeling the pregnancy now. Miura wanted to be back for the birth. Again, was her pregnancy changing him?
The boss sighed down the line, seemingly at the end of his tether. ‘Captain,’ he said. ‘You have failed so far. On many levels. I should reassign you and your men, bring you back here in shame.’
Miura had expected this speech. He only hoped that he wasn’t about to be humiliated before his own men and reduced in rank.
‘Captain,’ the boss said again. ‘I will give you one more chance. Do not fail in this.’
‘I will not fail,’ Miura said.
‘You will stay in the country. You will perform the task we sent you to carry out. This relic – if the enemy find it, if they get away with video footage, it will humiliate the Shadow Kings. It will seem as though we cannot hold on to our treasures, that we are always a step behind. Do you understand me?’
‘Yes, sir, I do.’
‘You are one secret group with a plan. I would wholly recommend that you do not fail.’
Miura knew exactly what the boss was saying. ‘Thank you.’ Would the boss spring a trap now, cover him in shit, cut off his legs from under him? This was how they worked. They lulled you…and then they destroyed you.
‘You are on your last chance,’ the boss said.
Miura sought to put confidence in his voice. ‘I will not fail.’
‘Do not tarry. Make your next plan your best plan. You will find this ultimate source and make it work for you, for us. Understand? Do whatever you have to do.’
The boss signed off. Miura stood out in the sun for a while, thinking. Do whatever you have to do. It was a blanket command, free rein. It allowed him to kill indiscriminately, to commit mayhem and then just vanish like a black cloud in a dark sky. Miura would be unstoppable.
And the imbecile enemy would wish they’d never crossed him.
Miura climbed back into the car.
Chapter 33
Mason had sat in silence as Roxy stopped the Range Rover just up the road, allowed the rest of the team to climb in the back seats and the large rear compartment, and then taken off at speed. At first, she did not know where she was going, but then Sally suggested they simply return to the safe house.
It made sense, Mason thought. They didn’t want to take Kobayashi too far; they needed time and space to think. Kobayashi, listening to their conversation, agreed that the safe house was the right move.
‘Shut up,’ Roxy told him, tending to his wound.
But soon they had parked the broken vehicle some way up the winding hill, then walked back to the house with Kobayashi. It was getting on for six p.m. They scarfed down what few rations they had left, drank water and gathered in an upstairs room behind net curtains to hash out a plan. Mason sat on the floor and explained what little Kobayashi had told them about the three men who’d come to his door seven years ago, the bags of coins, the lost gambling den in the Gobi, the apparent location of the casino. As he spoke, it surprised him to hear Kobayashi interrupting.
‘You did save my life,’ the big man said, his tone incredulous. ‘I thought you were here to kill me, yet you were here to save me.’
Mason shrugged. He didn’t care about the criminal one way or the other.
‘The SED won’t stop hunting you,’ Sally told him.
‘Thank you,’ Kobayashi said, nodding, his flesh wobbling, his bald head catching the light as it dipped. ‘I have told you everything I was told about the coins and the location of the casino. But there is one thing I haven’t mentioned.’
Mason raised an expectant eyebrow. ‘There is?’
‘You never asked about the three men who came to visit me, the three men who really found the casino. Do you not want to know about them?’
Mason coughed. They’d been in a hurry. Was he expected to remember everything? ‘Anything you can tell us will be useful,’ he said.
‘They were treasure hunters, nothing more, nothing less. They wore dusty, torn clothes and had much facial hair,’ Kobayashi said with distaste. ‘Beards. Moustaches. They carried old guns and backpacks, from which they produced the coins. I believe they had far more than they gave me.’
‘Why?’ Quaid asked.
‘Because of the backpacks. They were all full, and through the gaps, I glimpsed more of the same bags. I believe they visited more collectors than just me. But that is not what I am saying. I dealt with one man, the leader. He was the only one that spoke to me at length.’
‘Can you describe him?’ Luciane asked. ‘Did you get a name?’
Kobayashi nodded. ‘The man’s name was Phoenix Basso, an American. He spoke a lot about the casino in the desert. I don’t think he understood the significance it may have to China. He was a tall man with long, wiry blond hair held up in a bun. The little finger on his left hand was missing. His teeth were yellow.’ Kobayashi pulled a face. ‘Blue eyes. A…what do you call it…a winning smile? The kind that makes you believe a man is trustworthy. And his manner, too. That came across the same. All three spoke in American accents.’
Mason could hardly believe Kobayashi had furnished them with such an excellent description of the leader of the treasure hunters. The man must be really grateful for his life. He spoke up. ‘As Sally said, they won’t stop coming after you. Go somewhere. Lie low for a while. Stay with someone you trust. Okay?’ He didn’t know why he was helping the criminal, but it felt like the right thing to do.
Kobayashi nodded. ‘I can do that.’
‘We’ll drive you somewhere when it gets darker,’ Roxy told him. ‘No point in pushing our luck.’
Kobayashi nodded and sat back, silent. Mason checked the time, saw that it was now seven o’clock in the evening. He thought about the directions the criminal had given them, from Dunhuang to the Mogao Caves and onward. He knew that Phoenix Basso had furnished him with those directions. He felt happiness, not elation. They had come a long way and now, despite knowing the casino’s location, he felt they still had a long way to go.
‘It would appear we’re headed to China,’ Quaid said. ‘Into the mouth of the dragon, as it were.’
Mason looked up at him. ‘How’re your contacts there?’
‘Practically non-existent, I’m afraid.’
‘Practically?’
‘I mean only that I have contacts who can help facilitate our entry. Direct flights. Travel visas, that kind of thing. In China itself…’ He shook his head.
‘A travel visa to China takes four days,’ Sally told them, researching. ‘Which is far too long. If the SED finds another way to locate that casino, they can be there almost immediately. Now, we’re hopefully several steps ahead of them because they don’t have Kobayashi’s information, I’d like to think. Let’s not waste that.’
‘How would you suggest we expedite a visa?’ Hassell asked.
‘Rush service. Express service,’ Sally said, tapping away. ‘It can be done. You can get same day service, actually, for a very reasonable thirty dollars.’
Sally set about the unenviable task of getting an L Visa, a Chinese tourist visa, for all of them. The process was interrupted when she found out they needed to present an itinerary for their trip, and hotel bookings, but she soon overcame that by booking them all several nights in the tourist city of Dunhuang.
With Sally wholly occupied, Mason and Hassell set about using their old car to drive Kobayashi further towards the centre of Osaka, letting the man out into the night and watching him walk off.
‘You think he’ll survive?’ Hassell asked.
‘He seems to be a survivor,’ Mason said. ‘But he’s a criminal. I hope that’s the last we see of Kobayashi.’
It wasn’t too late to pick up some takeaway food, a few bottles of alcohol and some bland clothes for everyone. Mason grabbed an assortment of jeans and T-shirts, checked the sizes (which he knew by heart), slapped several jackets on the pile, and bought socks and underwear. It was oddly surreal, shopping for everyone mere hours after being in one of the fights of his life. Actually, just shopping for Roxy and Sally and even Luciane was surreal. He didn’t know what to make of it, so he just stepped up and did it. It didn’t take long. There was no browsing, no sorting between garments. If a desired item fell before Mason’s nose, it was quickly scooped up and purchased.
‘Do we need suitcases?’ Hassell asked at one point.
‘Backpacks will have to do,’ Mason said. ‘Suitcases won’t all fit in the car.’
‘But all the clothes will wrinkle.’
Mason gave him a dead-eye smile. ‘Did you really just say that?’
Hassell looked suitably embarrassed and closed his mouth. Mason carried the bags back to the car, which was smelling wonderfully of takeaway food. They climbed in and drove back to the lay-by and then walked the few hundred yards to the house. Soon, they were inside and the others were crowding around for their takeaways.
‘Absolutely freakin’ starving.’ Roxy was first at the cartons and the chopsticks. ‘What have you got?’
‘Chicken, chicken and for an alternative – slightly burned chicken,’ Mason said.
‘Perfect.’
They sat and ate ravenously. Mason had over-ordered by far, but somehow they managed to polish off all the food. Hours had passed since Sally started her visa process and she was still at it, crossing all the Ts and dotting all the Is, but she paused for dinner, her mouth watering. They sat in the dark, on a carpet in the living room, eating their food.
Later, Mason broke out the alcohol, two bottles of Nihonshu rice wine, or sake for short. Since it was the most famous drink in Japan, Mason had thought, what the hell, and decided to partake. He had bought plastic cups too. When he put the sake to his lips, it tasted and smelled rather sweet. It was colourless and clear. Not sure at first taste, he swallowed some more. By the eighth or twelfth swallow, he was okay with it.
They sat around the darkened room, eating and drinking and wondering what tomorrow would bring. Mason, sitting beside Quaid, turned the conversation around to Luciane.
‘She seems capable,’ he said, wondering if the sake would loosen Quaid’s tongue.
‘Oh, believe me, she is,’ Quaid said. ‘Garda cop at heart. Always was and still is, in my opinion. When she sets her eyes on something, like this casino, there’s no stopping her. Unfortunately.’
‘You two know each other well, then.’
‘Once we were soulmates.’
‘Aren’t soulmates supposed to be together for ever? I thought Anya was your soulmate?’
‘That crazy person?’ Quaid laughed and then stopped, and Mason felt he was looking inward, evaluating his life.
‘Sorry,’ Mason said, taking another drink. ‘Didn’t mean to make you think too hard.’
‘No, you’re right, you’re right,’ Quaid said. ‘I have more than one soulmate. I was thinking…maybe it’s me who’s the problem.’
‘Do you make Anya crazy? Did you make Luciane leave?’
Quaid shrugged. ‘Probably.’
‘Then there you have it.’ Mason clinked plastic cups with the man. ‘Problem solved.’
They laughed. The darkness thickened, relieved only by the slivers of moonlight slanting in through the windows, and the faint glow of Sally’s laptop. Sally finally announced that she’d finished the visa application process and was just waiting for return emails. She’d applied for the fast-track documents. She sat back and relaxed, still toying with her food. Roxy offered her a drink, and she took it.
Quaid leaned closer to Mason. ‘With Anya,’ he said, ‘it’s the excitement, the danger, hell, even the arguments are fun. But with Luciane, it’s the passion she has for her projects, the love of entertainment, all the way to the way she calls me “honey” in that accent.’
‘Do you have other…soulmates?’ Mason ventured.
‘A few.’
Mason shook his head, wondering if Quaid was the ‘girl in every port’ kind of guy. He didn’t seem it. To Mason, it felt that Quaid was torn between the women, fighting inwardly with himself. Maybe he was just the kind that could never settle down. Perhaps it had something to do with being in the army.
‘The military spoils you,’ he said of his own experiences. ‘It offers you a home, a family, right until it rips it all away.’
Quaid thought for a moment and then said, ‘I couldn’t agree more. Kind of makes it hard to settle down afterwards, don’t you think?’
Mason nodded. Satisfied they’d put all that to rest, the two men fell into a slightly inebriated silence and listened to the others talk as the moon passed across their windows and the winds battered the glass. Mason had bought enough food so that they all managed seconds, but the alcohol didn’t last long. The conversation turned, centring on the SED and their leader, Miura, whom Luciane had encountered, and then the lost casino and the three Americans who had discovered it seven years ago. Finally, it turned to the Gobi Desert, and China, and what they might find tomorrow.
In Mason’s mind, there was no doubt the SED would have killed Luciane. That put them firmly on his shit list. It made him want to beat them at their own game, tear them down, defeat them utterly.
‘We’ll find that casino,’ he said. ‘Make it universally known that we found it, and cause some chaos around the archaeological world. The Shadow Kings should never have sent killers to protect a jewel.’
Sally looked over at him, grinning. Her face lit up. Archaeological discoveries were what she lived for, what they were basing their new careers on. This would be epic for them, put them even more firmly on the map and bring them bigger clients.
‘Roll on tomorrow,’ she said.
‘Are you ready to go find an ancient casino?’ Mason asked.
‘I’ve been ready for months,’ Luciane put in.
Sally nodded. ‘They can’t stop us. We’re a step ahead. I don’t see how the SED can beat us now.’
‘That was pretty close back at the compound,’ Roxy said with a shudder. ‘I came close to losing it at least twice.’
Mason wondered if she meant being hit by a bullet or losing it in her head. He didn’t ask out loud; the answer was private.
‘Did it build more barriers?’ he asked instead.
‘I’m there,’ she said.
He latched on to that, stared deeply into her eyes, suddenly rapt with attention. ‘Honestly?’
‘I think so,’ she said with meaning. ‘I think there’s a little of the woman I might have been coming through now.’
For Roxy, it was a revelation. For Mason, it was credibility, acceptance. It galvanised him and made him rise to his feet, walk over and give Roxy a hug.
‘I’m so glad to hear it,’ he said.
‘You and me both,’ Roxy said. ‘It’s a start, at least. And it clears the way for more angst and anguish to form.’
Mason shook his head. He knew she was joking, but the words bothered him. He’d never hoped to fully cure Roxy of her sorrows, but he liked to think he’d helped her get through the worst of them.
‘Like Sally said,’ he intoned. ‘Roll on tomorrow.’
Chapter 34
On the borders of the Gobi Desert in Central China lies the town of Dunhuang. It is ancient – with evidence of habitation as early as 2000 BC – and historic, and was once of military importance. The Great Wall stretched to Dunhuang, a string of garrisoned beacon towers extending into the desert. The very name, Dunhuang, means ‘blazing beacons’. Most famously, it was a major stop along the Silk Road, a centre of commerce. It is surrounded by mountain-high sand dunes, mysterious statues, ancient watchtowers, the Crescent Lake and a fierce heat that scours the land. Close by, the Mogao Caves, or the Caves of a Thousand Buddhas, can be found, 735 manmade grottoes formed for worship and meditation. The caves defy the transience of the desert, of the drifting dunes, showing permanency, their construction having spanned more than a thousand years, beginning in AD 366.
The Gobi Desert itself is well known for its enormous sand dunes, rising like immense tidal waves across its vast expanse. Winding between are camels carrying tourists on desert tours. The crescent-shaped lake oasis in Dunhuang is a spot of tropical beauty amid the fierce and unrelenting landscape.
Mason and his team landed at Dunhuang Mogao International Airport at night, negotiated its customs and exited the arrivals area. Sally had already told them that there was an airport commuter bus that ran three times a day, which took about twenty minutes to reach the city, but they needed to be more flexible than that. The other problem was that, with most of the tourist attractions not being downtown, the authorities had not developed the urban public transport system, thus leaving them only two modes of transport: buses and taxis.
