Bacchus groaned. The Hoods howled, the sound rasping on Bodie’s nerves like a cheese grater. The sword was lying at his knees along with two of the Grand Master’s fingers.
Bodie brought up his own gun, but Adelaide threw her knife at him. The blade struck his arm, drawing blood. Bodie sighted on her but hesitated when she ignored him and ran straight at Bacchus. Cronos too broke away from Yasmine, and Discord left Cassidy. Together, the three High Minervals went to stand before their master, protecting him.
“Do not come any closer,” Bacchus said.
Bodie was done with it all. With the Illuminati, with this horrendous black mass, with this infernal vision of Hades and all the devil-worshipping crap. And, just as powerfully, he was done with chasing all over the globe to stop these madmen harnessing some kind of terrible power.
“Come closer?” he said. “How’s this for coming closer?”
He ran and then jumped, drop-kicking Cronos in his already wounded shoulder. The High Minerval shrieked and staggered back, unable to help himself. He struck Bacchus, the two becoming intertwined. Adelaide and Discord reached for their brethren, grabbing hold of each other, but only succeeding in being drawn inexorably into the tumble.
As one writhing black, masked creature, indistinguishable as human, they fell screaming into the great void.
Bodie was stunned but managed to force his legs to carry him to the very edge of the platform. He stared down, all the way into a seemingly bottomless pit behind the giant stage. There was no sign of Bacchus, Adelaide, Cronos or Discord. They had fallen into the pit of Hades.
“Is that the gate of Hell?” Cassidy asked.
“Their version, maybe,” Bodie said. “In truth, it was anywhere they chose to roam.”
“But what did he mean?” Yasmine asked. “‘The Great Dragon is here.’”
“The man’s a deranged—” Bodie began.
“No, he’s right,” Lucie said. “It’s what I was trying to tell you. The Great Dragon is already here. Look.”
Bodie couldn’t quell a shiver of fear. It wasn’t plausible, it wasn’t real, but the unshakeable faith of the Illuminati, the terrible sacrifice of their leaders, and the thick almost palpable stench of blood and murder in the air, gave him pause.
He followed Lucie’s gesture.
His eyes swept up... up and up.
It filled the whole rear of the giant cavern, rising from the top of the platform to the height of the ceiling. Lucie was pointing at the enormous slab of gold.
“That’s the Great Dragon? Their weapon?” Cassidy asked.
“The riches. The reward,” Lucie said. “An embodiment of their master. A wedge of solid gold the like of which we’ve never seen. So vast, it would make any nation—no matter who you are—among the wealthiest on the planet. You could hold this slab over rich nations by threatening to gift it to someone like Iran or North Korea for favors granted later. Or you could charge wealthy nations more than a $100 million a month not to give it to poorer nations, and get carte blanche to do whatever you wanted, or else you could give it away for special treatment down the line. It’s the most terrible of bargaining chips, an apocalyptic threat, a political prize. The endgame of all endgames.
“Don’t forget the Ishtari were the highest of political players; they’ve always been at the heart of anything political—and still are. These are the greatest weapons of the Great Dragon we see here. You know them already—the seven sins. Greed being the strongest, but this will feed all seven: pride, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath and sloth too. Believe in the Devil or not, whatever emotion, passion or reaction you have to this slab of gold, it will feed the worst side of you.”
Bodie glimpsed what she was getting at. It didn’t matter who owned the gold—mere ownership itself would fuel their immoralities in the worst possible way. “It would also undermine the value of all existing gold investments around the world,” he said. “What is seen as the safest investment could be devalued overnight with this incredible find.”
“Bankrupting countries,” Jemma said. “Even democratically elected governments. Dictatorships. Corporations and hundreds of thousands of people, wealthy or semi-wealthy. It could lead to a new world order. Maybe even war.”
“Which puts us just one large gold deposit away from disaster,” Lucie said insightfully.
“But why sacrifice themselves?” Cassidy changed the subject.
“My guess?” Butcher said. “Because, in their minds, they won. They knew there was no escape. No surrender. This is what they’ve been working toward. You could call this great slab the Great Dragon itself—it has the same effect.”
“And Bacchus knew that the moment he saw it,” Lucie said. “I saw his reaction, the way he fell down in adulation. I didn’t understand the full significance of that until now.”
Bodie’s attention was diverted by events in the cavern. The soldiers had subdued all the Illuminati, capturing a few and killing most. All the injured were being carried to a central position where army medics chose who to treat.
Bodie fell to his knees. It was an odd victory. Lucie and Heidi were already down, nursing their wounds once more as the adrenalin faded. Pang came and knelt over Lucie, treating her wounds gently, his face as placid as Bodie had ever seen it.
Bodie moved toward Heidi and dropped down to her side, wincing again at the pain in his knee. “Take it easy,” he said. “Help is on its way.”
She held his gaze. “I thought I was about to die.”
“Not while I’m alive,” he said.
She reached up, cupping his face. “I still don’t know why you left me to go to Mexico.”
“Put simply,” he said. “Your own government would have used you to betray yourself. I couldn’t see that happen.”
He could see the understanding in her eyes, but not the forgiveness. She nodded, smiled and looked away. Another medic appeared at the top of the steps and approached to treat her. Bodie averted his eyes as the cloak was taken away to give the medic a better look at her wounds.
He was left at the top of the dais, facing the slab of gold and his colleagues. Bloodied, battered and weary, they nevertheless refused to give in.
“Well,” Cassidy said. “What happens next?”
Bodie chewed on his bottom lip. “We could take the fast route.” He nodded toward the bottomless pit.
“Not funny,” Cassidy said. “Mexico brought us to this very place right now. The question is—where do we go from here?”
Bodie watched as Pang rose from Lucie’s side. The CIA agent’s eyes locked on to them like a heat-seeking missile. To help keep everyone calm, Bodie beckoned him over as he would an old friend.
“This is unspeakable,” Pang said on reaching them. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Bodie nodded, looking out over the cavern where soldiers were still helping people down off their crosses.
“We put an end to it,” he said, “and saved hundreds of lives. Be proud of that.”
Pang nodded, staring at him. “And what do you think happens next?”
“Ah, straight to the point, I see. Are you gonna arrest us, clap us in irons? Here? After all you’ve seen?”
Pang’s face took on a tortured look. “That’s my job.”
“Company man,” Bodie said. “I know. But even you—even the CIA—could never have expected all this. Doesn’t this change things?”
Surprisingly, Pang nodded. “It does,” he said. “I’ve seen some horrible things, been ordered to do some pretty nasty stuff. But this... it defies belief. It puts the ordinary into perspective. The banal orders. In DC, this will be a rough report, an aside skimmed over by just a few. The whole focus will be on that thing...”
He pointed up at the slab of gold.
“To those in the know, it’s evil,” Cassidy said.
“I know. I can see that,” Pang replied. “It will twist and coil its way inside a hundred weak minds. A thousand. It really is a terrible weapon.”
“
It’ll change the world,” Lucie said. “Believe me, that slab will change the whole bloody world.”
“I do believe you,” Pang said. “And if I could, I’d leave it right here and blow up the whole damn mountain around it.”
Bodie narrowed his eyes as the possibility filled his heart with hope. “Is that possible? Would you really agree to something as drastic as that?”
“Blow up the mountain, the Great Dragon? Yeah, I guess. We could at least block every entrance under tons of rubble.”
Cassidy nodded toward the cavern. “And what about them?”
Pang frowned.
Bodie grasped the man’s shoulder. “They’re soldiers,” he said. “Like you. They take orders. They’ll do what’s necessary. And once the job’s done,” he shrugged, “who’s gonna greenlight an effort to uncover what’s inside here—given that it’ll only be corroborated by a bunch of devil-worshipping maniacs.”
Pang decided in an instant, nodding and turning away. Bodie and the others jumped to help, grabbing Heidi and Lucie and carrying them down the stone dais.
*
The next few hours passed in a blur of sweat and pain as they ferried, helped and carried the wounded to safety. The helicopters had landed and were prepped to evacuate the worst of the wounded. It was hot, hard work but it was one of the most rewarding things Bodie had ever done.
Because he knew that he’d helped save all those lives. To take down an apocalyptic threat and—maybe—to cover up something potentially worse.
Pang called in a story about hundreds of enemies holed up in the mountains, about men lost trying to capture them, about an irrational, well-armed enemy. Well-connected, he asked for fighter jets and, after some intense questioning, he got them. Nobody in Washington wanted to hear about a local heavily armed militia taking control of a tourist spot in Arizona. Pang’s clearance was high enough to convince his boss and then others at the highest level that something needed doing and quickly.
Bodie had to admit to a grudging respect that Pang was able to pull it off, but he only did so quietly and to himself.
They swooped in across the mountains, sonic booms rattling the air. Bodie and the others were standing at a safe distance, hidden by various hills and crouched at the foot of a row of boulders. The mountain with its new cave stood before them.
The relic hunters watched as missile after missile was launched at the cave. Some exploded inside, others around the entrance. The explosions were tremendous, shattering rock and shuddering through the ground. Entire faces of rock collapsed down the mountain, blocking the cave and the terrible things inside.
They were left staring at a smoking heap of stone, the mountain itself intact but any ingress effectively stoppered. Bodie frowned at the destruction, unable to fully ignore the loss of all that gold. At heart, he was a thief and always enjoyed the thought of something shiny dropping into his pocket, so long as it didn’t hurt any innocents. The slab of gold had tugged several nerves that he’d thought had been long buried and, judging by the looks on Cassidy’s and Jemma’s faces, had done the same to them.
Pang nodded in satisfaction as he radioed the all-clear to the jets. “Job done.”
“Perfect,” Bodie said. “So, what happens—”
“Turn around Bodie,” Pang said softly. “And you.” He nodded warily at Cassidy and Yasmine. “Do not try anything.”
He held a revolver loosely in one hand. Bodie hadn’t even seen him draw it. He’d been concentrating on the mountain. He sighed now, disappointed that Pang hadn’t been changed by his experience, more upset that they’d been ensnared once again by the CI-fucking-A.
Bodie linked his hands at his back. Pang came right behind him. The man’s voice was loud in his right ear. “See there?” He pointed.
Bodie followed his gesture. He was indicating a patch of ground to the right of the mountain where dozens of vehicles had brought the Illuminati men and women to their final place of worship. Vehicles that were now abandoned.
“When I’m not looking,” Pang said. “Find one that works well and use it. Do not let me see you again.”
Bodie’s heart leapt.
Cassidy smiled at Pang and whispered: “It’ll look more genuine if I can knock you out?”
Pang smiled back, a genuine smirk of humor. “Yeah,” he cracked. “Like that could ever happen.”
Bodie hurried to the gaggle of cars without looking back. Once there and when Cassidy and Yasmine had found a suitable vehicle, he turned and looked back to where Pang still stood.
He raised a hand in salute.
“We’re still gonna have to find Lucie after she’s healed,” Cassidy said. “And talk to Heidi.”
“I know,” Bodie said.
Pang waved back.
Together, they climbed into the car and drove away, leaving the smoking, newly entombed Hades in their rearview.
“Where to first?” Cassidy asked.
“I hear the Grand Canyon’s a good place to take a break,” Yasmine said. “And since we’re already here I can’t think of anywhere better for a bit of convalescence. How about we take some time?”
“Yes,” Bodie said. “That’s a bloody good idea.”
THE END
Here ends the second and final part of the Illuminati story. Since the Relic Hunters’ adventures started with the infamous secret society, I thought it only fitting to give them a good send off. I hope you enjoyed the full story over both books and are looking forward to something new for the Relic Hunters in 2022!
My next release should be November 2021, when Matt Drake returns in a story even more gripping and dangerous than the recent tenth anniversary novel (Theatre of War). Thanks for reading!
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Other Books by David Leadbeater:
The Matt Drake Series
A constantly evolving, action-packed romp based in the escapist action-adventure genre:
The Bones of Odin (Matt Drake #1)
The Blood King Conspiracy (Matt Drake #2)
The Gates of Hell (Matt Drake 3)
The Tomb of the Gods (Matt Drake #4)
Brothers in Arms (Matt Drake #5)
The Swords of Babylon (Matt Drake #6)
Blood Vengeance (Matt Drake #7)
Last Man Standing (Matt Drake #8)
The Plagues of Pandora (Matt Drake #9)
The Lost Kingdom (Matt Drake #10)
The Ghost Ships of Arizona (Matt Drake #11)
The Last Bazaar (Matt Drake #12)
The Edge of Armageddon (Matt Drake #13)
The Treasures of Saint Germain (Matt Drake #14)
Inca Kings (Matt Drake #15)
The Four Corners of the Earth (Matt Drake #16)
The Seven Seals of Egypt (Matt Drake #17)
Weapons of the Gods (Matt Drake #18)
The Blood King Legacy (Matt Drake #19)
Devil’s Island (Matt Drake #20)
The Fabergé Heist (Matt Drake #21)
Four Sacred Treasures (Matt Drake #22)
The Sea Rats (Matt Drake #23)
Blood King Takedown (Matt Drake #24)
Devil’s Junction (Matt Drake #25)
Voodoo soldiers (Matt Drake #26)
The Carnival of Curiosities (Matt Drake #27)
Theatre of War (Matt Drake #28)
The Alicia Myles Series
Aztec Gold (Alicia Myles #1)
Crusader’s Gold (Alicia Myles #2)
Caribbean Gold (Alicia Myles #3)
Chasing Gold (Alicia Myles #4)
Galleon’s Gold (Alicia Myles #5)
The Torsten Dahl Thriller Series
Stand Your Ground (Dahl Thriller #1)
The Relic Hunters Series
The Relic Hunters (Relic Hunters #1)
The Atlantis Cipher (Relic Hunter
s #2)
The Amber Secret (Relic Hunters #3)
The Hostage Diamond (Relic Hunters #4)
The Rocks of Albion (Relic Hunters #5)
The Illuminati Sanctum (Relic Hunters #6)
The Rogue Series
Rogue (Book One)
The Disavowed Series:
The Razor’s Edge (Disavowed #1)
In Harm’s Way (Disavowed #2)
Threat Level: Red (Disavowed #3)
The Chosen Few Series
Chosen (The Chosen Trilogy #1)
Guardians (The Chosen Trilogy #2)
Heroes (The Chosen Trilogy #3)
Short Stories
Walking with Ghosts (A short story)
A Whispering of Ghosts (A short story)
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The Illuminati Endgame (The Relic Hunters 7) Page 20