“He died during the siege of Savannah,” Banyon pointed out.
“And Kościuszko survived the revolution,” Wilk said. “When he returned to Europe, he created an uprising in Poland that was named after him, but was defeated and exiled himself back to America. He was banned from Poland. A price was put on his head. In his later years, he returned to Europe where he worked tirelessly to fight for freedom of Poles. On his deathbed in Switzerland, he passed the belt to Jakub Banyon. Your ancestor brought it back to us. That was when he started the journal.”
“Why?” Banyon asked.
“Kościuszko didn’t know how to make all the weapons work. The sash contained writing, and instructions on the back, but was very faded and in ancient Greek. Jakub decided that he needed to find out how each weapon worked and write it down for posterity. He was very analytical and detail oriented you know.”
Frustrated that his ancestor provided the catalyst for the world’s current crisis, Banyon asked a question. “When did it go missing?”
“Well, I wasn’t there, you understand,” Wilk quickly replied. “But, many people knew of The Magic Belt. It was a national treasure, so one of my predecessors decided to hide it in plain sight. In 1922 he donated it to the Warsaw Museum for safe keeping. And there it stayed until the despicable Nazis stole it in 1945, when they plundered the building.”
“So, do you think that it is still in the hands of a Nazi?” Loni quickly asked realizing that The Magic Belt could suddenly become their major priority.
“I have no idea,” Wilk offered.
“But you said that it had been activated recently. Can we see the hologram?” Banyon asked.
Wilk said nothing, but leaned forward in the chair. He said some words while he waved his hands over the Insight talisman. A picture quickly appeared, Banyon moved in to look at it. Loni was already staring at the hologram in disbelief.
“She looks awful familiar, Colt,” Loni exclaimed. Banyon took a closer look. An attractive middle-aged woman stood in the hologram picture. She wore a pure white tunic with the belt wrapped around her slim waist. The talisman sparkled in the bring sunlight. An older farmer stood next to her. In the background of hedges and flowerbeds, a younger, very fit man was digging with a shovel. He looked familiar too.
Realization hit both of them at the same time. “It can’t be!” Loni all but screamed. The woman that they were staring at was very different than they remembered, but both were sure that she was Dr. Barbara Behl.
“She looks very sexy now,” Banyon remarked.
Dr. Behl, who went by many different names, had been one of Colton Banyon’s most formidable opponents. She had tried many times to seduce Loni. She had worked for Homeland Security, which gave her immense power, but was also part of a secret neo-Nazi organization called the Effort. When she realized the organization had turned on her, she defected. Banyon had helped her to start a new life on a farm. The last time that they saw her, she was grossly overweight with red spiked hair, and the attitude of a man.
“She’s had plastic surgery I think,” Banyon announced as he studied the image. “But I’m not wrong, that is her.”
“How did she get the belt?” Loni wondered out loud.
“And I wonder if she is back with the Effort,” Banyon said with concern. “They are a modern Nazi network.”
Chapter Nineteen
The little group continued to stare at the hologram, trying to understand what they were seeing. Dr. Behl didn’t appear to be threatening in the picture. She seemed to be making an offering. Her arms were extended, raised to the sky. Her head was tilted to the heavens. One talisman glowed. She looked like a Greek goddess.
“Can you tell which talisman she activated?” Loni quickly asked.
“Well, I’m not sure,” Wilk replied. “It looks like the third from the left side. That would make it the Love talisman.
“Why activate that one?” Loni inquired.
“That’s a good place to start,” Banyon said. “Tell us about that one.”
“Okay,” Wilk responded with a gulp and a bob of his Adam’s apple. “As you can see, it is round. It contains the peace symbol imbedded on its surface. The Love talisman is supposed to dissolve the aggressive tendency of people. It makes people want to make love, not war.”
“That’s not a weapon,” Loni laughed “I can do that with just the right look and a little wiggle.”
“You are probably right about that,” Wilk remarked sagely as he glanced at her crossed legs. “But remember, these talismans were made for Orion. He was quite the ladies’ man. He probably used it to bed some of them. It was a weapon to him.”
“There must be a reason why she activated that one, don’t you agree?” Banyon wondered out loud.
“Maybe she is trying to get in bed with a man.” Loni was always promoting sex whenever she could.
“Or maybe she is reaching out to us,” Banyon let out. “I think that she is attempting to call us to come to her,” Banyon reasoned as he rubbed his chin.
“But what does she want?” Loni continued along that tract. “Does she want to help or harm us? Is she back in the Effort?”
“We are going to find out,” Banyon replied with finality. “Tell us about the rest of the talismans, Wilk.”
He hesitated for just a second and took a deep breath. “The first one on the belt is called Determination. If the user is determined, they can shoot a fireball at anything,” Wilk rapidly noted and continued. “The one to the left of it is called Destiny. It allows the user to hear the thoughts of anyone within a room-size distance. Orion used this one to plan counter moves against his enemies during battle.”
“Slow down, Wilk,” Loni cried out. “I’m not a good note taker.”
Speaking more slowly now, Wilk continued. “The next one is Health and can heal any wound. Orion had many wounds from many battles,” Wilk waited for Loni to give him the keep going sign.
“Go ahead,” she soon said without looking up.
“The Addiction talisman makes people feel like an addict. They become paranoid, and sometimes careless. In that way, they would make many mistakes. Its effect is described as being drunk without feeling good about it.”
Loni realized that she was quickly filling up the chart on her pad. “Less description,” she demanded.
“And the remaining three?” Banyon impatiently asked.
“The next one allows the user to send directed sound waves at someone. The sound is so loud and piercing that the person would drop their weapons to cover their ears. That one is called Emotions.”
“It’s kind of like a woman screaming, then” Loni joked. It got her a hard look from Banyon.
“Orion used the next one to blind people with a very bright light. It is called Security,” Wilk said.
“And the final one?” Banyon knew that he had a lot of planning to do. He wanted to finish the recap.
“That one is called Relationships. It allows the user to turn into any animal that they choose. They could then attack or sneak up on an enemy.
“That’s an interesting one,” Loni noted.
“That’s all of them,” Wilk announced as he slumped down in the chair.
Loni finished writing her detailed notes. “None of these talismans scare me in the least,” she said.
“Well, there is something else to add to The Magic Belt arsenal,” Wilk said with his know-it-all attitude.
“What?” Loni asked as she searched the paper for more room to write.
“The Magic Belt was made to be used by one person or many people. When used by one person, it can be devastating,” Wilk added.
“How?” Loni quickly asked.
“A single person can activate one or all of the talismans at one time.”
“That would be problematic,” Loni agreed to save face.
***
Loni told Banyon she wanted to rewrite the chart. It would take a few minutes. She said that the words needed to be better organized. Loni wa
s not a good organizer. Banyon decided to forge ahead with his plan while they waited for her to recopy the notes.
“Loni and I are going to go back to the hotel to change clothes,” Banyon announced. He was really going to talk to Wolf, but Wilk didn’t need to know that fact. Banyon had a strange feeling. He didn’t want to reveal all his secrets about Wolf to Albin Wilk. Wilk knew that Wolf could find items, but didn’t seem to know how he did it. He also didn’t seem to know what else he could do. Banyon decided to keep those things to himself and Loni.
“What should I do?” Albin Wilk asked.
“You and the professor need to change clothes too. You are both part of the recovery team,” Banyon told him.
“But I’m no good in the field,” Wilk protested nervously.” I think I should stay here and coordinate the recoveries.”
“No,” Banyon roared and pointed his finger. “You created part of the problem. You are going to be part of the solution, got it.”
“But I don’t know what to do, or what to wear. I usually just dress in suits.”
“Wear some outdoor clothes. My guess is that some of the artifacts are nearby,” Banyon explained. “You’ll go after them. Have the professor dress that way too.”
“And we’ll meet back here?” Wilk said hopefully.
“Meet us in our suite at the hotel in three hours. It’ll take that long to make plans. You’ll get your first assignment then,” Banyon ordered.
“I’m very nervous about this,” Wilk uttered.
“Well,” Banyon replied. “Let’s keep you busy so you don’t have time to be nervous. While you are waiting for us to be ready with a plan, you need to find someone discrete who can read and write ancient Greek.”
“Ah, to discredit the journal,” Wilk replied knowingly.
“You also need to find a place where the weapons can be kept without fear of them ever getting loose again,” Banyon continued.
“But I already have a vault built,” Wilk said.
“I’m thinking more like a concrete slab under a building,” Banyon remarked. “We have to hide these weapons forever.”
“But what if Orion comes back?”
“We’ll face that issue when it happens.”
***
Loni soon finished her notes and dropped the pad on the coffee table. She leaped up to give Banyon a hug.
“This is so exciting,” she gushed. “I can’t wait for my assignments.”
Banyon looked her in the eyes. She was excited. It was one of the reasons that he loved her. She was always ready to commit, as long as Banyon was by her side.
They failed to notice Albin Wilk pull a phone from the inside pocket of his suit jacket. He took a picture of Loni’s chart.
“Come on Loni, let’s go,” Banyon said and went to the table to collect the chart. He folded it, and put it in the inside pocket of his suit. Then they headed for the door.
Part Three
The Changes
Chapter Twenty
They brushed past the three men in the hallway without saying a word and headed into the main body of the building. As they were leaving the Banyon Arcade a young female attendant put up her hand to stop them. Banyon wondered if this was another kidnapping or a shakedown or something else.
She asked Loni in clear English where she had purchased her punk-rock dress. Loni had forgotten that her dress was torn and dirty. The attendant had several pieces of jewelry attached to her ear lobes, a pierced nose, a huge amount of eye makeup, black lipstick, and a hair style that could only be described as frightening. Loni was flabbergasted. She didn’t know what to say. She stood with her mouth open, her anger rising.
“I bought it for her,” Banyon quickly said before Loni unloaded on the poor girl.
“Where?” the punk rocked asked
“I bought it in downtown Warsaw for too much money.”
“Way cool,” the attendant replied with admiration. Banyon just grinned, grabbed the astonished Loni, and headed for the door.
“Thanks for saving me, knight Banyon,” Loni sang out.
“You’re welcome fair maiden,” he retorted. They both were in surprisingly good moods despite the events of the past few hours. Loni started to skip to keep up with Banyon’s much longer strides.
“We’re off to see the wizard, the wonderful wizard of Wolf,” she sang out like a little girl.
“Why are you singing?” Banyon asked her.
“I have on my red shoes, didn’t you notice, oh great Oz,” she replied with a giggle and batted her eyelids at him.
“Your name isn’t Dorothy,” he replied gruffly.
“Do you want to talk about anything as we walk?” she suddenly asked.
“Not now,” he answered. “I’m thinking.”
When Loni had something on her mind, she never kept it back. “Something about Albin Wilk seems phony to me. Did you notice that he seemed to recall things from memory? He showed it in his eyes.”
“So?” Banyon said absently.
“You would think that someone who was head of the Society of Orion would have a book or journal to consult instead of his memory. And there are a lot of things that he didn’t seem to know.”
“Maybe he has the history of the society hidden somewhere else, and didn’t want to consult it,” Banyon said without thinking too hard.
“In any case,” Loni continued, “your ancestor, Jakub Banyon, seems to have created quite a mess.”
“Yeah, I know,” Banyon said. “On the one hand he was a hero for his country, and on the other hand his efforts could destroy the world.”
“You have a dubious heritage,” Loni let out.
***
“I’m hungry,” Loni announced after going silent for several blocks.
They decided to stop to eat at an outside café along the way back to the hotel. Since they didn’t know when they would eat again, it seemed like a good idea. They decided to order the lunch special which turned out to be kielbasa, cabbage, and potatoes. They both drank water with their meal.
“This is good,” Banyon commented as he devoured his food.
Loni picked up the sausage with her fork and held it out for him to see. “It reminds me of…” Banyon had a pretty good idea of what she was about to say and stopped her. He knew that she was stimulated because she saw something sexy in everything around her whenever she was excited.
“Don’t play with your food,” Banyon scolded her. “Just eat it, okay.”
***
A half hour later, Banyon slipped the key into the door of their suite. The first thing that Loni saw was a garment bag strategically placed on one of the couches. She made a beeline for it. She struggled to open the zipper.
“My new dress! Look, it’s sky-blue,” she gushed, and held it up for Banyon to see. “Wilk came through with his promise,” she exclaimed. She immediately went into the bedroom to try it on.
“That’s nice,” Banyon muttered, without even looking at it He was already gearing up for his conversation with Wolf. He was now in a much darker mood. He had a lot of ground to cover with the spirit. He began to disrobe, taking off his suit jacket, tie, shoes, and shirt, and eventually only had on pants. He then reached into his inside jacket pocket to pull out the chart which Loni had prepared. He tried to analyze it.
Suddenly, he heard a commotion and turned around. Loni stood leaning on the doorway in her new dress. She modeled it for him. It was open in the back. A small strap tied around her neck held it up. The dress conformed to her body and ended three inches above her knees. Wilk has good taste in fashion, Banyon suddenly thought.
“Do you like it?” she asked in a husky voice as she hip-swiveled towards him. She pressed herself against him.
“It looks marvelous on you,” he said with admiration.
“I can’t wear any underwear with it,” she whispered into his ear. Banyon was a disciplined man, but Loni always managed to get her way with him. His mood quickly improved as he now had other things on his mi
nd. He swept her up into his arms, and carried her back into the bedroom.
“Take me you romantic brute,” Loni cried out while acting like a damsel in distress.
“I’m doing this for Orion,” Banyon replied in stern tone.
***
Thirty minutes later, Banyon was back in the main room of the suite. He now wore a black golf shirt, dark jeans, and black athletic shoes. He was dressed for action. He was undecided on how to proceed, so he drifted to the small bar where he decided to make himself a drink. Up until three months ago, he had always preferred Stolichnaya vodka with tonic, but now he drank Belvedere vodka with tonic because a picture of the Belvedere residence was on the vodka bottle. Jakub Banyon had designed the building. He finished making his drink and saluted his ancestor just as Loni drifted into the room.
She wore her traditional skin-tight black leotards with a black turtleneck pull over. She wore little black slippers that were made for running. A small black fanny pack was strapped to her attractive hips. In the field she was both stealthy and very fast, and if someone caught up to her, she was also lethal to engage in battle. In her black outfit, she moved with the grace of a black panther.
“Have you decided which talisman to go after first? Who gets each assignment?” Loni asked with anticipation.
“This is going to be a huge task,” Banyon replied. “We certainly will use everyone from our team and several people from Dewey & Beatem. We may even have to solicit the help of the President,” he remarked.
“I vote against using the President,” Loni said as she pulled her hair into a ponytail. “He would want to keep the talismans for himself. We don’t want any of these weapons in the hands of a politician. They would surely use them for no good.”
“You’re probably right about that,” Banyon agreed.
“But now that you are a part owner of Dewey & Beatem, you should be able to get all the help that we need,” Loni argued.
The Polish Discovery: The Society of Orion 1-3 (Colton Banyon Mystery Book 17) Page 8