“Why did she do it?” Banyon pressed him as he brought up the gun.
“Don’t shoot,” Wilk yelled and put up his hands. “All right, I’ll tell you,” he confessed. “Three years ago when she went to the annual meeting of the Society of Orion, they told her she was about to lose her position. There were no talismans to protect except the Insight one. They said they weren’t going to fund her anymore. So, she cooked up this plan. She wanted her own private funding and the talismans.”
“And what has she promised you?” Banyon asked.
“I would become her assistant and have control of the money,” he replied in shame. “Later, I would become the head of the society.”
“She appealed to your greed,” Banyon said knowingly, he shook his head. “But did you know she also intended to kill both you and the professor today?” Wolf had told Banyon earlier that morning. She had discussed it when plotting with her six men.
“Oh, my God, you have to protect me,” he wailed.
“But I already told you she will be too late,” Banyon reminded him.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Josephine Wilk spied four women and one man hanging out near the entrance to the Arcades as she fast-walked down the sidewalk. She assumed they were waiting for the doors to open for the day. She and her men were all armed with pistols. Machine guns were too hard to hide, she reasoned, someone would notice them. Her goal was to eliminate everyone inside the building, grab the talismans, and the cell phone which belonged to her nephew. Then she would be back on top. She would have the talismans, the money and be rid of her pesky nephew.
As she neared the doorway, the tourists turned around. They all pointed guns at her men. A man and another woman crashed through the door pointing two more guns.
Josephine wasn’t too concerned. She knew Banyon had protection. “Let us through,” she demanded. “I’m here to see Colton Banyon.”
“Well, he doesn’t want to see you right now,” Loni replied with sarcasm. “You’ll have to wait your turn. Now, drop you weapons and put your hands up,” she ordered.
She dropped her gun, but two of her men didn’t. They raised their guns to fire. They realized most of their opponents were woman and charged. The fight was on.
***
Mandy peeked around the building and watched the mayhem. Her first impulse was to run and jump into it, but remembered Banyon had warned her to not let anyone come within twenty feet of her. “Damn,” she muttered to herself. She stomped her small foot on the ground.
She noticed Josephine had broken away from the group, she was running away. Mandy got ready to bolt, but pulled her gun instead. She came around the corner and took up a shooting stance. “Stop,” she yelled. “Put your hands on your head, drop to your knees.”
She could see the fright in Josephine’s eyes as she dropped to the ground, but also could see them narrow when she saw the cloth bag which draped Mandy’s shoulder with the Orion club sticking out. The woman got back to her feet and charged at Mandy.
“Oh, crap,” Mandy yelled out and turned to run. She quickly put distance between them. When she turned to take a peek, she saw Josephine was already winded. The long stay in the hospital had taken its toll. She dropped to the ground and struggled to breath. Mandy closed the gap while she kept her gun trained on the older woman. She then watched how the rest of the fight was going.
***
Steve leaped at the first man with a gun. He drove him to the ground in a bulldozer move. But, the man was strong and soon had Steve in a head lock. Steve was an accomplished fighter. He slammed his hands against the man’s ears. The man screamed, and let go to grab his head. Steve chopped him across the throat. The man immediately put his hands there and opened up his defenses. Steve pummeled him with several right and left hooks. The man dropped to the ground and stopped moving.
Eric went after the other man with a gun. He chopped down with his arm, the gun went flying. Before the man could react, Eric slammed his fist into his face. His nose erupted as the man went unconscious. Eric turned to help his wife, Pramilla. She was up against the red brick wall. Her attacker had her by the throat. He had lifted her off the ground. She desperately flailed her arms and legs, but couldn’t hit the man with enough force to do any damage. She was beginning to black out. Eric stepped behind the attacker. He ripped the man away from Pramilla with his own strangle hold. Eric was much bigger and more experienced than his opponent. He was out in a few seconds.
Meanwhile, Loni aggressively attacked another man. She whirled and twirled on her legs. She jabbed at him until the man began to tire. He began to stagger. She then hit him in the stomach which doubled him over. She kneed him in the face. He fell over like a tree.
Heather was not doing as well. Her long hair, for once, worked against her. The man who came after her had grabbed her hair. He threw her around like a rag doll. Her rear end still hurt from the fight at the hospital as well. She was at the mercy of her attacker. He grinned at her as he yanked on her hair causing her to flip over. He went to do it again, but a fist caught him in the mid-section. He lost all his air and let go of Heather. Another fist, from Steve, came from nowhere and clocked him alongside his head. He didn’t have time to recover as Heather stepped close. She kicked him between his legs.
The last man standing was trying to fight off both Previne and Maya. While they didn’t have any devastating power to knock him out, they were fast and well-trained. Wherever the man moved his hands to protect himself, one of the women punched or jabbed at the opening he left them. They also had scratched him badly, blood flowed from his face. His shins were on fire from all the leg kicks. Finally, he dropped to the ground, and raised his hands in surrender. The fight was over.
***
Mandy yelled. “Someone come and get this one, will you?”
Heather and Loni raced over and secured Josephine. They dragged her to the back of the creepy statues in front of the entrance to the Arcades. The rest of her men soon joined her. They were lined up in a row behind individual statures. No one could see the men from the front of the Arcades. Banyon’s team stood in front of them pretending to be tourists, although disheveled ones.
“What are you going to do to us?” Josephine asked.
“Nothing,” Pramilla replied.
“So, why are we tied up and sitting behind these statures?”
“We’re waiting.”
Chapter Thirty
It was a nervous fifteen minutes before Pramilla’s cell phone rang. “He’s here,” she exclaimed with relief. “I’ll go get him.” She immediately turned and walked to the parking lot. The Banyon team hid their guns. They milled around like they were studying the statues, but kept a careful eye on their captives.
After a few minutes, Pramilla came walking down the sidewalk with an older, portly, man dressed in a dark suit. He was clearly Asian. She reached the doorway and he opened it for her. They stepped inside.
“Ah-bo-jee,” Oh Sok screamed out in Korean. “These men have captured me. You need to kill them right now.”
“Shut up, son,” the man said in English, just as Pramilla had arranged.
“Welcome, General Sok,” Banyon said and bowed Asian style.
“Do you have our money,” General Sok asked flatly.
“The bank account and the password are right here in this phone,” Banyon explained as he handed it to the man. “Less our finder fee of thirty million dollars,” he added.
The general’s eyebrows went up. “I did not authorize this,” he said angrily.
“No, but your Supreme Leader did,” Pramilla reminded him.
The general said nothing for a few seconds. “I am taking my son and his bodyguards,” General Sok announced firmly. “I have a plane waiting.” He motioned to the three North Koreans and they stood up with their heads lowered in respect.
“This man here is responsible for the grave situation your son is in,” Banyon said as he pointed to Wilk.
“I see,” the ge
neral said as his eyes narrowed.
“And this one,” Banyon pointed to Professor Izaak Orlich. “This one was spying for your son, but planned to betray him and North Korea.”
Banyon’s plan suddenly unfolded for Wilk and Orlich. “You can’t do this,” Wilk screamed.
“Take them,” the general ordered the two North Korean bodyguards. He knew their loyalty was to their country first. “Put gags in their mouths. I don’t want to hear from them on the trip back to North Korea.”
“What will you do with us?” Wilk screamed before the guard could apply a gag.
“We will send you to the north country where we have a nice small work camp,” he explained. “You will enjoy the outdoor living for a long time — if you are lucky.”
“And we will never hear from you again,” Banyon added.
“I’ll take the box too,” the General announced and pointed.
“It’s not part of the deal,” Pramilla reminded him. “Besides, they are all just trinkets. There never were any real Orion weapons. It was all a hoax to steal your money.”
Wilk and Orlich were violently shaking their heads and screaming through their gags, but the bodyguards slapped them in the heads to shut them up.
“These men are con-artists,” Banyon told the general. “You can’t believe a word they say.”
“Perhaps we will cut their tongues out if they don’t shut up,” the general replied evilly.
He motioned with his arm and the men followed him out the door. He didn’t say thank you or goodbye. Pramilla went with them to make sure they reached the car waiting for them.
As they began walking up the sideway to the parking lot, Pramilla pressed her earplug and turned to look at the team. “Next,” she said.
Chapter Thirty-One
As soon as the North Koreans left the parking lot. Loni walked over to the captives. “Josephine, it’s your turn now,” Loni said amiably. “The rest of you are staying here for now,” she announced to the other captives. Eric untied her and walked her inside the Banyon Arcades. Once inside, Edgar left his post and took up a position outside the door to prevent anyone from entering. Eric stayed with Banyon.
Josephine stood passively behind the trunk, but there was anger in her eyes. “What do you want from me?” she asked.
“I want you to make everything right,” Banyon replied.
“And just how am I going to do that?” She answered with sarcasm.
“First, I want you to sit on the trunk,” Banyon said.
“And if I refuse?” She said. Eric roughly grabbed her and sat her on the trunk. He then took out two plastic cuffs and secured each of her arms to the handles.
Banyon stepped forward and placed a letter Loni had typed that morning under her thigh. “This will set things right,” he told her.
“What are you going to do with the Orion weapons?” She blurted out. Her eyes were wild and feral.
“I’m going to put them in a safe place, away from you.”
“Too many people know about the weapons. They will come after you,” Josephine threatened.
“I doubt that,” he answered. “You most certainly won’t be one of them.”
“What’s in the letter?”
“Ah, good question,” Banyon remarked. He pointed his finger to the ceiling. “The letter says a donation of some fake talismans is being made to the Banyon Arcades. They are for an exhibit to be placed right over there,” Banyon pointed. “Many people will come to tryout the chants, but of course, none will work. It will be a boom for the Arcades and will increase tourism. The letter says they were made from the descriptions in Jakub Banyon’s journal.”
“Why would I help you do that? It will expose me as the head of the society.”
“That doesn’t matter to you anymore.”
“But my name will be on the letter,” she argued.
“Oh, I forgot to mention, the donation is in my family’s name not yours. There is a packing slip from my office in America also in the envelope to prove they were sent from there recently. Also, you won’t be making the presentation. I have a man coming to make the donation. He will be here shortly.”
“Then, why am I cuffed to this stupid trunk?”
“Because you are going to present this letter to the police and they are going to arrest you.” Banyon placed another letter on her lap. “You won’t be cuffed then, of course. We have already passed additional evidence to them. The second letter contains your confession to several unsolved murders.”
“You can’t do this,” she screamed. “I won’t let you.”
“Oh, yes I can.”
“But I’m the head of an important organization!” she wailed.
“You are no longer going to be the head of the Society of Orion.”
“Who is then?”
“I am.”
“You can’t keep me quiet, Banyon. I’ll tell everyone about your gift,” she screamed her threat. “You’ll have plenty of trouble then.”
“Not if you don’t remember anything about me or the society,” Banyon said cheerfully. He motioned with his hand and the three Patel sisters moved in front of Josephine. They had entered the Arcades seconds earlier. He went out the door, Eric followed.
“We’re here to Freud-a-size you,” one explained. “Now look into my eyes.”
Chapter Thirty-Two
As soon as Banyon came out the door to the Arcades, he was greeted by Olaf Belinski. They shook hands like old friends.
“Were you able to get the fake journal published?” Banyon asked.
“It is in paper today,” Olaf responded.
“Good,” Banyon told him and slapped him on the back in a friendly gesture. “Are you ready for today?”
“Curator is friend. It will work.”
“I left the letter to the curator on the trunk,” Banyon explained. “All you have to do is say I had contacted you and wanted to help clear my family name, okay.”
“Okay,” Olaf agreed.
“Also, I put a hundred thousand dollar check in the envelope to start the exhibit.”
“You are good man, Mr. Banyon,” Olaf said.
“If you ever need anything, even more money, you call me,” Banyon placed his card in the big man’s hand. “And my name is Colt to you.”
Olaf hesitated. “You too generous already…Colt.” He shook Banyon’s hand again. He then went inside.
Banyon turned to Edgar. “Go ahead and let the people enter the Arcades,” he said as he looked at his watch. It read 10:52 a.m. The whole operation had taken just over an hour. Edgar opened the door. He and Banyon left, just as the shift of new guards and guides was coming around the corner. They moved quickly to the statues.
“Untie the mercenaries and chase them away,” Banyon yelled as he neared the creepy statues. The ferret explained in Polish that they were going to play a game. “I want to see which one of you could outrun a bullet.” None looked back as they ran for their lives.
“Let’s go home,” Banyon said cheerfully. “Our work is done here.”
Chapter Thirty-Three
An hour later, Banyon and his team members were seated in Pramilla’s borrowed private jet, winging back to America. The four Dewey & Beatem members were also on the plane. They had all checked out of the hotel in the morning and had placed their bags in the cars. They all agreed it best to get out of Warsaw before too many questions were asked. Pramilla promised to drop them all off in Chicago before returning to her aunt’s castle in India.
As usual, Banyon sat in the back of the plane in a comfortable chair. Pramilla and Previne were up in the cockpit. Maya, Eric, and Loni sat on couches near Banyon. Mandy, Steve, Heather, and Edgar sat in the front so the Banyon team could have a meeting.
Banyon was about to start, but noticed Previne and Pramilla gracefully walking to the back of the plane.
“Who’s piloting the plane?” he asked.
“Actually, it is on autopilot,” Pramilla replied. “But Mandy is sitting i
n the pilot seat. She is watching out for any trouble. She said she wants to learn more skills so she can better help the team in the future. How cute, huh?”
“The Dewy & Beatem people performed quite well, don’t you think?” Eric said.
“They did,” Banyon agreed.
“Well, let’s divide up the loot then,” Previne said as rubbed her hands together.
“I’ve already calculated the breakout,” Loni said. She had her computer on her lap, and was using an excel spreadsheet for the calculations. “Previne, if you can sell the diamonds for thirty million, each share should be worth about nine million, after the expenses.”
“That’s a pretty good salary for a few days’ work, “Pramilla offered.
“What about the Egyptian articles you found?” Previne asked.
“Maya is going to find the right person to return them to in Egypt. If we get a reward, we’ll just divide it up separately,” Banyon reported.
“And the talismans?” Previne asked anxiously.
“They are staying with Loni and me,” Banyon explained. “I have a place to keep them safe.”
“Pity, I wanted them to add to my collection,” Previne whined.
“Too much temptation for you I’m afraid,” Banyon said with a laugh. Everybody else nodded in agreement.
“So, are we done with the Orion weapons case?” Loni asked.
“I’m not sure,” Banyon answered. “Wolf and I will look into the other chapters. We may have to collect more of the weapons in the future. I’m going to plan a trip to Jerusalem in February.”
“Well, this chapter is closed. And this case is closed,” Loni announced.
“Is everybody in agreement?” Banyon asked.
“I’m good,” Eric replied. The rest of the team nodded their heads in approval.
“Do we have any other business to discuss?” Banyon asked.
The Polish Discovery: The Society of Orion 1-3 (Colton Banyon Mystery Book 17) Page 31