by David Wood
“I’d better check on her.” Jade took a few steps toward her before Maddock laid a hand on her shoulder.
“No, let me. I’ve spent more time than you coming to grips with this stuff.” He hurried to Tam’s side and knelt down beside her. When she didn’t tell him to leave, he took her hand and gave it a squeeze. “It’s okay.”
“How is it okay? Everything I’ve believed all my life isn’t true. Adam and Eve were aliens? All the miracle stories are just advanced technology from another world? What does that mean for the world if there’s no more power of God to believe in? If it’s all a lie?”
“Never underestimate the power of denial.” At Tam’s angry frown, he hurried on. “Seriously, though. Some might lose faith, and many didn’t believe in the first place, but others will hold on. Heck, in some cases, it might even make their faith stronger. These crystals, they’re miracles. The Atlanteans harnessed their power, but where did that power come from? And maybe the Atlanteans did intervene in human history, but that doesn’t explain where humans come from or where Atlanteans come from, for that matter.”
“It’s not enough. An awful lot of people need to believe in the power of God, and in spite of all that we’ve seen, I need to believe it.”
Maddock hesitated. He’d lost his religion when his wife died, but honesty compelled him to go on. “You know Bones and I did some serious damage in Utah a few years back, but do you know what we found down there?”
Tam shook her head.
“It’s too long a story to tell you right now, but I promise you, it will restore your faith. Not only did we find treasures from out of the Old Testament, we experienced something that couldn’t be explained by crystals or advanced technology. It was miraculous.”
“I want to believe you,” Tam said.
“Ask Jade and Bones. We all saw it.”
“Ask me what?” Bones emerged from the hallway holding a pencil.
“Never you mind.” Tam composed herself in an instant and sprang to her feet. “What did you find out?”
“New York City. It’s hidden inside an Ellis Island tour boat.”
“How can you be sure he’s not lying?” Tam asked.
“Because, once he confessed, I cut the tips of his thumbs off just to make sure he kept his story straight.”
“You didn’t!” Jade gasped.
“Of course not, but he believed I would, so it amounted to the same thing. Besides, I don’t think he could have given so many specific details under duress. Willis hung back with him to do some fact checking, but I think we’ve got what we need to know.” He recounted the specifics of the Dominion’s plan, and Tam sent Greg back to the surface to report this new information.
“You think they’ll believe you this time?” Maddock asked.
“Oh yes. Issuing that public ultimatum had to be the stupidest thing the Dominion has ever done. Hadel must have thought he had the Revelation Machine in the bag. When that announcement came out, a lot of people started taking me seriously. They’ll come down on those operatives in New York like a hard rain.”
They took a minute to fill Bones in on their final discovery and on Maddock’s theory. Having long supported the theory that aliens intervened in the ancient world, Bones agreed with all of Maddock’s conclusions and proclaimed himself vindicated.
“From now on, Maddock, no more calling my theories ‘crackpot,’ okay?”
“No promises, Bones.”
“What I want to know,” Jade piped up, “is how you got Hadel to confess in the first place.”
“Easy. I gave him time to get nervous and then I asked Willis for a pencil, a light, and some flammable liquid. I was just messing with Hadel’s head, figuring I’d let his imagination run wild before I tried something less exotic, but Willis actually had a pencil on him. He said he’s taken up Sudoku.”
“And?” Jade asked.
“I showed Hadel how a pencil can be used to stretch open any orifice.” He illustrated by placing the pencil between the corners of his mouth. “And then,” he said around the pencil before spitting it out onto the floor, “I pulled out my Zippo, bent Hadel over, and pulled down his…”
“Okay, I get the picture.” Jade covered her ears and turned away, but not fast enough to hide her smile.
“What happens now?” Maddock asked Tam.
“We take the bishop and any of the operatives you left alive into custody for enhanced interrogation.”
“They can have my pencil if they need it,” Bones offered.
Tam rolled her eyes. “Our embassy is already negotiating for us to have unfettered access to this area for research purposes. As soon as Greg reports in, we’ll have men on the way to secure the site, just to be safe. That blast will have drawn attention. Right now, I imagine scientists all over the world are trying to figure out what in the hell happened. We need to clean this place out before there’s an international incident.”
“So there’s no way we could keep it a secret even if we wanted to,” Maddock said.
Tam shook her head.
“Like it or not, you’ve changed the world, boys. Let’s just hope it’s for the better.”
Chapter 51
“We’re going to need another keg!” Bones proclaimed as he handed Corey a cup of beer. “That’s the last of this one.”
Corey frowned at the mound of foam in his blue cup. “That’s all I get?”
“I’ll check the kitchen. Maddock hasn’t re-stocked his fridge, but I think Professor brought a cooler. It’s probably Bud Light or something else crappy.” Bones wobbled back inside and reappeared with a cheap Styrofoam cooler. “Perfect. A cheap cooler for cheap beer.”
“I happen to like Bud Light.” Professor sat with his feet propped up on the rail, gazing out at the Gulf. “Besides, I’m not a highly-paid government employee like you.”
“You will be if you take Tam’s offer.” Maddock turned a questioning look at Jade, who shrugged.
“I’m thinking about it, but it’s been a long time since I’ve had bullets flying in my direction. I’m not sure I want to go back.”
“Hey, if I can handle it, so can you.” Kasey had been out of the hospital for one day, and had foregone the beer due to the painkillers she was taking while she recovered from her wounds, but she’d managed to put away more ribs than Maddock would have thought possible for a woman of her size.
Maddock leaned against the rail and bathed in the warmth of the sun and the sounds of revelry. They’d spent the early part of the afternoon filling in Kasey and Avery on all that had transpired since they’d left for Mauritania. Kasey had bemoaned the injuries that put her out of action, while Avery took some consolation in finally having an adventure of her own to share with the others. Tam had already told them about the discovery of the Templar library, but Maddock and the others listened in rapt attention as if the story were brand new to them. By the time Tam arrived with a box of polo-style shirts embroidered with a Spartan helmet and the words “Myrmidon Squad” over the breast, they’d finished swapping stories. They shared a drink in Sofia’s memory, and then let the Dos Equis do its work.
Inside, Greg pounded out an Irish drinking song on his portable keyboard, while Willis, Tam, and Avery sang along. Where a kid from inner-city Detroit had learned an Irish song, Maddock had no idea, but the sound washed over him in a pleasant way and he allowed his mind to drift.
It had been a week since they’d uncovered the Atlantean mother city. Tam had shut down the Dominion’s plot to attack New York City before it got off the ground, and even managed to get Krueger back in one piece, if a bit worse for the wear. Meanwhile, the U.S. Government had pulled enough strings, or greased enough palms, to buy time for its researchers to go over the complex with a fine-tooth comb. Working around the clock, they’d removed everything they could—even the remains of the Atlanteans. Soon, they’d reveal their discovery to the rest of the world.
For what felt like the thousandth time, Maddock wondered how people would re
spond. Although most of the trappings of alien technology and all of the alien remains were gone, the star charts and engravings on the walls remained, as did the Revelation Machine. As expected, the world had taken notice of the massive blast of energy shooting up into the heavens, and the absurd claim by the American and Mauritanian governments that it was part of a joint experiment in solar energy, would soon be put to lie.
He supposed it didn’t matter. It was out of his hands now.
“I swear, you think longer and harder than any man I’ve ever known.”
Maddock was surprised to discover that he and Tam were now alone on the deck.
“Long and hard. That’s me.”
“That’s unworthy of you, Maddock.”
“You spend enough time around Bones, he starts rubbing off on you.” Maddock offered her a seat and then sat down next to her.
“I like your place. If we keep our headquarters here, I guess I’ll need to invest in some real-estate myself.” She smiled as a pair of seagulls drifted past them, floating on an updraft.
“I’m surprised the squad’s staying together now that we’ve shut down the Dominion.”
“We’ve shut down the Kingdom church, but there’s plenty still to do. And that’s only here in the States. Or have you forgotten your Heilig Herrschaft friends?”
Maddock frowned. He, in fact, hadn’t spared a thought for the German branch of the Dominion.
“On top of that,” Tam continued, “there are definitely elements in Italy, and we’ve got hints of them in a dozen other places. I’ll be chasing them down until I’m old and gray. Plus, there’s the Trident to investigate. Lord only knows what they’re about.”
“I’m never going to be free of my obligation to you, am I?”
“Baby, you can leave any time your conscience allows it.” Tam paused and ran a finger through the condensation on her cup of beer. “That’s not fair of me. You’ve more than repaid me for the help I gave you. If you want to be free, I won’t stand in your way.” She stood and moved to the rail, where she perched on the corner and turned her gaze on Maddock. “But I wish you’d stay, and that goes for the rest of your crew. Even Bones. We’ve got a good team here, and I want you to remain part of it. Not just for what you can do, but because you keep me honest. You challenge me without being insubordinate, and you make me think.”
“I thought I just pissed you off.”
Tam smiled and raised her beer. “Cheers.”
Maddock returned the salute. “I’ll think about it.”
“That’s all I ask.” Tam slid down off the rail and gave him a quick hug. “I think somebody else wants to talk to you.” She glanced to the doorway where Jade waited. “Tag. You’re it.”
Jade took up the spot Tam had occupied moments before. She sat there, chewing her lip and not quite meeting Maddock’s eye, while Maddock finished his beer and tossed the cup in a half-filled garbage bag at his feet.
“I don’t know the right way to say this,” Jade began, “so I’m going to dive in. Just don’t interrupt me, okay?”
Maddock nodded. He knew how Jade felt about being interrupted and it was never pretty.
“You don’t want to spend your life fighting the Dominion. You’re more than capable, but that’s not your passion. You’re a treasure hunter at heart. There’s nothing in the world you love more than finding a mystery from the past and solving it. And that’s what drives me, too. We’re perfect for each other. I love to dive and climb and I love archaeology, maybe more than you do. Yes, we drive each other crazy sometimes, and we even fight, but so what? That’s because we’re passionate. I’ll bet you never fight with Angel.”
Maddock was about to correct that misconception when he remembered he’d agreed not to interrupt.
“Let’s do it, Maddock. Let’s spend the rest of our lives solving mysteries and making discoveries. Someone else can dodge bullets. You’ve done your time.” She lapsed into silence, her eyes boring into his. After a suitable pause, he decided it was safe to talk.
“I can’t imagine how Bones would react if I broke up with Angel and brought you on to the crew.”
“That’s not a reason to stay with someone, and you know it. Besides, didn’t Bones just dump your sister? It would be awkward, but we’d get through it. It wouldn’t be the first time he and I were at loggerheads.”
Maddock didn’t have an answer. He couldn’t remember ever being so confused.
Jade came and knelt before him. She took his head in her hands and drew his face close to hers. The familiar scent of jasmine was strong in his nostrils and her eyes, deep dark pools, filled his vision.
“I know I’ve said it before,” she whispered, “but it’s time you started doing what you want instead of what you should.”
She kissed him softly and left him alone with his thoughts.
Epilogue
Angel drove her fist into the heavy bag, relishing the solid feel of a blow well struck. She bobbed, doubling her jabs, digging in hooks, and delivering crushing roundhouses and vicious spin kicks. She poured her anger into her workout, attacking as if it, and not Maddock, had wronged her.
Two days! It had been two days since Maddock, Bones, and the others returned from wherever the hell they’d been off to on their latest mission to save the world. Since then, all she’d gotten from Maddock were a couple of lame text messages. She wondered if Jade had been a part of the mission, but when she’d asked, Bones had pushed her off the phone, and Avery wasn’t picking up her phone. She’d taken that as a yes.
“Argh!” She slammed her elbow into the bag again and again, imagining Jade’s face and then Maddock’s. Tears welled in her eyes, and she knew she should take a break, but she was out of control. She continued to slam the bag until rough hands pulled her away.
“What the hell are you doing?” Javier, her striking coach, shouted. “What happened to your composure? Your discipline?” Though now in his sixties, Javier retained the strength and fire that fueled a successful boxing career in his younger days. “You are better than this.”
“I know.” Angel jerked away and headed for the locker room. “I’ve got a lot on my mind.”
“You’ve got a fight in one week!” Javier shouted. “Do you think you can clear your head by then, or are we wasting our time?”
Angel stripped her gloves off and gave him the finger with both hands. She didn’t bother with the doorknob, but kicked the door in instead. It wasn’t until she reached the shower that she let the tears flow. How had she messed things up so badly? She’d carried a torch for Maddock for years, and when she finally got him, she let jealousy get in the way. She deserved to lose him.
She turned the hot water all the way up and waited for it to get warm. One at a time, she removed her ankle braces, trunks, and tank top and flung them all against the wall as hard as she could. None was a satisfactory substitute for a heavy bag or someone’s face.
“Need somebody to wash your back?”
“Crap!” Though she still wore compression shorts and a sports bra, she snatched a towel and wrapped herself in it before turning back around. “Maddock! What the hell?”
His eyes, so like the sea on a stormy day, captivated her. She took an involuntary step toward him and then froze. There was something about the way he looked at her that didn’t seem quite right. His jaw was set, his posture rigid, and she saw a hint of uncertainty in his eyes that was so unlike him. He smiled, but it was a small, sad thing.
She wanted to run to him, to wrap her arms around him and cheer him up like she’d done so many times before, but she held back. “Why are you here?”
“Because I can’t get you to talk to me. Texts don’t count, especially the ones you’ve been sending.”
“I suppose that’s fair. So what do you want to talk about?” She wasn’t sure she wanted to know, but she supposed it was better this way. She steeled herself for the worst.
“I couldn’t do this over the phone.” Maddock took a deep breath. “I’ve
made some big decisions.”
End
PRIMITIVE: A Bones Bonebrake Adventure
By David Wood
Prologue
1575- Off the Coast of La Florida
The storm raged. The wind shrieked in a banshee wail. Lightning shredded the slate gray blanket of clouds that hung low over the churning sea. The San Amaro pitched and rolled, her heavily laden holds causing her to ride low in the water, the icy waves breaking again and again over her decks.
Miguel de Morales squinted against the chill wind and icy rain. The temperature had dropped precipitously since the storm that had been brewing all day finally broke with the fury of a thousand hells. He clutched the ship’s wheel, trying to keep her on a southeasterly course that would take them around the tip of La Florida and back out to the Atlantic.
“Captain, do you want me to take the wheel?” Dominic, his first mate, shouted to be heard above the howling wind. Rain streamed down his face like funeral tears and he staggered to maintain his footing on the tilting deck.
Morales shook his head. “The helm is mine until we get out of this storm.” He didn’t need to add if we get out at all.
“Very well.” Dominic turned to look out at the roiling waves. “I’ve never seen anything like this. Not even out in the ocean.”
Morales had to agree. This was, without a doubt, the worst storm at sea he’d ever encountered. He’d already ordered the sails be furled to prevent a broken mast or, worse, the ship capsizing. Now they were swept along by the wind and current, struggling to keep some control over the direction of their ship.
“What kind of storm can carry a ship this size along like a bobbing cork?” Dominic shouted.
Morales had no answer. The truth was, he was deathly afraid, but he could not let it show. He was the captain and, as such, must lead both in word and deed. If he feigned confidence, so might his crew.