A Dubious Artifact (A Colton Banyon Mystery Book 6)

by Gerald J Kubicki

  “Better use your machete,” Banyon warned. “Someone might hear a shot.”

  Just as the Ranger stepped over to the man on the ground and pulled his machete from the holster, the jungle came alive again.

  “More Japanese are coming,” Xin warned.

  “Shit,” Banyon yelled, he then went immediately into fighting mode. “You monks hide, Xin you go with them. Tom, set up a cross fire from the corner of the clearing. I’ll face them straight on to distract them.”

  “I’m staying, I can shot too,” Xin yelled.

  “Fine, take up a position near the water,” the Sarge ordered as he approached the Japanese commander and hit him with a roundhouse that snapped his head back. He was down and out.

  There wasn’t much cover, but they each quickly piled some branches in front of small bushes that they hid behind. It wasn’t for protection it was for deception, to draw the Japanese into the trap. It took less than a minute to prepare. They were ready.

  The first indication that the Japanese had arrived was the unified scream of “Bonzai”. It resonated throughout the woods. Banyon knew when the Japs were on a suicide mission, they yelled “Bonsai” and charged into the fight hoping to overwhelm their enemy by sheer numbers and win the battle.

  Suddenly, soldiers came pouring into the clearing, screaming at the top of their lungs. Banyon waited, hoping to trap them all. More infantry poured into the small area. There were now around twenty-five soldiers crammed into the pagoda area. He was just about to yell fire, when a shot rang out. It had come from Xin. Banyon, who was lying flat on the ground, was suddenly smothered by a falling body. The soldier was dead before he hit the ground. The Sarge didn’t have time to throw him off as the group of men in the clearing turned to Xin and began to charge the woman. They were fast and motivated, but she was faster. She turned and dove in one movement, directly into the middle of the stream.

  “Fire,” Banyon yelled.

  Tom let loose with a solid wall of bullets, catching many of the men with their backs turned as they hunted the woman in the stream. Six men went down immediately. The remaining Japanese turned towards the nearly defenseless Ranger, bringing up their guns to shoot at him. Cruickskank had little chance of surviving; he hid behind a small bush of green leaves.

  But that was when Banyon unleashed his Tommy gun. Ten more men went down. The bewildered soldiers now turned towards Banyon and charged. Tom’s gun had suddenly gone silent as the nine remaining Japanese raced across the short distance, intending to cut Banyon into little pieces. Banyon’s clip had run out and he had no time to reload. The Japs were only a few feet away. It looked bleak for Banyon. He prepared himself for hand to hand combat.

  His eye caught movement in the stream and suddenly Xin rose from the water like an aspiration, firing her gun from a two handed stance. The lead Jap went down causing three more men to stumble leaving six men left in the charge. Banyon jumped to his feet and drew his pistol and his machete. He fired with one hand and sliced with the other. Xin continued to fire until her gun was empty, as she waded out of the stream. Soon there were only four men left and they turned to flee the carnage.

  “They can’t escape,” Xin yelled. “They have seen me and know that you probably have the item. We must kill them.”

  “I’m trying,” Banyon replied.

  Xin grabbed a sword from one of the dead soldiers and went after the fleeing men. She was a much faster runner and sliced the calves of two men as she sprinted pass them. They went down, grabbing their legs. Banyon put a bullet into to each of them as he ran past them.

  They were now in the dense jungle. The two remaining soldiers were frantically attempting to put distance between themselves and the crazy woman who chased them. One man slipped on some moss and fell flat on his face, Xin sprinted right passed him, her strong legs pumping and a determined look on her face. The man thought that he had a reprieve as he stood up and watched her disappear into the jungle, but suddenly noticed the red hole in his chest. He died as Banyon whizzed past him.

  The jungle opened to a small meadow. This was where the last Japanese soldier decided to make his stand. He had his samurai sword as a defense. He started to unleash the powerful weapon, but it was already too late. Xin broken from the jungle and launched herself into the air feet first. She hit him square in the chest, knocking all the air from his lungs. At the same time her sword severed his right hand and the sword rolled away from the soldier.

  When, Banyon finally reached the meadow, he found Xin kneeling by the dying soldier patiently asking him questions. She looked up and smiled at him. Banyon walked over to her and promptly collapsed on the ground.

  When his eyes finally fluttered open, he saw her beautiful face hovering above him. “You nearly died,” she exclaimed. “I had to give you a new technique that we have developed called mouth to mouth recitation to bring you back. But you’re okay now.”

  “Sorry I missed that,” he seriously retorted.

  Without reservation, she suddenly leaned over and covered his mouth with hers. The kiss was like no other that he had ever had in his young life. Energy seemed to flow into his body. He gasped when she finally released him.

  “You are too sick to continue,” she stated as a matter-of-fact.

  “To do what?” he managed.

  “I wanted to reward you, but I must heal you instead.”

  “I have malaria and dysentery. You can’t heal that,” Banyon replied.

  “I know what diseases you have. Now ask me for the cure for dysentery.”

  “But...?”

  “Do it,” she demanded in a hard voice.

  “Okay, Xin do you have a cure for dysentery?”

  “As a matter-of-fact, I do,” she replied with a smile and produced a small hemp bag. She placed it in his hand. “Take it with some water from your canteen.”

  Within minutes he actually felt much better. He got to his feet and announced that they had to get back to the pagoda. The artifact was there and he needed to find out what happened to Tom. She shook her head in agreement and put her arm around him to help him walk. They then started off for the pagoda.

  As they slipped through the jungle Banyon’s head started to clear, his muscles seemed stronger and his need to go to the bathroom lessened. He suddenly had many questions.

  “Xin, I don’t understand a few things?” he started.

  “I’m not surprised,” she volunteered

  “Where did you get that medicine? I know that you had nothing on and no place to hide it just a few minutes ago.”

  “It is an old Chinese remedy. It does work,” she replied.

  “But where did you get it?”

  “You asked for it remember?” She was being evasive and Banyon knew it.

  Becoming a little annoyed, Banyon said, “That is not an answer.”

  “Okay, but don’t go crazy on me. It is because of this green jade ring,” she flashed him her right hand and showed him a beautiful craved jade ring.

  “I don’t understand?” he managed.

  “It has been in my family for many generations. It has powers.”

  “Come on, you’re kidding right,” Steve said disbelieving.

  “It’s a friendship ring. There are many in China. It was made so whoever wears the ring will identify a possible suitor for marriage. I fell in love with you the second that I saw you. That means that you must be an honorable man.”

  “You love me?” Banyon whispered with confusion.

  “Not only that, but the ring allows me to grant you almost anything that you ask for. That’s why I was able to produce the remedy.”

  “Do you have an orange?” Banyon quickly asked.

  “What’s an orange?” she replied.

  “How about an apple then, do you have an apple for me?”

  A juicy red apple was suddenly thrust into his face. “I don’t know how it works, but there’re many things that are unexplained in the world.”

  Banyon thought for a while
before saying, “but, I can’t marry anyone right now and another thing…? But, she cut him off.

  “It is a friendship ring. Friendship includes love. I have been in love before, silly. We aren’t going to get married. Besides I have many things to do before I settle down.”

  “What things?”

  “This war won’t last forever. The Japanese will surely lose and in China the communists will take over. I will leave and start a new life when that happens.”

  “But where will you go?”

  “I’ll go to America, of course, Hawaii to be specific. I want to raise a son and teach him all that I have learned. He will also get my ring.”

  Banyon’s head spun as he tried to assimilate all that Xin had said. His thoughts were interrupted as they entered the pagoda clearing and he surveyed the carnage. Banyon quickly went over to Tom and found him alive.

  “Damn Jap gave me a haircut,” Tom said as he showed Banyon the hole in his helmet and the crease in the top of his head. Banyon turned and noticed that the fat commander was dead. He was not far from the end of the clearing. He pointed at the soldier.

  “Tried to sneak off, so I killed him,” Tom said.

  “Well, while you were out, Xin and I killed about twenty Japs. She is quite a fighter,” Banyon said as he looked around for the girl. But she was gone. Banyon searched frantically for her, but she had slipped away.

  “She was certainly a looker,” Tom said.

  “Oh, she is much more than a pretty face,” Banyon countered.

  “Let’s look at that thing that she gave you,” Tom interrupted his search.

  Steve went and got his backpack and took out the cylinder. “It has many markings on the outside,” he noted.

  “Look inside,” Tom demanded. When Steve pulled off the top, he found two pouches crammed inside. He opened one and poured a handful of gems into his hand. “I don’t think that General Merrill needs to know about these, do you?” Tom said this as he slid the other pouch into his pocket.

  ***

  Tom and Steve made their way back to the American camp. It took them two days during which time they discussed what had happened. In the end, they both agreed that no one would believe them, so they made a pact to keep the secrets. When they arrived at camp, they requested a meeting with the commander and were surprised to find out that Merrill was no longer in charge. He had a second heart attack and, of course, malaria. He had been evacuated out of Burma. Merrill died soon after. The new commander accused them of being Missing in Action (MIA) on purpose and wanted to throw them in the brig. He knew nothing about a secret mission and was too busy planning the attacks on the city of Myitkyina to spend any more time with them. They were dismissed and returned to their squad with reprimands. Tom and Steve decided that they would keep the secret cylinder and the loot.

  It took a whole month to root out the almost five thousand Japanese soldiers from Myitkyina. Over thirty-six hundred died. The Merrill’s Marauders also faced heavy losses. Steve and Tom were in the fight until the end. On August 10th, 1944 the Marauders were consolidated into another regiment and both men were sent home along with their bounty. Steve weighted less than 70 pounds. Of the almost three thousand American men that marched into the Burma jungle, only 130 were fit to continue duty.

  They both returned to the states after the war and started new lives. Neither ever discussed what had happened in the dense Burma jungle.

  Part One

  The Prize

  Chapter One

  “Give me the damn papers, I’ll sign them,” Colton Banyon said to the man across from him. He was seething with anger. Banyon was in his lawyer’s office in downtown Chicago. The matter being discussed was distasteful, but necessary. He quickly signed the documents and pushed them back to his lawyer, Kim.

  “You’re doing the right thing,” Kim Denkewalter told him.

  “It just isn’t right,” the businessman Banyon replied, shaking his head in shame.

  “Look, the housing industry has been in a slump for several years now. There is not enough business to keep the company afloat. Since you established your holding company in Nevada, you personally will not lose any money. Only six people will lose their jobs and the debt will be erased. It is the best that we can do.”

  “Putting one of my companies in bankruptcy is repugnant to me. It says that I failed,” Banyon responded.

  Kim, his longtime friend and lawyer had never seen Colton Banyon so upset. “Look, you still have five other companies that are making money. That’s pretty good, considering the current economic climate.”

  “Can I at least give the people some severance pay?”

  “Not from company funds. If you want to give them anything, it has to come directly from you as a gift.”

  “That sucks,” Banyon lamented.

  “It’s the law,” replied his friend.

  “Okay, how do I do that legally?” Banyon asked with a degree of sarcasm.

  ***

  Two hours later, Colton Banyon headed for his home in the suburb of South Barrington, Illinois. He owned a sprawling ranch on two acres of prime land. His green Jaguar XJ8 knew the way. Banyon was too busy thinking to pay any attention to the scenery.

  It seemed so wrong to him. Just sign some papers and be free of all the debt built up by Ajax Fasteners, LLC. He had originally just wanted to take his own money and pay the debt, but his lawyer had talked him out of it. He said that it was foolish and unnecessary. Banyon had been both rich and poor before. He preferred rich, so he listened to Kim, but the whole procedure made him uncomfortable and angry. The deeper root of his anger actually had to do with what was happening in America. Suddenly, it was okay to lose. Not having a job was acceptable and everything you bought was from China. He worried about the future for his three sons. Banyon was retirement age and did have plenty of resources, but he worried about what their future would be like.

  As he rounded the corner and entered his street, his mood quickly improved. Parked haphazardly in the middle of his circular driveway he saw a tiny, red Porsche. It meant that Loni was home. He hoped that she was packing for the trip to their condo in Las Vegas. Loni usually packed and repacked her luggage at least three times per trip. It was the middle of the fall and like many other people, Banyon hated to winter in Chicago. He had bought the condo last year for a steal. Ironically they were able to buy it because of the poor housing market. In three days, they would be soaking up the desert sun until late spring in Nevada. Banyon also noticed a service truck parked by the side of the road, but paid little attention to it.

  He parked his car in the garage and entered the house through the kitchen. When he tossed his satchel up onto the dark granite countertop of the island in the kitchen, he saw that the mail was already there. Grabbing the pile, he noticed that one piece of mail was a certified letter. He guessed that Loni must have signed for it, but decided to open it later. Right now, he wanted to find Loni.

  “Hey babe, where are you?” he called out.

  “Be right there, but don’t come into the bedroom,” he heard her sweetly reply.

  “Why is there a man in there?” he joked.

  “Well, actually, yes, there is.”

  Banyon was distracted by the certified letter that he held in his hand and her response didn’t register for a few seconds. Suddenly, his head jerked up. “What did you say?”

  “It’s not what you think, Colt. But you still can’t come in yet.”

  “Elizabeth, are you here?” Banyon called out. Elizabeth was his longtime housekeeper. If anybody knew what was going on, she would. Banyon knew that she was incredibly nosey and a snoop. There was no reply.

  “I sent her home early,” Loni called from the closed door of the bedroom. “She is too nosey.”

  Banyon tapped the letter on his hand as he waited impatiently. He debated whether to open it or wait for later. Certified letters were almost always bad news. He had had more bad news then he wanted already today and it wasn’t even no
on yet.

  Finally, the door to the bedroom opened and Loni came bounding out. Her long, black hair was pulled back in a severe ponytail. It made her look like a teenager. Her lithe body was dressed in tiny white shorts and a navel-revealing green tee shirt. She could easily pass for twenty-five, but was considerably older. She bounced over to him, displaying unconcealed excitement and grabbed him in a big bear hug. Banyon was of average height, about six feet tall, but the top of her head only came up to his chin.

  “I was hoping that you would be late,” she exclaimed as she leaned back and targeted him with her clear dark eyes.

  “And why would you say that?” he asked.

  “Because I wasn’t ready for you,” she cryptically replied.

  Banyon suddenly noticed more movement by the bedroom door. A large young man came out of the bedroom carrying a bag of tools. He wore bib overalls and no shirt. His muscles bulged and Banyon could see a layer of sweat on his brow. He had been exerting himself. This only added to Banyon’s confusion and concern. Loni was well known to be impulsive and it had gotten them in considerable trouble in the past.

  As the man reached them, he said, “All cleaned up, miss.” He then looked at Banyon and said, “Lucky guy.” He didn’t slow down and turned down the hallway, making for the front door. Banyon noted the saying on the back of his overalls. It said, “Tom Taylor does it better”.

  “So… what is going on?” Banyon asked Loni.

  “You’ll see in a minute,” she promised, disengaging from him and heading back to the bedroom suite. “Don’t come until I call you.”

  Banyon was now intrigued. He looked at the letter in his hand and quickly tossed it on the granite island. He now stood with his arms crossed, wondering what she had done.