“I’ll believe it,” he responded without hesitation. “I used to think that Orion and the weapons were a myth, remember. Now I know better.”
“The most important…,” she began, but was immediately interrupted by Loni.
“Do you have a plan for tonight?” Loni, who was sitting in the corner quickly asked. “I am going to have to get ready soon. I need to dazzle Ahmad Fasi.”
“I’m working on one,” he replied dismissively.
But Loni continued, “I can’t wait to wear my new dress. Promise me that you’ll like it.”
Banyon thought for a second and then he pointed at Maya. “Hold off on discussing the prologue until Mandy and Steve get here.” He then turned to Loni. “I want you to quickly go and find them. I’m going to tell everyone all about the plan for tonight and I’m going to tell Steve and Mandy about Wolf too. It’s time I do that,” he said solemnly.
“What’s brought this on?” Loni asked as she leaped from her chair and went over to hug Banyon. She knew it was a big risk he was taking and a big step for him. She knew the more people who knew about him the higher the risk of exposure.
“I want to reduce some circles,” he responded.
“Huh?” Loni uttered not understanding.
“I’ll explain everything when the others get here. Now hurry while I tell Maya what we have learned about the weapons which Ahmad Fasi has brought with him to Ecuador. We need to neutralize them.
***
Soon the five of them were crowded inside the small office with the door closed. Banyon began to speak.
“We’re going to go over the plan for tonight, but first I want to tell Mandy and Steve a secret.”
“Oh, goodie,” Mandy bubbled out and clapped her hands. “What’s the secret, Colt?”
Banyon suddenly turned serious. “I know you have often wondered how I am able to accomplish tasks and find things so quickly. I’m going to tell you how I do it, but you must keep it a secret forever. Do you promise?”
“We do,” they both answered and nodded their heads solemnly.
“Okay,” Banyon managed to say. Some emotions were crowding his thinking. “I want you to know I trust both of you with this information.”
“We have been through a lot together,” Steve agreed. “We both are fully committed to what the Forever Ours team does. We would die rather than give up your secrets.”
“It’ll never come to that,” Banyon said reassuringly.
“It almost did,” Mandy replied. The room went deathly quiet. They had faced death recently in the Amazon jungle.
“I can speak to a spirit,” Banyon blurted out after a few seconds.
“Oh,” Mandy uttered and waved her small hand. “We already know that Colt.”
“What?” Banyon stammered. “How?” He was suddenly totally confused.
“Remember when Mandy and I were protecting The Magic Belt back in Wisconsin?” Steve started. “When it looked pretty bleak and we all thought we would die, Paul Reynolds told us about his wife, Marcy. He told us she was a spirit and could pass on information. He admitted there is a spirit named Wolf who was a friend of Marcy’s. He told us they lived in some in-between world. He said the spirit, Wolf, spoke to you on a regular basis.”
“So you’ve known about my powers for several days then,” Banyon said in a stunned voice. Loni and Maya just stood there with their mouths open.
“Heather knows too,” Mandy added. “We thought it was some kind of a test we had to pass by keeping your secret.”
“Wolf can you confirm that?” Banyon shouted out.
“It is true,” the spirit answered. “I chose to not tell you and heighten your anxiety at the time.”
Colton Banyon had always been pragmatic. Rather than dwell on the fact that he had been kept in the dark, he quickly accepted the truth and moved on. After all, he had eliminated one of the circles in his relationships.
“Okay, you’re now fully informed about my secrets. You should also know the Patel clan comes from a long line of shamans. They can place spells and curses. We have used some on occasion. Their grandfather, Abu Patel, was the one who set up the curse so I could talk to Wolf.”
Both Mandy and Steve looked at Maya. She nodded her head in agreement.
“I’m not surprised,” Mandy admitted. “Heather will be fascinated.”
“So let’s discuss the plan for tonight,” Steve said to break the tension.
“We’ll need to wait for a few minutes,” Banyon replied. “I called the Coles and they should be arriving soon for our planning meeting.”
“What should we tell them about everything?” Mandy asked.
“Nothing about our powers,” Banyon replied.
Chapter Thirteen
The planning meeting went smoothly. In the end, everyone understood their role. They were running out of time, so they never were able to discuss the codex. Some of the team went into town to buy the props and clothes they needed. Steve said he would collect the guns from the monks and also rent another car for Banyon to drive to the restaurant. Loni went to change into her new dress. Only Maya and Banyon remained in the office.
“When will we talk about the prologue of the Orion Codex?” Maya asked.
“Let’s wait until we are on the road tomorrow,” Banyon replied. “It will give us something to do on the way to the caves. I don’t want to face the squabbles that we had last time we went into the jungle.”
“Makes sense,” Maya replied. “I think I will call my sisters in India and tell them about your decision to tell the new people about Wolf.”
“I didn’t think about that,” Banyon admitted and felt guilty. He usually discussed every move with his team.
“You know, we only have ten more days before our aunt’s will become official and we will own the palace. Then Previne, Pramilla and Eric will be heading back to America along with baby Greg.”
“It’ll be good to see all of them again,” Banyon acknowledged brightly. “Oh, by the way, can you ask Previne to gather anything she can find about the ‘Metal Library’. Wolf knows nothing about it.”
“Will do,” she said sweetly. “I’ll have her call us tomorrow. Do you want to talk to any of them? I’m sure Previne would be excited to hear from you.”
“Ah, not now,” Banyon replied. He knew Previne would immediately start to aggressively flirt with him and he was in no mood for that right now. As if on cue, his phone rang. Maya noticed and left the room to make her call with an excuse to tell Previne why Banyon was not available.
“Dude,” Banyon heard in his ear. The call was from Timmy, the geek at Dewey & Beatem. Banyon had forgotten that he had instructed Timmy to call at 7:30 P.M.
“What have you got?” Banyon asked.
“A couple of things, man,” the bubbly young man responded. “Heather wanted me to tell you she will be there by the morning.”
“Good,” Banyon replied.
“But, get this dude, she has put me in charge of the office until she returns. What’s up with that?”
“Just keep things running, Timmy. This is an emergency. You can do it,” Banyon said as encouragement.
“She also told me to have the ferret shadowed. This is spy stuff, man,” the often paranoid hacker said.
“We don’t know what his involvement is in this case, but his name did pop up.”
“It will be done, oh wise one,” the geek replied.
“Did you find out anything about Ahmad Fasi?” Banyon asked to change the subject.
“Yeah,” Timmy gushed. “This guy has some serious juice.”
“Can you explain in a little more detail,” Banyon replied in a cheerful voice. Timmy often talked in a juvenile language shared by many geeks.
“He’s connected high-up in the government in Morocco. He’s a protected celebrity there. His company is called Finders, Inc. It funnels more money into the government there than any other company in Morocco. He is untouchable.”
“We’ll see,” Ba
nyon commented. “What does his company do?”
“They have a website in the Internet. From what I can gather, they search for old things in the ground. He has a very good record of finding things,” the geek explained.
“Did you find anything shady about him?” Banyon wanted some information which he could use during his dinner conversation with Ahmad Fasi.
“Tons,” Timmy responded. “He’s wanted internationally by several countries for smuggling. It seems that when he finds something it often goes missing and he always has an excuse that he was somewhere else and can prove it.” I know how he is doing that. He is using the Same weapon, Banyon thought.
“Anything else?”
“It seems he has branched out as an assassin and has been implicated in three murders so far. But he always has an alibi.”
“Good, that is exactly what I need,” Banyon replied. “Have you been able to check out where he lives?”
“Of course,” Timmy responded. “I’m looking at his palace right now.”
“How are you doing that?” Banyon was puzzled by his response.
“Well, I kind of hacked into some DoD satellites,” Timmy replied sheepishly.
“Tell me what you see,” Banyon asked ignoring the legality of Timmy’s hack.
“Well, it’s pretty huge. It has a moat around it and it looks like it could stand an attack by cannon fire. He has a ten man armed security force patrolling the perimeter twenty-four seven. It looks like this dude is hiding some serious stuff.”
“I wonder what he is hiding,” Banyon uttered.
“Why the sudden interest in this guy anyway?” Timmy asked curiously.
“Well,” Banyon responded. “I’ve never been to Morocco.”
***
Banyon gave Timmy some more instructions and then hung up the phone just as Loni glided into the room. She looked beautiful. She wore a brown designer dress which was open in the back and ended well above her knees. It showed off her attractive legs. She wore a necklace of white pearls and matching earrings which complimented her darker skin. She looked like she was going to a state dinner and not to catch a murderer. The brown satchel hung from her small waist.
“You look sensational Loni,” he gushed. “But I want you to pass the satchel to Steve for tonight. We don’t want to be caught with the weapons and Steve may have use for one of them.
“Oh, darn,” she said. “And I bought the dress in brown to compliment the satchel.”
Chapter Fourteen
As Colton Banyon and Loni Chen headed up the cobblestone walkway to the entrance for the Hotel Casa del Aguila, Banyon pressed his earpiece and spoke.
“Is everyone in position?” Banyon asked.
He got six positive responses. A smile crossed his still handsome face. Wolf had told him that his plan and the Arabs plan were in sync — for the moment.
Banyon had taken a quick military shower before they had left the inside of the mission. He was now dressed in black slacks, a white button-down shirt and a blue blazer. He decided to forgo a tie. After all they were in Ecuador and about to meet with a killer.
Loni’s high heels tapped their way across the marble lobby of the hotel as they proceeded to the small restaurant in the back. As soon as they entered, Banyon could see why Ahmad Fasi had chosen the cozy eatery. It was small with only ten square tables huddled very near to each other. There was only one waiter, one entrance and one exit.
There were men at four of the tables. They were hungrily stuffing food into their mouths. They were Fasi’s men Banyon knew and were seated purposely at three tables around a center table which Ahmad Fasi occupied. He was decked out in a splendid suit. One table only had one man. Banyon knew the sixth man was in a car just outside the entrance waiting to follow them when they left the restaurant.
Fasi noticed them and stood up as they neared the table. “Ah, I didn’t know you were bringing such a lovely companion with you Mr. Banyon,” he said gallantly.
“Yes, you should always travel internationally with a companion,” Banyon quickly introduced Loni. He replied as he nodded to the men around him. Fasi noticed and quickly said, “Just some of my workers. We’re going into the jungle in two days.”
“We just recently returned from the jungle,” Banyon offered.
“Oh, did you hear that they found the bodies of over twenty men killed by wild animals a few days ago,” Loni said in mock horror.
“I had not heard that,” Fasi admitted with a stammer as he assessed the veiled threat.
“You don’t appear to be someone who would do well in the jungle,” Banyon added. “You look more like someone who would be more comfortable in a desert — like say Morocco.”
Ahmad Fasi quickly understood that Banyon and his companion had done their homework. “I have traveled to jungles before,” he said defensively.
“Oh, you mean like the one in Angola?” Loni said with sarcasm in her voice.
Fasi was stunned by her comment. They know about my operation, he thought. I need to take control.
“Please sit,” he pleaded and offered a chair for Loni. Banyon helped Loni into her seat and sat across from Ahmad Fasi.
“How’s the food here?” Banyon asked cordially.
“It is quite good actually,” Fasi said like a food critic. “I hope you don’t mind, but I have taken the liberty of ordering for you. I’ve ordered a Caesar salad and sea bass for you.”
“Good choice,” Loni commented.
“The food will be served directly,” Fasi announced and raised his arm while snapping his fingers. The waiter immediately brought them their salads. He did not put a salad in front of the Arab.
“You’re not having salad?” Loni inquired.
“I’m afraid my time at this dinner is short. I only have forty minutes before my next meeting,” he lied. “I will dine later.”
“Suit yourself, the salad is delicious,” Loni remarked.
While Loni and Banyon ate their salad, Fasi talked. “So I understand that you know some things about The Society of Orion.”
“I do,” Banyon managed between forkfuls of salad.
“Then you must know that it is a very secret organization which dates back to antiquity and I am the all-powerful head of the society. I have in my possession some weapons which I have used for the good of humanity.”
“The problem is — you use them,” Banyon replied as he stared at Fasi and waved his fork in the air. “And you use them for your own profitability. The good of humanity is actually just a phrase you use to line your own pockets,” he said as the waiter quickly appeared and replaced the salad with grilled fish still sizzling from the oven.
“That’s not any of your concern,” the Arab replied in a testy voice.
“Oh, but it is our concern,” Banyon said flatly without looking up. “You know nothing about us. We make things right and what you do is not right.”
Fasi suddenly became agitated. “I’m done talking nice to you two,” he screamed. “Give me the Orion weapons now!” Fasi demanded.
“We’ll discuss that issue when I’m done eating this delicious fish,” Banyon calmly responded.
“You know, I could have some of my men beat some sense into you,” Fasi said in a menacing voice. He went to make a motion to his men.
“Yoo-hoo,” Loni called sweetly from her side of the table. When Fasi looked at her he saw she pointed a lethal looking pistol at his head. “Let the man finish his meal.”
“I’ve lost my appetite,” Banyon announced and pushed his plate away. He reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a second pistol. He casually put it on the table. Fasi’s eyes went wide.
“You’ve deceived me,” he stuttered.
“That’s a strong word,” Banyon replied. “We just wanted to neutralize the fact that you have five thug-like men protecting you here.”
“What’re you attempting to accomplish?” Fasi quickly asked in an angry tone.
Banyon ignored him and waved the waiter o
ver. “Please have the valet pull up my car. We will be leaving shortly.” He handed the waiter his ticket and two hundred dollars. “This is for our meal. Keep the change,” he added. The waiter left immediately, happy to be away from the brewing confrontation.
“You should have had dinner,” Loni said as she dabbed her mouth with a napkin. “It was very good.”
“Now let’s discuss the Orion weapons,” Banyon announced and calmly put his hands on the table.
“Did you bring them?” Ahmad Fasi said boldly and jutted out his chin. “They belong to the society.”
“You don’t get it do you,” Banyon responded. “You’re not getting the weapons we control. Not ever. There are twenty-six of them by the way.”
Ahmad Fasi’s eyes went wide again. He had no idea that Colton Banyon possessed so many weapons.
“What?” he stammered. “You’ve more weapons than I thought. Where did you get them?”
“That’s not your concern,” Banyon said sarcastically.
“We also have the original Orion Codex,” Loni added with a smile.
“The codex,” Ahmed Fasi stammered. “But…”
“You see,” Loni interrupted. “We are not going to give you any weapons today. Actually, we want you to give us the fourteen you control.”
“What? How…,” Fasi asked as he began to comprehend what was actually going on.
“We have compiled quite a dossier on you Mr. Fasi,” Loni explained. “You’re well known by international law enforcement. We have proof of your illicit activities from all over the world. If we turn the material over to Interpol, you will spend the rest of your miserable life in jail, or maybe even be hung. There is no place you can run that we won’t find you.”
“So here is the deal Mr. Fasi,” Banyon said. “Bring the Orion weapons to the mission tomorrow at noon. If you don’t, you’ll be arrested by one o’clock. That’s a promise” Banyon said matter-of-factly.
“We are leaving now,” Loni announced loudly to the room. “You guys stay where you are. We have confederates all around the building. If you come after us, you’ll not make the door. Do you understand?”
The Society of Orion Book Five: The Tayos Caves (Colton Banyon Mystery 18) Page 4