The Sam Reilly Collection

by Christopher Cartwright

  He followed the tunnel for more than an hour before he reached it.

  Looking upon the hull of the Mahogany Ship, he smiled. They had done an exceptional job at making the fake exceedingly realistic, but they’d forgot about one simple thing.

  Science.

  The dead barnacles would give them away. Sam chiseled at the wooden hull, catching fragments of the dead organic matter in a glass container. He then moved inside and repeated the process. It wasn’t until he dug away at the sand burying the middle of the ship that he found immediate proof.

  After digging through six feet of soft, dry, sand, Sam struck something hard. He cleared away more sand, until he started to get an idea of what he had run into. It took almost an hour before he could see it clearly, and when he did, he knew he was in trouble.

  Concrete.

  The entire ship was bolted onto enormous concrete blocks, confirming that his entire search had been for nothing, or worse – for Michael Rodriguez’s gain. But for what gain?

  It was then that he noticed that he was being watched.

  “Rodriguez…” Sam turned to face him.

  The man ran. With his dive mask and SCUBA equipment still fully attached, he was able to dive straight through the hole in the hull.

  Sam chased after him, grabbing his dive mask only and trying to free dive the thirty-odd feet to where both their Seadoos rested on the sand.

  Ahead of him, the whirl of the unknown man’s propulsion system stirred up the water with silt from the river’s bed.

  Sam could have returned to the fake Mahogany Ship and grabbed the rest of his equipment, but it would take too much time. Instead, he attached the Seadoo’s air tube, placed it directly in his mouth to breathe from, and kept going.

  The masked man had already gained a couple minutes head start on him.

  He tried his best to cut the corners of the tunnel, but so did the other man. By the time he reached the dive platform at the Mahogany Cavern, Sam could see the man already climbing onto the mine shaft elevator.

  Shit, I’m too late.

  Sam slowly climbed the ladder and stood on the dive platform. Thirty-odd feet above him, he could now clearly see Michael Rodriguez aboard the elevator.

  Michael stopped the elevator. “Sorry, Sam. You’re one hell of a guy, but you just wouldn’t let it go, would you? I mean, I was keen for you to get all the rewards and accolades associated with this discovery. Hell you could have kept the Spanish treasure. No one would have ever realized that I planted it all here. Do you know how much eight hundred 15th century Spanish gold coins are worth? But no, you fucked it up by discovering the truth, didn’t you?”

  “And what is the truth? I don’t understand – as you said, the cost of the old Spanish treasure must outweigh any possible benefit of being acclaimed as the discoverer of the Mahogany Ship?” Sam already knew his fate – he was going to die here, but he needed to know why. And for every minute he kept his new-found psychopath talking, he would have a chance of finding a solution.

  “Now… now… you’ve been watching too many James Bond movies… this isn’t the part where the villain tells Bond his evil plans just before leaving him to die.”

  “But that’s what you’re going to do to me, isn’t it?”

  “Here? Yes… you’re going to have to die here.”

  “Then why not tell me? Let me know what I’m dying for.”

  “I like you Sam. I was honest when I told you that we could be great friends – so I’ll let you in on a secret. Let’s just say that by proving the Mahogany Ship came from Spain, I can prove my birthright to something far more valuable than the richest mine in the world. Good day, Mr. Reilly.”

  With that said, Michael pressed the green elevator button and disappeared above him, leaving Sam alone in the vast cavern.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Bendigo airport had one runway, and even it was comprised entirely of dirt. At the end of the runway, as the small Regional Express plane took off, a single woman remained on her own. Wearing hiking boots, she appeared tall – six feet at least, with blonde hair and a slim figure.

  Aliana fretted.

  It was not like her, but something in her gut told her that Sam was in trouble.

  Left alone at the end of the dirt runway of the outback country airport, Aliana wondered if she’d made the right decision when she decided not to bring her private jet. No, it’s never a good idea to show your hand to an enemy. She’d prudently taken a regional carrier’s flight out to the small country town.

  It wasn’t like her to worry, but neither was it like Sam to forget about her. There was no reason to think the worst – Michael had specifically requested Sam’s help. Whatever was going on here, the man had wanted Sam. Still, she couldn’t help recall the last words that Sam had said to her – someone is lying, I just don’t know why.

  By the time it was dark, Aliana called Sam’s cell for the fifth time, and someone picked up.

  “Hello, Sam Reilly’s phone?” The man’s voice was confident, like someone used to being in charge.

  “Hi, can I speak to Sam?”

  She thought she could hear the man sigh on the other side of the cell. “I’m sorry, what did you say your name was?”

  “Aliana. I was supposed to be coming to Bendigo to help Sam with his project.”

  “Oh… gotcha…” the man on the other end of the phone, sighed again. “You must be his girlfriend. I’m so sorry to tell you this… Sam’s been involved in an accident.”

  “Sam’s dead!”

  “No, no, we sure hope not. We had a cave in, and Sam was on the wrong side of the tunnel at the time. We have a team working around the clock to remove the debris. We’re all pretty confident he’ll be fine. I wouldn’t fly out here until it’s all sorted. It might take us a few days, that’s all. When were you thinking of coming out?”

  “I already did.”

  “You did? My goodness, you should have told me. I’ll come to the airport myself to pick you up.”

  Aliana felt something uneasy in her stomach and replied, “It’s okay. You must be very busy. Maybe I should just grab a room at a motel and wait for word that Sam’s all right?”

  “No way – I wouldn’t hear of it. I’ll be at the airport in half an hour. Wait right there.”

  *

  The large silver six-wheeled Mercedes pulled up alongside the entrance to the airport. Despite the ostentatious truck, the man who climbed out appeared to Aliana like a down-to-earth, honest, mine worker. He wore denim pants with no label, a polo shirt, and rugged boots. The only sign of his billionaire background was the Rolex on his wrist, but even that could have been a fake.

  “Aliana Wolfgang?” The man asked politely.

  “That’s me.” She smiled.

  “Michael Rodriguez.” He offered his hand, and then said, “I’m really sorry you had to find out about Sam this way. We’re all hoping to have him out in the next couple days. Don’t you worry – he has plenty of supplies on his side of the tunnel. He’ll be all right, just you watch.”

  Aliana shook his hand, and then climbed up into the small truck. Michael then began to drive south and out of town. The two spoke on the way to the mine site, and she quickly found herself naturally at ease with him. There was something about Rodriguez that she couldn’t help but trust. He seemed like the real deal somehow, despite what Sam had discovered about the Mahogany Ship. She could see why Sam was stuck for an explanation about the lie.

  Once they reached the mine’s entrance Michael showed her on the map of the tunnel exactly where the cave-in was, and what they were doing to release him.

  Aliana asked, “Is there anything I can do to help?”

  “There’s nothing more to do, I’m afraid. My men have it under control, and they should have him out in the next four to five hours. Is there anything I can do for you, while you wait?”

  Aliana looked at his face. It was kind and reassuring. “No thanks. I have some of the information that Sam provi
ded me about your discovery of the Mahogany Ship, I’d like to take a look while I wait. Is there anywhere I can plug in my laptop?”

  “Of course, I’ll have one of my men free some space in the computer tent.”

  “Thanks.” Aliana looked at him for a moment longer and then said, “I really mean that. For everything. Thank you.”

  Michael took her hand in his and replied, “You’re welcome. This will be over before you know it.”

  The hours passed quickly as Aliana made a list of questions to ask Sam regarding the Mahogany Ship. There seemed to be more discrepancies in the details of the find than she first realized, and Aliana was starting to wonder if there was some truth in what Sam had said to her.

  Maybe Michael isn’t entirely what he seems?

  By eleven p.m. Michael came into her tent and said, “Look, we’re doing all that we can, and my team will keep doing so through the night, but it appears that it will take much longer than we first anticipated. I’ve arranged a room for you at a local motel. Why don’t you spend the night there?”

  “I’d like to help,” she persisted.

  “I’m sure you would, but there’s very little you can do at this moment. I’ll come pick you up first thing in the morning.”

  She hated the thought of it, but knew that he had a point. Nothing could be gained by waiting at the tunnel’s side. “Okay, sure… but promise you’ll ring me the second you’re through.”

  “Of course.”

  Michael then insisted on driving her back to town, himself. After he left, she had a simple dinner and then relaxed in the bath. Despite being on her own private jet, the long flight and recent knowledge about Sam’s accident had taken its toll on her body.

  She decided to go to bed early. Her head had only just rested on the uncomfortable pillow, before she rolled over twice and then fell sound asleep.

  And then there was a knock at the door.

  Aliana pulled the curtain back and then opened the door. She paused a mere second before throwing her arms around the man on the other side

  “Mr. Reilly, I can’t believe you’re here!”

  The older man wrapped his strong arms around her, comforting her, and then replied, “Call me James, darling. You’re the first girl my Sam has ever brought to see his old man. That makes you practically family.”

  *

  Aliana stood back and looked at the man’s face again. Although she could imagine that he had a ruthless streak, it looked kindly at her now. James shared the same piercing grey-blue eyes and confident smile that she recognized in Sam.

  “It’s so good to see you here. I think Sam’s in trouble.”

  James smiled kindly at her and then said, “How about I come in, and you tell me what you’re doing here.”

  She explained everything that had happened and finished by telling him about the mine collapse. She described how Michael had been very good to her, but that she worried he might not be telling the entire truth about all he was doing to help Sam survive.

  “Did they tell you that’s where Sam’s mine shaft had caved in?” James asked.

  “Yeah, they’ve been working frantically for 12 hours now to try and reach him, at a place about ten miles south of town.”

  “Really, that’s funny. I would have thought that they’d have better luck tunneling where they left him.”

  “What do you mean, left him?” Aliana just about screamed the words. Then, fumbling through a map on the table in front of her, said, “This was where he disappeared.”

  “No it wasn’t… that place is more than fifty miles away, where they left him.”

  “How can you know that?”

  “Look, my son can be a self-righteous, altruistic ass at times, with no care for himself or the family fortune. But stupid, he certainly is not. He and I looked for the Mahogany Ship years ago. Came mighty close to finding her, too. Sam knew immediately, that Michael was lying, but hoped that somehow we’d missed something years ago. Either way, he never trusted Michael, and so he left a GPS beacon at the entrance of the mine shaft and asked me to keep an eye on things. I own several satellites for just such spying…”

  “So, if Sam’s not trapped down below this mine shaft where Michael took me, what happened to him?”

  “That, I don’t know.” James took out a large smartphone from his pocket and clicked on a GPS app. “Here, this is what the mine shaft where Sam’s been working looked like three days ago.”

  At first glance, Aliana thought it looked more like the entrance to a bomb shelter, left over from the Cold War.

  “And, this is what it looks like now.”

  The image clearly displayed a small mountain with cleared soil, and no evidence of what was once the entrance to the mineshaft.

  “So, you’re saying they’ve most likely bulldozed the entrance to one of the largest underground water cave systems in Australia, while he was deep inside it?”

  “Yes.”

  Aliana’s usually carefree smile was crestfallen.

  “I wouldn’t worry too much,” James said, comforting her with his arms. “I think you will find that my Sam is much harder to kill than that, and an expert cave diver, he will find another way out, or at least manage to keep himself alive until we can make one.”

  James, she noticed, never seemed too worried about his son. But the sheer fact that he was here demonstrated that he loved him very much, and was willing to do anything required to protect him.

  “I still don’t even understand why Rodriguez would want to hurt Sam. I mean, it was Sam who proved that he’d discovered the final resting place of The Mahogany Ship?”

  “Only he didn’t, did he?”

  “What do you mean, he didn’t?” She fidgeted with a cup of coffee. “He found the Spanish gold, and everything carbon dated to the 15thcentury.”

  “I don’t know where the Spanish gold came from – it was probably a cleverly executed and expensive exercise in deception, and for what purpose, I don’t yet know. I do, however, know that the Mahogany Ship settled nowhere near this location.”

  “How could you possibly be so sure?”

  “Because Sam and I once looked for her together, and that’s not even close to where she was.”

  “So you found her?”

  “No, but I have an accurate account of the journey of one Mr. Jack Robertson, who survived the sinking of the Emily Rose in 1812. They were the first settlers to discover the Mahogany Ship, and their journey from Warrnambool to Sydney Cove never came close to Bendigo.”

  Aliana interrupted. “Yes, but that’s all common knowledge. What isn’t known is where, exactly, they spotted the Mahogany Ship.”

  “As I was saying, young Aliana…” James patiently began, as though he were speaking to a small child. “I have an accurate account of the journey of Mr. Jack Robertson. In it, there is a very specific, and detailed description of the route they took, and even the longitude and latitude where they were when they spotted that damn ship.”

  “So you do know where it is?”

  “My dear Dr. Wolfgang, this may take some time to explain if you keep interrupting.”

  “I’m sorry, James. Do go on.”

  “No, we only have the location where the party of survivors were when they first saw the Mahogany Ship. Sam and I reached the location, but all remnants of the Mahogany Ship nearby had either been destroyed, burned, or removed entirely. The ship herself, although interesting, was of minimal concern to me. It was what she was carrying that had particularly inflicted me with a keen interest.”

  “What was she carrying?” Aliana asked, more confused now than she’d been when she first started talking to Sam about the Mahogany Ship possibly being a giant, expensive, hoax.

  “A powerful scepter, called the ‘The Ark of Light,’ which, legend has it, held the ability to focus natural sunlight with extreme precision, or ‘Entrap Ra, the Sun God’ so that he might destroy one’s enemies. The crux of the matter being that the Ark was a very powerful weapon
.”

  “And that was what you were after?”

  “Yes, and I believe that it, too, is the most likely reason for which our friend Michael Rodriguez has gone to such lengths to orchestrate bringing us all here.”

  Aliana wanted to scream in frustration.

  Each answer seemed to lead to another two questions.

  “Why would Michael, a billionaire, want an ancient weapon?”

  James smiled idiotically, at the simple question, and offered the possible explanation, “It’s a very good weapon?”

  “That’s bullshit. A man like Rodriguez could afford his own Army, Navy, and Air Force. So why would he care about a weapon that had the ability to destroy things with bolts of fire and lightning?”

  “Because, legend has it, that as well as being a tremendous weapon, the Ark of Light – when held at the top of the Pyramid of Giza at midday of the winter solstice – pointed directly to The Tomb of Knowledge. A place buried by the passing of a number of Ice Ages, it has been said that the place was created by God himself, as a means of storing all knowledge of man.”

  She studied his face. It was passionate to the point of obsession. “And why do you want to find such a place?”

  “Because knowledge, my dear, is power. And power, like any drug, never seems to be quite sufficient for one’s needs.”

  Aliana shook her head in wonder.

  She could see so much of Sam in this old man, despite his affliction with a number of vices, including, and not limited to greed, lust, and grandiose misalignment. Yet, he had the same attractive looks in a rogue kind of style as his son, and a charm that was hard not to enjoy.

  “Okay, so if Rodriguez is after this Ark, why drag you and Sam into it?”

  “That’s simple. He needs what we have, to find it.”

  “And what do you have?”

  “A map of where the scepter was taken after it left the Mahogany Ship.”

  “Are you fucking serious? You have such a map? Why didn’t you just use it in the first place, find the stupid scepter and go and get your unlimited power?”

  “Because there’s a catch…”