And his jaw dropped.
A young couple, both Asian, were surrounded, automatic weapons pointed at them from all directions, something in Mongolian shouted at them by the man in charge, the only words he understood being Thomas Granger and Mai Trinh.
Four more words than the two passengers they were directed at, passengers obviously not locals as they appeared to have no idea what was being said. They merely raised their hands, both pale, both trembling with fear, before they were hauled to their feet and cuffed, then led quickly away.
It was over in seconds, and Thomas looked around, making a point to not make eye contact with Mai, though making certain she was still in her seat out of the corner of his eye.
A gong sounded and the gate attendant announced that boarding had now started. He stood, heading for the gate slowly, making certain Mai was ahead of him. As long as she made it safely on board, he didn’t care what happened to him. But as they cleared the gate, a tremendous wave of guilt washed over him at the thought of what might be happening to the two poor souls who had just been arrested, merely for the crime of generally matching their description—young, and sitting together at the same gate.
As soon as we’re safe, I’ll try to get word to someone who can help.
44 |
Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
“We have them. What do you want me to do with them?”
Stander smiled at the news, his contact, Captain Ganhuyag, having come through at the last minute. “Nothing. I’ll come pick them up.”
“You have my money?”
“Not on me, but you’ll get it. You know I’m good for it.”
“No money, no prisoners.”
Stander resisted the instinct to yell as he put his SUV in gear. “The money is at the mine. Have I ever let you down?”
There was a pause. “Fine. But the price is double.”
“Bullshit. I’ll give you an extra ten percent.”
“Fifty.”
“Twenty. Final offer.”
“Fine. When do you want to meet?”
“Ten minutes, the usual place.”
“I’ll be there. But I want my money by end of day tomorrow.”
“You’ll have it.”
Stander headed for the rendezvous just outside of the city, and dialed his client. “We’ve got the kids.”
“So, good news for a change. Are they dead yet?”
Stander shook his head.
Again with the rush decisions.
“No. I want a chance to interrogate them. I’m picking them up now. I’ll bring them to the site on the chopper. Oh, and we’ll have to add twenty percent to the usual payoff. Ganhuyag got a little greedy.”
There was a displeased sigh through the speakers. “I don’t mind corruption, but I hate greed. It might be time to find a replacement.”
“I’ll look into it. And if I find one?”
“Once he proves reliable, Mr. Ganhuyag should have an accident.”
“Understood. I’ll be there within an hour in time for our professors to arrive. We should have this entire situation cleared up by morning.”
“Good. We’re going to have to be more careful from now on. We’re too deep into this to allow locals with a conscience to risk an operation this size.”
Stander shrugged as he made a turn. “I told you having them there was a mistake.”
“We had to make it look at least reasonably legitimate. Who the hell would have thought we’d have ever found something here? We’re in the middle of nowhere, and we find a damned body? It’s insane!”
Stander spotted his contact ahead, the headlights flashing twice. “Okay, I’m about to pick up the kids. I’ll call you when I’m in the air.” Stander ended the call as he pulled behind Ganhuyag’s vehicle. “Taban! How’s the family?”
Ganhuyag smiled, extending a hand. “My eldest son is going to university in Beijing, thanks to you. He starts in September.”
Stander shook the man’s hand then wiped the sweat on his pant leg. “Glad to hear it. You keep working with us, and he’ll be a doctor before you know it.”
Ganhuyag beamed then opened the rear door of his vehicle. “As requested, your rodent problem, solved.” He beckoned for the passengers to get out and Stander stepped back as they struggled from the rear seat, both still cuffed.
Then cursed when Ganhuyag shone his flashlight in their faces.
“That’s not them!”
Ganhuyag’s eyes bulged. “What?”
“That’s not them! Thomas Granger is a white American for crying out loud! This kid is Asian!”
“How the hell was I supposed to know? You said an American boy and a Vietnamese girl. Americans can be anything. You never said white! And they were sitting together at the right gate, they didn’t deny who they were! How the hell was I supposed to know?”
Stander turned to the prisoners. “What are your names?”
They stared at him with narrowed eyes, shaking their heads as they sobbed something in what sounded like Chinese. Stander cursed and spun back toward his SUV.
What the hell do I do now?
He checked his watch. The flight was already gone. That meant his targets were out of reach until they landed. But now he had two innocents here that would ask questions, had seen his face, and that of his contact within the government. If Ganhuyag were to be implicated in this, he’d spill the beans with the first raised voice, then the entire operation could come tumbling down.
He shook his head. There was only one option.
He drew his weapon and turned. “Sorry about this.” He fired two rounds into Ganhuyag’s chest, the man dropping before he could make a sound. The girl screamed and the boy selflessly put himself between her and the gun.
Stander hesitated. Were they really a risk to him?
The girl ran.
He put two in her back then two in her boyfriend’s chest. He holstered his weapon, shaking his head. If she had just given him time to think. He shrugged.
Wrong place, wrong time, kids.
45 |
Khentii Region, Mongol Empire 1227 AD
There had been rumors, of course, and with so few having seen what had happened, their source was obvious.
The doctors.
Mutukan had immediately ordered their execution, along with any that worked with them, and taken it upon himself to regale the men at the end of each day about the heroic ferocity of their late leader as he had charged into battle, ignoring the arrow embedded in his leg that would eventually take his life, instead continuing to lead, to slaughter the enemy, then behead the leaders that had dared to defy the mighty Mongol Empire.
And it had worked.
The word spread among the burial party, thirty thousand strong, as it headed back to their homeland, slaughtering any who caught sight of the procession.
For no one could know their final destination.
No one.
Thousands of innocents had died along the way, though they were close now.
In fact, they were here.
He held up his fist, bringing the entire procession to a halt as he gazed out ahead of him at the long stretch of flat land in front of them, a river to the east, mountains to the north, and not a soul in sight.
It was perfect.
He turned to the general in command of the army, the burial the only thing a slave like Mutukan could be in charge of. “This is it.”
The general smiled. “A good choice. He would be pleased.”
The order was given, and the procession set up camp as Mutukan took his horse ahead to find the perfect spot. As he rode slowly along the peaceful terrain, he spotted something on the ground and stopped. He dismounted and took a knee, prying loose a large flat stone, wiping it free of the dirt caked on it.
And knew it was a sign from his master.
This was the place.
46 |
Eastern Mongolia Present Day
“It’s definitely got to be some sort of mine.”
“Where we’re headed. It has to be some sort of mine. I mean, what else could it be? Most things require a workforce. The only time you put an operation where there’s no nearby workforce is when you’re dealing with natural resources. You have to bring the workers to the resource. It has to be a mine. Nobody kills over trees.”
She stretched, a contented moan escaping before settling back into her seat. “I thought we had already decided it was?”
Acton shrugged. “You know me. I like to rehash things, just to make sure.”
She chuckled. “Makes sense. Mines are billion-dollar operations. More, depending upon what they’re mining and how big a find they have. I could see someone killing over that kind of operation.”
Acton chewed his cheek. “We’re about halfway there. Here’s what I’m thinking. Next place we see, gas station, restaurant, whatever, I drop you off, I go get the info we need—”
She held up a finger. “Let me stop you right there. You think I’d be safer as a woman, alone, in the middle of nowhere in Mongolia, than with you?”
Acton stared at her for a moment before returning his attention to the empty road. “Yeah, sometimes I wonder how I became a professor.”
“Because there were no courses in dealing with killers.”
He flashed her a grin. “That’s my girl, always leaping to my defense.”
She returned the grin and squeezed his leg. “Nobody picks on my guy.” She ran her hand up his leg. “You know, it’s a long drive.”
His eyes widened. “Yeess?”
“Well, I was thinking, we’re in the middle of nowhere. We could pull over, relieve some stress, and just drive a little faster and get there at the same time.”
He laughed. “Babe, you’ll have to drive then, because I’ll be all sleepy once we’re done.”
She shrugged. “I’m game.”
Acton was about to pull over when he heard something behind them. He stared in his rearview mirror and cursed.
47 |
Operations Center 3, CIA Headquarters Langley, Virginia
Child spun in his chair. “I’ve confirmed it. Tommy and Mai boarded the plane and it’s cleared Mongolian airspace. They should be on the ground in Seoul shortly.”
Leroux smiled, turning to the team. “That’s two down, people, two to go. As soon as they clear Chinese airspace and are over international waters, contact our embassy and have them met at the airport.”
Child’s eyes narrowed. “You really think the Chinese would try something?”
Leroux shrugged. “Who knows, but why take the risk? Have we been able to figure out who owns that mine yet?”
Tong shook her head. “Not yet. I’ve gone over the satellite imagery and there appears to be no signage whatsoever. It’s like whoever is there doesn’t want anyone to know who they are.”
“Government-run?” suggested Child.
“No way, not there.”
Leroux returned to his station. “Okay, check the archives and see when this thing first showed up, then check to see if there were any press reports of mining rights being granted around that time. This is a massive operation. Somebody has to have mentioned it in their annual reports to their shareholders.”
“Got it.” Tong returned to her keyboard then paused. “Oh, and boss, somebody else is in the air.”
Leroux shook his head. “Of course he is. That man is as bad as the professors.”
“They are good friends. Wouldn’t you drop everything to help a friend?”
The room stopped to look at Leroux and he shook his head. “No. I’d send Delta, then sit back and take the credit.”
Laughter erupted and Leroux mentally patted himself on the back for the save.
48 |
Mine Site, Eastern Mongolia
Arban was fully committed to the deception now, but not for the reason of self-preservation. The excavator had finished, and now the shovel work was beginning, otherwise they risked damaging whatever was in the void they had discovered. He had studied to be an anthropologist, his specialty Mongolian history, specifically that of the Mongol Empire.
Mongolia’s history was a tremendous source of pride among its people, despite Soviet efforts to stamp it out with their demongolization policy, yet it was also a constant reminder of what had been lost. Once the Mongol armies ruled one of the largest swaths of land in history, extending from Eastern Europe to the Pacific, including most of modern China and Russia, and now they were confined to a landlocked country that few in the world could find on a map.
He frowned. Perhaps Elbegdor was right. Perhaps having a mine like this in operation, and the prosperity it would bring, was a good thing. And if they had found nothing, would he have objected? Of course not. He was here. Happily, until yesterday.
And the past day had given him plenty of time to second guess his actions. Stander had put his hand on his weapon. Maybe it was simply an affectation. Maybe it had meant nothing. Yet he had run, creating a situation, or making a situation worse. They might have simply let things play out to see what they had found. Instead, he had acted on his principles, and now he had been beaten, and involved other innocents by sending that text message.
This was all his fault.
Yet none of it mattered now. For now, he was playing archaeologist, something he loved, and was determined to do the best job they would let him do. And if he played his cards right, he just might be allowed to live, or if that weren’t an option, perhaps Acton’s contacts might save him before it was too late.
For there was little doubt his old teacher had done something that had everyone concerned.
He grabbed a bundle of stakes, a mallet, and a spool of twine, then turned to Elbegdor. “Shall we?”
Elbegdor smiled as if the past 24 hours had never occurred. “Let’s!”
49 |
Eastern Mongolia
Laura stared behind them, her eyes bulging at the sight of a helicopter racing toward them, silhouetted against the night sky and a nearly full moon. It appeared to be almost scraping the pavement as it rushed toward them.
We’re going to die!
The car surged forward as James hit the accelerator and she turned toward him. “You’re going to try and outrun them?”
He eased up, though her pounding heart didn’t. “What should I do?”
She stared, uncertain. What could they do? “Stop before they shoot?”
He sighed, nodding, then slowly brought them to a halt as the helicopter passed overhead, its massive rotors pounding the air above them, the entire car shaking. She watched in horror as it banked to face them, then slowly settled onto the ground, heavily armed soldiers pouring out either side then racing toward them, their weapons raised. Within moments they were surrounded, orders shouted at them in a language neither of them understood, though the intent was clear.
They wanted them out of the car.
“Do you think they’re going to kill us?”
James frowned as he raised his hands. She did the same as one soldier on either side of the car stepped forward and tried to open the doors, doors the car had automatically locked the moment they began to drive two hours earlier. Angry shouts followed the failed attempts and Laura yelped as the butt of an AK-47 smashed her window. She leaned away from the shattered glass, James grabbing her and covering her as the same was done to his window.
The doors were pulled open and hands gripped her, yanking her into the chill of the night. “James!” she cried as she was thrown painfully to the ground before being hauled to her feet.
“I’m okay! Just stay calm!”
“Yes, just stay calm,” said a voice, American by the sounds of it. Laura squinted into the bright lights of the helicopter, trying to find the source of the first words she had understood since this ordeal began, finally spotting a man stepping between the soldiers, a smile on his face, his civilian clothes casual. “I assume you are Professors Acton and Palmer?”
“Who wants to know?” asked James, Laura suppressing a smile at the defiance in her husband’s voice.
“You can call me Jack. Friends of yours from Langley sent me.”
Laura smiled, sighing with relief, her arms slowly lowering.
Thank God, we’re safe!
A soldier emerged from the blinding lights, dressed differently than the others, clearly an officer, probably in charge. Words were exchanged in Mongolian, then orders barked, half a dozen of the weapons suddenly aimed at Jack.
Who cursed as he slowly raised his hands, looking at the two people he was supposed to save. “Sorry about this, but it would appear we’re the victims of the old double-cross cliché.”
50 |
Operations Center 3, CIA Headquarters Langley, Virginia
“Play that back?”
Tong complied and everyone in the room stopped to listen.
“Sorry about this, but it would appear we’re the victims of the old double-cross cliché.”
Leroux shook his head. “Did he just say what I think he said?”
Child spun in his chair. “If he sounds like he just found out they weren’t joking about the final season of Game of Thrones, then yes, I think he did.”
Leroux cursed as Director Leif Morrison entered the operations center.
“I’ve had better greetings.”
Leroux chuckled. “Sorry, sir, that wasn’t meant for you.” He motioned at the screens curving across the front of the room. “Our little op in Mongolia just went south.”
“Our Mongolian military contacts weren’t helpful?”
“Oh, they were helpful, just for the wrong side. It looks like they pulled a fast one on our contact just as they caught up to the professors.”
The Tomb of Genghis Khan Page 12