Coming around the curve of the slope they saw Yorgi had stopped and was staring at the ground. Alicia, Drake and Hayden went forward, leaving the others behind. The Russian looked up as they approached, distaste on his face.
“Another hole in the earth,” he muttered. “And this.”
Alicia cursed inwardly. A blackened foot lay on the ground, partially rotten; the flesh torn and ragged. Hayden pinched the bridge of her nose.
“What the hell is going on, guys?”
Smyth came up, glaring at the foot as if it were a rattlesnake. “When in the mountains,” he said. “Keep your gaze up high.”
Alicia saw it then; above them and clinging to the side of the next rocky rise, perched on the slope of the mountain several hundred meters distant.
“Is that… a house?” Drake asked. “Too far to make it out properly.”
“These things have to live somewhere.”
“I was thinking more like a cave. A nest, maybe.”
Alicia didn’t want to ask if he was joking. The house appeared to be built on three levels, with towers jutting at either end and a front wall from which a steep pathway delved down toward the valley below. “We should get closer,” she said. “Do a proper reccy.”
Hayden checked her watch. “No time for that,” she said. “Unless you wanna be out here for the night. In any case, the boy doesn’t and we must respect that.”
“Plus,” Drake nodded, “I think they’ve already seen us. Just saw the glint of binos. I don’t like it, but I think we should all head back to the village and dig in. hopefully, they won’t raid tonight, but we should prepare.”
“We know where they are now.” Smyth’s lip curled with satisfaction.
Alicia regarded him. “You fancy going in there? I know I don’t.”
“It’s a den of evil and no mistake,” Kinimaka said. “We should prepare for anything. Anything at all.”
Alicia turned away, seeing Mai still shielding the boy from the worst of it all. “It’s the villages around here we should worry about,” she said. “We can’t protect them all.”
“Information,” Drake said, “is the key. Surely somebody knows all about this house and who owns it. Someone in Cusco. Shit, it could even be our chateau.”
Hayden coughed. “You only just made that connection, dude?”
“Well, now we have a location and pictures.” He pulled out his cellphone and took several snaps. “Looking at the position it must have a helipad. Unless the guy’s a…” he stopped, staring, then finished. “A recluse.”
“With an army of pet spiders,” Alicia added. “That terrorizes the local villages.”
Drake shook his head in disbelief. Alicia knew exactly what he was thinking. We stumbled into some mega-crazy shit this time.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
They returned to Cusco the following morning, having spent an uneventful and sleepless night in Kimbiri. Alicia, Drake and Mai ranged far and wide during the dark hours, but never saw any lights in the mountains, and no signs of trouble falling upon Nuno. The return trip was perfunctory, focused and businesslike, the vistas and the cool winds making no impression on the team. The focus was all on what they would do in Cusco.
Hayden reminded them of Joshua and the Cusco Militia, now eleven strong and made up of influential people from all walks of life. Smyth gave the ground hard eyes when reminded of Joshua, full of conflict. Kinimaka remained quiet, offering no counsel. Drake again found himself wondering how it would all wash out.
“The CIA gave us a list,” Drake reminded them all. “Two men haven’t been questioned yet.”
“I’d like to get to the heart of this militia,” Hayden said. “And wrench it out. What they’re doing to the villagers is unacceptable.”
“At least,” Smyth grunted.
“A return visit to the CIA?” Alicia suggested.
“Let’s start with the two we already know about. The CIA might be wary after Joshua,” Drake led the way back to a vehicle and then sat in the back as Smyth drove. The team were understandably subdued, their thoughts and emotions being tugged a dozen different ways.
Cusco sprawled before them under a leaden sky, its far reaches climbing a gentle incline. They bypassed the tourist areas and headed straight for the rougher parts, seeking out the two men — one called Bruno and the other Desi. Earlier information had given them a place to look and clear photographs. It took a monotonous hour to find Bruno’s pad, and then the humdrum task of surveillance began.
Nothing moved in Bruno’s house. The drapes were drawn, the doors and gates all locked. “Night birds sleep late,” Hayden said, and sent Yorgi and Smyth out for sustenance and drinks. There was a time when Kinimaka would have volunteered — today all he asked for were donuts.
They split surveillance — one team on Bruno, the other on Desi. The houses were only ten minutes apart. As morning became afternoon and then wore on, Drake began to worry. The return trip to Kimbiri wasn’t long but they wanted to be back before nightfall. Mai voiced a similar concern and then Alicia finally saw her last thread of patience unravel.
“Fuck this,” she said. “I’ll wake the bastard up.”
The purpose of the stakeout wasn’t only to establish Bruno’s position, it was to determine if he was alone.
“Wait. He could have—”
A voice crackled over the comms. “Still nothing here.”
“Let her try.” Mai waved Alicia out the door. “He’ll think she’s a hooker.”
“That’s the idea, Sprite. You’d best stay here since I’m thinking quality stands a better chance.”
Drake winced at both digs. The pair hadn’t had much opportunity to fight through the last few days, but the antagonism certainly hadn’t diminished. The team prepped as Alicia strode up to the front door, removing her jacket and stuffing her weapons behind her back, into her waistband. It was makeshift and it was messy, but would hopefully distract Bruno for the few seconds required.
Alicia pounded at the door, undoing her shirt now. Drake slid out of the car, surveying the street. Very little moved up and down the road; parked cars stood at the curb and a few dogs barked. A young child rode a scooter in the distance.
“Shit, how far’s she gonna go?” Kinimaka asked a bit worriedly.
Drake looked up. “Alicia? All the way, mate, as usual.”
With the shirt unbuttoned half way, Alicia popped the button on her trousers, letting the two ends hang apart. She tied her shirt up, struck a pose and pounded again. Let her hair down. Pouted. By the time a figure moved behind the front door’s opaque glass panel she was inching down her trousers and when Bruno shouted out she simply put both her lips to the glass and kissed hard.
“You wanna open up, big boy? Then you can open me up.”
Bruno had the door unlocked in less than a second, falling over himself as he made out the blond figure. On seeing her properly he drew breath. Drake saw his lips move but couldn’t make out the words. Alicia held all the man’s attention as Hayden, Mai and he closed in. Their weapons drawn, they paused at the side of the house, and heard Alicia’s spiel.
“How much? Well, I dunno, man. You alone? How do you measure up in the sausage department?”
“Yeah, I’m alone and better than most.” A throaty reply.
“Well, whip it out, big boy. Let’s take a look.”
Funny how Alicia even managed to turn the tables of prostitution so that she was the one in charge. Drake wasn’t surprised though. Of course she would. The second Alicia started laughing he knew it was time to move. The team surged around the corner, weapons raised, then ran past Bruno, pushing the man back into his own house. Mai and Hayden wasted no time checking the interior rather than relying on his word, but the rest of the small space was empty. The inside smelled of sweat and beer. Alicia opened a few windows, pretending to choke. Drake drove the man back into his own sofa, allowing him to fall, but kept his hands in plain sight.