Kismet looked down at Grimes. As much as he wanted to believe that he had uncovered the hidden lair of the Prometheus group, there was a more plausible explanation for Harcourt's parting shot. If Grimes' background in the military gave him a high enough security clearance, then conceivably he would have had access to the after action review that had followed Kismet's disastrous mission into Iraq, which included his description of the artifact the defector had shown him. It would have been a simple thing to leak that tidbit of information to Harcourt in order to help him recruit Kismet's assistance. But why did the former Admiral Grimes think that he was essential to the recovery effort? For that matter, why was he interested in something as obscure as an ancient Greek legend?
"You look up hawk in the dictionary and you'll find his picture," continued Lyse. "He pushed hard for pre-emptive military action against Iran and North Korea, and advocated a more aggressive posture toward Russia and China. You remember all the controversy about torture of inmates at Gitmo? Well, Grimes was doing stuff that even the former administration didn't approve of. He finally became too much of an embarrassment and they canned him. I'm not sure what he's been up to since then."
"How do you know all this?" Kismet whispered over his shoulder.
Lyse's face went blank. "Gee, Nick, don't you read the newspapers?"
He shook his head in amazement. "I thought I did," he murmured, then focused his attention on the conversation below.
"My investigators," Grimes was saying, "have traced the sale of the artifacts back to Mr. Kerns. It seems that before he left his homeland, Kerns — or should I say Chereneyev — was a prominent petroleum engineer, and a good communist. Then, without warning, he emigrated to the United States, changed his name, and sold a number of ancient Greek antiquities for a great deal of money."
"You found it, didn't you?" accused Harcourt.
There was a moment of muffled speech, in which Kismet guessed a prisoner's gag was being removed. Then, a thickly accented voice replied: "Please, don't hurt us. I'll tell you where to look."
"You'll do more than that Comrade Chereneyev." It was Grimes that spoke, filling his last two words with contempt. "You will direct Sir Andrew to the site where you discovered the artifacts. If you attempt to mislead him, I assure you that the consequences to your daughter will be most grave."
"Yes, I will show you. Only please do not hurt—" He was silenced once more by the gag.
"Chereneyev has already given us a starting point," Grimes continued. "I've seen to your travel arrangements."
The burly guards moved toward the seated captives and loosened the bonds of the male hostage. He was helped to his feet and half-dragged to stand beside Harcourt.
Kismet leaned back. "Harcourt is about to leave. Get back to the car and follow him. I want to know where he's going next."
“Nick, I love you, but I didn’t come here to be your errand girl. I need that statue back.”
Lyse's whisper was growing louder, and Kismet feared she might attract the attention of the men below. He held a finger to his lips, and then took a deep breath. “I think this is important, Lyse. Do this one thing for me, and then we‘ll be square. I’ll text you the name and location of a safe location. You'll get the statue then."
"I'd better," grumbled Lyse. "What about you?"
"I'm going to get the girl."
Lyse flashed a grin. "Don't let little Nick get you in any trouble."
"You're hilarious."
Her smile slipped, replaced by something more sincere. "Good luck, Nick. And be careful."
"You too, Lyse."
She squeezed his shoulder then turned and deftly darted down the length of the beam. Her touch had triggered an unexpected surge of pleasant memories. Kismet's gaze lingered on her for a long, wistful moment. Shaking his head to clear away the nostalgia, he returned his attention to the scene below.
Harcourt and Grimes continued to converse, discussing details about the impending expedition, without ever revealing the ultimate destination. "I have a few matters to attend to before I can join you," Grimes said, "foremost of which is to persuade Nick Kismet to lend his assistance in our project."
"I still fail to understand why you want Kismet along," Harcourt complained. "He's entirely too skeptical."
"Thank you for your opinion, Sir Andrew," was the caustic reply. "In the future, refrain from offering it until you are asked to do so."
The group began moving down the length of the hall, passing directly beneath Kismet. He threw a backward glance at Lyse but she had already vanished through the opening. Moments later, Grimes and Harcourt, along with a submissive Kerns and the retinue of guards, stopped beneath the ladder.
Kismet could no longer hear their conversation, but saw Grimes gesturing to the gigantic man, directing him and another fellow to return to watch over Kerns' daughter. As the two guards wandered back through the hall, Harcourt and the others commenced ascending the ladder. Kismet quickly walked down the long beam until he reached the last of the crosspieces. He tiptoed across the system of braces and perched directly above where Kerns' daughter sat bound and gagged in a chair. Beside her, the slack ropes that had restrained her father lay upon his now vacant seat.
He could not see much of her, only blonde hair cascading over what appeared to be flawless, pale skin. She did not struggle against her bonds, but it was clear to Kismet that she had not surrendered to the idea of captivity. Her eyes darted warily around the hall, following the movements of the giant and the other guard.
The two men paused, waiting until the last of Grimes' party had exited through the opening above. Kismet also waited, weighing his options and formulating a plan of attack.
"Guess what missy," grunted the smaller of the men below Kismet. "As soon as your daddy gets on that plane, me and Rudy get to have some fun with you."
"Fun," echoed the giant, Rudy. Both men laughed hysterically as if they had reached the very zenith of humor.
Kismet fished a coin from his pocket and hurled it the length of the hall. There was a metallic clink twenty yards away, then a pinging ricochet from a second beam. A moment later it clattered on the stone floor.
"What was that?" asked the smaller guard, who being marginally more intelligent, was evidently in charge. "Go check it out, Rudy."
Rudy grunted an affirmative and stalked off to investigate, while the other fellow assumed a defensive stance behind Miss Kerns. Kismet waited until Rudy's footsteps were barely audible, and then cautiously lowered himself from the beam. His grip tightened instinctively as more and more of his body hung out into open space, but he pushed back his primal trepidation, took a deep breath, and let go. A fraction of a second later, he landed directly on the smaller of the woman's tormentors.
His feet struck the man between the shoulder blades, instantly slamming him to the floor, but Kismet lost his balance in the process and went sprawling. His attempt to stay upright succeeded only in his twisting an ankle before he slammed into the stone floor. The guard however had borne the brunt of the impact, and now lay supine alongside Miss Kerns, clutching his chest and unable to catch his breath. Kismet ignored the pain in his foot and pounced, striking the stunned guard at the pressure point behind his ear. Two such blows rendered the man unconscious. The commotion however had not gone unnoticed.
"Frank?" Rudy called, turning around. "Where are you, Frank?"
Kismet ducked behind the bound captive, but could do nothing to hide the slumped form from Rudy's view. He could hear the giant's steps growing louder and as the big man drew near, Kismet crawled around to the other side of the hostage, keeping her between himself and Rudy. In the dim light, the giant never saw him, but Kerns' daughter did, and Kismet got his first good look at her. Her beauty caught him off guard.