“There’s nothing here,” Lucie said in disappointment.
Heidi nodded toward the disappearing SEALs. “I’m gonna join them. See what’s over there.”
Bodie nodded. “Might as well join you.”
“Ahh, thanks.”
“Sorry, didn’t mean that to sound derogatory. Cassidy just reminded me that we’re not really friends.”
“I don’t see any cuffs, Bodie.”
“You don’t? Look harder, although they do tend to tighten just after an op.”
“You think I’m a threat? I’m flattered.”
“Don’t be. We fear your resources. Therein lies your ability to hunt and locate us. But arguing aside, Heidi, there must be an end to all this and we must be able to see it. You want trust? Start by being transparent and state a contract termination date.”
“Whoa, that sounds official.”
“It does? Good.”
“Give me some time, Bodie.”
“You have until the end of the mission.”
Heidi glared ahead, focusing on the brow of the elevation. She set off at speed for their destination. When she finally reached the brow, she was surprised to see the three SEALs on their knees with pistols to their heads. They had been taken prisoner by three elegantly suited older gentlemen. Heidi reached for her weapon, but then two more well-heeled individuals waved at her from the right, popping up from behind a boulder. Bodie took it all in, his face registering shock.
How did they do that?
Quickly, it was made clear to them. One of the men pointed to an iPad screen — a view of the woman’s mouth that showed Lucie and Jemma searching undergrowth, oblivious to the scrutiny. The men then gestured at three red dots that overlaid the screen, and one of them showed Bodie a black detonator box.
“Bombs,” he whispered. “Now, shout to your friends or watch them die. We do not need all of you.”
Two of the suits remained watching the SEALs. A third broke away to join the two nearby, one of whom held the tablet. Each removed a long-barreled gun. Heidi stayed silent and so did Bodie. The speaker nodded at one of his fellows.
A shot rang out. Bodie gasped as Foster’s skull jerked to the left and blood gushed out. The body toppled, unmoving.
“Shout for them.”
Of course, now there was no need, but Heidi called anyway to preserve the remaining SEALs’ lives. As Lucie, Jemma, Gunn, Cross, and Cassidy came over the brow of the rise, the suited men watched calmly, keeping their weapons trained on the captives.
“Submit, or die,” the speaker and apparent leader said. “We do not need all of you.”
The warning was made even starker by the newly dead body sprawled out on the rocks. The team put up their hands. Cassidy dropped her gun. They were made to line up, two bodywidths apart, as three of the five men patted them down. The other men stayed well apart, one above and one below, with their odd pistols trained.
Bodie submitted to a thorough pat down and feel, but it was worse for the women. There was nothing personally immoral on the part of the men but they were exhaustive and they were rough. After an array of guns and knives and other objects had been confiscated, the two SEALs and seven members of the team were told to kneel with their hands on their heads.
Two suits behind, three in front. They were proficient.
The leader addressed them, his gun never wavering. “You may call me Zeus. We are the Evzones. Do not look for anyone else. We are but five, and five is all we have ever been. Chosen through the centuries. The Evzones are happy to be the five.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
Cassidy shrugged her shoulders. “I have no clue what you’re talking about.” She swiveled her head. “Hey, you guys have any idea what this old hobo’s smoking?”
“Hobo?” the man repeated in a thick accent that Bodie guessed was Russian. “We are five of the richest men in the world. Oligarchs, I think the West calls us.”
An oligarch was one with immense wealth and substantial political clout, enough to rule countries, Bodie knew. What, then, were five oligarchs doing in Morocco, at the very top of Jebel Musa, if indeed that was what they were?
“So this is, what, a Russian snobs’ road trip?” Bodie asked.
“And hey, thanks for being so forthcoming with the answers,” Cassidy said.
Zeus laughed. “We would prefer to kill you right now, but that is out of the question until we know all that you know. But you will die soon enough. That, I promise you.”
“We have to repair the damage you have done in your search for Atlantis,” another said. “You will tell us everything you learned, all the trails you followed, so that we may sweep away this disturbance. Only then will we allow you to die.”
“You guys really make it sound appealing,” Heidi said, shifting her weight.
Zeus looked left and right, as if remembering where he was. “We should go. It will become crowded up here all too soon.”
Bodie had been wondering what would happen next. It wasn’t what he expected. All seven of them were tied together with rope that looped around their hands and waists, and ordered to walk away from the head of the mountain and down the other side. As he walked, Bodie was reminded of the guidebook boasting of this area’s several hundred caves. They passed two entrances before being herded into one. At first, it appeared small and unremarkable, but a rear overhang led to a wider chamber and then a third.
At last, Zeus turned. “This will do.”
“Not much of a secret base,” Bodie said with a sniff as he looked around.
“It is a public cave, idiot, but it will do for now. Apollo, please make sure we’re not disturbed.”
“I understand you now,” Bodie said. “You’re billionaires who can’t bring your resources to bear on Atlantis because it’s your little secret. No goons. No HQ. No paper trails and definitely nothing digital, ’cause everything worth hacking’s already been hacked. Even now, you’re winging it. What’s it all about? Does it bring purpose to your boring, pampered lives?” The Evzones reminded him of the Illuminati leaders they had encountered in their previous quest: single-minded, wealthy men with no care for society outside their own small circle. Men who influenced world events in all ways to accomplish personal aims.
“Purpose, you say?” Zeus looked genuinely surprised. “Since we were born, our single purpose was known to us. There is nothing else. Do you see?”
“My bad.” Bodie shrugged. “I envisaged you with a shred of sanity.”
Lucie spoke up, voice cracking. “Please, please don’t antagonize them. Have you forgotten they killed Foster? Just give them what they want and let’s get out of here.”
Bodie didn’t have the heart to answer, because answering Lucie meant he would have to tell the truth. They weren’t getting out of here unless one of the SEALs made a goddamn move. He’d been distracting Zeus long enough.
It happened then. Hoff and Bass slipped their bonds and lunged. The rope around their waists pulled taut, but they’d been expecting that. Two Evzones drew their guns and fired, and two stepped back. The shots rang out in the narrow confines. Hoff dropped like a stone, shot through the head, and Bass collapsed to one knee, bleeding from the right cheek. Another shot finished him and then Zeus was shaking his head.
“You think we’re stupid? You talk while the special forces men make ready? I anticipated moves like that before you were born. I haven’t put a foot wrong since I was five. Do not insult me again.”
Bodie closed his eyes, trying to shut away the image of the dead, bleeding men, the spatter on Cassidy and Gunn. Their best chance of escape had just been gunned down, and it seemed the leader of the Evzones was not just dangerous but crazy as well.