Dufort sounded dubious. “You’re positive he did not have it?”
“I have looked into the eyes of many men. I know when they are staring into the face of death, whether or not they are lying. This one was not lying. He did not have the coin, but fortunately, I was able to track down the man who does. I will have it for you shortly.” Nothing wrong with a little fiction mixed in with the truth, Petrov thought.
There was a short pause on the line before Dufort spoke again. “Good. See to it that you have the coin before our next chat. I must have it. Without the coin, the treasure is lost.”
“Understood. Relax. I will have it for you soon.”
The Frenchman started to say something else, but Petrov pressed the end button on his phone before Dufort could finish. Hanging up on his employer wouldn’t win him any brownie points, but that wasn’t something he cared about. Petrov wanted to make sure his employer knew that he was like a venomous snake. He must be treated with respect and care, otherwise he could bite the hand that feeds him.
He slipped the phone back into his pocket and pulled up the binoculars again. In the dark of night, seeing what was going on at the little rancher was difficult. After the three men had gone to dinner, Petrov ripped through the home in search of the golden coin. He thought the homeowner had put it back in the desk, but when Petrov examined it, there was nothing to be found but a bunch of bills and research notes.
He’d literally searched everywhere, but there was no sign of the coin. Petrov realized the man they called Coop had probably taken it with him for safekeeping. The thought caused the Russian to wonder if they knew he was there. That would be impossible though. No one would think that he would have been able to track down Fowler and his friend to Knoxville. This meant Cooper was probably a paranoid sort.
Petrov knew that when the men returned and found Cooper’s home in total disarray, they would probably leave and find another place to stay. Unless he missed his guess, the Russian figured they would head back south where they likely had more friends.
Knowing his targets were going somewhere public to eat, Petrov figured he had at least forty-five minutes to find another car. The old truck had served his purpose, but it was nearly out of gas, and he’d already grown tired of the musty smell. Up the road, he discovered a much nicer sedan parked outside a supermarket. The leather interior was a huge upgrade to the old vinyl seats of the truck.
He spotted some movement at the top of the hill and watched as the three cautiously exited the house and climbed into the Mustang. Petrov had found a perfect place to hide, just behind some bushes that had grown up around an abandoned house two driveways down.
The Mustang revved to life and descended the driveway, turning right and heading back toward the interstate. Petrov started his new car and hurriedly wheeled it onto the road. He loved it when people were predictable.
A few minutes later, he watched the Mustang leave a gas station and steer onto the interstate heading south, back the way it had come before. Petrov smiled wickedly. He knew they would be watching for him, but on the busy highway, he could easily blend in with the flow of traffic. His targets would never see him coming.
Chapter 9
The drive from Knoxville to Atlanta took just over three hours, with a short stop in between.
Charlie demanded to be dropped off back at his place, or at the very least be allowed to stop by and grab a few things, but Sean wouldn’t hear of it.
“It’s not safe to go back there, Charlie,” he’d warned.
“I just need to get my toothbrush and some clean clothes, Sean. Nobody’s gonna get the jump on me if we are there for two minutes.”
His protests didn’t work. “I’ll buy you some clothes when we get to Atlanta. There’s a mall close to my place, so you can get whatever you need.”
Coop enjoyed the argument from the back seat, though he still had his own concerns. “I can’t believe they tore up my home.”
Sean peeked into the mirror, locking eyes with the occupant in the rear. “I know. And I realize that calling the police is normally the right move, but let Emily put people on it. She’s extremely thorough and will get us more leads than the cops.”
Between Knoxville and Chattanooga on the trip back, Sean had called his friend Emily Starks, the director of a super secret government agency known as Axis. While only twelve agents worked for the organization, the director had access to other branches of the government. Essentially, if Emily needed a CSI unit somewhere, she could call any of the larger agencies and have them on hand in no time.
Axis had been formed right after the end of World War II, and had survived through the decades as a ghost agency. If one of the operatives was killed in the line of duty, their identity was erased and any ties to Axis were completely dissolved. Being an agent in a ghost operation was not for the faint of heart. Sean Wyatt had done the job for several years after finishing college. He went against the typical recruit the agency looked for; both of his parents were still alive. Usually, they went after orphans. But the director who’d brought Sean in thought that a breath of fresh air might do the organization some good. An agent with something to lose might become one of the best around.
Sean had proved the man correct during his tenure, but the high stress of the position took its toll, and Sean resigned, opting to take a position with his old friend, Tommy Schultz at IAA.
Those connections to the government still helped Sean more than he cared to admit. It seemed like he was calling Emily for a favor every month, though he actually only talked to her once every ninety days or so.
He shook his head at the thought. Emily was a good friend, and he knew he should call more often just to chat instead of only calling every three months when he needed some strings pulled. Then again, she was a busy woman, and probably didn’t have much time for socializing.
During the drive, Coop had wanted to know more about what Sean did for the IAA. Sean explained the services the organization provided along with the basic search and recovery things that they did. Coop’s fascination radiated from his face.
“It sounds like you’ve seen the world and then some,” his tone was almost reverent.
“I’ve been a lot of places, not all of them good. But I was afforded the chance to travel, discover things that had been lost for a long time, and even have an adventure or two.” He winked into the mirror at the man in the back.
Coop’s face crinkled a little. “It sounds like an amazing lifestyle. If you don’t mind me asking, why did you quit?”
Sean knew that question was coming. It wasn’t the first time someone had asked him that. “Eventually, all the running around gets tiresome. Ever since I got out of college, I’ve been on planes, in hotels, dodging bullets, getting the crap kicked out of me…trust me, it gets old pretty quick.”
“Well then, I definitely owe you an apology for…”
“No you don’t,” Sean stopped him in midsentence. “You don’t owe me an apology. Bad things happen sometimes. And sometimes, bad people jump into our lives. We can’t help that. All we can do is make the best decisions and take the best actions to handle it.”
Coop was impressed by the answer, so impressed that he didn’t say anything for another twenty minutes.
When they reached North Atlanta, Sean guided the car through the maze of streets, forests, and lavish homes.
“I’m always impressed with how many trees there are in Atlanta,” Coop said, staring out the window into the dark. “Most cities are laid out with one home right next to another, leaving no room for natural vegetation or plant life.”
Charlie snorted a laugh. “Oh, you’ll love Sean’s place then. He’s got trees out the ying yang.”