Grimes rose and shook hands with his attorney, his palm sweaty. “Simon. You have to get me out of this. Whatever it takes. I . . . I can’t spend my life in prison.”
Simon averted his gaze and nodded. “I’ll do my best, but you’ve really gone and done it this time, Jeffrey.”
The sound of the steel door closing behind the attorney echoed like the detonation of a bomb as Grimes glared at the walls. The entire episode had been surreal. A pulsing throb in his jaw radiated down his left arm as his sweating increased and he was trying to call out for help when his chest seemed to explode and he slipped out of the chair, gasping as his heart faltered, a chunk of plaque the size of a pencil eraser clogging one of the arteries.
By the time the medics arrived, Grimes’s body was already cooling, his sightless eyes staring at the ceiling in puzzled amazement and his handsome face frozen in an expression that could only be described as fear.
CHAPTER 53
Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands
Remi eyed the impenetrable rushing of the waterfall and turned to Lazlo, who was standing between Sam and Leonid.
“Are you sure about this?” she asked.
“Never more so.”
“But Nauru never said anything about going through a waterfall,” Sam said.
“Be that as it may, I’d bet money there’s a cave behind that water.”
Sam glanced at the puffs of clouds drifting across the sky, glowing white in the noon sun. “The Japanese may well have moved the crates, once they were in a nearby cave. Or the old man might have just been forgetful. We tend to remember the dramatic moments and forget the rest—and having your entire village slaughtered in front of you is certainly dramatic enough.”
“So how do we get around the water?” Remi asked.
Leonid pointed at the falls. “It looks like there are a few feet of rock that we can traverse over on the right side.”
“No time like the present,” Sam said, and led them toward the edge of the small pond the waterfall fed.
“Wouldn’t this be exactly the kind of place you’d expect to find crocodiles?” Lazlo asked as they moved along the spongy ground.
“Oh, I’d think they’d find only you,” Remi said.
“They’re saltwater, aren’t they?” Leonid asked.
“Technically, but they do seem to like coastal rivers and lakes, too.”
“That’s reassuring,” Lazlo muttered.
Sam grinned. “Relax, Lazlo. You only live once.”
“The problem is, rather more that you only die once, unless you’re a cat. Or a Fargo, apparently.”
They skirted the water and approached the waterfall, the roar increasing until it was practically deafening. Sam peered along the side of the solid white stream of water and nodded. “There could be something back there. Lazlo, care to do the honors?”
“I’d hoped you would, being a seasoned adventurer and all.”
“This is how you gain all that valuable experience, my friend.”
“Like pneumonia. Or hypothermia,” Remi added helpfully.
“Come on, Lazlo. Fame and fortune await,” Sam coaxed.
“Sometimes called crocodiles and snakes by the locals,” Leonid quipped.
Lazlo gave him a dark look and nodded. “Very well. Here goes nothing.”
He edged past Sam along the narrow strip of rock that framed the waterfall and moved toward the rushing white foam, the spray soaking him as he pressed himself flat against the rock face of the cliff and inched sideways until he was out of sight.
Remi checked her watch. “If he isn’t back in two days, we go in after him.”
“Unless something else comes up,” Sam agreed.
They didn’t have to wait long. Lazlo emerged, sopping but excited, from the waterfall’s edge.
“There’s a cave, all right. Come on, then,” he said.
“Any crates?” Remi asked.
“I didn’t do anything besides confirm that the cave’s there.”
Lazlo disappeared behind the waterfall and Remi followed him, glad her backpack was waterproof. Sam was next and Leonid last, a frown of distaste tugging the corners of his mouth as the water doused him.
They found themselves standing before a narrow gap five feet wide. The roar of the falls was amplified by the acoustics in the entry, making the sound almost unbearable. Remi unzipped her backpack and extracted two flashlights and Sam did the same, handing his to Leonid and Lazlo before taking one of Remi’s. “Lead on, Britannia!” he called out.
Lazlo turned to face the darkness and switched on his light, then took the first steps into the opening.
The narrow entry quickly widened and the floor sloped upward. Their flashlight beams played across the walls, and Lazlo was walking toward another gap at the far end when Sam grabbed his arm.
“Freeze.”
Lazlo did, and Sam pushed past him and crouched down, eyeing the floor. He directed his light at the wall, where there was a small cavity, and crept toward it while retrieving a Swiss Army knife from his back pocket.
“What is it?” Lazlo said.
“Booby trap. Probably no longer works, but no point in pushing our luck, right?”
“Can you disarm it?” Remi asked.
“Looks like a simple trip wire—so, yes. I just want to make sure there’s no spring that will detonate it if we cut the wire.” He paused, shining his light into the tight space, and then snipped the wire with a snap.
“Seems like we’re on the right track,” Leonid said.
Lazlo’s right eye twitched, and he brushed droplets from his brow with the back of his arm. “Good catch, old chap. I didn’t see it.”
“Maybe I should take point from here, just in case?” Sam suggested. Nobody objected, so he moved ahead to the opening directly in front of them. He stopped at the threshold and shined his light all around the rock edge, checking for more traps, and then turned to his companions. “There are a bunch of crates in there covered with dust and rot. We need to be careful, though, because any of the crates might be wired to blow. Don’t touch anything,” he warned. “And watch the floor. There might be more trip wires.”
“Brilliant,” Lazlo murmured.
“Let me do a quick recon while you stay out here,” Sam said, and, without waiting, took several steps into the cave toward the crates, his flashlight beam roaming over every inch of floor.
When he’d satisfied himself that there was no danger, he returned to the gap and smiled at Remi. “Looks clear. Let’s go see what all the fuss is about.”
Remi nodded and joined him, trailed by Lazlo and Leonid.
A pile of at least fifty wooden crates, three feet by two feet by two, were piled in the center of the small grotto. Lazlo kneeled in front of the nearest and brushed away a layer of mold, then turned to Sam and Remi. “It’s kanji. Identifies the crates as property of the emperor. Bit cheeky, that . . .”
“How can we open some of these safely?” Leonid asked.
“Good question,” Sam said. “If we’re careful and on the lookout for pressure plates, spring-loads, and the like, we should be okay. We can work on a couple of them, but I’d like to get spotlights in here, as well as some specialists, before we try to open more than a few. The good news is, I can’t think of many booby traps that would still be operational years after the fact. But still, don’t touch anything, just in case they used a contact poison on the surfaces or the contents. Anything’s possible—I just don’t know enough about what was in use during the war to be certain.”
Remi pointed at a crate near the edge of the pile. “Let’s try this one.”
Sam moved to her and set his backpack down. After eyeing the crate, he handed Remi his flashlight and removed a crowbar from the bag and set it on the ground next to his machete.
“How are you going to do this???
? Remi asked.
“I’m thinking I core a hole in the top rather than try to pry the lid off. Prying would be the obvious way of opening it, so that’s the way I’ll avoid.”
He went to work with the machete, scraping away the soft outer wood, and then grinding the harder inner area until there was a fist-sized hole in the top of the crate. He sat back, put the machete down, and took his light back from Remi as she kneeled next to him. They exchanged a long glance, and then he leaned over the hole and blew away wood dust and chips. Remi shined her light inside while they both looked through the opening.
“Well, what is it?” Leonid asked impatiently.
“Yes, do tell,” Lazlo said.
“Fabric,” Sam said, unfolding his knife again. “Looks like a sack.” He reached into the hole and sliced at the fabric, which crumbled to dust at his touch, and then pulled his arm back with a look of revulsion on his face. A large black spider was crawling up his forearm, raising its legs in menace as it neared his elbow. Remi swatted it away with the back of her hand and it scuttled off into the darkness as Lazlo jumped back. Sam’s eyes met hers. “Thanks.”
“Don’t mention it.”
Sam took a deep breath and they both leaned over the hole again, their beams shining into the interior. They stayed that way for a few moments and then sat back. Leonid stepped closer. “Well?”
Remi shook her head and Sam shrugged. “Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. That’s how it goes.”
“What’s in it?” Lazlo demanded, drawing nearer.
Sam’s serious expression cracked and he grinned at Lazlo and winked. “It’s gold, my friend. The crate’s filled with gold.”
CHAPTER 54
Three days later, Fleming and a cadre of police ringed the area in front of the waterfall. Greg and Rob, having experience in demolitions from their Navy SEAL days, had been drafted to confirm the crates weren’t still booby-trapped from eons ago. Lazlo helped document the contents of each crate under the watchful eyes of Chief Fleming and a gemstone expert he’d brought in from Australia. In addition to the gold shaved off the temple walls, the treasure consisted of crudely formed gold icons and hundreds of pounds of raw gemstones.
Roadworking equipment had been brought in and had cleared access to the waterfall. Soon, police vans, two official government SUVs, and a fleet of media vehicles were parked in the clearing.
Sam and Remi stood beneath a makeshift fabric shelter that shielded them from the spray of the waterfall. Lazlo’s head poked out of the brush by the edge of the waterfall. He waved and made his way to the tent, wiping his brow and smiling in triumph. Leonid appeared a few moments later, trailing the Englishman.
“Sorry to interrupt, but I wanted to tell you that we opened three more crates and all have raw diamonds and rubies in them,” Lazlo said in a low voice to Sam as though he didn’t want Fleming to hear.
“Nice to know the hoard keeps growing,” said the chief with a big smile. He was standing behind Leonid and had caught every word.
“How’s your case against you-know-who coming?” Remi asked.
Fleming glanced around and leaned toward them. “There’s talk of a special tribunal. The scope of her crimes is so massive that nobody’s completely sure how to proceed. The Aussies have already put in an official request to charge her as an accomplice to the murder of the aid workers. And then we have all the families, who are demanding immediate justice. So everyone wants a piece.”
“Any chance she gets off on a technicality?” Sam asked.
“None at all. The only question is whether Solomon Island law can be changed to allow the death penalty for crimes against humanity. Apparently, that’s being discussed. Public opinion is crying for her head, so it could happen. Our people are shocked and angry.”
“I don’t blame them for an instant,” Remi said. “Any news on the evil old grandfather?”
Fleming nodded. “Died in his sleep in 1988. He changed his name after the war and kept to himself on a ranch in the Australian outback.”
Sam and Remi had to pause to answer more questions about the treasure trove from a score of reporters as cameras flashed like strobe lights in a disco.
When they had finished, Sam turned to Lazlo and smiled. “You’d better prepare your speech.”
“Speech? What could I possibly say?”
“I’m sure you’ll come up with something.”
“Why me?”
“Because you’ll soon be a national hero as soon as it’s announced that the treasure will be used to build schools, a new hospital with clinics all around the island, and of course a first-rate road system. Then once we’re done splitting the percentage the island is giving all of us . . .”
Lazlo’s mouth dropped open. “What percentage?”
Remi raised an eyebrow at him in amusement. “Oh, didn’t we mention that? The government’s giving us ten percent. Even the most conservative valuation after paying expedition expenses should net you many millions.”
“Blimey.”
Sam smiled at Lazlo’s reaction. “Congratulations, Lazlo. Your days as a pauper are behind you.”
“Does Leonid know?”
Sam shook his head. “Not yet. I was just getting ready to tell him.”
“This I have got to see for myself.”
They made their way to where Leonid was studying an image carved on a flat piece of rock. Sam and Lazlo watched expectantly as Remi broke the news. The Russian’s face didn’t even twitch.
Sam nudged him with his elbow. “Come on. Tell me you aren’t happy about this.”
There was no mirth in Leonid’s eyes. “Not if I have to participate in primitive displays of gratitude. Or if I’m going to have to work here for at least another five years.”
“But you’ll have all the money you can spend on future expeditions,” said Remi.
“I’ll believe that when I see it.”
“It’s a done deal, my friend,” Sam assured him.
“They’ll probably cheat us on the valuation.”
“I doubt it,” Sam tried again.
“You watch.”
Lazlo caught Remi’s eye and shook his head. They both laughed as Sam sighed in frustration.
Leonid swatted at a mosquito, his expression as somber as a mortician’s. “I’ll probably catch malaria or some sort of weird jungle fever, before this is over, and spend all the money on air evacuation and hospitalization.”
“Or enjoy treasure hunting from your own research vessel,” Sam mused.
“More likely I’ll be targeted by corporations and relatives, all with their hands out. Cousins I never knew existed. Lady friends I don’t even remember.”
They all watched the poker-faced Russian mentally construct a future where untold riches became an intolerable burden. Then his expression shifted and he looked at Remi, his mouth spreading into a rare grin. “Would you care to join me, Mrs. Fargo, in conducting a search into a passage we haven’t entered yet?”
Remi searched Leonid’s face for any sign of deviousness. Seeing none, she smiled. “Why me?”
“Your husband and the limey are too busy playing celebrities to get their hands dirty again. Besides, I prefer your company to theirs.”
“Go ahead,” said Sam with a chuckle. “Just scream and Lazlo, Chief Fleming, and I will come charging to the rescue.”
Without another word, Leonid took Remi’s hand and gallantly led her behind the waterfall and into the cave. Once inside, she followed about ten paces behind, until he stopped and shone his light on a massive vertical stone embedded into the cavern wall.
“Here it is,” he announced. “I found an inscription on a rock that suggested another passage.”
Remi swept her light around the stone. “I see nothing but a big rock.”
“More than simply a large rock—it’s a door,” Leoni
d said confidently. He stepped forward, put his shoulder against one side, and dug his feet into the cavern floor.
Holding her light on Leonid, Remi frowned, “You’re wasting your time. It’s twenty feet tall and must weigh at least that many tons. . . .” Her voice trailed off as the great stone made a grinding sound and began to move, twisting slowly as if it were hung on a vertical shaft like a revolving department store door.
Remi lent her weight to Leonid’s and helped shove the stone until it shifted enough to permit a human body to slip past. They shined her flashlight into the darkness and Remi whispered, “It’s a tunnel.”
Leonid squeezed through and extended his hand to Remi to guide her through the narrow opening. “Easier for you,” he said. “I’m fifty pounds heavier.”
Remi’s shoulders barely brushed against the rock wall and stone door as she slipped through the gap. She gave him a knowing look as her beam played across the stone floor. “How far have you explored the tunnel?”
“Not more than thirty yards. My flashlight was dying and I wasn’t about to poke around in the dark.”
Remi directed her light ahead into the darkness. At first she saw nothing but a hollow shaft leading into the gloom. Then she saw the walls of the tunnel glow a soft gray as though they were painted. She aimed her beam farther into the tunnel, expecting it to fade, but instead a glimmer of light flickered from far down the tunnel. It came and went in less than a second before disappearing again into nothingness.
“Leonid!” Remi blurted.
The Russian had been studying the faint carving of a serpent on the rock wall and had failed to see the distant light. “Yes, pretty lady, have you made an interesting find?”
Remi didn’t immediately reply. Her gaze was still fixed on the blackness looming from the opposite end of the passageway. “I saw something . . . shimmering.”
Leonid’s tone was unconcerned, his attention still focused on the engraved stone in his hand. “Perhaps a reflection off a smooth rock from your light? Or maybe your imagination?”