Plague of Coins (The Judas Chronicles #1) (20 page)

Meanwhile, Jeremy’s playful confidence had faded slightly, as a trace of confusion slipped into his expression. Amy beat me to the punch in trying to explain why the older man in the group had addressed me as his parent.

“We have a lot to discuss, Jeremy,” she said. “I’m sure you’ll end up with as many questions about these two as I have about you and what has changed—
Oh, my God!”

She suddenly reached up and ran her hand against his cheek. She next looked over at Alistair. At first, I was just as lost as Jeremy looked right then...until I noticed something odd about my son. He looked rested...
really
rested. Like he had finally gotten enough sleep to erase the dark circles under his eyes. But then I noticed that the lines and wrinkles around his eyes and along his forehead were a little less noticeable than they’d been just minutes before.

“I knew you looked different when I first saw you earlier!” Amy exclaimed, and her excitement continued to rise. “Somehow, you’re
younger!
Ali just got younger—
Look
, William sees it
too!!”

“Is it something in the water?” I deadpanned.

Yes, what just happened surprised me. But after centuries of surprise, it doesn’t last long anymore. Five to ten minutes, tops, and I’m normally on my way back to my preferred mischievous persona.

The look that Amy cut me so reminded me of Beatrice long ago, right after Alistair was born. It’s never a great idea to be a smartass with a Celtic woman—especially a direct descendant of the mercurial Pixies. “If it’s not a time for jokes, don’t make one,” she’d say. “You look like a boorish jackass, William!”

From the look Amy gave me just then, apparently it’s the same deal for a temperamental Native American descendant.

“He’s close to the truth about this place,” Jeremy advised. “The healing comes from the crystal—Dad’s ‘Tree of Life’ that he spent the last twenty years of his life looking for. Then it’s carried by the water, since the crystal’s base touches the stream.”

It made logical sense to me.

“All I know is I feel different...actually
better
than I did before I got hurt,” said Alistair, before crossing to the other side of the stream. His gaze again traversed the full length of the crystal tree and beyond. “In fact, I haven’t felt quite this good since I was his age.”

He pointed at Jeremy, adding a warm chuckle.

“I assume you are the illustrious anthropologist, Dr. Jeremy Golden Eagle,” continued my son. “How did you end up down here?”

“Similar to you three, I was running for my life after Ethan was murdered. Zoran and his people hid me from Petr Stanislav and the leader of his army, Viktor Kaslow,” he said. “I knew the Garden of Eden had to be inside one of the mountains surrounding the village, but I couldn’t find it until Zoran anointed me and made me worthy of the discovery. When Stanislav’s men overran Zoran’s village last year, Zoran and his high priests brought me to the mouth of a small cave and told me how to find this place. Here I am.”

“I am sorry about what happened to Dr. Langford,” said Alistair. “I met him once at a Middle East conference nearly six years ago.”

“I believe he mentioned you to me around that time,” Jeremy told him, his eyes misting. “And I’ve read a few of your essays myself, Dr. Barrow.”

While it was marvelous to see my boy and Amy’s celebrated brother forge a bond, this was hardly the place to share academic accolades. For the past few minutes, I had felt uneasy, as if we were running out of time again. Out of time for what, this time? I wasn’t sure. But as I mentioned before, my deep gut feelings are usually quite accurate.

“Guys and Amy, we need to get moving.”

All three looked at me as if I’d just sprouted horns and a tail. I joined Alistair beneath the magnificent crystal tree—this Tree of Life that seemed to send waves of goodwill and sweet peace through me, enough to threaten the effectiveness of my survival instincts. I determined right then to ignore anyone’s resistance as well as stick with what my mind knew was best for us. We needed to leave right away!

“Jeremy, what’s the quickest route to get back to the surface?”

He looked totally confused for a moment, like my question itself didn’t make any sense—at least not in this place. But after I repeated my query with a little mustard on it, he gave me an answer.

“It’s behind the taller waterfall on the right side of the crystal,” he said. “There’s a path that encircles the cave and winds all the way up like a corkscrew until you reach the top of the waterfall. A hidden doorway hides a short tunnel that leads back to the surface, exiting out through the southwest side of the mountain.”

“I don’t see why we have to rush out of here, Pops.”  Alistair stroked his beard thoughtfully while touching the amazing crystal surface of the tree. Lightning- like plasma traveled through the tree and touched his fingers. Although no harm came to him, touching the energy surge seemed to tickle his fingertips, he later told me. “We can stay here for a day or two, I’d say!”

“But we’ll be sitting ducks if we do that. The longer we stay the less chance we’ll have of gaining the upper hand on Stanislav.”

I tried to sound as nonchalant as possible, but that feeling of dread was getting stronger by the moment.

“I’m not ready to go—”

“Damn it son, we
need
to go now!”

Definitely a moment of karma, since the exchange and Alistair’s whine were the sort of things I missed by exiting his life when he was just a pup. What an inopportune time to be dealing with such shit now!

“I think William’s right, Ali,” said Amy, and her tone sounded uneasy. “We should leave...as soon as possible we need to be on our way!”

Woman’s intuition plus my own apprehension should have made this an easy triumph. But it didn’t.

Alistair shook his head defiantly, like he truly was a young teenager again. He looked over at Jeremy for support, who shrugged his shoulders.

“If you think you’re staying here, Jeremy, you’ve got another thing coming!” I could tell from Amy’s worried tone that she thought this was exactly what he intended to do. “Well?? Are you both going to make this difficult and waste precious time, or can we
please
get going?!”

“I’m not going anywhere,” said Jeremy, quietly and with even more defiance than my boy had responded with. “I’m
never
leaving this place!”

“What?!
You
must
leave since it means being
safe!!”

Amy was on the verge of uncontrolled hysterics. As much as my gut told me trouble was right around the corner, her instincts were more on top of the situation than mine were.

“Let me settle this right now!” I said, taking charge while eyeing my son solemnly. My thinking at that moment was if I could get Alistair on board, then the Golden Eagle boy would be an easier target to manage. “We’re leav—”

The rest of what I had to say was drowned out by a sudden, huge explosion. At least, that’s what it sounded like at first to my mind. I wasn’t prepared to watch solid rock dissolve before my eyes. One of the cave walls dissolved into thin air as a pair of bluish FGR beams appeared to our left. All at once, the real sunlight I had so eagerly longed for flooded this world, where it hadn’t reached for many thousands of years.

And just like that, a world ruled by bioluminescence was now threatened by an omen of wanton destruction....

The end, so it seemed, had come for the Garden of Eden.

Chapter 19

In under a minute, nearly one hundred Russian mercenaries poured into the open wound in the mountain where the Garden of Eden laid hidden for many more millennia than I’ve been in existence. Behind them were several Jeeps equipped with rocket launchers and one oversized loader. These were in addition to the trucks carrying the immense FGRs, actively employed right then.

More and more of the mountainside disappeared until enough material had been displaced to allow the vehicles unhindered access into the cave. Layers of precious gems briefly appeared in the disintegrating cave walls and then vanished, leaving only a tiny memory of their existence with anyone fortunate enough to witness this disturbing phenomenon. Namely our little group. The Russians scarcely noticed any of this. Nor were they concerned with the unique ecosystem they were carelessly destroying under their oversized tractor wheels.

For that matter, their entire fleet of vehicles and infantry moved across another meadow toward us with resolute purpose. Their lone focus was the Tree of Life. We now had firsthand knowledge of its healing powers. Especially the healing powers of a living stream that flowed close enough to the magnificent crystal structure to capture its essence.

We only had a minute or two to seek cover, since they approached from the other side of the crystal tree.

“Everyone stay low and follow me,” I said, quietly, while motioning for Alistair to stick with me. Jeremy and Amy followed close behind. “We’ll need to hide somewhere in the woods, until we can figure out what to do next.”

“We’re not going to let these assholes come in here and desecrate the one honest-to-God sacred shrine in existence, are we?” Alistair’s tone was filled with disdain that I knew could easily escalate into full-blown anger at any moment.

“Until we can come up with a foolproof plan to stay alive, that’s exactly what we’re going to do!” I urged everyone to make a beeline for the large tree where the panther had been perched earlier. The tree was empty at the moment. “These guys won’t give a rat’s ass whether we’re dead or alive—I damned well guarantee it!”

“I can stay behind and try to pick off as many as possible,” Jeremy offered, checking his rifle as he prepared to head back to the crystal tree that was growing darker. Its dominant color had changed to purple, almost amethyst, as if the structure itself understood the gravity of our present predicament. “I’ll meet up with you guys once I take a few shots at that bastard, Stanislav!”

“What?!
Why in the hell are you in such a hurry to
die?”

Amy stomped back toward him after she said this. I couldn’t hear the exact conversation, but she and her brother traded a few more statements made in anger that were followed by her desperately trying to grab the weapon from him.

“What in the hell is up with you two?
” I hissed in anger.

The two most educated people in our foursome were acting like a couple of spoiled brats. Livid, I hurried back to them. We were losing precious minutes—even seconds—with this bullshit.

“Stanislav and his men will be here at any moment!!”

“You’re wrong once again, Mr. Barrow!”

Before a troop of Russian mercenaries closed in on us from all sides, I heard an older Glock pistol being cocked from nearby, just a foot or two behind my right ear. The rich smell of Cavendish drifted toward me, and I immediately recognized the gun, tobacco, and the thick Russian accent of the voice. The sibling Golden Eagles’ angry expressions from a moment ago were now wholly subdued, and fearful. Even their matching brilliant emerald eyes appeared muted.

“We are already here!”

The chuckle that followed was sardonic, and I turned my head slowly to face my longtime nemesis. Viktor Kaslow. I couldn’t believe I didn’t hear or even feel his stealthy approach from behind me. Anger tends to dull my senses.... I genuinely hate it when I get pissed off!

Dressed casually, except for the black riding boots he’s always favored, Viktor pulled out his cigar and tapped away the ashes that passed dangerously close to my face. He grinned maliciously, and I could tell he intended to milk my current predicament and presumed demise for as long as possible. Like I’ve stated, I never worry for me—not ever. But right then I was scared shitless. Scared for Alistair’s welfare, as well as for Amy and Jeremy. Two pups with the vast majority of their lives still in front of them, and the kid I couldn’t bear to part ways with.