The Mahogany Ship (Sam Reilly Book 2) (7 page)

Sam didn’t answer.

“Come sailing with me. Just the two of us. It will be fun,
and I can tell you what I need.”

Sam had no idea what his most recent billionaire friend
wanted, but he was intrigued. Besides, after today’s events, he could use a day
out sailing an antique sailboat.

The wind was light in the Gulf of Mexico, but the Mayan
sailboat even lighter, and as Sam helped to raise its single sail, the little
boat picked up speed. Sam grinned, his teeth white as the little ship’s sail.
He felt like a boy on his favorite theme park ride.

This was real sailing. Between himself and Michael, the two
men owned more than most countries spent on their military each year, but now, they’d
been reduced to a couple of overgrown children, trying not to fall out of the
little boat.

Michael surprised him with his competence. Clearly the man
had spent a lot of time on the water. As the midday sun rested above the
horizon, the light wind became no wind. Above their heads, the single sail
flapped aimlessly.

“Did you bring a little motor?” Sam asked.

“No, did you?” Michael laughed.

“No, I forgot that.”

“Do you think the wind will pick up?”

“Not a chance.”

“That’s okay, that’s why I have these.” Michael said,
showing him a pair of oars. “It’s only about three miles back to land. You’re
in no rush?”

“No,” Sam lied.

He watched as Michael comfortably connected the oars to
their rollicks and start rowing. Strong chest, back and arms pulled on the
oars, the outline of each muscle stood out, well defined. The man, Sam
observed, had lost none of his strength over the years.

Sam sat there enjoying the warm Mexican sun and the coolness
of its water for half an hour in silence. Michael had brought him here for a
reason, and that reason certainly wasn’t so that he could forget that the wind
stopped like clockwork at midday, so he could have a long row back to the
harbor.

He looked at Michael’s eyes. They were hardened and focused
on the rowing, his jaw clenched, and he was only concentrating on his
breathing. Otherwise, his mind could have been a million miles away.

You take your time Michael – it seems I’ve got all day…

After an hour of hard work, Michael finally obliged.

“Let’s have some lunch.”

“Sounds good,” Sam said.

“Have you ever heard of the Mahogany Ship?”

“Which one?”

“Come on, Sam… you know the one I’m referring to…”

“The Australian legend of the Mahogany Ship?”  Sam laughed
and regarded the somber expression on Michael’s face.

Is this seriously what today’s sailing trip was all about?
He’s interested in an old myth of a shipwreck?

“Of course I have. My mother’s Australian – moved to the
states with my dad before I was born, but in heart, I still see myself as an
Australian.”

“Some say it’s a myth. Others, like myself, still believe
her to be out there, resting somewhere, waiting to be found, with answers for
humanity.”

“If it ever was there, it’s now long gone.”

“Is it?” Michael’s face was almost curious.

“Yeah, the last reference to it was in 1812, when it was
found high up on the sand inland somewhere. Now, ships much older than that
have been found to survive in sea water, but not fresh water, and never on dry
land. No, if she did exist, and she was out of the water, she’s long gone…”

“Would you like to bet on that?” Michael’s lips twitched into
an almost crooked smile.

“I’m not much of a gambling man, but sure. What’s the
price?”

Michael reached into his pocket, and pulled something out of
his pocket. “How about this gold coin I recently found in Australia?”

Sam examined the coin.

It was a golden ducat with the picture of King Charles the V
at the front and a Spanish shield at the back. At the bottom of the coin was
the date, still clearly marked: 1518.

“The year Ferdinand Magellan left Spain in his attempt to
circumnavigate the world,” Sam identified.

“Ah, so you know your history? Good man.”

“Magellan was a fantastic sailor.”

“Yes. Now, did you know that Magellan was born in Portugal,
and only came to the King of Spain when his own king had snubbed the voyage?
And that the King of Spain, Charles the V, who was eager to challenge the
Portuguese dominance of trade routes to India by finding a western route across
the Pacific Ocean, offered to fund him?”

“I’ve read a little about the story. How come?”

“As well as providing him five ships, King Charles V had
more than 200 gold ducats minted, specifically for his voyage, in 1518.”

Sam didn’t bother to hide his now rising interest. “And you
think this gold is one of those 200 ducats?”

Michael ignored the question and continued with his history
lesson. “This is what we know about the five ships that Magellan was given to
achieve his task. The ‘San Antonio’ was wrecked off the coast of South America,
while the ‘Santiago’ mutinied and returned to Spain. After the death of
Magellan in the Philippines, the remaining three ships became too cumbersome
for the few sailors who remained. Consequently, the ‘Conception,’ the largest
of the carracks, was abandoned, and the ‘Trinidad’ and ‘Victoria’ attempted to
return to Spain. The ‘Victoria’ was captured by Portugal, of course, and the
‘Trinidad’ became the only one to achieve the circumnavigation and return.”

Sam nodded his head, as though he were enjoying the story.
“But the ‘Conception,’ the largest of the five ships, was never seen again.”

“Exactly,” Michael sounded excited as he spoke. “Lost,
without a trace. But I think you and I have an idea about its fate, don’t we?”

Sam ran his hand gently over the old coin. “Where, exactly,
did you say you found it?”

“It was discovered on a cattle property in central Victoria,
Australia, by one of my company’s geologists, who was drilling core samples in
search of deep alluvial gold.”

Sam took the bait, “Okay, you have my attention, Michael.
What would you like from me?”

“I want proof that Spaniards were the first Europeans to
discover Australia, which I am convinced they were. I need you to find the
final resting place of the Mahogany Ship and her treasure.”

 Sam smiled. “First of all, if your geologist has truly found
this coin deep underground in Australian soil, and you believe it was once from
the Mahogany Ship, then surely all your geologist has to do is dig a little. I
mean, it’s unlikely that the coin and the ship separated that much
,
if they were both underground.”

Sam waited, expecting the man to argue this point. When he
didn’t, he continued, “As for proving that Spain was the first European country
to reach Australia, it’s really kind of moot now, isn’t it? After all, The
Mahogany Ship never returned to Spanish soil and the British took ownership of
Australia in 1778 through colonization.”

A slight breeze rocked their boat for a moment. Both men
raised their heads as if scenting the strength and measure of wind.  They
smiled and shrugged at the false alarm.

“The British considered Australia
terra nullius
meaning ‘nobody's land,’ Sam said. “As you can imagine, this didn’t please the
natives who had been living there for the past 40,000 years. Not that
they
could disagree or have much say. Hard to carry on an argument when you have
spears and your opponents have guns.” A wry grin came over Sam’s lips.
“Besides, I’m not a treasure hunter.”

“I know that – you think I didn’t do some research on you
before I came here today? It’s precisely because you’re not a foolhardy treasure
hunter that I want you. After your work on the recovery of the Magdalena, I
knew you were the one I needed. The last grand airship now rests at the
Smithsonian institute for millions of people to see each year and not locked
away in some billionaire’s private exhibition, because of you. Besides, this
isn’t about the treasure. I think I have a fair idea what makes someone like
you excited, because, like me, you don’t need the treasure. You yearn for
something else entirely. You want answers to questions centuries old.”

Sam smiled. This rich stranger had worked him out. He didn’t
care about the treasure, and he sure as shit didn’t care which European country
wanted to credit themselves with the first discovery of an island that had been
occupied by natives, who also had most likely come by boats centuries ago.

“And what questions, exactly, would they be?” Sam asked.

“Could such an engineering marvel as the Mahogany Ship have
ever really existed? And if so, who built her?”

“Okay, I’m interested. So, why didn’t you just take some big
ass bulldozers and dig some more?”

“I already did.”

“Oh yeah, what did you find?”

“An intricate system of underground caves, primarily filled
with water.”

“And you believe the coin came from one of those caves?”

“Sure do. Would you like to go exploring?”

“Are you aware the Australian Shipwreck Act prevents
looting?”

“I am, but this isn’t about the treasure. It’s about
answers. How did such an exquisite ship ever end its seafaring days in the
middle of a desert? Who built it? And how in the world did such a monstrosity
sail using only wood?”

“Okay, partner,” Sam said, mimicking Michael’s friendly
tone. “You can count me in. When do you want to start?”

“Let me know what you need and I’ll have it flown with you
on board my jet, tomorrow.”

“Okay, but I’ll have to leave the Director of Operations in
charge of the cleanup here, including the archeological exploration.”

“Do what you have to, but join me tomorrow.”

“Done,” Sam replied, never one to be indecisive. He shook
his head, knowing he’d been railroaded, yet he smiled good-naturedly when he
agreed.

“That’s great,” Michael said and flicked a switch behind his
seat. A small motor kicked into life, and the Mayan boat started to cruise
towards the beach. He gave Sam a slightly sheepish laugh before saying, “I had
it put in, years ago, when I discovered the capricious nature of our winds
here.”

Sam joined him with his laugh, and wondered fleetingly
whether he had just joined partnership with the devil.

*

Sam caught Tom in the galley, eating his way through a
family-sized pizza. The smell of pepperoni filled the air as he explained that
he had somewhere else to be right now. Tom couldn’t believe his friend would
abandon him at the point of such an amazing archaeological discovery.

“You want to leave me to conduct the most important project
of our career, while you go off looking for a shipwreck that you already think
is probably a myth?” Tom’s threw his pizza slice down in disgust, while his
voice betrayed his incredulity. “This is your project – you’re the only one who’s
even heard of the Master Builders.”

“Calm down. I won’t be gone long,” Sam said, picking up the
last slice. “Two weeks, max. In that time your recovery and exploration of the
pyramid will still be in its infancy. I’m barely allowing you to lay down the
groundwork.”

“Something’s not right, Sam. I don’t buy this story.” The
slightest of creases formed between his brows, displaying a concern he rarely
visibly displayed.

“Don’t you want to run the show?” Sam asked, shrugging off
Tom’s concern and taking a bite of a
hot
and fresh pizza. Sam shut his eyes for a moment, savoring the taste.

“You know I don’t have a problem with that. It’s the other
thing that I’m not happy about…”

“What?”

“Sam. You and I have been best friends since I became the
first person to ever beat the hell out of you at the 400-meter swimming meet in
junior high school.”  He frowned with disgust. “Then your dad let you skip
school, so you could train every day until you beat me at the finals, bastard.”

Sam laughed, in recollection of good times.

“We have very few secrets between us, Sam. Heck, I even gave
you the heads up that I was about to call off my engagement to Sarah. The only
secret you’ve ever kept from me is what the hell happened in Afghanistan. Now,
on the discovery of a ruin, which you tell me has something to do with an
ancient race of Master Builders, and that has to do with the secret that you
discovered in Afghanistan, you’re not even going to wait and run the
archeological dive? Just so you can have a look at some old ship, which, if
legend is correct, was never carrying anything of value and was left to
dilapidate. Besides, it most likely had its timbers cut for firewood. No way. I
don’t believe it…”

“It is precisely because of that secret, that I have to go…”
Sam replied mysteriously. “I’ll return in two weeks, at the most. Soon, you’ll
understand.”

“If the Mahogany Ship was so important to you, why don’t we
both go after it, when we complete this job? Then you can put the full force of
Deep Sea Expeditions behind the search.”

“The Mahogany Ship was the first shipwreck hunt I ever went
on with my father and Danny. We got close, too. There were a number of
legitimate leads, but after two months, the three of us had to concede that it
didn’t exist. But I always knew it was out there, and there’s no way I’m going
to let some rich kid, who inherited the earth – or at least half the valuable
ores held beneath it, to literally stumble upon it by chance. No, this is my
find. I want to make certain it’s done right!”

Tom could see Sam was emphatic. “Okay, and what about you?”

“What about me?” Sam asked.

“How are you going to dive on your own? Who are you going to
use for your support crew?”

“Rodriguez is going to dive it himself, and there’s an
Australian commercial diver on his team, as well as a geologist. Also,
Rodriguez has a team of riggers who will provide topside support.” 

“Do you even remember how much trouble you got into the last
time I left you alone on a treasure hunt? I mean, you nearly died without my
help, searching for that missing airship, the Magdalena.”

“The Magdalena was loaded with treasures of immense value.”

“And, you think the Mahogany Ship wasn’t?