The Death Relic

61

Angel heard the screams, then a series of gunshots. He immediately used his radio to find out what was happening. They spoke in Spanish. ‘Who is shooting?’

‘The Devil,’ answered Edgar, one of his gunmen.

‘Where?’

‘East of the pyramid. She just killed Pedro with a rock.’

‘A rock?’

‘She bashed in his head.’

Angel made the sign of the cross. ‘Can you see her right now?’

‘Not this moment.’

‘Why not?’

‘She has me trapped behind a pillar.’

‘Trapped? Are you sure she’s still there?’

‘Pretty sure.’

‘Make damn sure!’ he ordered. ‘I won’t send anyone to help unless I’m sure she’s there. We can’t let her slip past us.’

Fearful of Angel’s violent reputation, Edgar reluctantly agreed. He took a deep breath then peeked around the stone column, only to find Tiffany standing 20 feet away with her gun raised. His heart sank at the sight.

‘Shit,’ he mumbled.

Angel heard Edgar’s final word over the radio. It was followed by a gunshot to the east, then radio silence. After a few seconds, he nodded his head in understanding.

‘OK,’ he said. ‘Now we know for sure.’

Payne and Jones sprinted through the jungle until they reached El Mercado. They found Pedro’s body 10 feet from the edge of the trees. He was missing his weapon, his radio and a chunk of his head. They assumed Tiffany was responsible for the scene.

Jones was impressed. ‘She has some skills.’

Payne spotted a second body. It was crumpled next to a pillar on the other side of the market. He went over and plucked the earpiece from Edgar’s ear. ‘A lot of skills.’

Jones surveyed the area. She was nowhere in sight. ‘Now what?’

‘Check on Petr and Maria. Make sure they’re OK.’

‘And you?’

‘I’ll watch your back.’

Jones nodded, then ran across the plaza towards a large ruin.

Known as the Temple of the Warriors, the building features a stone temple on top of three stacked tiers that resemble the bottom half of a pyramid. A Chac Mool is positioned between the temple and the main stairway that leads to the ground below. The complex is fronted by hundreds of carved columns depicting warriors. At one time the columns were painted in bright colours, but now the pigment is barely visible in the afternoon sun.

Jones ignored the ‘warriors’ and the restraining rope protecting them from the general public. He dashed through a gap on the right-hand side of the complex and made his way to the back of the bottom tier, which was shaded by trees and concealed from the rest of the site. According to Ulster, this was where he and Maria would be hiding.

‘Don’t shoot,’ whispered Jones as he inched his head around the corner. He knew them well enough to realize that neither of them was comfortable with a gun. ‘I come in peace.’

Ulster stepped out of the jungle and breathed a sigh of relief. ‘Thank goodness it’s you. We heard shots close by and didn’t know whether to go or stay.’

Jones jogged towards him. ‘Where’s Maria?’

She emerged a few seconds later. ‘I’m right here.’

‘Good. I thought maybe you’d left.’

‘I was thinking about it. I’m not the type to sit on my butt and do nothing.’

‘I know you aren’t,’ Jones said. ‘But I also know you’re not a fan of bullets.’

She nodded reluctantly. ‘Is there anything we can do?’

‘You can stay put.’

‘I mean besides that.’

‘You can stay alive. That’s a pretty important job.’

‘Indeed!’ Ulster said.

‘Come on,’ she whined. ‘Playing hide-and-seek with gunmen is not my idea of fun. Can’t I help as a translator or something?’

Jones smiled at the thought. ‘Actually, now that you mention it, that’s a not a bad idea. Pull out your mobile.’

‘My mobile?’

‘There was a sign in the visitor centre that bragged about having a mobile phone service here. You might actually have reception.’

‘We’re in the jungle.’

‘Just check.’

She glanced at her screen. ‘I’ll be damned. I can’t get reception at my house, but I have reception here.’

Jones smiled. ‘The Maya were way ahead of their time. Their pyramid is actually a giant antenna. They were the first ancient civilization to have Wi-Fi.’

Ulster laughed. ‘I realize you’re just joking about the antenna. However, the Maya were innovators in many ways. Did you know they—’

Jones cut him off. ‘Not now, Petr.’

‘Yes, of course, how silly of me. More important things to deal with.’

She pointed at her phone. ‘What did you have in mind?’

‘Your translation skills might come in handy. Just be ready for my call. I’ll let you know if I need you.’

‘Trust me, David. You need me. It’s pretty obvious.’

He smiled at her. ‘We’ll see.’

Payne concealed himself in a small grove of trees to the south of the stone warriors. He’d barely settled into position when he spotted a group of armed men gathering near the base of El Castillo, approximately 500 feet to the west. He tucked the earpiece into his ear, hoping to eavesdrop on their plans, but Angel and his men were speaking in rapid Spanish — way too fast for him to keep up with their conversation.

Frustrated, he plucked it out of his ear and stuffed it into his pocket.

A few minutes later, Payne heard footsteps in the loose gravel behind him. He turned and saw Jones sprinting across the Plaza of a Thousand Columns. At one time, the rows of columns supported a large, thatched roof. Now nothing remained but the columns themselves. Payne signalled for him to stay low and to the south, just in case the men had binoculars.

Payne remained silent until Jones was next to him. ‘How are they?’

‘They’re fine. In fact, they’re better than fine. Maria gave me a great idea.’

‘About what?’

‘Dealing with Angel’s men.’

‘Really? Does she have lots of experience in dealing with foreign men?’

Jones growled softly. ‘That’s the kind of comment I’d expect from me, not you. You should be ashamed of yourself.’

Payne smiled. ‘Sorry. I hope you can forgive me.’

Jones pulled out his map. ‘Actually, I hope you can forgive me. I’m about to ask you to do something dangerous.’

‘How dangerous?’

‘I need you to draw their attention to the western side of the pyramid.’

‘Why?’

‘Because Tiffany was over here. If they come looking for her, Maria and Petr are going to be in the line of fire.’

‘Good point. Out of curiosity, how do you expect me to “draw their attention”? If possible, I’d prefer not to get chased by a bunch of angry Mexicans.’

‘I don’t blame you.’

‘Good. I’m glad.’

Jones smiled. ‘Don’t get me wrong: I’m still going to ask you to do it. I just won’t blame you for being pissed at me.’

Payne said nothing. He simply growled.

Jones rolled his eyes. ‘Don’t worry, you big baby. I have something in mind that will help your cause. If you do what I say, your odds of survival go up to, like, seven or eight per cent.’

‘Up from what?’

‘Two or three.’

‘Great.’

‘Do you still have the earpiece from the dead guy?’

Payne pulled it from his pocket. ‘I tried to listen in, but I couldn’t understand them. Their Spanish is way too fast for me.’

‘You don’t have to understand them. I want them to understand Maria.’

‘Maria? What’s she going to do?’

Jones pointed at the map. ‘She’s going to invite them to a ball game.’