Free The Death Relic by Chris Kuzneski Page B

nodded. Slightly at first, and then a full nod, as if it took that long to finally give in. For a man like Hector, it took a lot to admit that he needed help from anyone, even his best friend. Normally, he had the world by the balls, not the other way around. ‘OK, I’ll tell you. But it doesn’t leave this room.’
    ‘Of course not. This is between us.’
    ‘I’m serious,’ he growled. ‘If this gets out, our enemies will pounce. I can’t afford to show weakness.’
    Angel nodded in agreement. He knew what was at stake.
    Over the next few minutes, Hector filled him in on everything. The phone calls. The threats. The initial request. And worst of all, the silence. Twelve hours had passed since Hector had received a proof-of-life. One from his daughter, but not from his son. Both men had been in the kidnapping game long enough to know that it was probably just a ploy. Nothing more than a scare tactic to speed up negotiations. On the other hand, they had also seen the alternative. Maybe something had happened and the boy was dead.
    Hector tried not to think about it.
    Angel asked, ‘What does your gut tell you?’
    ‘About what?’
    ‘The kidnappers. Why did they target you? For money? For power? For revenge?’
    He shrugged. ‘Probably all three.’
    ‘Maybe. Or maybe not.’
    He wasn’t in the mood for games. ‘Explain.’
    ‘If this was about power, why did they go after your kids? They were already in your house. They got past your guards and your security system without detection. If they cared about power, why didn’t they just creep down the hall and shoot you in the head? That would have made a much bigger statement than a kidnapping.’
    Hector glared at him. ‘Are you trying to make me feel better?’
    ‘As a matter of fact, I am. In our business, the only way to get power is to take it. They had their chance to steal your crown, but they passed on the opportunity. Why would they do that if they cared about power? The truth is they wouldn’t.’
    Hector shrugged. He wasn’t in the mood to think.
    Angel continued. ‘I think revenge is the most likely reason. You make your living from kidnapping, and someone abducted your kids. I think that’s too coincidental to ignore.’
    ‘You’re probably right.’
    ‘I’m sure money will come into play at some point, but so far they haven’t asked for cash. Or have they?’
    ‘No money. Just the medallion.’
    Angel shook his head. It didn’t make sense to him. Hector had millions upon millions of dollars, but so far the only thing the kidnappers had requested was a relic Hector had bought at a private auction for less than 20,000 dollars. Why would they do that?
    ‘I don’t get it. What’s so special about this medallion?’
    Hector sighed. ‘Everything.’

14
    Payne had nothing to hide. He truly didn’t know why Maria was calling. The last he’d heard, she had earned her doctorate in archaeology and was living in Italy. Or somewhere near there. He honestly didn’t know because he wasn’t that close to her. Other than a work-related adventure a few years back, the only connection they shared was his pissed-off best friend, who had dated her briefly before things fizzled out. To this day, Payne still didn’t know what had happened between the two of them, because Jones refused to talk about it, but the glare on his friend’s face proved he wasn’t over it. Or her.
    With that in mind, Payne decided to tread cautiously.
    He answered the phone in front of Jones. ‘Hello.’
    ‘Jon, is that you?’
    ‘Yes. Who’s this?’
    ‘It’s Maria Pelati. Do you remember me?’
    ‘Of course I remember you.’ He pointed towards the exit and urged Jones to follow. ‘Hang on just a minute. It’s really loud in here. Let me walk outside so I can hear you better.’
    ‘Please hurry. I think I’m in trouble.’
    Noticing the tension in her voice, Payne pushed his way through the crowd while Jones hustled to keep up. ‘Almost there. Give me two