“We’ve suspected you. No lie. But I don’t know,” Bones said. “How do we know you’re not the one in the Dominion, and you’re just trying to get information from us?”
“Oh my…” Amanda’s voice was cold with realization. “Bones, I’m so stupid. It never occurred to me before. Jade teaches at Central Utah University.”
“And your point is?”
“When Orley was taken from his ranch, where did they have him?”
“Holy crap,” Bones muttered. Orley had been at the Central Utah University Neuropsychiatric Institute. Even had he been aware of Jade’s affiliation with the university, it was unlikely he would have made the connection, but it did seem to fit with what Saul was telling them.
“That’s one reason to believe me,” Saul said, “but I have another.” He dug into his pocket and produced something wrapped in a handkerchief. “The Dominion didn’t get the Ship Rock piece. I did.” He unfolded the cloth to reveal the missing piece of the scarab. “There you go. My cards are on the table. Maybe I’m nuts for telling you this, but now that we’re at the end, and Jade’s disappeared, I don’t know what to think. I’ve got this crazy idea that she and the Dominion know where Cibola is.”
“They do,” Bones said. With numb fingers he slid Jimmy’s e-mail over to Saul. The other man’s eyes widened as he read. Bones was cold all over. How could they have been so wrong? And what about Maddock?
“He blind-copied this to you,” Saul said. “So Jade doesn’t know anyone else has the information. And we have the missing piece to the puzzle. If Jimmy can take care of the translation, we might have a small advantage.”
“Saul,” Amanda said, “what is it that the Dominion wants? What are they trying to achieve with all of this?”
“I don’t know everything, and I can’t be one hundred percent sure. It’s a long, unbelievable story that I can tell you while we drive” Saul said. He sprang to his feet, almost toppling his chair. “I’ve made a scan of the artifact. We’ll send it to Jimmy, find a car, and get the hell out of here. Maybe there’s time to save Maddock.”
“What do you mean, ‘save’?” The disbelief that numbed Bones’ senses was melting into anger.
“It’s the endgame,” Saul said. “Maddock was helpful, but Jade doesn’t need him anymore. The Dominion won’t let him live once they have the prize… if he lasts that long.”
They didn’t waste any time gathering their things. Bones grabbed Dane’s belongings as well. We’ll catch up with them, he thought. Amanda was right. The woman is bad news.
Saul was back in their room in five minutes with his laptop in hand and his backpack slung over his shoulder.
“I e-mailed the scan to Jimmy,” he said. “They don’t have cabs out here in the middle of nowhere, but I checked and there’s a rental agency a couple of miles from here. We’ll be their first customers of the morning.” His smile was grim.
Bones looked up at the dark sky and imagined the time slipping away as Jade drove Dane right into the hands of the Dominion while the three of them hoofed it down the highway in search of a rental car. A single pair of headlights sliced through the darkness. As the vehicle drew closer, it slowed, then cut a sharp right into the hotel parking lot. Tires squealed and kicked up a cloud of the fine dust that coated the asphalt. His instincts told him that something was wrong. He grabbed Amanda and yanked her down as he ducked behind the nearest car. He opened his mouth to warn Saul, but he was too late.
A wet, slapping sound that Bones knew all too well preceded the muffled pop of silenced pistol. Saul grunted and staggered back. As if that first shot were a starter’s pistol, a torrent of bullets sizzled through the air. Glass shattered, bullets ricocheted off of the brick wall, and Saul slid to the ground, his blood pooling around him, looking black in the dim light. The Dominion had arrived.
Trying to keep low and remain out of sight, Bones led Amanda along the row of parked cars. There were only four. The car that had zipped into the parking lot, a dark sedan, screeched to a halt. All four doors burst open and men leapt out.
The last car in the row was an old mini-van. “When I start shooting, you run,” he whispered to Amanda. She nodded. He held his Glock in his right hand and with his left he reached into his ankle holster and withdrew the snub-nosed .22 magnum mini-revolver that he carried for special occasions. He placed his left foot on the front bumper and launched himself onto the hood. A second leap and he was on the roof. He opened fire, dropping the two closest Dominion men, who were still scanning the parking lot, and didn’t expect an attack from above. The other two returned fire, their reckless shots well off-target. Lights were coming on inside many of the hotel rooms, but no one came outside.
Bones leapt down into the bed of an adjacent pickup truck and squeezed off two more shots, causing the men to hit the ground and roll. He was taking a risk exposing himself to gunfire like this, but he had seen how few shots had hit Saul, and concluded that these were not soldiers. Hired killers they might be, but these sorts of toughs never found themselves in real combat situations. He’d take the battle to them. Lying flat on his stomach, he slid to the end of the truck bed, raised up, and peered over the edge. The remaining two men had vanished into the shadows. Where were they?
A spare tire lay loose in the bed next to him. Cautiously, he tipped it up on its side and gave it a shove. It bounced once and rolled across the darkened lot. Dull pops sounded and bullets sprayed the blacktop all around the rolling tire. Bones spotted muzzle flash from a dark corner near the ice maker, and squeezed off three quick shots. He heard a shout of pain and surprise. He had hit one of them. He ducked and rolled out of the truck just as bullets tore through the side of the truck near the spot he had just vacated.
Staying low and keeping to the darkest shadows, Bones crept forward, keeping a sharp eye out for any movement. Which way to go? A loud crash behind him made him whirl about, dropping to one knee, both guns at the ready. Instead of someone about to shoot him, he saw a man sprawled face-down on the ground, a hotel maid’s cart lying on top of him. Amanda came charging down a nearby stairwell.
“Their car is still running!” she shouted. “Let’s go!” Sprinting past the stunned man, she took Bones by the elbow and tugged him toward the waiting vehicle.
Bullets zinged past Bones’ heel. One of the guys was still alive. He fired toward the hollow sound of the silenced pistol, which bought them enough time to leap into the Dominion car, slam it into reverse, and hurtle backward through the parking lot, zigzagging as bullets whizzed past. One pinged off the roof and another shattered the passenger side mirror, but nothing hit the windshield. Every moment took him farther from danger. He kept half an eye out for his assailant to come after him. Bones wished he would try it, but the guy was at least bright enough to remain hidden.
He didn’t bother to slow down or turn around when they hit the highway, but kept it in reverse and floored it, hurtling backward down the narrow, two-lane highway before taking it into a controlled skid and bringing the front end about.
“Do you like my fancy driving?” he asked as they barreled down the road.
“That,” she breathed, “was closer than the hospital. I didn’t know what I was going to do. I couldn’t just run away and leave you there, so I went up to the second floor and tried to keep a lookout, but I lost sight of you. And then that guy came out of the shadows, and the maid cart was there, so I…” She broke off, burying her face in her hands.