“Screw that,” Bones said. “We’ll take our chances on the run. Put your weapons down and let us leave or this thing is sawdust.” He raised the box, ready to smash it.”
“No!” Sterling shouted. In an instant, her Glock was pressed against the back of Bones’ head. “Give it to her.” Her voice sounded faint.
“Sterling, what the hell are you doing?” Bones said.
“I’m sorry. You have to let her have it.”
“So that’s how you kept catching up with us,” Maddock said to Wright. “It wasn’t your extensive resources. Sterling was your mole.”
“And that’s why we got to the journal before you. Sterling ditched us because she thought it was at the Lincoln Memorial.” Bones shook his head. “You are a piece of work, Sandra.”
“It’s not what you think,” Sterling pleaded. “They’ve got my daughter.”
Maddock looked at Bones and then at her. “What are you talking about?”
“The Sons of the Republic, they have my daughter.”
“You mean they kidnapped her?”
“They didn’t kidnap her. My ex-husband’s father is one of the most powerful men in Washington and when we divorced my husband got sole custody. They cooked up some crap about how the danger in my job made me a threat to my little girl. Some judge who was a friend of my father-in-law signed off on it.”
“So why did you join the Sons of the Republic if they took your daughter?”
“They didn’t give me any choice. Having an insider in the park police was valuable to them. As long as I played along, I could have supervised visits. Otherwise, nothing.”
Bones was shaking his head. “I’m not buying this. You’ve got no criminal record and you have a responsible job. No court in the world would cut off contact with a child’s mother.”
“It would if enough pressure is brought to bear.”
Maddock said, “Judges hate to be controlled. It’d have to be someone the judge really wanted to please. Who the hell is your father-in-law, anyway?”
Then a deep voice sounded from behind Wright’s men, and Maddock almost wasn’t surprised at yet another intrusion. The man had clearly been listening to their conversation.
“Her father-in-law? That would be me.”
TWENTY-ONE
Maddock immediately recognized the man who shouldered through the line of Sons of Republic minions to stand beside Edmonia Jennings Wright. He stood six feet tall, narrow of shoulder and thick around the middle. He wore his graying, curly hair cut short, emphasizing his widow’s peak. The instant his face became clear in the light, Maddock knew two things. First, that Sterling had been telling the truth.
Second, they were totally screwed.
The man standing in front of him was Morgan Renko. Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court.
Bones apparently recognized him, too. “Judge Wapner, I presume?”
Renko scowled. “Sandra, disarm these men and put all the weapons on the ground. Yours too.” He waited for Sterling to obey and then turned to Bones. “Give me the crown, or this not only ends badly for the three of you, but for the little girl, too.”
“You wouldn’t kill your own granddaughter,” Bones said.
Ransom’s smile turned Maddock’s stomach.
“It would be a wrench, that’s for certain, but some things are more important than any single life. Not mine, not Edmonia’s, not even my granddaughter’s. Now, hand me the box.”
He held out a hand, smooth and supple, probably never having seen an honest day’s work.
“Do it,” Maddock said.
Bones handed the box to Renko, who took it carefully. He looked at Maddock. “Do you know how long people have been searching for this?”
Maddock couldn’t hold back. “I know how long people have been killing to find artifacts associated with the greatest messenger of peace the world has ever known. You’re just the latest in a long line of hypocritical thugs.”
“On the contrary, Maddock. The difference is that I’ve actually found it. And I will use it for good, to restore America to her former greatness. This will inspire millions to return to their Christian roots. To be more ethical. To be less interested in what’s in it for them and more interested in their fellows. We’ll put the proper people on the bench, in Congress, even in the White House, and the people will thank us for it.”
Bones whistled. “Dude, you sound like a twelve step program. Which part of America’s former greatness do you want to return to? Is slavery on that list? Or you could slaughter my people again, but there aren’t enough of us left for that to even be worth it.”
“Enough!”
When Renko yelled, Maddock recognized the temper which had made him legendary on the bench of the Supreme Court. He had been a surprise nominee, a political independent who never failed to speak his mind. The Senate leadership had been girding for a battle with a president who was a member the opposite party, and Renko had sailed through confirmation before they knew what hit them. The half a dozen years since had seen him dominate the court’s proceedings like no other justice in history, tearing apart the attorneys unfortunate enough to argue before him, and revealing some decidedly authoritarian positions.
Bones had already picked the lock. Renko’s hands trembled as he removed it, loosened the latch, and slowly opened the top. The triumphant look on his face made Maddock want to puke. Until the look transformed into one of immense anger. “What the hell is this?”
“What is it?” Wright asked, turning to peer inside the box.
“Look for yourself.” Renko held the box out so everyone could see inside.
The box was lined with mold-specked felt, and in the center, secured by a bit of copper wire, was a rusted metal spike.
“Where is the Crown of Thorns?” Renko took a step toward Maddock. “What have you done with it?”
“Done with it? We followed the clues to Blackbeard’s Treasure and that box is what we found.”
“But the clues,” Renko stammered. “Pierced the flesh of the savior… this isn’t…”
Maddock couldn’t suppress a laugh. “It’s just a relic. Catholic churches all over Europe used them to impress and even control their congregants. At one time there were enough pieces of the alleged true cross and nails that pierced Jesus’ palms out there to build an ark. I’m guessing this is one of those alleged nails.”
“This could be the real thing,” Renko said, a faint trace of hope in his voice.
Maddock shrugged. “Maybe, but probably not. How would you prove it?”
“This can’t be,” Wright fumed.
“You know, that was the problem with your plan all along. Even if you found the real Crown of Thorns, how would you prove to the masses that it wasn’t a fake? At best it would be another Shroud of Turin — some would believe, but most would think it a curiosity or a forgery.”
“That thing is legit,” Bones said. “So is the Yeti.”
“You might have used the treasure to advance your agenda, but Washington spent that. So all you’re left with is a useless spike.”
Renko flung the box to the ground in disgust. He appeared to think for a moment before settling on something. When his gaze focused on Maddock again, the anger had disappeared. “Unfortunately, I believe you.”
Maddock tensed. Renko must have noticed because he chuckled. “Worried about what I’ll do next? You can relax Maddock. I’m not going to kill you.”
He looked at Sterling. “You failed, Sandra. I don’t think it’s wise for your daughter to see you again.”
Sterling tried to jump toward him, but Jamison fired a shot at her feet, stopping her in her tracks.