Clive Cussler - Wrath of Poseidon

“You do?” Zoe asked.

“Absolutely. I just haven’t thought of it yet.”

“Don’t worry,” Remi said to Zoe. “He’s like that. But he always comes through in the end.”

Zoe made a feeble attempt at a smile and then took a deep breath and said, “Right.”

Sam turned his attention back to the compound. “We need to find some way to get into the building without being seen.”

“Which one?” Remi asked.

“The warehouse on the left.” There were three main buildings fanned out in a semicircle facing out to a long graveled road that led to the port. About midway down that road, the ruins of an old stone building sat in the midst of some ancient olive trees. Had it been closer, and on the opposite side of the road, they might have been able to approach from there. Searching for another avenue, he turned back to where the harvesters were unloading sacks of olives from the mules. The fruit was placed into a massive hopper, which separated the leaves and branches from the olives on their way to the first pressing.

Remi followed the direction of his gaze. “Guess we get to be harvesters again.” They slipped into the line of workers and mules coming in off the trail, waiting to weigh their loads. The three of them watched as a couple of men in each group unloaded the heavy sacks from the backs of the mules, placing them on the scale. Once the weight was confirmed, a receipt was given to one worker, and they were directed to pick up their payment from a small reinforced cinder-block building with a steel door and steel shutters.

Gun laws in the country were strict, but Sam suspected that the amount of cash on hand probably allowed the Kyrils to acquire permits for some of their guards. He noticed several who appeared to be carrying concealed weapons. No doubt they had even more firepower in the bunker—which meant he was severely outgunned.

Not that he was about to pull out that little Smith & Wesson unless he absolutely had to.

He eyed the warehouse where Dimitris was being held. The bay door was still closed, and a guard was now posted outside the entry door. When a uniformed employee walked over, trying to enter, the guard turned him away.

Not a good sign. Clearly they weren’t getting in through the front.

“We need to find a way around to the back of that building without being seen.”

Remi nodded to the pay station. “What about over there? It probably wouldn’t be too hard to create some sort of a distraction.”

He glanced at the line of harvesters waiting to be paid. “That could work. Can you and Zoe start a commotion by the scales? If we draw enough attention from both directions, we should be able to get around to the back of the building without anyone noticing.”

The three continued down the trail until they reached the complex. Remi and Zoe broke off toward the men and women waiting in line at the pay station. Once there, Remi began talking to Zoe, then pointing to the scales. Whatever it was the two women were discussing, it seemed to catch the attention of others, as several turned to look at them. A few started asking questions, pulling out their weight receipts, comparing their paperwork with the person next to them. Within moments the agitated workers gravitated to the scales, shouting and waving their receipts. When the guards standing between them and the building started forward, Remi looked at Sam and nodded, as if to say, Your turn.

While Remi and Zoe continued stirring up suspicion and angst among the workers, Sam moved to the other side of one of the mules. Drawing his knife, he slashed the ties on one of the full bags. The falling olives bounced on the ground, hitting the mule’s hooves. Startled, the beast danced about, trying to escape the torrent of fruit. The commotion drew the attention of the other site supervisors not involved in quelling the protests that Remi and Zoe had instigated at the scales. Seeing it was clear, Sam waved them over, and the three slipped past the guards, hurrying between the buildings.

CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE

Issues with the scales?” Sam asked as he, Remi, and Zoe ducked around the corner to the back of the warehouse.

Remi’s green eyes sparkled. “Short-shifting the weight.” She looked at the door, her expression sobering. “I don’t know how we’re going to get in. That looks pretty impregnable.”

She was right. There was no way to unlock it from the outside. Judging from the height of the weeds and dry grass growing right to the door, it hadn’t been opened in quite some time. He looked up, seeing a row of windows above them that ran the length of the building. A few were cracked open for ventilation. “If you get on my shoulders—”

At the exact same time Remi said, “I could get on your shoulders—”

Sam held out his hand. She grasped it, placed one foot on his thigh, the other up on his shoulder. When she had both feet planted, he stood tall, and moved against the building. Remi leaned forward to take a look inside. After several seconds, Sam asked, “What’s going on up there?”

“Looking . . . Hold on . . . I think he’s in there.”

“Think?” There was a sudden shifting of her weight as she ducked below the window. “What’s wrong?” he asked.

“One of the guards just walked in the front door . . . Shhh . . .” Maybe a minute went by before she said, “He’s definitely in there.” She bent down, placing her hand in Sam’s as he helped her to the ground. “They have him in a bullpen. He’s tied to a support beam, but he looks okay.”

Zoe’s frightened gaze landed on Sam. “What do you think they’re going to do?”

Not wanting to send Zoe into a panic, since, more than likely, they’d kill him, the only thing Sam said was, “They won’t risk doing anything with so many witnesses around. Which means we need a place to hide until everyone empties out.”

“What about the ruins?” Remi said.

“If we can get to them.”

They moved to the corner of the warehouse. It didn’t take long for Sam to realize that was their best option. The roofless stone building surrounded by ancient olive trees sat on the opposite side of the gravel road that led down to the dock. In the short time they stood there watching, they’d seen two guards and dozens of workers walking past on their way to the ferry—none of them seeming to pay any attention to the abandoned structure.

Getting there from where they currently stood would take some care. There were a few scattered shrubs alongside the warehouse, and a stand of trees near the front. Sam led them from shrub to shrub until they reached the trees. From there, they stepped out onto the road, blending in with the workers walking toward the port. As the three neared the ruins, they edged to the opposite side of the road, slipped into the trees, then ducked behind one of the walls.

They watched the building where Dimitris was being held, waiting for the harvesters and, hopefully, most of the employees and guards to clear for the day. The exodus of workers and employees took longer than expected, partly because of the disturbance Remi and Zoe had caused, spreading the rumor that the scales were off. And there were still the stragglers bringing in the last loads of the day.

Eventually, the mules were corralled behind the warehouse, and the last of the workers trudged down to the waiting ferry, their shadows stretching out in front of them. As the ferry took off, the sun dipped toward the rocky hills, then disappeared, casting the entire valley into twilight.

Once it was dark, Sam, Remi, and Zoe crawled to the edge of the ruins. They positioned themselves on either side of what had once been a doorway, giving Sam a perfect view of the complex. As far as he could tell, there were three guards, one for each structure on the premises. The first and smallest building on the left was the cinder-block bunker house where the workers had lined up for payment earlier that afternoon. The middle warehouse was the processing facility, and the third building on the right was the supply warehouse where Dimitris was being held.