Aztec Gold

TWO

Alicia followed Crouch through the door, memorizing the layout and judging the security as she went. Crouch laid it out for her quickly, clearly eager to get to the meat of the matter.

“Eight bedrooms upstairs. We’re fully stocked, the grounds are private, and we’re on our own. No maids. No room service. No mail man. If something moves outside,” he nodded back toward the open door where Lex had just arrived, “it really has no place being there.”

“Good. I like to know where I stand.”

“Cook your own food, make your own bed, clean your own dishes. But, having said that, I don’t expect you to be cluttering the place up for too long.”

Alicia eyed him. “Good to hear because, darling, I don’t do dishes. Are you saying that you have a mission in place already?”

Crouch couldn’t keep the smile off his face. “We do.” He laughed. “This change of life has rejuvenated me. I truly feel like a man with a new lease on life, Alicia. This is my dream: chasing down long lost treasures, the dream I’ve nurtured for fifty years.”

“Not Catwoman? Lamborghinis? Chris Evert?”

“Do fifty-year-olds do that?”

“Wow, fifty? You’re old, man,” Lex piped up as he approached. “Where’s the refrigerator?”

Crouch pointed toward the end of the hall and watched the biker creak away. He appeared lost in thought for a moment, but then turned to Alicia. “Shall we?”

Alicia allowed him to lead her through a nearby door, hiding her anger. Lex’s current attitude wouldn’t do. Crouch deserved respect, he’d earned it and he was now their boss. Again Alicia wondered if bringing the biker along hadn’t been a bad, self-absorbed idea. With thoughts and solutions half-formed she entered a vast room populated by leather easy chairs, low coffee tables and fronted by a deep pair of bay windows. Two figures lounged in the chairs.

Crouch pointed. “Alicia Myles, meet the other members of our team. This is Rob Russo, of the Ninth Division, a man I have trained and worked with for twenty years. And Zack Healey, also of the Ninth. I can vouch for both of them.”

Alicia sized the two newcomers up with a soldier’s eyes. Russo was big and craggy, with a face like a windblown escarpment and bone structure that could deflect bullets. He sat in a kind of wary ease, confident in his environment but always alert. He regarded Alicia with blank eyes that could have held suspicion, hatred or amusement — the man was unreadable. Healey on the other hand was almost bursting with excitement, eyes darting from side to side in exuberance and already leaping out of his seat with a hand outstretched.

“Zack. Call me Zack,” he said. “Or Healey,” he added in answer to her impassive gaze. “Whatever works.”

Alicia raised a brow toward Crouch. “Don’t remember you sayin’ we were running a crèche here too.”

Crouch sat down. “Healey’s young but he’s good. Loyal. Vital. Hands-on. Reminds me of myself forty years ago.”

“Reminds me of a puppy,” Alicia said. “And Michael, forty years ago you were ten.”

Crouch just shrugged.

At that moment Laid Back Lex entered the room, nursing a Bud and what appeared to be a fully-loaded ham and pickle sandwich. As all eyes turned to him he made a face. “What? Riding makes me hungry.”

“Everything makes you hungry,” Alicia said before turning her attention back to her new boss. “Is this it? No mad professor? No geography whizz or Internet geek?”

“This is everyone, Myles, though I dare say the door will never be off limits to the right person. I can run any Web traffic from our HQ and all the research gets done in the field. We’re well funded, but it’s not a bottomless pit.”

Alicia took her own seat across from Russo. “So tell me, who exactly is funding this little venture?”

Russo didn’t respond. Crouch shifted a little, a creak of old leather accompanying his movement. “A moderately wealthy man by the name of Rolland Sadler. To cut a long, tragic story necessarily short I assisted him once. Saved his family through the Ninth, against the wishes of the eggheads. Once he heard I’d finally decided to go my own way I could barely stop him doling out the cash. He’s funding us, and he’s on the level.”

“But he’ll want results.” Russo finally spoke up with an eye on Alicia.

She thought she now understood the craggy-faced soldier. “I see. He’ll want to see some kind of return, yes? And Russo thinks he’s big enough to be field captain. Am I right?”

“I follow orders,” Russo said immediately with a little glance toward Crouch.

“Good. Then follow mine. That way, big boy, we won’t have to test the solidity of those magnificent cheekbones of yours.”

“All right.” Crouch stood up at just the right time, averting a confrontation. “This team’s solid. Made up of the very best, hand-picked by me. I run it. I say how it goes. If anyone doesn’t like that they can leave right now.”

No one moved. Alicia held Russo’s gaze.

Crouch nodded. “Good. If we do this right we might even make a name for ourselves. The Gold Team. How do you like that?” He didn’t stop for an answer. “Consequently, it’s vitally important that our first mission is a success. That’s what makes its topic a little unfortunate.”

Now Alicia blinked. “In what way?”

And Zack Healey leaned forward, cheeks flushed with excitement. “We’re heading to Mexico in search of gold. Lost Aztec gold.”