Loch

Chapter 22

The sign up ahead read Culloden Battlefield. Maddock looked out across the rolling, green landscape, heart racing as it always did when he was hot on the trail of a treasure. The historic battlefield, the site of the final battle of the Jacobite rebellion of 1745, stood only a short distance east of Inverness, very close to Loch Ness.

“Tell me again exactly how the message reads,” Isla said.

“Beneath the Well of the Dead, Saint Columba’s beastie guards the treasure from the unworthy.” Maddock had memorized it by now.

“The only Well of the Dead I’ve ever heard of is here at the battlefield,” she said. “Internet searches didn’t come up with anything else, so fingers crossed.”

“The Saint Columba bit is a home run,” Grizzly said.

Isla glanced at him through the rearview mirror. “You guys mentioned that name earlier. What’s the story, again?”

Bones cleared his throat loudly and affected a lecturing tone. “Saint Columba was a traveling monk. Back in the sixth century…”

“565 AD,” Grizzly interjected.

“Not important to the story, but okay. Back in 565, he was traveling in the area of Loch Ness when he came across some locals…”

“Picts,” Grizzly said.

“Maybe you could have him tell the story. He seems to know it better than you do,” Maddock jibed.

“He doesn’t know it at all. He’s got an article open on his phone and he’s injecting superfluous details.”

Grizzly smiled. “The women say I make everything super.”

Bones gave him a long, blank stare. “Dude, I have no freaking idea if you’re joking or not. Anyway, Saint Columba came across a group of Picts on the shore of the River Ness who were burying one of their own. They told him the man had been bitten by a water monster that terrorized them from time to time. They were able to catch him with hooks and lines and pull him to shore before he was devoured, but they didn’t manage to save him.” He paused and looked at Grizzly, as if daring him to interrupt, before continuing his story. “Saint Columba needed to get across the river, and there was a boat on the other side. Either he didn’t believe the story about the monster or he was kind of a tool, because he made one of his men swim across to retrieve the boat.”

“Big mistake,” Grizzly said.

This time, Bones ignored him. “So, the dude gets out into the water and, big surprise, here comes the monster. Saint Columba raises his staff, calls up some Jesus mojo, and tells the monster to walk, which he does.”

“Some stories also say he used his staff to raise the dead man,” Grizzly added, “but they aren’t considered reliable.”

“But the monster story is considered reliable?” Isla asked, eyebrows raised.

“We’re not going to go through this all over again, are we?” Bones said.

“I suppose not,” Isla said. “So it does seem to connect with the tooth and the Loch Ness legend. And if there truly are underwater channels leading from the loch to the sea, it’s not unreasonable to think one might run beneath Culloden.”

“That’s what I like to hear,” Bones said. “It doesn’t hurt to put your skepticism on the back burner every once in a while. About a lot of things,” he added with a sly wink.

“If you say so,” Isla said. “Understand, the only reason I’m even entertaining this notion is the fact that you guys recovered that tooth. And even that I’m taking on faith, since all I’ve seen are photos.”

“Just to be clear,” Bones said, “I found the tooth. Maddock just came along for the swim.”

“Yeah, but who found the journal?” Maddock retorted, then immediately kicked himself for stooping to Bones’ level.

“Fine. You’re both very talented.” Isla reached over and patted Maddock’s thigh. He didn’t miss how long her hand lingered there before she removed it.

They parked the car in the lot closest to the Well of the Dead and began the short walk to the site. They hadn’t gone far when Isla let out an audible gasp.

“What is it?” Maddock asked.

“Looks like the Tuatha got here first.” She pointed to a group of four standing a hundred or so yards ahead of them. “You see the tall man with the long gray hair? That’s Michael Fairly, an old friend of my father. He’s obsessed with the history and legends of the Tuatha de Dannan. On more than one occasion, Dad hinted that Michael was one of them.”

“What about the others?” Maddock asked.

Isla squinted. “I can’t tell. It’s too far and they’re all facing away. None of them look familiar.”

As they watched, one man slowly turned around.

“Unless I’m mistaken,” Bones said, “the guy on the far right is Brown, one of the guys I caught at Dunstaffnage.”

“You’ve got sharp eyes,” Isla said.

“That’s only one of the many services I provide,” Bones said. “By the way, at least one of them is a woman. She’s wearing a suit, but it’s definitely a chick. Can’t tell about the other.”

“What do we do?” Isla asked.

“I don’t want a confrontation if we can help it,” Maddock said. “Bones and I have two pistols and sixteen bullets between us. We should assume all of them are armed, and that they have backup in the area.”

“I’m a good shot if you want me to take one of the guns,” Grizzly offered.

“I don’t,” Maddock said. “You guys go back to the car. I’ll see if I can sneak up on them. If they find something down there, we might have to take steps. If it proves to be a dead end, they’ll have done our work for us.”

“I’m better at blending into the landscape,” Bones said.

“That’s debatable, and in Scotland, you stand out a lot more than I do. Hell, you stand out anywhere. Now, let’s move before they see us.”

Maddock made a quick sprint for the nearby tree line. The forest was sparse but provided sufficient coverage for one as experienced as he was at hiding behind cover. He quickly closed the distance between himself and the four members of the Tuatha, and shadowed them until he ran out of forest. He watched as the group stopped at a stone marker. He knew from photographs that this was the site of the Well of the Dead.

Lush grass, knee high in places, ran from the forest to the well. “I guess it’s basic training all over again,” Maddock said. He chose his spot with care, dropped to the ground, and crawled forward until he was within earshot of the foursome. A low stone wall, buried in the same deep grass, stood between Maddock and the Tuatha, and ran all the way down to the small pool of water that was the well itself. If Maddock wanted to, he could crawl within arm’s reach of it unseen. At the moment, there didn’t seem to be any need to get closer.

He peered through the lush greenery, and managed to get a good look at his quarry. Fairly, the gray-haired man whom Isla had identified as a friend of her father, stood with his hands on his hips, looking down at the stone marker. Brown stood twenty paces away, staring out at the parking lot. Maddock could tell by the lump inside the man’s jacket pocket that he’d replaced the weapon Bones had taken from him. The other two were middle-aged, one a tall and distinguished-looking woman with gray-streaked auburn hair, knotted in a bun. The other was a rail-thin woman with short, red hair and a permanent scowl. Both wore expensive-looking suits, tailor made by Maddock’s estimation.

His eyes moved to the triangular stone marker at the edge of the pathway that ended at the well. A message was engraved in the surface in rough text:

The Tuatha stared at the marker, then moved along to the small pool.

“I don’t see how this could possibly be the place,” Fairly said. “I’ve checked the geological surveys and there’s nothing down there. I think this is a dead end.”

Maddock had to agree. The Well of the Dead was not his idea of a well. It was just a very small hole from which water bubbled up. Back in the states it would have been called a natural spring.

“I thought you said your man, Meikle, was reliable,” the older woman said.

Maddock’s fists clenched at the mention of Isla’s friend. Rather, the man she thought was a friend. So that’s how the Tuatha had managed to dog their trail.

“Brigid, we’ve been through this,” Fairly said. “Meikle is competent and dependable, but there are bound to be occasional mistakes in his work. He’s decrypting codes that have withstood translation for years, centuries even. Sometimes there’s a certain amount of guesswork involved.”

Brigid rubbed her chin, nodding thoughtfully. “He was correct about Dunstaffnage. And no one would have suspected the existence of the cavern found by Isla and her people. Perhaps this is a similar situation?”

“You mean there’s a cavern deep underground?” Fairly gave a shake of the head. “I doubt it.”

“We should have the area excavated, just to be safe. Or at least drill down and check for open spaces.”

“That could be a problem,” Fairly said.

Brigid quirked an eyebrow. “Not for me.” She took out his phone, but before she could punch up a number, Brown hurried forward.

“I apologize for the interruption,” he said quickly. “I think there’s a problem.”

Brigid froze, slowly raised her head. “Go on,” she said, not looking at Brown.

“I just saw the big Indian who…”

“The man who single-handedly neutralized you and Campbell?”

At that, the thin, red-haired woman let out a harsh laugh.

“Where did you see him?” Brigid asked.

“In the car park. I couldn’t tell who else his is with him, but I assume one of them is,” he hesitated, “Isla Mulheron.” He swallowed hard. “What do you want me to do?”

Brigid exhaled slowly. “Isla is here, which means we are no longer one step behind her. Her companions can safely be eliminated.” She turned to the red-haired woman. “O’Brien, go with him and make sure he doesn’t make a botch of it. And no witnesses.”

O’Brien drew her pistol and grinned.

“I can do it,” Brown said hurriedly. “Please let me take care of it.”

Brigid looked at Fairly, who nodded.

“We don’t know how many men she has in her employ. Campbell’s sweeping the area, but he could be a long way away. It might be a good idea to keep O’Brien with us.”

Brigid finally looked in Brown’s direction. “Fine. Make it quick and clean.”

Heart racing, Maddock took out his phone and fired off a quick text message to Bones.

Tuatha coming. Get out of here.

The reply came a few seconds later.

Roger that. What about you?

Maddock tapped a quick reply.

I’ll catch up.

He put away his phone and assessed the situation. He was confident there was nothing to be found here at the well. Either Jimmy had made a mistake in the translation or the clue was a false lead. He had a pistol with eight shots. Brigid and Fairly were completely unaware of his presence, but now that they knew Bones was in the area, O’Brien appeared to be on high alert. She still had her weapon drawn, and her eyes swept the grassy area where Maddock was concealed.

Maddock had no idea of O’Brien’s level of skill, nor how close by Campbell might be. It was too risky to try and take all three of them out. Besides that, Maddock was no assassin. Yes, Brigid had ordered Brown to eliminate Bones and Grizzly, but none of the people standing before him posed an immediate threat to Maddock. The rationalizing required to turn three murders into an act of self-defense was too much for him. He’d simply have to get away.

Moving silent as a snake in tall grass, he dropped onto his belly and slithered away.

I hope I don’t end up regretting this.

A ghostly air seemed to hang around the Clava Cairns. The Bronze Age cemetery complex lay a little over a mile from Culloden, but it felt worlds away. A complex array of graves, cairns, and standing stones gave it an unearthly feel. As Maddock emerged from the trees and into their midst, he almost expected to be greeted by the ghosts of long-dead soldiers.

He’d had no difficulty getting away from the unsuspecting members of the Tuatha, who were focused on plotting their next move. None of them believed the Well of the Dead would turn up any new clues, and seemed at a loss for where to go next. The problem was, Maddock and his friends were at a similar standstill.

“At least we’re not running behind,” he said.

A pair of tourists passed by. He greeted them with a smile and a nod, and was taken aback when they frowned and hurried away. It took him a moment to realize what had elicited the reaction. His clothing was filthy, streaked with mud and covered in grass stains and dirt smudges from his crawl through the grass.

“Smooth as ever, Maddock.” Bones appeared from behind a tree that Maddock swore wasn’t large enough to hide his friend’s bulk. “You charm everyone you meet.”

“You got away all right?” Maddock asked.

“No problem at all,” Bones said. “There were only a couple of cars in the parking lot besides ours. I figured one or both belonged to the Tuatha, so I slashed their tires.”

“Nice. Where are Isla and Grizzly?”

“Over there.” He inclined his head toward one of the ring cairns.

The low, round structure loomed atop a large earth mound. The cairn itself stood shoulder height to Maddock. The base was constructed of huge, gray stones. The center was filled in with stones of varying sizes. A slit just wide enough for a man to walk through radiated out from an open ring in the center. Inside, Grizzly and Isla waited.

“What’s the situation?” Isla asked. “Have the Tuatha found anything yet?”

Maddock filled them in on what he had seen and heard. Isla expressed shock and anger at Meikle’s betrayal.

“Have you heard of this Brigid person? Any idea who she is?”

Isla flinched at the name.

“You know her,” Maddock said.

“No. It’s actually a common first name.” Her eyes took on a faraway look. “You know how, sometimes, you hear a name and it reminds you of someone you’d rather not think about?”

“Jade,” Bones piped up.

“Screw you, Bones,” Maddock said.

“Brigid was a goddess and a member of the Tuatha de Danann. She was the daughter of the Dagda, the god who was closely associated with the cauldron. I grew up hearing all about her from my parents.”

“She apparently wields some serious power. She seems to think she has enough clout to actually excavate around the well, right in the middle of an important historical site. Of course, she thinks it’s a dead end. Just wants to leave no stone unturned,” Maddock concluded.

“I think I agree with her,” Isla said. “Based on the photos of the Well of the Dead, I suspected this was the wrong place.”

“That’s what we thought about Dunstaffnage until I found the underground chamber,” Grizzly said.

“Finding something and falling through a trapdoor aren’t exactly the same thing,” Bones said.

Grizzly looked like he was about to argue the point, but Maddock cut him off.

“We need to focus on our next move. Maybe there’s another Well of the Dead somewhere?”

“It’s possible,” Isla said. “Do you think Jimmy could have made a mistake?”

“Maybe, but he’s pretty good.”

“We need to get the Tuatha off our backs until we know where to go next. Any ideas on how to do that?” Bones asked.

Maddock looked around, as if the answer stood somewhere nearby. And then it hit him.

“As a matter of fact, I have the perfect idea.”