The Goddess Legacy

Chapter 24

Spencer was hunched over a computer station, a bottle of water and an empty plate by his side, when Drake and Allie returned to the cyber café. On the screen he had zoomed in on the suspect area of Kashmir, but his body language radiated annoyance, and they didn’t need to ask how his research was going.

He pushed back from the screen and studied their faces. “You look pretty pleased with yourselves.”

“It’s been a productive day so far,” Drake said.

“You going to share, or do I have to guess?”

“We talked to the professor… oh, and we learned who Carson was buying the dagger from,” Drake explained, and gave Spencer a short report on their progress. When he was done, Spencer swiveled back to the screen.

“What was the guy’s name? Indiana Singh? Let’s see if he has a website,” he said, and typed the name into a search engine. A link popped up, and he selected it.

The cartoon image of the exaggerated features appeared in all its glory, and Spencer cocked his head as music drifted from the headphones by the side of the CPU. He listened for a few seconds and laughed.

“That’s beyond cheesy. He’s totally ripped off the Raiders thing.”

“My guess is he didn’t get permission,” Allie observed.

“That’s probably a safe assumption.”

Spencer scrolled down and navigated through the website, which featured photos of temples, slums, and dizzying perspectives from the tops of cliffs. Glowing testimonials all written in suspiciously similar British English assured prospective customers that Indiana Singh was not only the best tour guide in all Delhi, but an honest and friendly chap who quickly became his clients’ best friend.

“About the only thing he’s missing is his own infomercial,” Drake said.

“He dances, he sings, he’s Indiana… Singh!” Allie intoned, and they laughed.

Their merriment was cut short by a ringing from Allie’s purse, and she fumbled the new cell phone out.

“Hello?”

“Who is this?” a male voice demanded.

“My name’s Allie. Who’s this?”

“You left a message on my phone.”

“Mr. Singh?”

A pause. “It might be.”

“I’m a colleague of Elliott Carson’s. I’ve arranged for the final payment. I’m ready when you are,” she said. “You have the dagger?”

“There’s been a change of plans.”

Allie swallowed hard. “What change? We had a deal.”

“The price went up. I want two hundred for it, not one hundred. So you’ll need to transfer a hundred and ninety.”

“I… that wasn’t the agreement. How can you justify raising the price?”

“It went up when Carson showed up in the paper with his head on the other side of the street from his torso.”

Allie had no comeback. “Mr. Singh…”

“People call me Indiana.”

“Indiana. Fine. But be reasonable. That’s a huge amount of money.”

“Then don’t buy it. I can find others, I’m sure. Just the melt weight is probably sixty grand.”

“We could probably come up with a hundred and fifty.”

“We?”

“I’m here with my boyfriend,” she said, looking at Drake, who blushed at the term.

“I’m liking this less and less.”

“Assuming I can raise a hundred and fifty, can we do the transaction?” Allie asked.

Indiana sighed. “Fine. But it has to happen today.”

“Why? What’s going on?”

“None of your business. Can you do it or not?”

“I’ll have to check. It’s the middle of the night in the U.S. How am I supposed to do a transfer with the time difference?”

“Do you have a bitcoin wallet?”

“No.”

“Create one. You can figure out how in a few minutes — there are plenty of services that will do it for you. Then you transfer money to one of dozens of intermediaries, and they convert it. They’ll deposit it in your wallet, and then you transfer it to me.” He gave her the name of a preferred bitcoin broker, and she memorized it for later use.

“I’m not transferring anything until I have the dagger in my hands,” she warned.

“Fair enough. You have six hours.”

“That might not be enough time.”

“It’s all you’ve got.”

Allie bit back her exasperation. “I’ll do the best I can. Where do we meet to do the exchange?”

Indiana was silent for a moment. “Do you know where the Red Fort is?”

“Is it a landmark?”

Indiana laughed humorlessly. “You really are right off the boat, aren’t you? It’s one of the most famous buildings in Delhi.”

“Then I’ll find it.”

“I’ll meet you by the Delhi Gate at seven thirty. Don’t be late. How will I recognize you?”

“I’ve got black curly hair, and I’m wearing black cargo pants and a blue top. My boyfriend is wearing brown pants and a black top. How will I recognize you?”

“You won’t. I’ll approach you. But fair warning — you come alone. Anything’s off, I bolt, and you lose the dagger.”

“Why are you so nervous?” she asked.

“Your partner was decapitated and you’re asking me why I’m nervous? Be at the gate at seven thirty, and no games. Keep your phone on.”

“You’ll call?”

“No, I just don’t want you to miss any important messages,” he said, his tone derisive. “You really are out of your depth, aren’t you?”

“All you should be worried about is how I can transfer money in the middle of the night,” Allie snapped.

“Figure it out.”

The line went dead and she stared at the phone in anger. “What an ass.”

“I heard. He upped the price,” Spencer said.

“Yeah. That’s not the problem.”

“No? Then what is?”

She looked around the café, her eyes locking on the waitress, who was texting someone on her phone while studiously ignoring two tables of customers. When Allie glanced back at Spencer, she appeared pensive.

“Underneath all the bluster, he sounded terrified.”

“Of what?”

“He didn’t say. But I think it’s about time to call Reynolds and find out what he’s gotten us into.”