Shiva (30 page)

Which was fine by Bunny. Her foursome exited the car and entered the store.

“
I can
’
t use any of this,
”
Stark said with a sneer, not touching any of the merchandise it appeared for fear of catching a virus.

Bunny ignored him and walked up to the unshaven clerk at the desk.
“
I am sure they have something a little more your speed.
”

The clerk picked something from his teeth.
“
No idea what you and the suits want, but you won
’
t find it here.
”

“
We don
’
t want any trouble,
”
Bunny said as she pulled a wad of one hundred bills out.
“
We just need a few toys.
”

The clerk looked to Prenner
,
then Emily
,
then Bunny.

“
Come on, any arrest would be entrapment at this point,
”
Bunny encouraged.

Finally
,
the guy looked down at the cash.
Gotcha.

He took out a huge ring of keys and unlocked a door behind him to reveal a room filled with gutted high
-
end electronics.
“
We
’
ve got just about everything, but you
’
ve got to rebuild it yourself.
”

Stark stared at the glut of electronica, his jaw slack.
“
There is a god.
”
The tech was so easy to please.

She turned her attention back to the clerk.
“
I am going to need some disposable phones.
”

“
How many?
”

“
Twenty should do.
”

“
Twenty
?
”

Bunny nodded.
“
With international minutes
,
please.
”

As the clerk moved off, Prenner asked,
“
And what are you going to do with those?
”

She looked to Emily.
“
Are the rumors true?
”

Emily just gave that sly smile of hers.

Bunny turned back to Prenner.
“
It looks like I
’
m going to call a friend.
”

* * *

Brandt had stopped counting the injuries as he leaned heavily against a moss-laden tree. They were hiking north, striking for the border of the
other
Congo nation. More than likely
,
the Disciples had paid off this republic
’
s government generously. Another country all together? They could hope not.

The going was slow
,
though. Everyone was banged up
,
and adrenaline only got you so far.

A buzzing stopped the group in their tracks.

“
What the hell was that?
”
Lopez asked
,
looking around to the group.

“
What the hell is right,
”
Brandt rumbled. All electronics should have had their batteries pulled. For Christ
’
s sake
,
they were using a compass to guide them. Nobody better have a cell
phone on them.

Davidson pulled his pack off his shoulder.
“
It is the sat phone.
”

Brandt counted to ten. Seriously
,
on a mission of this sensitivity
,
the kid didn
’
t remember to pull the fucking battery out of their sat phone?

“
I gutted it, I swear,
”
Davidson said as he pulled the phone out. And sure enough
,
the battery backing was off and the battery was out. Still
,
somehow the phone was still vibrating in the sniper
’
s hand.

“
Look,
”
Talli said.
“
There
’
s a screw.
”

Davidson had the thing out within seconds. And there it was. A tiny crystal set into the body of the phone.

“
Damn, is that what I think it is?
”
Lopez asked.

Levont nodded.
“
A photonic crystalline battery, yep.
”
The point man turned to Brandt.
“
Command really does love you guys. Those things are supposedly just theoretical.
”

Yet there it was
,
powering the most basic of the phone
’
s functions.

“
Would have been nice for them to tell us,
”
Brandt grumbled as he pushed off the tree.

“
What should we do?
”
Davidson asked.

“
I guess put the damned full battery back in and find out who is calling.
”

Davidson obliged and read the caller ID.
“
Looks like a burner phone.
”

“
Might as well take it,
”
Brandt ordered.

“
Hello?
”
Davidson asked
,
then frowned as he pulled the phone from his ear to speak to the group.
“
It
’
s Bunny.
”

“
Bunny?
”
Rebecca repeated
,
sounding as surprised as the rest of the group. She then said,
“
Sorry, just really? Bunny on the secret sat phone?
”
Louder
,
she added
,
“
No offense, Bunny.
”

Davidson held
out
the phone. Brandt reached to take it, but the sniper shook his head.
“
No, she wanted to talk to Rebecca.
”

* * *

“
Me?
”
Rebecca repeated.
Ugh
, she hated it when she sounded like a parrot. But why in the world, with the seven of them stuck out in the jungle
,
would Bunny want to talk to her?

Still
,
she accepted the phone from Davidson.
“
Hi?
”

“
Is it
her
?
”
the tinny, statical voice asked.

“
Her who?
”
Rebecca asked back. Was it just
she
was so damned tired
,
or was none of this making sense? It didn
’
t help that all the men were staring at her.

There was a delay. Had they lost the connection?

Then Bunny
’
s scratchy voice asked,
“
You know
…
the daughter. The one Moses was so worried about.
”

Rebecca
’
s brain shifted focus, away from the rain
forest and back to the caves under the Dead Sea. The tablets that contained the Ten Commandments held so much more than references to civil behavior. Including a reference to a female Messiah.

Now she understood why Bunny was being so cagey. She must have people on the other side listening in, just as Rebecca had her own audience. Bunny and she had resolved to never tell anyone of those passages.

Still
,
Rebecca was clueless.
“
I have no idea.
”

“
Have you even asked her?
”
Bunny demanded.

“
Asked who?
”
Rebecca answered
,
the exasperation of the last two days coming out in her tone.

“
The girl with you,
”
Bunny implored.

Wait. What? Rebecca nearly dropped the phone. She sought out Vakasa
,
who was snuggled up against Brandt
’
s leg. Bunny couldn
’
t possibly be suggesting…

No.

That couldn
’
t be.

“
Rebecca?
”
Bunny asked
,
sounding
farther away
than the seven thousand miles that separated them.

“
Yeah,
”
she answered absently. The majority of her brain was working on the fact that Vakasa could be
…
w
ell
,
the Messiah foretold all those millennia ago.

“
Think about it,
”
Bunny rushed on.
“
Why else would the Disciples be hot on your heels?
”

Vakasa being God
’
s daughter certainly did resolve several questions
.
H
owever
,
it brought up like a million. Rebecca couldn
’
t even look Brandt in the eye as she talked.

“
I will have to get back to you on that,
”
Rebecca said.

“
Can I?
”
Brandt asked, holding his hand out for the phone.

* * *

Bunny listened as Rebecca and Brandt exchanged words. She couldn
’
t tell what they were, but it was pretty damned clear Brandt was none too happy. So Bunny wasn
’
t surprised when the sergeant
’
s voice came over the line.

“
I don
’
t know what is going on
,
which makes me just a little grumpy.
”

Just a little?

“
We are trying to determine the Disciples
’
angle here.
”

“
And?
”
Brandt demanded.

Bunny walked a few steps down the trash-strewn alley
,
away from Prenner and Emily.
“
Our theories are…evolving.
”

“
Look
,
if I wanted that evasive crap, I would talk to the CIA.
”
Brandt was definitely grumpy.
“
I want answers.
Now
.
”

Perhaps he couldn
’
t boss his fiancée around, but that didn
’
t mean he could shove Bunny any harder. She also knew the sergeant
,
though. He wouldn
’
t let go of one bone unless you gave him another.

“
How about I know where you need to go next?
”

A pause told her Brandt
’
s pit bull
–
like jaws were trying to decide if he liked this new bone well enough to let go of the other.

“
And are you going to tell me
,
or do I have to figure out the Sphinx riddle.
”

Bunny chuckled.
“
Funny you should say that. It is looking like you need to head to Egypt.
”

Brandt exclaimed something. If Bunny was a betting woman
,
she could guess it was his favorite four
-
letter expletive.

“
Yeah, well, we will be there in
…
I don
’
t know…five and half years at this rate.
”

Bunny noticed Emily snap her phone closed. Holding her hand over the mouthpiece, Bunny asked,
“
ETA
?
”