Read Online Dragon's Triangle (The Shipwreck Adventures Book 2) by Christine Kling - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Christine Kling
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about?”
“Ben and I would be happy to show you.”
The prince looked at the boy, Ben, and the young man smiled for the first time.
“Show me what? You’re not making sense.”
“Lieutenant, imagine a treasure more vast than anything man has ever assembled in one location. Think about so much gold that it would take a navy of ships to remove it.”
Ozzie didn’t say anything.
“It is imperative that I return to the Philippines.”
Reluctantly, Ozzie forced his mind to turn away from the visions the prince’s words had evoked. “Good luck with that. MacArthur kept his promise and he’s pushing your guys out.”
“You are correct when you say this war will be ending soon.”
“And until that happens, you’re gonna be a guest of Uncle Sam.”
The prince shrugged as if to say,
Maybe, or maybe not
. “When the war ends, the smart men will be very rich.” He stared into Ozzie’s eyes once again. “Those not so smart will return home to the same lives they had before the war.”
Ozzie felt the burn crawling back up his throat. He thought about the tiny apartment where his wife lived with their son, little Richie, and the job waiting for him working for his father at the bank. He’d watched his father handling the money of the residents of Newport’s mansions all his life, never making enough of his own to be anywhere near in their league. After all Ozzie had done for
them
in this war, no one was suggesting he’d go home to anything different. He coughed and then swallowed. His gut tensed for the pain he knew was coming.
“I do not have the luxury of time, Lieutenant. I have very important information I need to return to the Philippines.”
Ozzie told himself to snap out of it. This was what he was supposed to be after: information.
“What kind of information?”
The prince lifted both his hands into the air with his fingers spread wide. “Do I have your permission to reach for something in my tunic?”
Ozzie shrugged. He knew the sailors who had brought these prisoners aboard the sub had already patted him down. “Sure. Just take it slow.”
“On my honor, it is not a weapon.”
The prince reached inside his tunic and Ozzie saw him pull apart some small stitches. He reached inside the lining of the upper end of his sleeve and withdrew a small gold cylinder about three inches long. It had caps on both ends. The fine gold filigree work around the tube looked like some sort of Eastern lettering like Hebrew or Arabic. In gold alone, it was worth more than Ozzie made in a year.
So much for the capabilities of the sailors who searched this guy,
he thought.
“What is that?”
“It is called a prayer gau, or prayer box. It was made in Tibet more than one hundred years ago. Their monks would use these to carry small prayers close to their hearts.” The prince held up the gau and showed Ozzie that there were tiny scrolls of paper inside.
“So, I take it that this one doesn’t have prayers in it.”
“You are correct.” The prince flashed his creepy grin again.
“So, what is this? Some kind of coded message?”
“It is the key to a map.”
“What sort of map?”
“It is an encrypted map that represents my work over the last three years.”
“You mean this Golden Lily?”
“Yes, the map shows the locations of all the Golden Lily vaults located in the islands of the Philippines. It is located in Luzon and I know where.”
Chatuchak Weekend Market
Bangkok, Thailand
November 17, 2012
Riley couldn’t believe what she’d just heard. “The USS
Bonefish
?” she said, her voice sounding loud after Peewee’s whisper.
Was this one more instance where her father had lied to her? She thought of all the boats he had owned in the many places her family had lived. Whenever the State Department posted him to an embassy close to a body of water, her father always found and purchased some sailing boat and named her
Bonefish
. And now Riley’s own boat carried the same name. Yet her
“Ben and I would be happy to show you.”
The prince looked at the boy, Ben, and the young man smiled for the first time.
“Show me what? You’re not making sense.”
“Lieutenant, imagine a treasure more vast than anything man has ever assembled in one location. Think about so much gold that it would take a navy of ships to remove it.”
Ozzie didn’t say anything.
“It is imperative that I return to the Philippines.”
Reluctantly, Ozzie forced his mind to turn away from the visions the prince’s words had evoked. “Good luck with that. MacArthur kept his promise and he’s pushing your guys out.”
“You are correct when you say this war will be ending soon.”
“And until that happens, you’re gonna be a guest of Uncle Sam.”
The prince shrugged as if to say,
Maybe, or maybe not
. “When the war ends, the smart men will be very rich.” He stared into Ozzie’s eyes once again. “Those not so smart will return home to the same lives they had before the war.”
Ozzie felt the burn crawling back up his throat. He thought about the tiny apartment where his wife lived with their son, little Richie, and the job waiting for him working for his father at the bank. He’d watched his father handling the money of the residents of Newport’s mansions all his life, never making enough of his own to be anywhere near in their league. After all Ozzie had done for
them
in this war, no one was suggesting he’d go home to anything different. He coughed and then swallowed. His gut tensed for the pain he knew was coming.
“I do not have the luxury of time, Lieutenant. I have very important information I need to return to the Philippines.”
Ozzie told himself to snap out of it. This was what he was supposed to be after: information.
“What kind of information?”
The prince lifted both his hands into the air with his fingers spread wide. “Do I have your permission to reach for something in my tunic?”
Ozzie shrugged. He knew the sailors who had brought these prisoners aboard the sub had already patted him down. “Sure. Just take it slow.”
“On my honor, it is not a weapon.”
The prince reached inside his tunic and Ozzie saw him pull apart some small stitches. He reached inside the lining of the upper end of his sleeve and withdrew a small gold cylinder about three inches long. It had caps on both ends. The fine gold filigree work around the tube looked like some sort of Eastern lettering like Hebrew or Arabic. In gold alone, it was worth more than Ozzie made in a year.
So much for the capabilities of the sailors who searched this guy,
he thought.
“What is that?”
“It is called a prayer gau, or prayer box. It was made in Tibet more than one hundred years ago. Their monks would use these to carry small prayers close to their hearts.” The prince held up the gau and showed Ozzie that there were tiny scrolls of paper inside.
“So, I take it that this one doesn’t have prayers in it.”
“You are correct.” The prince flashed his creepy grin again.
“So, what is this? Some kind of coded message?”
“It is the key to a map.”
“What sort of map?”
“It is an encrypted map that represents my work over the last three years.”
“You mean this Golden Lily?”
“Yes, the map shows the locations of all the Golden Lily vaults located in the islands of the Philippines. It is located in Luzon and I know where.”
Chatuchak Weekend Market
Bangkok, Thailand
November 17, 2012
Riley couldn’t believe what she’d just heard. “The USS
Bonefish
?” she said, her voice sounding loud after Peewee’s whisper.
Was this one more instance where her father had lied to her? She thought of all the boats he had owned in the many places her family had lived. Whenever the State Department posted him to an embassy close to a body of water, her father always found and purchased some sailing boat and named her
Bonefish
. And now Riley’s own boat carried the same name. Yet her
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