Read Online The Tomb of the Gods (Matt Drake 4) by David Leadbeater - Free Book Online
Authors: David Leadbeater
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masterpiece, the pinnacle of his long-practiced culinary skills.
After a while, Cayman laid out a knife and fork on the empty table, the noise echoing around the empty apartment as if to mock him. He sat down, carefully thinking about nothing, still dressed in the standard suit and tie, and ate with robotic, measured strokes.
Hayden and Gates had escaped his trap in L.A. Where would they turn up next? Their cohorts, Ben and Karin Blake, had fled the CIA building a mere twenty minutes before Cayman’s men arrived.
He stopped eating. The anxiety made him want to fling the meal to the floor. Made him want to stab the fork through the meat of his hand and suck at the blood and the torn flesh for solace, using the hand like a grotesque dummy. He’d done it before.
But the heady aroma invaded his senses again. He returned to the meal. He finished the bowl, stood up and walked over to the window. The neighborhood outside was busy, full of parents and children hurrying about their daily routines. Cayman had chosen to live amidst a bustling civilian population, though he didn’t know why. Was it the need to feel he was a part of something? Something real, as opposed to the shadowy cutthroat world he thrived in?
He watched the young mothers, familiar figures by now. The children. He was a monster in their midst, the Halloween ghoul come to life. But the government indulged his whim and let him live amongst them.
No, not the government. The people behind the government. They didn’t have a conscience. They didn’t care where he lived, so long as they got what they wanted. The American government, the top brass, had actually balked at the idea of allowing him the use of this location. . .but they’d been overruled.
The Shadow Elite. They were the towering silhouette behind the monster. The blackness at the heart of the gloom. A body of six men, Cayman knew, who played the world’s governments like puppets. Their interest, already piqued at the discovery of the spectacular tombs and preserved bones of so many legendary gods, had skyrocketed into the stratosphere when they learned of the doomsday device. The response had been immediate. First, it must not fall into the hands of anyone else, for that person might then be able to wield some influence over them, and second, they should be the ones to control it since they always had been, and always would be, the world’s governing body. It was an irony to them, Cayman knew, that they should possess the power of old gods, since they were the new gods. And the Norseman, their leader, was an unstoppable force. On a whim, he could start a war. On the toss of a coin, he could wipe out a village—anywhere in the world. Cayman had witnessed his power first-hand. The memories still gave him night terrors.
Cayman turned back to the emptiness of his home, as his cellphone began to chirp a standard ringtone.
“Cayman here.”
“This is Mackenzie, sir. I’m in charge of coordinating all the data we collect from tombs one and two that might relate to tomb three.”
“I know exactly who you are. What do you want?”
“It’s tomb three, sir. We have a location.”
Cayman was careful not to let his excitement show. This was it! The Shadow Elite would be, literally, ecstatic.
“Gather everyone.” He spoke the words slowly and succinctly. “Send them all to the location at once. Now—where is it?”
CHAPTER TEN
Drake’s flight landed at Zurich airport a little before six a.m. Swiss time. He’d already received coordinates in-flight from Hayden so, as soon as they passed through security control without a hiccup, they found a taxi rank and gave the driver a local address. Within twenty minutes, they turned off Zurichstrasse onto Wisentalstrasse and dropped off outside a gray, nondescript building with the initials IMI painted onto a very old, very shabby sign, which hung precariously over the front door.
Drake, Alicia and Mai eyed the area suspiciously as the
After a while, Cayman laid out a knife and fork on the empty table, the noise echoing around the empty apartment as if to mock him. He sat down, carefully thinking about nothing, still dressed in the standard suit and tie, and ate with robotic, measured strokes.
Hayden and Gates had escaped his trap in L.A. Where would they turn up next? Their cohorts, Ben and Karin Blake, had fled the CIA building a mere twenty minutes before Cayman’s men arrived.
He stopped eating. The anxiety made him want to fling the meal to the floor. Made him want to stab the fork through the meat of his hand and suck at the blood and the torn flesh for solace, using the hand like a grotesque dummy. He’d done it before.
But the heady aroma invaded his senses again. He returned to the meal. He finished the bowl, stood up and walked over to the window. The neighborhood outside was busy, full of parents and children hurrying about their daily routines. Cayman had chosen to live amidst a bustling civilian population, though he didn’t know why. Was it the need to feel he was a part of something? Something real, as opposed to the shadowy cutthroat world he thrived in?
He watched the young mothers, familiar figures by now. The children. He was a monster in their midst, the Halloween ghoul come to life. But the government indulged his whim and let him live amongst them.
No, not the government. The people behind the government. They didn’t have a conscience. They didn’t care where he lived, so long as they got what they wanted. The American government, the top brass, had actually balked at the idea of allowing him the use of this location. . .but they’d been overruled.
The Shadow Elite. They were the towering silhouette behind the monster. The blackness at the heart of the gloom. A body of six men, Cayman knew, who played the world’s governments like puppets. Their interest, already piqued at the discovery of the spectacular tombs and preserved bones of so many legendary gods, had skyrocketed into the stratosphere when they learned of the doomsday device. The response had been immediate. First, it must not fall into the hands of anyone else, for that person might then be able to wield some influence over them, and second, they should be the ones to control it since they always had been, and always would be, the world’s governing body. It was an irony to them, Cayman knew, that they should possess the power of old gods, since they were the new gods. And the Norseman, their leader, was an unstoppable force. On a whim, he could start a war. On the toss of a coin, he could wipe out a village—anywhere in the world. Cayman had witnessed his power first-hand. The memories still gave him night terrors.
Cayman turned back to the emptiness of his home, as his cellphone began to chirp a standard ringtone.
“Cayman here.”
“This is Mackenzie, sir. I’m in charge of coordinating all the data we collect from tombs one and two that might relate to tomb three.”
“I know exactly who you are. What do you want?”
“It’s tomb three, sir. We have a location.”
Cayman was careful not to let his excitement show. This was it! The Shadow Elite would be, literally, ecstatic.
“Gather everyone.” He spoke the words slowly and succinctly. “Send them all to the location at once. Now—where is it?”
CHAPTER TEN
Drake’s flight landed at Zurich airport a little before six a.m. Swiss time. He’d already received coordinates in-flight from Hayden so, as soon as they passed through security control without a hiccup, they found a taxi rank and gave the driver a local address. Within twenty minutes, they turned off Zurichstrasse onto Wisentalstrasse and dropped off outside a gray, nondescript building with the initials IMI painted onto a very old, very shabby sign, which hung precariously over the front door.
Drake, Alicia and Mai eyed the area suspiciously as the
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