False Horizon - Alex Archer [56]
Annja nodded. “Great. Sounds like just the kind of woman I could have a beer with.”
“That,” Tuk said, “is something I doubt very much.”
“I’m being sarcastic.”
Tuk grinned. “Sorry.”
Annja looked at the party. Mike had noticed the two of them were missing out on the festivities and seemed intent to wander over. Annja glanced back at Tuk. “I don’t think we should talk too much about this with anyone else.”
“I agree.”
“It’s just that it might make people upset. If something happens, then we’ll deal with it.”
“With your sword?”
Annja smiled. “Maybe. And don’t you dream of mentioning that to anyone, either.”
“Especially, I’m assuming, Garin?”
Annja shrugged. “Nah, he already knows about it. Too late to keep that secret from him.” She took a breath. “In the meantime, you have to figure out how to get Garin over here.”
“I’ll speak with my father,” Tuk said. “I’m certain he will tell me what we need to know.”
“He seemed to know all about your phone call,” Annja said. “I’d be curious as to how he pulled off that trick.”
“Maybe I’ll ask him that, too.”
“You do that.”
“And if it’s true what he says, that there is indeed an assassin headed here at the behest of the Communist Chinese? What then?”
Annja shrugged. “Then she and I will just have to have a serious talk.”
21
“You guys okay?”
Tuk had wandered off to find his father and Mike had come across the field. In the background, the music continued to play and Annja wondered how long it would carry on for.
She nodded. “Just going over some things.”
“Was that a cell phone I saw in Tuk’s hand?”
Annja smiled. “Yes, it was. Apparently, the little guy had it with him the entire time.”
Mike frowned. “You mean we could have been rescued before all of this?”
“I doubt it, actually. There would have been no way to get a team in for us with the storm coming down. And I believe that Tuk would have used it to do just that if he thought there was enough time.”
“Who was he talking to?”
Annja smirked. “An old friend of mine. Of sorts. I guess he thought I was in some kind of danger and asked Tuk to keep an eye on me.”
“Tuk was your guardian angel?”
“Seems to have been, yes.” Annja shrugged. “Although, I’m still not quite sure what he might have been protecting me from. And that’s the bone of contention right now.”
“What is?”
“There is apparently something much bigger going on than any of us realized.” Annja sighed. “And it shows signs of infecting this place if what I just heard is to be believed.”
“Are you kidding me? How would it impact this place? It’s like an unspoiled paradise here.” The expression on Mike’s face betrayed his sudden worry and apprehension.
Annja tried to calm him down. “Mike, I know that you’re loving this place, but we aren’t the only ones who have been looking for it.”
“I know that,” Mike said. “People have been searching for Shangri-La since it was written about all those years ago. It’s a given that others would want to find it. And yet, somehow I don’t think they’ll be able to.”
Annja shook her head. “I wish that was the case, but I think it’s safe to say that right now there is a very concerted effort to discover exactly how to access this valley from the outside world. And the people involved in that hunt are anything but friendly.”
“Are you talking about Tsing? I didn’t get the idea that he wanted to destroy this place. I thought maybe he wanted to come and live here in seclusion. Maybe find a cure for that weird vampire condition of his.”
“I’m not necessarily talking about Tsing,” Annja said. “I’m thinking about the Communist Chinese. I just don’t know all of the details yet and, until I do, I’m not quite sure what we’re supposed to do. This doesn’t look like the kind of place you could easily defend.” Annja swept her hand up,