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.“Are you in your car with Grant Westfield?” the man said, to Grant’s surprise.“I knew you’d get him involved at some point anyway, so I thought he should join in the fun.”Grant shot Tyler a pointed glance, but Tyler put up a hand that said, “I’ll tell you later.”“He followed me to the quarry just like you instructed.And we disconnected the geolabe from the bomb.”“Drive back to the ferry.I’ll take care of the truck.”“Why are we going back to the ferry?” Tyler asked.“Another bomb?”“No,” the voice on the phone said.“Just that one.”As they reached the quarry’s sign, Tyler said, “Before we go anywhere else, I want to—”A tremendous blast shook the car.All three of them ducked instinctively.Grant mashed the pedal to the floor, throwing a plume of gravel behind him.In the rearview mirror he saw a cloud of black smoke that was already being dissipated by the pouring rain.The sound of the explosion would have been heard for miles, but no one would be able to tell where it came from.It might even be mistaken for a crack of thunder, though lightning storms were rare in the Pacific Northwest.Grant kept driving.There was no reason to stop and go back to the truck.The only thing they’d see was tiny pieces.He wouldn’t be surprised if the whole truck had been blown into the water.“What the hell is wrong with you, you maniac!” the woman shouted.“Good,” the voice said.“You’re still alive.”“Your concern is touching,” Tyler said.“Do you think that explosion would have been big enough to sink the ferry? Be honest.”“Yes.What’s your point?”“So, Locke, if that’s what I was willing to do to a boat full of innocent people, imagine what I’m willing to do to your father.”TENTyler looked at Grant and saw the same flash of alarm on his face that he felt in his gut.“What does that mean?” Stacy said.“Now to your mission—” Orr continued.Tyler hung up.He had to warn his father, but the certainty in the caller’s voice made him fear that he was already too late.He found his dad’s number and called.The phone was answered on the second ring.“Dad, it’s Tyler—”“Nope,” Orr said.“I thought you’d be calling, so I had my colleagues forward his phone to mine.”Tyler gripped the phone so hard that he nearly crushed it.“If you hurt my father in any way, my mission will be to hunt you down and drain the life out of you one drop at a time.”“Yes, you’re upset, but I’m not going to harm him unless you decide not to help me.Or if you call the FBI.”“Do you have any idea who you’ve kidnapped?”“Of course I do, because I’m not a grade-A moron.Major General Sherman Locke is newly retired and looking for work, so he’s not going to be missed right away by anyone but you.”Tyler thought about that and knew he was right.If Sherman had still been in the Air Force, the Pentagon would have contacted the FBI within hours of his disappearance, not least because he was a military officer with access to top-secret information.But out of the military he was just another civilian who was free to do as he pleased.If he took off without telling anyone where he was going, that was his business.“How do I know he’s all right?” Tyler asked.“He’s unavailable to talk at the moment because he’s being taken to a secure location, but when he’s safe and sound, I’ll send you verification that he’s fine.”“What do you want?”“First, put the phone back on speaker.Stacy should hear this, too.”Tyler switched it on.“Go ahead.”“I did what you asked, you bastard!” Stacy yelled.“Now you hold up your end of the bargain!”“I’m not letting your sister go just yet,” Orr said.Tyler and Grant looked at each other in confusion, then at Stacy.“Sister?” Tyler said.“Good.Stacy followed her instructions and didn’t tell you about Carol.For that, Stacy’s sister will get to keep all her fingers.”“No! You let her go!”“Not so fast,” Orr said.“Now that you’ve passed your test, I have a mission for you.”“What mission?” Tyler asked.“I want you to find the location of the Midas Touch for me.”Tyler wasn’t sure what Orr meant.“Is that the code word for something?”“No code word.No metaphor.No brand name.I mean the actual Midas Touch that can turn objects to gold.”Grant snorted in disbelief.Tyler could only gape.That was about the last thing he would have guessed Orr was going to say.Tyler thought the kidnapping was going to be about paying a ransom or maybe even using his top-secret clearance to gain access to government files.But the Midas Touch? It was ridiculous.Everyone knew it was a myth about the corrupting power of greed.King Midas was given the wondrous ability to turn anything he touched into gold, which he initially thought was a blessing.But when his feast of celebration became inedible at his touch, Midas realized that this talent was a curse.He begged the gods to rid him of it, and they did, but not before he accidentally turned his own daughter into gold.“Say that again,” Tyler said.“You heard me right,” Orr said.“The Midas Touch.The two of you are going to find it, or your father and Stacy’s sister are dead.If you find it, I’ll make a trade with you.”“Are you serious?”“Deadly.I promise you that the Midas Touch does in fact exist.”“Okay,” Tyler said slowly.He was already wondering how he could give the impression of going along with this wild-goose chase while figuring out how to find his father.“I’ve seen it for myself, and I can prove it to you [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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