The Survivor (Eve Duncan #30)

She raised her brows. “Are you so certain?”

“Certain enough. I can smell it in the air. I’ve always been able to do that since I was a kid.” He grinned. “I didn’t need a Riva to tell me like Bailey. Though it would have been convenient.”

“And when is this supposed to happen?”

“Not right away. Probably not before the end of the day. But you’ll know when it’s heading toward us. Sorry, I can’t be more precise for you. It’s not exactly an exact science.”

“Because you have to smell it?” she said caustically.

“And you don’t believe me?”

“Of course I do,” Maya said sourly. “I wish to hell I didn’t. But I grew up in these mountains, and I’ve run into this kind of Sherpa mojo before. And since you’re practically the king of that category, I wouldn’t dare discard anything you say.”

He nodded. “I suspected you wouldn’t. It’s a relief that you’re that intelligent. But I don’t believe the storm is going to get in the way of what Cade and Riley are going to be doing at Silvana’s mountain. Cade’s got it timed so that they should be down from the mountain with the sarcophagus before the end of the day.” He checked his watch. “They got off right on time from base camp. They should be arriving at the waterfall with Kirby’s unit in about an hour.”

“I’m glad you’re so confident,” Maya said dryly. “And I hope your olfactory ability is as keen as you think it is.”

“So do I,” he said quietly. “Because Cade left me in charge and there are things I have to do before I can be sure that everything will go the way I want it to.”

“What things?”

“I told you that my unit had arrived at base camp.”

“I remember, you said you had to blend them with the rest of the military units on the base.”

“Only now I might not have time to do that. Things are moving very fast. Sometimes my men have difficulty being accepted by other military units.”

She frowned. “Why? Troublemakers?”

“No, quite the contrary. You might say they’re specialists. They’re the best mountain fighters in the world. They’re all Sherpas born and bred. I recruited them all myself when I decided that I wanted to do something with my life besides climb mountains. I’d been doing some work with Cade for a year or two and I enjoyed it. Everything from hunting poachers to going after child traffickers.” He smiled. “My Sherpas enjoyed it, too. Sometimes a little too much. Imagine Sherpas with the skill of ninjas.”

“I don’t know if I want to imagine that. All the Sherpas I’ve come across have been kind and super-efficient.”

“And so are my men. You’ll like them. They’re known as the Ice Rangers. They just move very fast and seem to read each other’s minds.” He made a face. “That can be disconcerting to some. I came to tell you that you should notify the shepherds to be ready to go down to the caves when you give the word.” He paused. “And to tell them that if one of my Sherpas gives an order, they’re to obey him.”

She shook her head. “The shepherds are all very smart and independent. They know what they’re doing. Look, I have great respect for Sherpas. I’ve studied their work all my life. I know that without the Sherpas accompanying climbers on Everest, a good many would never have made it. They were the real heroes on those peaks. It used to make me furious when I heard about a climber denigrating one of the Sherpas on his team.” She held up her hand. “That being said, I won’t disrespect any of the shepherds who work for me. Though I’ll speak to them and tell them that they should pay attention to anything your men suggest.” She shook her head and added resignedly, “I’ll even tell them that the suggestion comes from you. Since you seem to have zoomed to the top of their hit parade. Is that good enough?”

“It will have to be. Probably better than I hoped. It’s just that I remember how difficult I found it as a boy trying to prove himself on the mountain.” He smiled. “I taught these men well so that they wouldn’t have to go through what I did. But I also taught them good manners and ways to get around any rudeness in others. They will recall that and persevere.”

“I can’t imagine you as that struggling young boy.” She tilted her head. “My, how you’ve changed.”

“You believe I’m overconfident? It’s true that I wasn’t generous with people who wouldn’t listen. But I did learn to listen and that was a saving grace. I believe you learned similar lessons when you were growing up. I think we were probably a good deal alike.”

She stared at him for a long moment and then nodded slowly. “Perhaps we had a few things in common.”

He was grinning. “More than a few.” He changed the subject. “But now that you’ve come to believe me about the storm, I need to go a step further and tell you that I might not be around to watch over Bailey as much as I intended today. I’ve had to make other arrangements.”

“You came to see her. That’s all I asked. I’ll do the rest.”

“But that’s not what I promised. You’re going to be busy and possibly distracted.” He turned and opened the flap. “That’s why I brought Tazka Kun with me.” He lifted a silver whistle to his lips. “I asked him to stay outside and keep an eye on Bailey until I called.” He blew a short blast into the whistle. “You’ll like him.”

“He’s one of your ninjas?” she asked as she saw a man of short stature and shoulder-length shining black hair come running across the path toward the tent. He was dressed in white pants, top, and boots, and there was a broad smile on his tanned, triangular face. “He doesn’t look very dangerous.”

“He can be, but Kun is also a wonderful cook and fisherman and he’s great with children. None of these men are cut of the same cloth. I wouldn’t want them to be.” He gestured to the man as he approached. “Tazka Kun, this is Maya Fallon, I told you about. She would be delighted if you could take care of her little girl today. Did you talk to Bailey at all yet?”

He nodded. “She is ten, only a year older than my grandson. She told me about the unicorn. How he would love to see her. She said she would show me her books so that I could tell him about them.”

“You’ll be able to see them for yourself and take a photo. Then you can send a photo to your grandson.”