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Two dozen flashlights shone into the open safe, but none of them were prepared for what they saw. Sage stared at the contents, shaking her head.
“What in the hell have we found?”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
“Anybody wanna know how Mama got all that in there?” asked Gabe.
“I’m gonna bet she had some help from George and Matthew,” said Gaspar, shaking his head. “Probably Jake as well. Still, it’s a lot to put in one safe.”
“They’re all loose,” said Sage, staring at the trays of gems. “None of them are in settings. If they were, the settings are long gone. These are loose diamonds, rubies, and emeralds. I can’t imagine where all of this came from.”
“It had to have been collected over years,” said Gaspar. “A big robbery that would have included all of these would have made headlines.”
“Do we leave it here?” asked Mike.
“Honestly? I’m not sure,” said Luke. “If we move it closer to the house, we can separate it and place everything in different, smaller safes. But. And this is a big but. It will be closer to the house and perhaps put everyone at greater risk.”
“Not to jump in here,” said Sage, “but what do we do about this man searching for me and the diamonds? I mean, if he’s as bad as May and Kat said, then he’s not going to give up. Am I supposed to just hide out here? What if he figures out where I am, and he comes for all of you and your families?”
The team looked from one face to another. Sage was right. Yun wasn’t just going to roll over and give up, especially if he thought he possessed the potential for a WMD.
“I think we have to hunt him down,” said Mike. “I know it’s not ideal, but we can’t just sit around and wait for him to show up at the gates. Our security, our stealth technologies, all of it is pretty fucking good. But that doesn’t mean it’s completely impenetrable.”
“I agree,” said Dan. “Maybe we should start with Sharif and Murad. Find them, and we might find the link to Yun.”
“Then that’s where we start,” said Hex. “Comms will begin searching security cameras around the city, airports, buses, anything. They can’t be in hiding forever, and if they’re mixed up with Yun, he wants something from them. They won’t leave New Orleans if they believe that Sage is still in the area.”
“What about me? What do I do?” asked Sage.
“You could help by looking at all of this,” said Eric, waving his arm over the safe. “We need as much information on everything here as you have.”
“I can do that. Anything I can’t figure out, I’m sure I could reach out to my mentor in New York,” she said.
“For now, Sage,” said Eric, “let’s just keep this between all of us. If we need outside help, we’ll be sure and ask, but not yet.”
“Understood,” she nodded. She knew a great deal about jewelry and gemstones but knew nothing of their world and wasn’t about to assume she did. If she needed help, Hiram Silverstein would be the ideal person to contact. Having been in the business for decades, with generations before him doing the same, he would know what to do.
“I think the best thing to do is set up stations here at the Sugar Lodge for examination of the stones,” said Luke. “Tell us what equipment you’ll need, Sage, and we’ll make sure it’s brought out here.”
Luke wasn’t lying. Within two hours, there were tables set with microscopes, tools that looked more like dental instruments than anything else, and solutions that no one truly understood.
Ryan made sure that any assistance she needed was there, while Dylan sent someone out to man the kitchen and provide them with food throughout the day.
As the sun started to set, Sage still had her head down over the stones. She could hear the footsteps behind her but didn’t bother to look up.
“Sage? Babe, you’ve been at it for hours. Come on. It’s time for dinner. Let’s get this all locked up, and we’ll come back out tomorrow,” said Mike.
“I was hoping to be further along, but I’m not. Honestly, Mike, I’m not sure that any of this is connected.”
“We have to be prepared for the fact that it may not be connected,” he said. “All of this could just be stolen gemstones. It’s even possible that it was legally mined and bought. I doubt it, but we have to agree that it is a possibility. But for now, you’ve done enough today.”
Dan, Kiel, Robbie, and Cade helped Mike place the trays of stones back inside the safe. When the door was securely locked, the rug replaced and the room looking normal, they left for dinner.
The entire walk, Mike could see that Sage was still thinking, running things through her head. He understood that feeling. It happened every time you left an op, feeling as though you might have missed something. She was doing the same thing. Trying to figure out what she’d missed.
“Don’t dwell on it, Sage,” said Kiel. “It will come to you when you least expect it and usually, when you’re not thinking about it at all. Enjoy dinner, relax with friends, and you’ll remember what it is you think you’re missing.”
“How did you know that’s what I was thinking?” she smirked.
