Page 57 of Dark Chains: First Link
"What if we substitute them?" a woman's voice suggested. "Do Losham and his brothers know what those chests look like?"
Kian and Onegus exchanged glances.
She was right. Losham hadn't seen the chests, and neither had his brothers. Besides, the brothers didn't know what Losham was digging for.
"They don't," Kian said. "We can get an accurate description for you. I was told that they looked like storage chests and that they were the size of a coffin, which matches what they were used for. It's actually a good idea to substitute them if you can pull it off."
"Mattie is an outside-the-box thinker," Volkov said, and someone chuckled in the background.
"Pun intended," the other Russian said. "You know, five bodies in boxes, and thinking outside the box?"
When no one laughed, he huffed. "I thought it was funny."
"It was," the woman said. "They just don't get your Russian humor."
"If they don't know what the chests look like, we can get anything that is the approximate size of a coffin as a substitute," Number One said. "But how is it going to help us?"
"It might give you more flexibility," Turner said. "You could get the chests out, hide them somewhere until everything else is ready, and not worry about the exact timing, but that's too much hassle for too little benefit. I don't think it's a good idea."
Sounds of muffled conversation on the other side suggested that Volkov was blocking the receiver so they could confer without being overheard.
"We agree that it's too complicated," Volkov said after a moment.
Since Kian didn't expect them to actually extract the chests and get them on board a ship, he didn't want them touching them at all.
"There's something else you should keep in mind about those chests," he said. "Navuh booby-trapped the chamber, and when those traps were triggered, the initial collapse happened, and it's not clear what caused the second collapse. It could have been triggered by additional charges. There could be more, so you will need to exercise extreme caution when dealing with the chests. Don't attempt it on your own. Our expert will guide you through it."
"Understood," Number One said.
Kian glanced at his team. "Anything else, gentlemen?" When the others shook their heads, he said, "I think we've covered everything for now. We just need the drop coordinates. Once you retrieve the communication device, make contact, and we'll establish a regular check-in schedule and begin sharing the operational plan."
"Tell me when you are ready to write them down," the soldier said.
Did they record information like coordinates in their hive brain as if it were a computer? That made them more like the Odus than humans or immortals, and Number One's flat tone suggested that it was so.
"We are ready. Go ahead," he instructed.
Number One rattled off a string of coordinates as if he were reading from a GPS.
Onegus entered them into his tablet. "Expect delivery by zero five hundred hours on Tuesday."
"We'll retrieve it," Number One said.
"Good." Kian put his hands flat on the desk. "We'll talk soon through the secure channel."
"Understood," Volkov said. "Thank you for the help and for the honesty."
"Back at you," Kian replied. "It's a pleasure doing business with smart and capable people. Stay safe. Good night to you all."
"Thank you and good afternoon to you."
The line went dead.
"Two weeks," Turner said. "Possibly less. We need the operational plan finalized as soon as possible. I'll have a first draft for you tomorrow."
That was why Kian loved working with Turner. The guy didn't need weeks to come up with a plan.
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