Andy Stork scooted along the top of the gorge from cover to cover, paralleling the man below. Each time he stopped he zeroed in with his binoculars trying to see a face but the bushes and tree limbs made it just too dense to make out details, still he had a strange feeling that there was something familiar about the man.

He made another dash for a large boulder beside a bend in the terrain and hunkered down waiting for the man to come into sight again. When he did, Stork made a coughing sound and swore to himself; he knew the man that was suddenly climbing straight toward him.

"Hello, Jack."

The man jerked to a halt, one hand dragging the large revolver from its holster as he searched for the source of the voice.

"Whoa, easy there. It's me, Andy Stork, mate. Remember. South Africa?"

Jack moved cautiously forward toward the sound, gun at his side. "Stork? Roo Shoe?"

"Arrrgh, never liked that moniker, Jack." He stood and showed himself and Jack relaxed, sliding his pack off but keeping the gun visible. "On another job are you, mate?"

"How about you, Andy, you been following me?"

Stork looked back over his shoulder and waved Jack into the cover of the boulder. When they were squatting across from each other, Stork nodded to the gun.

"Need that, do we?"

"You tell me."

"Righty then." Slowly he took out his own gun and laid it on the ground, butt to Jack. "Okay?"

Jack holstered his and rested his arms on his thighs. "So, are you following me, Andy?"

"Let me tell you a story, mate."

Ten minutes later, Jack scrubbed his chin with his fingers and swore softly.

"Sebastian Bonnaro, eh? Guess I'm not surprised, he financed the expedition." Jack thought of Sophia and Anton walking into Salvatore's snare and he quickly calculated his odds for survival with Andy. "This Dante, he likely to shoot first you say?"

"You know these wops, Jack, they're like the chinks, it's all about face. Little insults send them into orbit. Frankly, Mumford and I would just as soon do the bastard and get him off our minds."

"There's a woman with Anton . . . his wife." Jack looked sympathetic and Andy pulled a helpless face.

"Did you come through that native village near Obenteni?" Jack nodded. "That bastard slaughtered the lot . . . women and kids."

Jack clenched his teeth. "And you let him."

"We all had a bit of a hand in things but not the killing. That was pure Dante."

"Still, you let him."

Stork stretched his back and smiled wryly. "This from Two Gun Jack Cavanaugh? Yeah, we let him."

Jack winced at his long forgotten nickname and copied Stork's stretch. "So now the area is going to be crawling with police or army."

"Might be, mate. You worried?"

"Not without reason."

"So what happened? Arno was found in the river in pretty bad condition, aside from being dead I mean."

"Okay, Andy, here's the deal. Anton and Sophia are as good as done. They're packing a large quantity of treasure from the mines that we dug out after Anton took care of the rest of the party. He used a jaguar skin and a lot of local makeup to scare the shit out of them then he mauled them to death - one by one."

Stork smiled and snorted aloud. "And you let him."

"Okay, okay, point taken. Salvatore will have more than enough stuff to satisfy Sebastian plus he'll have the location of the dig . . . and there's still more in there too." Jack shifted his feet and loosened his shoulders. "I've got something in my pack that will more than compensate both of us for a long time if we can come to an agreement."

"You asking me to quit Salvatore and join you, Jack?"

"What happens otherwise?" It was more of a threat than a question and Stork licked his lips as he studied his old cohort.

"I'd have to see this compensation first, mate."

Jack stood slowly, kicking the gun well away from Stork and matching his wary smile. "Until we agree." He lugged his pack over and undid the flap, reaching down inside and withdrawing the same sample he'd shown Sophia.

"Crickey!" Stork weighed the emerald in his hand and held it up to the light. "You have more like this?"

"A bag full, Andy. Enough for two if we agree."

"I think I'd rather toss my lot in with a mick than wop." He stuck out his hand to Jack.

"Most wops are micks, Andy." Jack took the stone first and then shook Stork's hand. "Okay then, partner, now how do we get back to Callao and the airport without meeting the authorities?"

"Until we're well away from here, on quick feet. Salvatore will be expecting me to report back on you."

"I was going to cross the gorge and make a run for the river at Junin. From there we can get a boat to La Oroya then train from there to the coast."

"Sounds like a plan, Jack." Stork grabbed the few things he carried with him, retrieved his gun and the two men took off down into the gorge.

********

"I knew we shouldn't have trusted that bastard." Anton growled, pushing Sophia roughly ahead of him. "Seems like your lover likes treasure more than you, wifey."

"He's not my lover, Anton," she protested. "And what did he take? We have everything we took from the mine."

"Then why run off? Oh no, my lovely, friend Jack has something, something we don't know about."

Sophia pictured the emerald and bit her lip, praying they would soon be together.

"We don't know he's run anywhere, he said he'd meet us at the airstrip."

"Yeah, and I'm your first choice for bedtime." He dared her to object and when she didn't he raised a threatening hand. "You think I don't know abo-"

The spurt of earth flew up at her feet and she screamed, slipping on the narrow track and tumbling down hard. Anton quickly dropped his pack and flattened himself on the ground, his rifle extended in front of his face. Another divot appeared near his side and he rolled toward it coming up in the firing position and fired several bursts blindly up the hill.

"Next one's in your fat ass, Varga." The sound rang down the gorge and Anton couldn't determine its direction. "Toss out the weapons and stand up . . . you too, sweetheart."

Sophia started to rise and Anton reached over and jerked her roughly down in front of him. "Don't even think of it." He hissed.

"Have it your way, Varga." The next shot ripped a channel down his thigh and he shrieked in surprise and pain, shouting out his surrender.

When the guns were thrown aside and Sophia had helped him to his feet the three men showed themselves and came down to meet them together.

"That was a foolish thing to do, Anton."

Anton blinked and winced as he pressed the wound with his fingers. "I didn't know it was you Cossto, why did you have to shoot when you knew it was me?"

"After what happened to Arno? Silly question."

"I had nothing to do with that," Anton tried. "It was an animal of some kind. It got some of the others too." He wet his lips. "Tell them Sophia. Tell them it was animal."

"Yeah, Sophia, tell us it was an animal." Dante flipped her long hair with the muzzle of his gun.

"I- it was . . . I don't really know what it was . . . "

"Sophia!" Anton shook her arm. "Tell them!"

Salvatore beckoned to Mumford. "Take her over there and keep an eye on her."

"I can do that." Dante snarled.

"I said, him." Salvatore glared his countryman down. He stepped aside as Mumford led Sophia down the trail and behind a stand of thick trees.

"Now, Anton. What happened to the party?"