Ruins (The Jewel Project #6)

14. Road Less Traveled

Sleeping through their connecting flight from Tokyo to Iwate had been a bad idea. It only lasted about an hour and made Jessie confused and groggy once the plane landed and she had to be functional again. Fortunately, Jimmy was well enough to walk and successfully direct both of them towards the exit.

Since they'd taken their pathetic luggage on board, they managed to avoid most of the crowd and find the exit. The air was crisp and much too cold for their current outfits, and the light of dawn had her longing for sunglasses.

She hugged herself, then shoved her hands in the pockets of her hoodie. Fortunately, it became very acceptable to have her head covered. Damn it, why didn't she think this through? California was hot, but that didn't mean it wasn't still winter in the rest of the world. And she and Jimmy were wearing shorts.

"What are we looking for?" Jimmy asked the moment they exited the building and wound up in the carpool lane. He didn't seem at all affected by the winter temperatures

"I'm not sure..." She cupped her hand on her forehead to protect her eyes from the sun and glanced around, her entire body shaking.

She could see mountains if she squinted hard enough. Fitting since they'd flown as close as possible to the coordinates provided by Kyle. But it also meant they ended up in a small airport somewhere in the east of the island. It made everything even more foreign than starting in Tokyo would have.

Phillip had mentioned a contact, but not what they looked like or where they would be waiting. And without a phone, it wasn't like she could call and ask.

"Have we been here before?" Jimmy asked, his gaze fixed on the snow-capped mountains in the distance.

"No. Not us." Tom and Angie had been to Japan before, but it had been in Tokyo and she really didn't feel like explaining the mess that followed.

The people around them shifted, and Jessie caught glimpse of a sign spelling out Josie and Jaime Callahan in messy cursive.

"This way," she said, taking Jimmy's hand and dragging him in the direction of the sign.

They came face to face with a short man with a white, thin beard and long hair caught up in a high ponytail. He wore a pair of large slacks and a windbreaker and looked pretty much bored. When they approached, she realized the man was shorter than her, even if not by much.

"Um, hello," she said, her teeth clattering. "We're Jaime and Josie Callahan."

He eyed them up and down, looking first unimpressed, then annoyed. Jessie would've waited for him to speak, but she was starting to freeze.

"Do you speak English?" she asked.

The man huffed and rolled his eyes. "Too old," he muttered.

Her eyes widened. This was something new. Never since starting to work for the Agency had anyone called them too old. Maybe this was what it was like not to work for them.

"Look," Jimmy said, impatience sneaking into his voice. "Do you have somewhere to take us or not?"

The man turned his attention to him and narrowed his eyes. Then, just like that, he turned around and walked away. The two of them looked at each other, not sure what that meant.

"Come on," he called, his accent thick. "Much work to be done."

"Work?" Jimmy asked as they hurried to catch up.

Jessie just shrugged. "I don't know."

She should've asked more questions, but when Phillip had mentioned a contact, she'd just supposed it would be someone with a car to drive them there and give them guns, not a cranky little local guy. But a cranky local guy it was, and he also happened to be driving an ancient looking grey pickup.