Chapter 2.............. The Hotel (wow! What a creative name!)
"Great friend," Indy muttered.
"This doesn't look like much of a hotel." Clarence said.
Rick turned and said, "He's just glad to see me. And the hotel is upstairs."
"Oh," Clarence said as Indy nodded.
Jake glanced angrily at the group and settled his glare on Rick. "I told you not to come back. You blew up my hotel, you got my partner killed, and you are annoying."
Rick looked insulted. "I did not blow up your hotel." He insisted."Those guys blew up the outhouse, you didn't even like your partner, and I am not annoying."
Izzy snorted.
"You- keep quiet." Rick looked at Jake. "Come on. We had fun. Shooting at bad guys..."
"Getting shot, getting chased, getting blown up." Jake finished for Rick.
"I don't think he is too thrilled to see you." Indy's hand rested casually on his Webley, just in case Jake ended up acting as unfriendly as he sounded.
Rick dropped his friendly attitude. "Look, Jake. You'll get payed. A lot. I just need to use your equipment and stay here for a night. We need to find some guys who-"
Jake waved his hand and interrupted. "No. I don't want to know. Rooms for the night will cost twenty in US currency each and the equipment will be five per minute."
"What?!" Indy asked as Rick asked, "Why the hell in US currency?"
"'cause I'm too lazy to do the conversions. And," he looked at Indy. "Tell your friend that it's cheap compared to some of the places out there."
Izzy gave Jake a look. "Out there?" he asked. "Where? In the middle of this desert? There isn't another town for hundreds of miles."
Jake ignored Izzy. "Take it or leave it."
"Hold on." Rick turned toward Indy. "Do you have about $400?"
"Four hundred?"
"Well the rooms are about eighty, and the call will take about 50 minutes to get through if we're lucky. That's, what? Two-fifty. So now we have three-uh, three-thirty. I'll talk to Evy for ten minutes, and that's three-eighty."
Indy didn't look to happy. "Yeah," he said quietly, so Jake wouldn't hear. "I have enough. Couldn't you get him to lower the price?"
"Pal. That is low."
Indy had an exasperated expression on his face. "If we ever go on one of these little adventures again, let me handle accommodations."
Rick nodded. "I like that idea." He turned back to Jake. "We'll pay you in advance for the call, but tomorrow for the rooms."
Jake shrugged. "Seeing that you have your gun bag, I don't think I can argue."
***
Rick was put through four different operators before he reached his house. Surprisingly, it only took about half an hour.
"Hello?" a harried sounding voice asked.
"Evy? It's me, Rick. You don't sound too happy."
"Rick? Oh, it's Jonathon. He taught Alex how to swear in Hungarian or something. I don't know where my brother picked it up, though."
"Probably Beni."
"What?"
"Never mind," Rick said.
Evy brightened. "Did you find any clues?"
"Um, I can't really say so, I don't trust this line, but, I did meet a friend of yours looking for the same thing."
"I can't imagine who," Evy said.
"Indiana Jones."
"Oh, I remember him!"
"Yeah, well, he's helping out. Can I talk to Alex?"
"Hold on." There was a pause, then a: "Hi Dad!"
"Hey, kid. Happy birthday."
"Boy, are you off. It was yesterday."
"Well, sorry. I wasn't near a phone. What happened?"
"I got sent to my room." Alex told him.
"Why?" Rick asked.
"Uncle Jon taught me how to say some stuff in Hungarian. Wanna hear? It's-"
"No. I don't want you saying bad words, okay?"
"Fine." Alex said unconvincingly.
"Okay," Rick ignored his son's lie. "Lemme talk to your mother."
"Rick?" Evy asked.
"I have to make this call short, so, I don't think this should take to long. I'll probably be back in a week."
"Okay. I love you. Be careful." Evy paused, and added, "And no belly dancers."
"Oh, ha ha. Bye, love ya."
Rick hung up the connection in time to see Jake pushing a button on a stopwatch.
"O'Connell, you know owe me two-fifty."
Rick tossed a wad of bills to Jake. "Where did Indy, Clarence, and Izzy go?"
"Up there. Room 3." Jake jerked his head in the direction of the stairs.
"Right. I'll go join 'em."
The room was hot and stuffy. Six beds were up pushed against the walls, three on each side. There was a desk up against the far side of the room. A window was open. It looked out over the top of the porch and out onto the dusty street.
Rick threw his bag onto one of the beds, it bounced about three feet into the air and landed again. Izzy, Indy, and Clarence were arguing about something.
"What's wrong?" Rick asked.
Indy sighed. "These two flyboys want to go to the bar."
"What is so bad about going to a bar? It's not as if we'll get drunk!" Clarence protested.
Indy rolled his eyes. "Yes, you will. I don't want you going because we are near the oasis. There might be spies here. I don't want to broadcast our being here."
"Who would care if we're here?" Izzy asked.
"Well, if you go into a bar and say, 'Hey! How ya doin'? I'm here looking for a bunch of weirdos who worship snakes,' don't you think they'd be a bit suspicious, especially if the members of the cult want to stay hidden?"
"We won't give away any information!" Clarence said, annoyed that Rick would even suggest that.
"Yes, you would," Indy told the pilot.
"I resent that insult aimed at my ability to conceal information."
"What?" Rick asked.
"I want to get a drink!" Izzy said, annoyed.
"No. This is for safety's sake. We'll never get anything done if you blab to every Bedouin, miner, and local drunk that we are searching for treasures worth thousands," Rick told them.
"Miner?" Indy asked.
Rick shook his head. "About ten percent of the guys at the bar are miners. They work about twenty miles out in the desert in an- oh."
"I think we found our cult members." Indy said, half satisfied and half worried.
"Why are you worried?" Rick asked, noting his tone of voice.
"Snakes. I hate 'em."
"Great friend," Indy muttered.
"This doesn't look like much of a hotel." Clarence said.
Rick turned and said, "He's just glad to see me. And the hotel is upstairs."
"Oh," Clarence said as Indy nodded.
Jake glanced angrily at the group and settled his glare on Rick. "I told you not to come back. You blew up my hotel, you got my partner killed, and you are annoying."
Rick looked insulted. "I did not blow up your hotel." He insisted."Those guys blew up the outhouse, you didn't even like your partner, and I am not annoying."
Izzy snorted.
"You- keep quiet." Rick looked at Jake. "Come on. We had fun. Shooting at bad guys..."
"Getting shot, getting chased, getting blown up." Jake finished for Rick.
"I don't think he is too thrilled to see you." Indy's hand rested casually on his Webley, just in case Jake ended up acting as unfriendly as he sounded.
Rick dropped his friendly attitude. "Look, Jake. You'll get payed. A lot. I just need to use your equipment and stay here for a night. We need to find some guys who-"
Jake waved his hand and interrupted. "No. I don't want to know. Rooms for the night will cost twenty in US currency each and the equipment will be five per minute."
"What?!" Indy asked as Rick asked, "Why the hell in US currency?"
"'cause I'm too lazy to do the conversions. And," he looked at Indy. "Tell your friend that it's cheap compared to some of the places out there."
Izzy gave Jake a look. "Out there?" he asked. "Where? In the middle of this desert? There isn't another town for hundreds of miles."
Jake ignored Izzy. "Take it or leave it."
"Hold on." Rick turned toward Indy. "Do you have about $400?"
"Four hundred?"
"Well the rooms are about eighty, and the call will take about 50 minutes to get through if we're lucky. That's, what? Two-fifty. So now we have three-uh, three-thirty. I'll talk to Evy for ten minutes, and that's three-eighty."
Indy didn't look to happy. "Yeah," he said quietly, so Jake wouldn't hear. "I have enough. Couldn't you get him to lower the price?"
"Pal. That is low."
Indy had an exasperated expression on his face. "If we ever go on one of these little adventures again, let me handle accommodations."
Rick nodded. "I like that idea." He turned back to Jake. "We'll pay you in advance for the call, but tomorrow for the rooms."
Jake shrugged. "Seeing that you have your gun bag, I don't think I can argue."
***
Rick was put through four different operators before he reached his house. Surprisingly, it only took about half an hour.
"Hello?" a harried sounding voice asked.
"Evy? It's me, Rick. You don't sound too happy."
"Rick? Oh, it's Jonathon. He taught Alex how to swear in Hungarian or something. I don't know where my brother picked it up, though."
"Probably Beni."
"What?"
"Never mind," Rick said.
Evy brightened. "Did you find any clues?"
"Um, I can't really say so, I don't trust this line, but, I did meet a friend of yours looking for the same thing."
"I can't imagine who," Evy said.
"Indiana Jones."
"Oh, I remember him!"
"Yeah, well, he's helping out. Can I talk to Alex?"
"Hold on." There was a pause, then a: "Hi Dad!"
"Hey, kid. Happy birthday."
"Boy, are you off. It was yesterday."
"Well, sorry. I wasn't near a phone. What happened?"
"I got sent to my room." Alex told him.
"Why?" Rick asked.
"Uncle Jon taught me how to say some stuff in Hungarian. Wanna hear? It's-"
"No. I don't want you saying bad words, okay?"
"Fine." Alex said unconvincingly.
"Okay," Rick ignored his son's lie. "Lemme talk to your mother."
"Rick?" Evy asked.
"I have to make this call short, so, I don't think this should take to long. I'll probably be back in a week."
"Okay. I love you. Be careful." Evy paused, and added, "And no belly dancers."
"Oh, ha ha. Bye, love ya."
Rick hung up the connection in time to see Jake pushing a button on a stopwatch.
"O'Connell, you know owe me two-fifty."
Rick tossed a wad of bills to Jake. "Where did Indy, Clarence, and Izzy go?"
"Up there. Room 3." Jake jerked his head in the direction of the stairs.
"Right. I'll go join 'em."
The room was hot and stuffy. Six beds were up pushed against the walls, three on each side. There was a desk up against the far side of the room. A window was open. It looked out over the top of the porch and out onto the dusty street.
Rick threw his bag onto one of the beds, it bounced about three feet into the air and landed again. Izzy, Indy, and Clarence were arguing about something.
"What's wrong?" Rick asked.
Indy sighed. "These two flyboys want to go to the bar."
"What is so bad about going to a bar? It's not as if we'll get drunk!" Clarence protested.
Indy rolled his eyes. "Yes, you will. I don't want you going because we are near the oasis. There might be spies here. I don't want to broadcast our being here."
"Who would care if we're here?" Izzy asked.
"Well, if you go into a bar and say, 'Hey! How ya doin'? I'm here looking for a bunch of weirdos who worship snakes,' don't you think they'd be a bit suspicious, especially if the members of the cult want to stay hidden?"
"We won't give away any information!" Clarence said, annoyed that Rick would even suggest that.
"Yes, you would," Indy told the pilot.
"I resent that insult aimed at my ability to conceal information."
"What?" Rick asked.
"I want to get a drink!" Izzy said, annoyed.
"No. This is for safety's sake. We'll never get anything done if you blab to every Bedouin, miner, and local drunk that we are searching for treasures worth thousands," Rick told them.
"Miner?" Indy asked.
Rick shook his head. "About ten percent of the guys at the bar are miners. They work about twenty miles out in the desert in an- oh."
"I think we found our cult members." Indy said, half satisfied and half worried.
"Why are you worried?" Rick asked, noting his tone of voice.
"Snakes. I hate 'em."
