The entrance to the hotel was understated elegance, the carpet beneath Gabe's feet handwoven, the floor tiles in the restaurant hand painted. He took a seat at a table and was soon enjoying one of the best cups of coffee he'd had the pleasure of consuming in a while. Checking his phone he saw there were no new messages, which was a relief and slightly annoying. The relief was there was nothing from Cian, the annoyance because he was waiting for the address for the meeting he was there to attend, a local trader having arranged it.
Staring out the window as the sun slowly stretched up and reached over the treetops he felt a slight gnawing at his stomach. It had been too long since they'd found a lead, too many times the moon had gone through its cycle, too many of their captains had had to take to the high seas without the protection of the Mariner's Ring and all that came from it. In total three vessels had been lost, each taking their cargo and some of their crew to the depths from where none returned, and only rarely was the cargo recovered. Each of the deaths had taken a toll on his family, the loss felt deeply by all.
This time the lead was at least along the correct vein. Smugglers who had in the past proven to be reliable in their provision of quality merchandise had come across a collection that contained jewellery and artefacts, none of which they would photograph, having a deep mistrust of technology and the ability to maintain secrecy. Gabe could understand that, and so had boarded an aircraft for this journey, his first to the capital city of Colombia.
A family entered the restaurant, two small children accompanying their parents downstairs for breakfast, a nanny also in attendance. His mind recalled some of the stories Brianna had told him of her and her sister's upbringing, and Cian's loss of his family, and he was again thankful for having had his family around him through his entire life.
As he sat musing on the different paths of his friends' lives to his own his phone buzzed, a notification flashing across the screen causing him to pick it up and tap through to the message.
'Taxi collect 4pm' was the simple, but meaningful message.
Would this finally be the day he recovered the Mariner's Ring?