Golden Valley

An excited ripple of shouts sounded through the site that wondrous day when the discovery was made. The site, so tenaciously uncovered, was thought to have been lost forever in an ancient earthquake thousands of years ago, covering a Viking settlement. It had all the research implications of discovering Atlantis. When Dr. Yoshima, the lead archeologist and team leader, arrived at the site, he?d named it Ryakudatsu suru, which was Japanese for, "to plunder." Officially there was no other name for that particular area and according to his research Dr. Yoshima felt the name fit the place well. Several of the team members felt that it was typical of the egotistical archeologist to name a site in Ireland a Japanese name, but since they wanted to stay on site for the rest of the excavation they kept their mouths shut. Ryakudatsu Suru, Ryakudatsu Suru, it was a hard name to wrap over an Anglicans tongue, but after several nights discussing it over beer they decided it was fitting after all. Over ten thousand years ago the Vikings had been here, conquering, killing, and raping the land and the people along with it.

His employer had cleverly sent Johnathan in place of another computer topographer; Johnathan could only imagine what had happened to the man whose name he now shared. When Dr. Yoshima met Johnathan, he instantly liked him. Johnathan was accustomed to that reaction, and felt at times that his looks accounted for more success in his jobs than he often gave them credit. Johnathan was an intriguing man with outstanding credentials. His arms were big and his shoulders broad. His sandy blonde hair and dark blue eyes accentuated his dark skin. While his impressive build and technical know-how had convinced Yoshima that Johnathan Cann was the man for the job any lingering doubt was squelched when Johnathan agreed to act as a mediator between Dr. Yoshima and the workers. Dr. Yoshima, in all of his brilliance in the scholastic world, was socially stunted. Over the years he had come to accept this fact, and having a go-between on this important job would be a great relief to him.

Johnathan's employer, Gaft Enterprise, supplied the specialized mapping and survey equipment needed for this particular dig. Yoshima had worked with Gaft Enterprise once before and had liked the company?s no-nonsense approach to commerce. What Dr. Yoshima didn?t know, but Johnathan was particularly aware of was that the man behind the successful business always had bigger motivations for helping people, personal motivations.

Johnathan didn't like the man for whom he was working, and he trusted him even less. Martin Gaft had all the markings and attitudes of a tyrannical dictator, cruelly moving his business forward while destroying all that was in his path. Unfortunately this type of behavior was rewarded in corporate America. Gaft's endeavors were typically conquered, often with companies throwing in the proverbial towel rather than risk losing everything in a legal battle. Johnathan likened it to the Hitler era appeasement. However, as much as he morally disagreed with Gaft's business tactics, this work was Johnathan's bread and butter. It was work he was good at and it was the kind of work he loved. Martin Gaft and the ever-present Stanton, couldn't change that for him. If not for the fortune Gaft was paying him for this job, he would have left both him and his assistant long ago. Gaft was always in the shadows though. Billy Stanton took care of all his dirty work. In fact, Johnathan had never even seen Gaft. He'd been hired directly by Stanton. Gaft's life was as much a mystery to him as it was to anyone else. What he knew about the man was told to him through Stanton, and read about in the newspapers.