spoke finally. “This idea that the pyramid was a great achievement that powered the Lighthouse of Alexandria and other great works. That the pyramids were a source of good and wonder in Egypt, and that by finding the capstone I would somehow contribute to that greatness. But that’s not what it was at all. It was a weapon, an establishment of fear. No wonder Khufu’s name isn’t found all over Egyptian records. They wanted to forget what he’d done.”
“Everything can’t always be the way we want it to be,” Jake said quietly, an odd tone in his voice.
A silence descended again as Chauncy stared at the capstone. The pinnacle of Egyptian technology hadn’t been the wondrous object he’d imagined. The gleaming capstone was tainted now with blood and horror and he knew he’d never be able to look at it the same way. He sat and stared at it for a long time, trying to sort through his feelings.
“Well, isn’t that quite the dish,” a new voice spoke up.
Chauncy spun around so fast he nearly fell over. A short and impeccably-dressed man was standing in the doorway. “Who are you?” he demanded.
“Chauncy Rollock, I’d like to introduce you to Ian Moore,” Jake said quietly. “He owns your capstone now.”
Chauncy stuttered as he suddenly caught sight of the pistol in the Englishman’s hands. “B-bu-but but this is my find!”
“Not quite, good chap,” Ian said, his voice surprisingly jovial. “It’s in my turf and it was found by my crews. Thrasher, this is quite a mint. Thanks for pointing it out to me.”
“Jake?” Chauncy asked, his world spinning. “Why, Jake?”
“I told you I wasn’t on good terms with anybody in this part of Egypt,” Jake said with a shrug. “This is my way of squaring the balance.”
“You can’t let him have it,” Chauncy insisted. “You know what it is now. You really want him to have access to it?”
“I’d suggest you belt up,” Ian said, his tone suddenly losing its joviality. “Thrasher, what should I know about this thing?”
Chauncy’s feet suddenly unbolted from the floor. He couldn’t let the key to a super weapon end up in the hands of a gang leader. It didn’t matter that the capstone might never work that way again. It didn’t even matter that Ian had a gun. This was his find, this was his capstone. He leapt toward the Englishman with an incomprehensible snarl. The gunshot echoed through the room so loudly that it hurt his ears. The cold, hard limestone hurt even worse as he hit it hard. Shockwaves of pain ran out from his foot and he curled up into a little ball.
“You really have no choice, Chauncy my lad,” Ian said quietly into his ringing ears. “If you tell me what I want to know, you’ll die a quick and painless death. If you don’t, I’ll leave you in here to die slowly. Pick one.”
Chauncy gripped his foot as hard as he could, trying to use pressure to stop the pain. It didn’t seem to be working. He breath came in short gasps and he couldn’t think of anything to say. He was never going to see his parents again, never see Anita or the university. He really had come all the way out here for nothing.
“The capstone might not be real,” Jake said. “Chauncy was about to see if it was. If it isn’t, it’s worthless.”
“Why wouldn’t I want the real one?” Ian asked.
“Because it’s worth a lot more than I originally thought,” Jake said. “But only if it’s real.”
The buzzing in Chauncy’s mind quieted for a moment as he strained to pay attention to the conversation. What was Jake talking about? He wasn’t about to see if it was real. He had no doubts on that score.
“And how do you know if it’s real?”
“The real one will be perfectly smooth to the touch, but a fake one will have little holes and imperfections.”
Chauncy was well and truly lost now. He hadn’t said anything like that. He tried to figure out what was going on but the pain in his foot made thinking difficult.
“Why don’t you check that for me?” Ian asked, his voice suspicious.
“You’d really trust me to tell you that?” Jake asked.
“Fine, I’ll see if it’s real. Terribly sorry, Chauncy, but it looks like I’ll be leaving you here.”
Chauncy suddenly understood. He twisted his body around and curled into an even tighter ball. The blast was visible even through his closed eyes. Electricity filled the chamber and washed over him like a dust storm, knocking him several feet from where he lay.
He opened his eyes and looked around. A hand appeared in his vision and he looked up to see Jake offering him assistance.
“You going to stab me in the back again?” he croaked.
“Pretty sure I just saved your life, Chauncy.”
Chauncy took the proffered hand and got to his feet. Or at least, he got to one of his feet. The second he tried to stand on the shot one he nearly fainted. He looked over at the crumpled form of Ian Moore. “We need to bury this, Jake,” he said through gritted teeth. “We need to bury it so that nobody can ever find it again.”
He expected a struggle or at least a mention of how valuable the capstone was. But Jake Thrasher merely glanced at the pyramidion and nodded his head. “I know. Come on, we need to get that foot of yours looked at.”
They walked slowly out of the chamber and up the stairs, leaving behind the missing capstone forever.
∆ Epilogue ∆
“You were really going to sell me out to Ian Moore?”
Jake swallowed the last of his scotch. “Either him or Hesso. It just made good business sense to trade a capstone and a starry-eyed American for a great rep in that part of Egypt.”
“And yet you changed your mind. Why?”
“Because you were right, Chauncy. If it had just been a capstone I wouldn’t have batted an eye. But a super weapon? I wouldn’t want that in Ian’s hands. I wouldn’t want that in anybody’s hands. The world is volatile enough as it is right now.”
Chauncy chuckled and stared at the cast on his foot. He’d never have expected Jake Thrasher to have that kind of world view. “You planning to make a move for Abydos, now that Ian is gone?”
“What do you mean, ‘planning?’ I already worked out a deal with his gang and struck an accord with Hesso. I own half of Abydos now. How do you think I got the capstone buried and the textile shop torn down on top of it?”
“Of course. What was I thinking? How are you going to make sure the workers don’t talk about the find?”
“Pretty simple, really: they work for me now. I also told them it was a fake, so there’s no real reason to mention it. Bury it beneath some concrete, tell the workers it’s not worth anything, and tell them if they talk about it you’ll kill them.”
“Yeah, pretty simple,” Chauncy said before lapsing into silence. He stared into the dark amber liquid in his glass and was amazed at how the swirling drink mirrored his thoughts. “It’s funny, really,” he said after a long pause. “I came all the way over here and spent all of my money to find that capstone. I broke several Egyptian laws and several of my own rules about proper archaeologist procedure, not to mention breaking my foot. It was going to get me my doctorate and get me the girl of my dreams. Now I won’t get either, all because stupid Khufu wanted a super weapon.”
“Would you rather have a doctorate and a girl, or the secret of a killer lightning generator buried forever?” Jake asked.
“Good point. There must be something I can do to impress Anita, though. Something different, something crazy. Any thoughts?”
“Why not get your picture taken on top of the Great Pyramid?” Jake asked. “You might not get the capstone, but you can stand where it used to be. Would make for a beautiful shot and you’d impress Anita with your daring.”
Chauncy sat up straighter. “Hey, that’s a great idea! But isn’t climbing the pyramid illegal?”
They stared at each other for a minute before bursting out in laughter.
###
Chauncy Rollock appears in Treasure of the Mayan King, available as a 99¢ e-book
He will return in
Winter 2014 in The Golden Scepter, the sequel to Treasure of the Mayan King
About the Authors
Dyego Alehandro is an author who has been writing since a very young age. He enjoys creating his own cover art and has received many accolades for his work. His hobbies include playing Legos, board games and PC games with his wife. He lives in Phoenix AZ and really needs to move somewhere that has rain.
Alex Zabala is a landscape contractor who lives in Arizona with his wife. He started writing when he was 45 years old. He calls himself a ‘late bloomer’ in the authoring business. However, he says when it comes to developing hidden talents it is ‘better late then never’.
Other books by Dyego Alehandro & Alex Zabala
The Chauncy Rollock Series
Treasure of the Mayan King
The Golden Scepter (Winter 2014 release)
Other Books by Dyego Alehandro
The Avarice Dynasty Series
Avarice Dynasty: Evasion
Avarice Dynasty: Illusion (Summer 2015 release)
Avarice Dynasty: Dissension (Summer 2015 release)
Avarice Dynasty: Invasion (coming sometime after eventually)
Avarice Dynasty: Ascension (coming after that)
The Steam Sphere Series
The Deeping Call (coming soon)
Connect with Dyego Alehandro
Friend me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dyego.alehandro
Follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ArcaniArts
Enjoy my blog of random musings: https://www.dyegoalehandro.com
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The Missing Capstone Page 5