She nodded. ‘Go on.’
‘Suppose you believed you had evidence of a civilisation millennia older than anything currently known. The evidence isn’t yet definitive enough to convince mainstream archaeologists, but you’re certain you’ll confirm it if you’re given the chance to mount an expedition.’
Nina grinned. ‘That sounds familiar.’
‘That was how you found Atlantis, wasn’t it?’ said Madison.
‘Yeah. Extra credit for reading my first book!’
Cheng waited for the laughter to subside. ‘This isn’t about Atlantis, though. What if it was a completely unknown civilisation? The product of an extinct race, related to but separate from humans. A discovery like that would shatter the foundations of almost every religion, especially the Abrahamic ones where the Book of Genesis is regarded as the literal truth.’ The round-faced young man regarded her intently through his glasses. ‘Would you still try to find it?’
Nina became uncomfortable. He was describing, with unnerving accuracy, a situation she had already experienced, and she was still not sure her eventual solution had been the right one. ‘I would have to give that a great deal of thought,’ she said, trying not to sound defensive. ‘It would be possibly the most groundbreaking discovery in archaeological history. But on the other hand, it would be telling over three billion Christians, Jews and Muslims that the entire basis of their belief system is untrue – to say nothing of the non-Abrahamic religions it would impact. And some people get very angry if their beliefs are challenged. Wars have started over less. So in your hypothetical situation, I would be very, very careful about how I revealed what I’d found.’
She watched for any indication that he somehow knew the truth about events fourteen years earlier, but instead he cocked his head quizzically. ‘So you would try to find it?’
Amusement ran around the room, the students enjoying that one of them had caught out a professor. ‘As I said,’ Nina replied, irked, ‘I’d give it a lot of thought. At one time, I would have gone looking for it, yes. Now, I’d be a lot more cautious. Rushing into things gets people killed. And that’s not a hypothetical answer.’
Her discomfiture at Cheng’s question meant the end of class soon afterwards came as a relief. ‘So, Professor Wilde,’ said Aiden, ‘what’re your other rules of archaeology?’
‘There’s only one more,’ Nina replied, with a half-smile, ‘and it’s simple: try not to blow everything up.’
‘You need a rule for that?’ asked Madison.
‘You’d be surprised.’
She gathered her belongings, noticing Cheng leaving in a hurry. She couldn’t dispel her suspicion that he knew about her encounter with the religious organisation known as the Covenant of Genesis. But how could that be possible? She had – with great reluctance – agreed to keep her knowledge of the ancient race known as the Veteres a secret for exactly the reasons she had given. Not that it ultimately had mattered. All evidence of their existence had been destroyed, and every member of the Covenant itself was dead.
Coincidence, she decided as she headed out. There were already numerous theories about ancient precursor races on the kookier fringes of the archaeological world; Cheng had just come up with his own take. Nothing to be concerned about.
That thought lasted for as long as it took her to reach her office – outside which Cheng was waiting. ‘Can I help you, Mr Hui?’
‘Actually, yes, Professor,’ the young man replied, almost twitching with eagerness. He glanced up and down the corridor. ‘But in private?’
She decided to humour him. ‘Come on in.’
Her office on the ninth floor of Columbia University’s Schermerhorn Extension overlooked Amsterdam Avenue, traffic noise rising from the street below. A lifelong New Yorker, Nina had long ago tuned it out. She sat at her desk and gestured to a chair. ‘So what have you got?’
‘I didn’t want to say anything in front of the others,’ he said, sitting. ‘Partly because I didn’t want everyone to make fun of me, but also because if it’s real, it could be an even bigger discovery than Atlantis. I think I’ve found what I was talking about in class. Evidence of a civilisation that existed before humans!’
She gave him a deliberately non-committal nod. ‘I’m listening.’
He opened his laptop, a new, sleek and, she guessed, very expensive model. ‘Okay, there are places on the dark web where people buy and sell stolen antiquities.’
‘I know.’ Certain corners of the internet were home to all manner of criminal activity, relying upon encryption, anonymity and obscurity to hide from law enforcement. Unlike the mainstream internet, it was impossible to find such sites using a search engine; access was by invitation only, buyers and sellers of looted items using near-untraceable cryptocurrencies to cover their financial tracks. ‘It’s a real problem.’
‘I managed to get into one of the sites – I pretended to make friends with someone involved and bought a password,’ Cheng explained. ‘I was looking for stolen Chinese artefacts so I could tell the authorities. But instead . . . I found this.’
He turned the screen to show her. It was a picture of a metal object: a golden disc. At its centre was a circle of stone and crystal. Nina didn’t recognise it – but she did recognise what was scribed into its surface.
She tried to conceal her alarm. The symbols looked very much like the written language of the Veteres. ‘That’s . . . an interesting piece. What is it?’
‘I don’t know. The seller, who’s in Germany, called it a key, but didn’t say much more. I don’t think he knows much more. I suspect he stole it. But I’ve believed for a long time there was a much earlier civilisation than anything we currently know. I think this is proof.’
She raised an eyebrow. ‘A long time? How old are you, Mr Hui?’
‘Eighteen, Professor.’
‘And you’ve been challenging the archaeological establishment since . . . puberty?’ She immediately felt almost guilty at the jibe. It was the kind of dismissal she had faced early in her own career.
‘I’ve always wanted to be an archaeologist, Professor,’ said Cheng, not quite hiding a frown. ‘Just because I’m young doesn’t mean I haven’t worked hard.’
‘Of course not. My apologies. But if there’s any evidence of a non-human precursor civilisation, I’m not aware of it.’
He gave her a probing look. ‘I’ve studied the mythologies of the Hebrews, the Hindus, my own country. There are many common aspects, even when they describe fantastical things. Shared legends. And you’ve proved many times that legends can be based on reality. Atlantis, Hercules, King Arthur, the angels of the Book of Revelation – you found them all. I think this,’ he indicated the item on the screen, ‘is another one. And it’ll prove my theory, when I obtain it.’
‘Jumping the gun a little, aren’t you?’
‘No, I’ve been in contact with the seller. I’m going to Hamburg to buy it.’
‘What?’ said Nina, alarm returning for a different reason. ‘Ethical considerations aside, that’s insanely dangerous! People selling stolen artefacts on the dark web are by definition criminals. There’s a good chance they’ll take your money and give you nothing, but if you meet them in person they might give you something – a beating! How much does the seller want?’
‘Fifty thousand euros.’ The reply was matter-of-fact.
She was shocked, by both the amount and his insouciance. ‘Fifty thou— And you’re planning to pay it?’
‘My family is rich.’
‘You know what else rich families pay? Ransoms!’
‘He seems trustworthy,’ Cheng insisted.
‘Con men always do, right up until they disappear with your money.’ A grim thought. ‘Please tell me you’re not planning to pay this guy in cash.’ His hesitation was answer enough. ‘You might as well go dressed as a lamb with a sign saying “Hello, wol
ves”!’
‘But the artefact will prove my theory!’ He indicated the symbols upon it. ‘This language is completely unknown. It’s valuable for that alone, but if it really did come from an ancient race, it could lead me to them!’
‘Or you might be risking your own neck for nothing. Remember my first rule?’
‘You took greater risks to find Atlantis.’
‘Yeah, and as I said, a lot of them were mistakes.’
‘But you still found Atlantis. Would you give that up?’
‘What’s done is done,’ Nina told him. ‘But now I want to keep other people from making the same mistakes. Or bigger ones.’
Cheng sat silently for a moment. ‘I’m sorry, Professor Wilde, but . . . I really have to do this,’ he said finally. ‘I’d hoped you might even come with me, but I guess I’ll have to go on my own.’ He closed the laptop.
Exasperated, Nina shook her head. ‘I can’t stop you – but I can seriously advise against it.’
‘If I don’t go, the artefact will probably disappear into someone’s private collection, or be melted down for the gold. The seller told me others are interested.’
‘He’s only saying that so he can jack up the price.’
‘The price hasn’t changed. I can fly to Germany to see him this weekend.’ He gave her a pleading look. ‘If the artefact is shown by testing to be older than Atlantis, would you be willing to hear my theory?’
‘Mr Hui, if you make it to my class on Monday, I’ll be willing to hear your theory,’ she said. ‘I think going to Hamburg alone, with fifty thousand euros in cash, to meet a criminal you contacted on the dark web is a spectacularly bad idea. Please, don’t do it.’
‘I’ll be fine,’ he insisted as he stood. ‘Just because I’m young doesn’t mean I’m naïve.’ He smiled. ‘I’ll see you on Monday. And I’ll have the artefact.’ He took out a folded piece of paper and put it on her desk. ‘The dark web address and password for the site where I found it. If you look, I hope you’ll be convinced it’s worth obtaining. Thank you for your time, Professor.’
He left. Nina blew out a frustrated breath. It was Wednesday now; knowing he was conscientious about attending lectures, she imagined Cheng would probably fly out on Friday night, arriving in Hamburg on Saturday . . . and then who knew what might happen? His protestations aside, everything about the chubby young Chinese screamed innocent abroad. Some criminal in a notorious port town was doubtless already licking his lips at the prospect of an extremely easy fifty thousand euros – at the very least.
At least leave him his kidneys, she silently willed the universe. Losing one of her students would not go down well with the university. But what could she do? Threaten him with bad grades, or expulsion? If his parents were as wealthy as she’d heard, that would only invite a lawsuit, which her bosses would take just as badly.
And Hui Cheng was an adult, responsible for his own actions. If he wanted to go, she couldn’t stop him. Could she?
That thought kept rolling around her mind even as she headed home, distracting her from the big night to come.
2
‘Happy birthday, Daddy!’ trilled Macy Wilde Chase. The sentiment was echoed by the others around the restaurant’s table.
Macy’s father was considerably less enthused. ‘Yeah, loads to be happy about,’ groused Eddie Chase. ‘My hair’s gone, my eyesight’s going, I’m half deaf . . . and the worst part is, I’ll never feel this good again.’ The guests at the birthday dinner laughed.
‘Look at it this way, honey,’ Nina told him. ‘You’ve got all your body parts, you’ve got your friends, you’ve got your family – and you’ve got an amazing daughter. When I get to fifty, I’ll feel pretty thankful to have all that.’
Eddie gave her a half-smile. ‘Careful what you wish for. When you get to fifty, Macy’ll be fifteen, and she’ll hate you.’
‘No I won’t, Mom,’ Macy insisted.
He looked to his sister for support. ‘Sorry, Nina,’ said Elizabeth Chase. ‘I remember when Holly was fifteen, and oh, there’s so much I’d rather forget.’
Holly Bennett, now twice that age, nodded. ‘Afraid it’s true.’ Unlike her uncle, who had retained his gruff Yorkshire accent even after seventeen years in the United States, she had developed a transatlantic twang after only two years working in New York.
Nina pouted. ‘Well, enough about me. Everyone can pile back onto Eddie now!’
Eddie’s father, Larry Chase, clapped his hands. ‘We can? Excellent!’ His wife, Julie, jabbed him with an elbow.
‘Tchah!’ Eddie exclaimed, before standing. ‘I didn’t want to make a big deal of turning fifty, but Nina went behind my back to organise this do . . . and I’m glad she did. I’d no idea so many of you would come such a long-arse way just to say happy birthday to a bald bloke from Brighouse.’ He gestured at his friends. ‘I mean, we’ve got people from Israel, Russia, Brazil, the Congo, even bloody Australia! It’s a real honour to see you all.’
‘Our pleasure, mate,’ said the Australian Matt Trulli, who was here with his husband Pat. ‘I mean, you’ve saved the world a few times! Least we could do in return.’
‘And you’ve saved me and Nina a few times, so thank you all. Cheers!’ Eddie raised his glass, the other guests following suit. ‘Now, enjoy the food. Should be good – it’s costing enough!’
Everyone laughed.
‘Yorkshiremen never change,’ said Julie to Nina as Eddie sat. ‘Short arms and long pockets, that’s the saying, isn’t it? At least that’s what his father says about them.’
Larry, originally from Buckinghamshire in southern England, gave his northern-born son a mocking smile.
Nina grinned. ‘Tell me about it.’
‘I’m not wrong, though, am I?’ said Eddie. He picked up a menu. ‘I mean, ’ow much just for garlic bread . . . Oh, bloody hell.’ He frowned, having to hold it almost at arm’s length to read the words. ‘See what I mean about getting old? Everything either stops working or starts hurting. Pain in the arse. Sometimes literally.’
Nina’s grandmother, Olivia Wilde, tutted. ‘Really, Eddie. Of all the things you might be, I’ve never thought of you as a whiner. I’m almost twice your age, and do you know what I’ve learned?’
‘Never eat prunes after a curry?’ suggested Eddie with a smirk.
‘Something else I’ve never thought of you as is a comedian,’ Olivia replied, unfazed. ‘But age isn’t important – it’s attitude. How well you live matters more than simply how long. I spent the prime of my life focused on entirely the wrong things, and it wasn’t until I met Nina and reconnected with my family a few years ago that I realised how empty that was. Now? I’m ninety-six, and certainly not expecting to make it to a hundred—’
‘Don’t say that, Grams,’ Macy cut in.
‘Well, it’s true. But I’m happier than I was before, frailties be damned, and it’s not as if I’m sitting around waiting to die. I don’t worry that I’ve done everything I ever will; I look forward to what I’m still going to do. You should do the same.’
‘She’s right,’ said Nina. ‘You’ve done so much already; like Matt said, you’ve saved the world. Several times! But just because you’ve got nothing left to prove doesn’t mean you’ve got nothing left to achieve.’
‘You’ve certainly achieved a lot, Nina,’ said Elizabeth. ‘Congratulations on your professorship, if that’s the right word.’
‘Thanks. Yeah, I went full circle and ended up back at my alma mater.’
‘It must be a change teaching instead of being out in the field.’
‘It is. I don’t know which is more scary – facing a bad guy with a gun, or fifty new students all staring at you!’ Chuckles from around the table. ‘I do prefer the quiet life, though.’
‘You’re not tempted to go back out on one last big adventure?’ asked the Israeli Jared Zane.
‘I’m not planning to, no. Research and teaching is a full-time job.’
Elizabeth turned to Macy. ‘And I’ve heard you want to follow in your mum’s footsteps and become an archaeologist too?’
The young redhead nodded. ‘Yeah. Mom thinks she’s found everything there is, but I know there’s more out there. So I’m going to find it.’
‘She wants to prove me wrong,’ Nina sighed. ‘Ten years old, and already she’s out to torpedo my professional reputation!’
Macy narrowed her eyes. ‘You are wrong, Mom. I know what happened with the trikan, even if you don’t believe me.’
‘The trikan?’ asked Elizabeth.
‘An Atlantean artefact,’ Nina explained. ‘Similar to a yo-yo. It’s a weapon, although nobody’s been able to figure out how it works. At least,’ she added, ‘until Macy claimed she got it to do all kinds of physics-defying tricks.’
‘I did do it,’ Macy said, glowering at her. ‘I made it change direction in mid-air just by wanting it to.’
‘That’s what it does in the movies. Not real life.’
Her glare deepened. ‘You always say that! But I can tell the difference between a movie and real life. I’m not stupid.’
‘I don’t think you’ll have to wait until she’s fifteen, love,’ said Eddie, amused, before addressing his friends. ‘Now I know what Nina must have been like as a kid. Macy’s always reading about some ancient thing or other, or watching documentaries.’
‘I wouldn’t call them documentaries,’ Nina said snippily. ‘Anything involving UFOs or ancient astronauts or demons is junk science, nothing more.’
‘Didn’t people used to think that about Atlantis?’ Nina gave him a stony look, which brought a broad grin in return. ‘Anyway! Let’s talk about something else before my wife and daughter get into a fight.’
‘So, are you going to change your life now you are fifty?’ asked the Congolese Fortune Bemba. ‘Somehow I cannot imagine Eddie Chase spending the rest of his days relaxing in a hammock.’
‘If we had a garden, I’d have a hammock in it already!’ Eddie told him. ‘Nah, as far as running around the world dodging bullets goes, I’m done. Don’t want to tempt fate by looking for trouble again.’
The Resurrection Key Page 3