Codex

by Bill Craig

  CODEX

  A Fortune and Glory Adventure

  Bill Craig

  ©2017 CODEX. Bill Craig, Author

  A work of fiction. All characters, names, and situations are the invention of the author. This work may not be reproduced, copied, or electronically transferred without the prior written approval of the author except for excerpts to be used for media and/or promotion.

  Dedication:

  For the memories of my Mother and Father for encouraging me to write. And for my Children who never stopped believing . . .

  CODEX

  A Fortune and Glory Adventure

  Chapter One

  The jungles of the Yucatán Peninsula, Mexico. 1938

  Jake Fortune reached up and grabbed Professor Gloria Newkirk by the arm and yanked her down just as a bullet ripped through the air where she had been standing a moment before. “Take your big paws off me!” she snapped, scrambling behind the boulder where Fortune was crouched.

  “Lady, if you want to stay alive to finish this expedition and find your damn lost city, keep your head down and shut your trap! These guys mean business!” Fortune snapped back, as he leveled his revolver and snapped off a shot.

  “Don’t you talk to me that way, Jake Fortune! You forget, my uncle, Mr. Griffin put me in charge of this expedition, not you! And it’s known as The Lost City, not a lost city”

  “Try telling that to the people that are shooting at us, Kid! If I thought it would help, I’d give you to them!”

  “What!” Gloria screeched, as she started to stand. A bullet ricocheted off the top of the boulder, sending her diving for cover once more. She thought about it for a second and decided that she should be quiet and let Fortune earn his fee for the expedition.

  Fortune fired at the bandits once more before reaching into his canvas messenger bag. He pulled out a stick of dynamite and pulled the cigar dangling from the corner of his mouth back to life. He touched the end to the fuse and it started to spark. He held onto it as the fuse quickly burned. Dr. Newkirk looked at him with wide eyes. There was barely an inch of fuse left when Fortune drew back his arm and let the stick of dynamite fly.

  The dynamite traveled twenty yards and exploded in the air. A second stick landed on the jungle floor and exploded, sending chunks of trees and rocks flying. Fortune risked a quick look over the boulder. He could hear the moans and screams of the wounded bandits. He took the time to reload his revolver and then climbed to his feet and went to survey the damage.

  He had been right, these men were nothing more than common bandits, men who attacked travelers to steal what they were too lazy to go out and earn for themselves. Mike Rogers joined him and together they put the severely wounded out of their misery before heading back to the camp where they had stopped for the night.

  “Did you expect this?” Rogers asked. Like Fortune, Rogers was a former soldier. They had served together in the War to End All Wars. Rogers was tall and rail thin, but he was a fighter from way back. He had blond hair and blue eyes and just a hint of Texas twang in his voice.

  “I expected worse, Mike. The guys that tried to take out Webber back in Chicago were professionals,” Fortune replied.

  “Who were those men?” Professor Newkirk asked, somewhat recovered from being scared half to death during the attack on the camp. She brushed a long red curl out of her face. While a woman archeologist was something of a rarity at the time, she held excellent academic credentials and had a good reputation when it came to fieldwork. She also filled out her white shirt and jodhpurs very nicely. Given the snakes in the jungle, she wore knee-high riding boots of good, thick brown leather.

  “These were just simple bandits, looking for something easy to steal. They didn’t expect us to fight back as hard as we did,” Fortune shrugged.

  “You don’t believe that they will be the worst of what we’ll face, do you?” she searched his face for the answer.

  “No, I don’t. Mr. Griffin said he had enemies, people who would stop at nothing to see this expedition fail. We’ve had a few skirmishes with them so far while we were preparing this expedition. I don’t think we’ve seen the worst of what they have planned yet,” Fortune told her honestly.

  “I was afraid you would say something like that,” Gloria Newkirk rolled her green eyes.

  “It is what it is, Kid. You knew that from the get-go.”

  “I suppose. These expeditions always have hidden dangers, but usually, they are more environmental than bandits and hired killers,” Newkirk shook her head.

  “You can’t have everything,” Fortune grinned at her. He and Rogers turned away and went to check with the other four security men that Fortune had hired. All of them were men that Fortune had served with and knew that he could trust.

  Fortune trusted them a hell of a lot more than he did some of the expedition members. He suspected that someone in the group was actually a spy working for whomever it was that was trying to beat Peabody Griffin to finding this ancient place called The Lost City buried in the jungle and lost to time.

  This expedition faced a lot of normal dangers, like disease, the bandits, jungle creatures, natives that had never seen white men before. He shook his head. It was the unknown dangers that worried him. Like the people that were opposing Griffin, and whatever secrets that the jungle might hold.

  “Sounded like you guys got all the action,” Felix Grimaldi said, puffing on a cigarette. Grimaldi was small and swarthy, an Italian-American product of the Bronx and one of the best demolitions men that Fortune had ever met.

  “Naw, Jake got to have all the fun. I was busy keeping the scientists’ heads down in the camp,” Rogers complained.

  “Jake usually has all the fun,” Tommy Grover pointed out as he and Sam Morris emerged from the trees. They had been keeping a perimeter guard on the far side of the camp. Tommy was a baby-faced farm boy from Indiana, while Sam hailed from St. Louis.

  “Where are Don and Cliff?” Fortune asked, referring to the other two members of the security team. Don was Donald Franklin, and Cliff was Clifford Shaw. Both men had been working perimeter patrol before the attack by the bandits.

  “I haven’t seen or heard them,” Tommy frowned. “Sam?”

  “It’s been at least an hour since I talked to them or saw them,” Morris admitted sheepishly.

  “Mike, head back into camp. Tommy, you and Felix go with him and stay alert. Sam, you come with me,” Fortune commanded.

  Sam Morris followed Jake into the jungle. “Where did you last see them?” Fortune asked.

  “Back this way,” Morris said, taking the lead.

  “I hope we find them alive,” Fortune sighed. He would hate to think that they had made it through the war only to die in this miserable Mexican jungle!

  Professor Gloria Newkirk, more commonly known as Glory to her friends was pacing back and forth in front of her tent. She still wasn’t quite sure what to think of Jake Fortune. At times, she found him interesting and attractive, yet at other times she found him bossy and irritating. She had agreed to him and his friends being sent along to provide security for the expedition. With Jake as the spear head, they were to act as guides to what she hoped would be the lost Mayan city that she had uncovered clues about while researching the ancient Mesoamerican race.

  It was said that there was a lost Temple of Kukulkan, the Mayan god, also called the Feathered Serpent. Kukulkan was also known by other names in the Mesoamerican cultures. The Aztecs referred to the snake god as Quetzalcoatl. Kukulkan interested her, for it was said that he was a god that demanded human sacrifice.

  She found it interesting that the Mayan people, also called the Maya, had chosen to build cities within the jungle, usually on swampy land. It was said that this was due to prognostications of high priest supposedly guided by divine
interventions. She suspected that it had more to do with the worship of Kukulkan, for far more snakes were found in the swampy regions of the jungle than in the more arid mountain regions farther south.

  Her uncle had said nothing about Mexican bandits when he had hired her for this expedition. She had been thrilled that someone was willing to fund it after reading her paper on the possible existence of a major Maya Indian city in the region they were going into.

  Gloria frowned as she sat down. Uncle Peabody had said that there were people who wanted to find the site first, but had said nothing about armed attackers. Yet, Fortune seemed to know that they would be a possibility. She wondered what else that the man was keeping from her. Well, once he got back to camp, she intended to find out.

  Donald Franklin crouched in the underbrush, his eyes searching the surround foliage. He had heard something moving in the undergrowth, something large enough to catch his attention. Was it man or beast? That was what he planned to find out. That was why he was crouching in the bush, a Winchester rifle clutched in his fists. He had heard shots from back at the camp, but had not wanted to turn his back on a possible enemy.

  Cliff had agreed with his assessment and had slipped away to see if he could flank whoever was out there in the jungle. Now, however, Don was worried about Cliff. He had been gone too long. He was sure something had happened to his friend and colleague. Don swallowed hard, as he slowly stood and began to advance into the jungle.

  “Don? Cliff?” called a familiar voice from behind him.

  “Jake, I’m up here,” Don called over his shoulder.

  “Where’s Cliff?” Fortune asked.

  “I wish I knew. We heard something moving out there, something big. Cliff went out to try and flank it. I’ve not heard a sound from him since he left,” Don shook his head.

  “That’s not good,” Fortune frowned.

  “I didn’t think so either. That was why I was getting ready to go look for him myself,” Franklin sighed.

  “We’ll go together,” Fortune told him.

  “That sounds like a good idea,” Franklin agreed. Together, the three of them advanced into the jungle, searching for whatever Franklin and Shaw had heard.

  “Professor Newkirk, what is going on?” Mary Beth Oswald asked. Mary Beth was a registered nurse that had agreed to accompany the expedition. She was a young and attractive brunette and ready for excitement. She was a beauty and had caught the eye of more than one of the male members of the expedition.

  “I wish I knew, Mary Beth. According to Jake Fortune, the men that attacked us were merely Mexican bandits. I’m afraid that there might be more of them lurking about, so please, keep your eyes and ears open,” Glory told her.

  “Doctor Erskine was quite concerned about the shooting,” Mary Beth said.

  “We were lucky that no one was seriously injured in the attack.”

  “That is something, at least.”

  “Yes, but is it enough?”

  “What do you mean?” Mary Beth asked.

  “You said Dr. Erskine was quite concerned. Why didn’t he come to ask about the shooting himself?” Professor Newkirk asked.

  “He sent me so he could prepare for the injured that he felt might be coming in as a result of the gunfire,” Mary Beth explained.

  “Yet, nobody was injured, Mary Beth. At least, nobody in our expedition. So, why would Dr. Erskine think that they would be?” Newkirk asked, more to herself than to the nurse.

  “I’m sure I have no idea,” Mary Beth said, sounding puzzled.

  “I think I might,” Glory Newkirk said suddenly. “Mary Beth, find one of our security men and have them meet me at Dr. Erskine’s tent!” Then Glory was hurry away.

  Mary Beth looked around and spotted Mike Rogers and two of the other men coming into camp. “Oh, Mr. Rogers!” she called, hurrying towards him.

  Jake Fortune had told her that he suspected that there was a spy in their camp, though she had argued with him about it. Fortune’s suspicions had left an impression on her. Then, this business with Dr. Erskine expressing ‘concern’ over casualties from an attack that had been easily thwarted. Glory was pretty sure that she knew who the spy was, none other than their own Dr. Frederick Erskine!

  As she hurried towards his tent to confront the man, she found herself hoping that Mary Beth had rounded up at least one of the security men and sent them after her.

  Clifford Shaw crouched in the brush alongside a game trail. He had spotted someone moving through the brush where he and Don were standing guard, but could make out very little about who it was. Shaw was a woodsman from the hills of Tennessee, so he was pretty at home in the trees but yet, he was in awe in this thick swampy jungle. The tracks he had found were made by bare feet. He had followed them, slipping along the trail like a silent shadow.

  The men gathered in the clearing were clearly natives of the region, most in loincloths and carrying bows and spears. They seemed more curious than anything else. Apparently, the trucks and vehicles they were using to cut their way through the jungle were things that the men had never seen before. Shaw smiled as he slipped away, heading back towards the camp.

  Chapter Two

  “Sam, Don, somebody is coming our way,” Jake Fortune whispered. He had his revolver in his hand and ready to fire. Sam and Don ghosted into the brush. Fortune stayed where he was preferring to meet whoever it was head on. Fortune did take a knee to give himself a more stable firing platform if need be.

  Moonlight filtered down through the foliage above, forming patches of light and shadow along the game trail. This was the trail that Clifford Shaw had disappeared on. Fortune was worried. He had felt from the start, before they had ever left New York, that there was a spy in their midst. Someone who was working for the people that didn’t want Peabody Griffin’s expedition to succeed.

  The Colt M1917 revolver was gripped tightly in his fist. It was chambered in .45 ACP which was the same cartridge that his Colt 1911 .45 automatic used. He had used both weapons in the service, though the revolver was what he had on him at the moment. The auto-loader was in his pack back at camp.

  Fortune watched as a shadowy form came towards him along the trail. When the figure passed through a patch of moonlight, Fortune breathed a relived sigh and stood up. “Cliff,” he called softly.

  “Jake? What are you doing out here?” Shaw asked.

  “Looking for you. In case you didn’t know, the camp was attacked by Mexican bandits while you were busy sight-seeing,” Fortune told him.

  “I was busy tracking some natives that were amazed by our trucks. Apparently, they’ve never seen anything like them,” Shaw chuckled. Don and Sam emerged from the jungle.

  “Good to know. Now, we need to get back to camp. I’ve got a bad feeling,” Fortune told him.

  “Doctor Erskine?” Glory Newkirk called, as she entered the doctor’s tent. She was surprised to find it empty. From what Mary Beth had told her, she had almost expected to find a full triage unit set up and waiting. Instead, the tent was empty. Why was that? It only helped reinforce her suspicions about the good doctor being the spy that was concerning Jake Fortune.

  Erskine’s pack was gone, but at least the medical supplies were still there. She would have Mary Beth take an inventory and hope that the nurse was capable enough to treat any and all injuries that might befall the expedition with what supplies they had.

  It was evident that Erskine had deserted them, probably in search of the men that he had thought were ambushing them. Personally, she hoped some jungle predator got the man before he managed to find his compatriots. Just then, Mike Rogers charged into the tent behind her.

  “Are you okay, Professor?” he demanded.

  “I’m fine, but it appears that Dr. Erskine has deserted us,” Glory Newkirk replied.

  “That dirty rat!” Rogers growled, glaring around the tent.

  “Is Fortune back yet?”

  “No, he and Sam went to find Cliff and Don.”

  “Well,
make sure we’re safe. Have Mary Beth come back here so we can make sure that Erskine didn’t take anything we’ll need later on.”

  “Sure thing, Professor,” Rogers nodded, ducking back out of the tent. Glory looked around, searching the tent, wondering what Dr. Erskine might have left behind that would point them to who he had really been working for . . .

  Doctor Julius Erskine wiped the sweat from his brow. Where was Klausen? The German and his men should have over-run the camp by now. King had said that they would hit them on the fourth day out of Mexico City when they started into the jungle.

  Erskine hadn’t counted on them making it this far. He hated the jungle! Hated it with a passion! His gray hair was in disarray, as he used his hands to tear at clinging vines dangling down from the trees around him. Erskine had been leaving signs for Klausen and his men ever since they had entered the jungle. He couldn’t figure out why they hadn’t made a move on the expedition yet.

  Sweat was pouring into his eyes, burning them. Erskine stopped and pulled off his glasses, wiping his eyes on his sleeve. He put his glasses back on. He seemed to have walked into a swamp, the ground beneath his feet wet and the mud sucked at his boots. Mosquitoes swarmed around him, biting at him. He had taken a couple of Quinine tablets before leaving camp. He hoped that they would be enough. He tried to take a step forward and realized that his feet wouldn’t move. He was slowly being sucked downward. It was then that he realized he had stepped into quicksand rather than mud.

  His heart pounded with fear as adrenaline was fired into his blood veins. Erskine struggled, trying to fight his way free. All his struggles did was make him sink faster. It was when he was up to his chest, feeling the weight pressing against his lungs that Julius Erskine began to scream for help!