Conspiracy of Bones

by Tracy Krauss

  "Don’t worry. We haven’t made a breakthrough into the chamber itself yet. I knew you’d be disappointed not to be here, so we’ve held back a bit."

  "Thanks. I appreciate it." Mark continued to peruse the tiny fragment.

  "Besides, there’s been plenty of other excitement to keep us busy."

  "Like?"

  “The bone fragments.”

  "Still no word from the lab?" He already knew the answer. He’d checked back in Harare.

  "No, but we’re starting to see a pattern.”

  Mark’s curiosity was really pricked now. He looked up. "What kind of pattern?"

  "Come and see," Laura said, leaving the plaster fragment behind for the time being. She led Mark to a computer station. She sat down in front of the screen and clicked several icons with the mouse. A large blueprint of the dig appeared on the screen. "The strange bone fragments we found first were located here." She pointed to the location with her finger. "Alongside the human remains that appear to have been disturbed - either by some type of seismic activity, or by other humans."

  Mark nodded. "Mmhm.” It was nothing new to him. He had been present during that discovery. "Go on."

  "The next grave we uncovered also contained unidentified bone fragments. Only this time..." she paused for effect. She glanced over at him, ready to gauge his reaction. He raised his brows in question. "I’ll bring up a digital photo," she said, clicking the mouse deftly once again. Several windows opened. "Ah, here we are." She punched one more key and a colour photo came up of a long curved bone. It was broken in two places, with part of the inner section missing. She hit another key and a second picture came up. This time it showed Laura and Rocco, one of the crew managers, holding the bone between them.

  Mark whistled. "That’s one big chicken wing.”

  "Then you agree that it looks like part of a wing?" Laura asked, surveying him closely.

  Mark blinked and peered at the image again. "Yes... it does, doesn’t it?"

  "The humorous is almost entirely intact, with parts of the ulna attached. It looks to be from a very large winged creature. The parts that are left clearly seem to have been placed with the body, intentionally."

  "How large?"

  "Pretty darn big, that’s all I have to say. Bigger than an albatross or any present species of bird that I know of."

  "You know what this means, don’t you?" Mark looked over at Laura, obvious excitement burning in his eyes. "We’ve discovered another Troy - an ancient legend thought to be nothing more than myth." He pounded the computer table and the monitor flickered momentarily.

  "Watch it," Laura warned with a smile. "Our power supply isn’t the most stable."

  "What else you got?" Mark asked.

  "Rocco’s team has been continuing on those same graves. He may find the other ‘wing’, so to speak, and by the look of the placement of those two graves, we’re speculating there could be a whole ring of graves surrounding the entrance to the antechamber.” She paused. “Providing you want to disturb them."

  "Hmm. Like guards.” Mark rubbed his chin, two days worth of stubble rasping under his fingers.

  "Right. Here’s another interesting find from the same grave." Laura pointed to the next photo. "It appears to be some kind of head piece or mask, probably worn expressly for burial. It’s pretty badly decayed and was in danger of disintegrating into dust if we tried to remove it."

  Mark just stared at the screen.

  "I know what you’re thinking." Laura interrupted his thoughts. "About that legend. Don’t go spreading rumours until the lab has done a full analysis. I’ve had a hard enough time convincing Rocco to keep his feet on the ground. You know how he can be. We could all be discredited if we aren’t careful. First we need solid lab work on both the human and non human fragments."

  "No need to remind me about procedure, Doctor," Mark stated in a business like tone. "I am still chief archaeologist on this dig."

  "Of course." Laura gave Mark a sideways glance. "I wasn’t trying to offend you. You seem awfully touchy."

  Mark sighed and ran a hand through his unruly hair. "I guess I’m just tired after the trip."

  "Your nerves shot after Mnanga’s driving?" Laura offered.

  "Right," Mark agreed with a chuckle. "Plus, I hate being out of the loop. I feel like all the important discoveries are being made when I’m gone."

  "You need to relax." Laura stood up and moved to stand behind him. She began kneading his neck with her fingers.

  "Hm... that feels good.” Mark closed his eyes.

  "I can make it feel even better later," Laura said with a suggestive smile.

  "Oh? Definitely worth coming back for." Mark allowed her fingers to do their magic on the stiff cords in his neck. Suddenly he opened his eyes. "I’d like to take a look, myself." He straightened, all business again. "At that bone. It’s been stored and numbered with the rest of the artefacts?"

  "Of course." Laura dropped her hands. "I just thought you might want to wait and start fresh tomorrow."

  "With only four months grace, I don’t think we can spare the time." He rose and turned to leave.

  Laura stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. "Mark?”

  "Hm?" He turned.

  "I missed you."

  His nod of acknowledgement was barely perceptible as he headed out the door.

  ◇ ◇ ◇

  Mark strode to where he hoped to find Rocco Cortez, one of the project’s crew chiefs, making his way past various aspects of the site. By far, the dominant feature was the ancient temple ruins. It had been reconstructed in places and consisted of an outer and an inner courtyard, with the chambers of the temple itself in the centre. The building had been made from rock quarried from the surrounding area. Mostly what was left, after being uncovered, was the foundation, with only a few walls remaining intact. But the location of the altar and several other important features could be clearly identified. The original archaeological excavations had taken place over thirty years ago. What Mark and his team were interested in now was not the temple itself, but what lay hidden far beneath it.

  This type of excavating was very painstaking and precise. In order to get at the layers beneath without disturbing the top layer, the team had to tunnel underneath using an elaborate system of braces, all the while ensuring that they did not destroy a potentially important find. They started well away from the temple mound itself, creating a crater like moat around one side of the site. From here they could open up the side of the hill underneath, exposing subsequent layers as they went. It was backbreaking work with an element of risk, but the thrill of discovery outweighed the drawbacks.

  "Rocco!" Mark called when he spotted the other man. Rocco was a short, somewhat stocky man of Puerto Rican descent. He wore his greying hair in a haphazard ponytail, and sported a thick black moustache. "I hear there have been some exciting discoveries in my absence,” Mark said once he had reached his colleague.

  "She showed you the photos?" Rocco asked.

  "Yeah. Pretty amazing.”

  "See the real thing yet?"

  "Just heading over there now.” The two men started walking together toward the storage and cataloguing compound. "So what do you think?"

  Rocco shrugged noncommittally. "You probably don’t want to know."

  "I trust your judgment."

  “At least someone does,” Rocco muttered.

  Mark slapped the older man across the back. "Don’t let Laura scare you. She’s just cautious. It’s her way.” He smiled. “She even warned me about keeping the discovery under wraps until the final analysis report comes in. So, what do you think?"

  “It’s obvious. In keeping with local legend, plus the size, shape and wing span..." Rocco paused and surveyed his boss out of the corner of his eye.

  "So you seriously think we’ve unearthed the remains of a long extinct variety of flying dinosaur?"

  Rocco nodded. "Very Pterodactyl like. I’ve seen them before."

  Mark let out
a small disbelieving laugh. "No wonder Laura is so paranoid. The sooner we get a positive ID, the better. I just wish I’d been around personally to document the whole thing.”

  "You don’t trust us?"

  "I didn’t say that. It’s just that this could either be the biggest scientific discovery of the century or the biggest hoax. We’ll either be famous or look like laughing stocks.” Mark glanced over at Rocco’s unsmiling profile. “Any slip in procedure and we could be completely discredited."

  "They’ll try it, don’t even fool yourself into thinking they won’t."

  Mark raised an eyebrow. "You sound pretty sceptical. And who are they?"

  "The establishment."

  "The establishment," Mark repeated, his tone flat.

  "Yeah. In this case, the scientific community. They accept only what fits into their own preconceived theories. Anything outside the box gets tossed."

  "That’s hardly fair." Mark shook his head, a smirk creeping unbidden to his lips. "If that’s the case, we might as well pack up right now and go home."

  Rocco pointed a finger at Mark as they continued to walk. “You laugh now, my friend, but you’ll find out soon enough. The capitalist regime that rules us all. Money. Profit. Bottom line. That’s where the real power is. We’re all just pawns in a big game of chess,"

  "Someone definitely put something nasty in your cereal this morning," Mark said with an outright laugh.

  "I’m serious.” Rocco stopped walking and crossed his arms over his chest.

  The grin faded from Mark’s lips. "I know. That’s what worries me."

  Rocco’s eyes twitched; his countenance remained grim. Without another word, he strode forward. Mark followed in silent contemplation until they reached the compound, a large canvas structure. Rocco stopped at the entrance and gestured for Mark to enter first. Mark greeted the guard with a perfunctory nod and bent his head in order to clear the low doorway. Rocco followed closely on his heels.

  "It’s numbered and documented right along with everything else from my quadrant. I did it myself.” Rocco pointed to the right in the dim interior of the make shift compound. It consisted of rows of metal shelving lined with labelled trays and clear plastic bags of artefacts. "Right there." He searched the area with his eyes, squinting. “What the... it was here yesterday. I knew you’d want to do the preliminary lab work yourself. What did she do with it?” He let out a string of expletives in Spanish.

  "Who do you mean? Laura?"

  "Has anything been crated for transport to the States yet?" Rocco demanded, ignoring the initial question.

  "Is that what she suggested?"

  "Yep. I told her to wait until you got back. I told her you’d want to see it for yourself.” Rocco shook his head.

  "I take it you two had some disagreements on the subject.” Mark crossed his arms.

  Rocco frowned, flashing Mark a quick glance. “You could say that.”

  "What else has been going on in my absence?" Mark’s mouth formed a grim line. He wasn’t feeling too happy at the moment. Laura had just finished telling him she had saved the bone for him to look at. Why would she lie to him about it?

  "Go ask your second in command. She’ll tell you whatever you want to hear, I’m sure."

  "I don’t like the sounds of this. The last thing I need are my two most valuable crew members at logger heads with one another."

  Rocco just shrugged. "I just did my job. Numbered and documented, just like it’s supposed to be. Talk to her if you want answers."

  "I intend to,” Mark ground out.

  He turned and strode from the compound.

  Chapter Two

  "We need to talk," Mark announced as he stomped into the lab where Laura was working.

  "About what?" Laura asked casually, continuing with her work. She was calibrating some measurements on a chart that was spread open before her.

  "I think you probably already know." Mark stopped beside her desk and folded his arms. "I just came from talking to Rocco."

  "And what kind of hype is he spouting now?"

  "He seemed surprised that you’d sent away the bone sample. He said he’d already catalogued it and had advised you to wait for me." There was just a hint of accusation in his voice.

  "Sent away the sample? What are you talking about?" Laura looked up questioningly.

  "You didn’t send the bone away for detailed testing?"

  "No. Why would I do that? I knew you’d want a look at it." Laura shrugged. "Besides, that’s not procedure. We’ll crate the items we think can’t wait and send them together. Although I’m not sure I want that particular item to get out of my sight." Her eyes narrowed in sudden understanding. "I suppose Rocco’s been making up nonsense again. That man has an authority issue."

  "Really? I hadn’t noticed.”

  "Because you’re a man. He doesn’t like taking orders from a woman.” Laura gave Mark a withering look.

  Mark pulled out a stool and sat down, some of his earlier anger dissipating. "I heard you two had some disagreements while I was away."

  "Nothing I couldn’t handle.” Laura flipped her ponytail. “Although by the sounds of it he hasn’t let it go. What’s he accusing me of now?"

  "The wing bone. It’s not in the compound.” Mark eyed her closely, gauging her reaction.

  "What?" Laura’s eyes widened and her gaze swung to Mark. "Where is it?"

  Her surprise seemed genuine, which only made him feel more unsettled. "I was hoping you could tell me.”

  "And he said I sent it away?" Her eyes narrowed and she shook her head "Figures. Thanks for believing in me, by the way.”

  "Sorry.” Mark broke eye contact. He sighed and rubbed his chin. "There must be an explanation. I’ll go back through the compound myself with a fine-toothed comb. He probably just forgot where he put it." Somehow Mark doubted it. Rocco was always thorough and professional. A mistake of this magnitude was not typical of him. But what other explanation could there be?

  Laura interrupted his thoughts. "He’s gone way over the deep end this time. He was carrying on about dinosaurs and the coexistence of people. Then he got on to international conspiracies and cover-ups - it was starting to freak some of the crew. You know how tenuous our position is here. One bit of bad press and we’ll be shut down."

  "It would never come to that." Mark said it as much to convince himself as Laura.

  "No? Well, I don’t trust Rocco. The guy is nuts. I seriously have doubts about his stability - and his credibility. As head of this thing, you might want to look into it." She challenged him with her eyes.

  "Are you suggesting I fire him?" Mark asked.

  "You do what you think you have to," she stated firmly, her gaze not wavering from his.

  Mark looked away and rubbed the back of his neck. "Rocco’s an important part of this team. He’s experienced and knows his stuff. I’ll bet he’s worked on more digs that you and I combined - and seen a lot more, too.” He glanced back at Laura but her features hadn’t softened.

  "He’s seen too much. In fact, I think he’s starting to see things, as in hallucinate."

  "You mean all the dinosaur stuff," Mark stated.

  "Exactly. Who in their right mind would even entertain something so ridiculous?"

  "Well, Rocco says -"

  "Stop!" Laura interjected, putting up her hands. "Dinosaurs and man did not coexist. We know that. It’s been proven. So don’t even go there.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “You’re scaring me," she added.

  "Hey." Mark stood up and went behind her. He rubbed her arms with his hands and felt her stiffen. "I didn’t say I believed it. But I’m not afraid to test my own theories. It’s what science is all about." He kissed the top of her head.

  "We’ll let the evidence speak for itself.” Laura looked over her shoulder at him and then launched off the stool and strode from the room.

  “Exactly what I intend,” Mark said with a sigh.

  ◇ ◇ ◇

  The sun rose
and set abruptly in the mountains. And darkness meant one thing. Suppertime. Mark crunched his way over the sand and gravel to the large, army style tent that was the kitchen and dining hall. A string of electric light bulbs, hanging limply in front of the tent, helped light the way. The pulsing of diesel generators was a constant sound in the background. It disturbed the peace of the otherwise remote location, but was necessary to keep power up and running.

  Mark greeted several crew members as he took his place in the cafeteria line. Local cooks had been hired for the task, and the food was not fancy; standard backwoods fare that filled your stomach and kept you going through the long, physically taxing days.

  He found a spot at one of the long tables beside Laura. She glanced his way but kept on eating without greeting him. She was still angry and he couldn’t blame her. He dug into his own plate of food.

  Rocco joined them a few minutes later. “Hello, boss." Rocco eased in beside Mark. "Laura," he added with a nod.

  Laura barely acknowledged him with a flick of her eyes.

  "So, did you hear that Sam is getting married next week?" Rocco said before shovelling some mashed potatoes into his mouth.

  "No," Mark replied, taking a bite of his own rather watery potatoes.

  A wily grin appeared under Rocco’s bushy moustache. "I guess he only had to promise two cows instead of the traditional three for the bride."

  Laura leaned forward to peer past Mark at Rocco. "You’re kidding, right?"

  Rocco just laughed. "You know what they say about these local girls.”

  "That is so racist and you know it," Laura objected with a disgusted tone.

  "What about you, boss?" Rocco asked slyly. "Why don’t you pick yourself one of the locals for a bride? With your reputation, you could probably get away with only one cow."

  Mark tried to smile, not really enjoying Rocco’s obvious sadistic pleasure in the turn of the conversation. "I’m not ready for marriage." He avoided Laura’s gaze and concentrated instead on his meal.