“What about the map room,” Alice said, “and the words welded on the key pad thing? Carl told us there was a diary hidden in one of the desks that detailed the operation. By the way, Carl never explored the entire facility. He started looking in doors on the left. He saw loot in the first two, but the next three were empty. He just opened the outer doors for a quick peek as he went on. He quit looking when he saw the metal door to the map room. We’re convinced he saw none of those mysterious devices we discovered. He told me his plan was to return to the Hollow Mountain after he completed his business in Egypt.”
“I wish we had that diary in our hands,” I said. “We know the Hollow Mountain existed for other reasons and the route planning took place there as a matter of convenience. Think of the whole map room and the entrance. The entire thing is elaborate and expensive.”
“Nothing unusual about that,” the Director said. “Hitler was known to waste ludicrous quantities of money and resources on outlandish schemes and projects.”
“Maybe so,” I said,” but what we do know is the Nazis abandoned the Hollow Mountain in a big hurry. I’m sure there were plans to return in quieter times. Just suppose the key people, other than Sergeant Gunter Weis, all perished when the submarine went down. If true, that explains why such an important facility remained unknown for so long.
“Many years ago Carl Manheim discovered enough in the Canal Zone to lead him on a lifelong quest. I think that back in the twenties or thirties a German archeologist discovered something in Egypt. It was something that led the Germans on their own long quest. Gunter’s Secret Path began in Germany, went to Egypt, to the west coast of Africa and on to Brazil. I think the true Secret Path begins in Egypt, goes to Germany and the Hollow Mountain and maybe on to a place we have yet to discover.”
I stopped talking, but the room remained silent for a while.
The Director leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. “Biti, based on what we know now, there’s no question that we‘re on to something beyond big.” He discovered his forgotten coffee and took a sip. “Okay Band, what’s next?”
“Egypt,” we all said together.
“Yes,” he said, “if that’s where it began for the Germans, that’s where it should begin for us. We all stood up and the Director shook hands all around. “Alice,” he said, “let me know what you need. Start as soon as you can and God bless you all.”
The Band trooped out and made the long march to Alice’s office. Once there we settled in for a short planning session. The boys had already ordered the supplies we needed. The logistics were straightforward, except that we would be taking the tools necessary to open the sealed door behind the sarcophagus.
I had a question. “Do Amisi and I go in costume and more important, do we get turned ugly again? You know, the blackened teeth and fake skin wrinkles.”
“Costumes yes, but ugly no,” Alice said. “The costumes are just in case. You both are still brown, so why not? We really can’t plan beyond Egypt until we see what’s behind that sealed door. An eventual return to Germany is for sure, but who knows where or when?”
She sang the last six words and that reflected the excitement and anticipation we were all feeling. Amisi and I picked up our desert garb and we all left for Bill’s Garage in the same vehicle we had used before. I didn’t have to ask her why she was floating about two inches off the ground. We were heading back to her current favorite place on Earth.
On arrival we all gave our pilot, Harry, a hug or a handshake and he escorted us to our big C-130 taxi. Once inside, I checked to make sure no one had removed the Kilroy Was Here cartoon from the fuselage wall and then found the same bench seat I had used last time.
The little, hardworking, tractor pulled us out of the hangar and soon we were on our way. Less than a full day had passed since we were enjoying the hospitality of Angie and Batts.
CHAPTER 3
Harry parked the big aircraft somewhere in Libya and pulled out his marvelous puddle jumper. The trip was a repeat of our first voyage except that the low flying part was now routine for us. Somehow, he managed to land in the same little depression he had used before and our hike to “X marks the spot” was without incident. After some mental arithmetic, my sturdy commando wristwatch told me we had arrived at our destination along with the noon hour.
At the canyon rim, our local agent, Kosey, and some of his men were waiting to greet us. He knew why we were here and expressed his pleasure to see us again, as he led us east to the gully the mule had climbed so easily the last time we were here. A few minutes later, we were standing at the tomb entrance. Kosey’s men had cleared the entrance hole, so in we went.
All of the Nazi loot in the first room had vanished and the floor was clean. Alice nodded, “This is good. The Director told me he had the goods moved to a secure location. When we finish here, we’ll turn the site over to Kosey. He can be the one to announce the discovery to the world.”
Once again, the need to know monster was at work. Kosey, with his crew, led the way to the tomb proper. The big room was unchanged and magnificent and as soon as the lights were in place, Amisi set out for the pyramid. We let her lead the way because we all knew how much this meant to her. While his crew went back for more supplies, Kosey, carrying two ladders, joined our group as an observer.
When I saw the sealed door behind the sarcophagus, I wondered why I had not noticed it before. It was a good ten feet tall, the center filled with large stone blocks and the whole thing framed by a heavy arch. One of the packs that came with us contained a bundle of slender titanium rods that the boys assembled by the numbers. When finished, they had a large frame that looked like an upside down letter L with the top leg resting on the wall just above the arch. M2 hooked a block and tackle to the top center and the device was ready to go. They placed the ladders against the frame and climbed up to extract the top block using small crowbars. The ancient builders used no mortar. It was a tight fit, but it took the two less than five minutes to slide it out part way. They wrapped it with a heavy-duty bungee cord and hooked it to the block and tackle. Thereafter it was a routine operation with Harry handling the rope. They didn’t remove the two bottom rows because we were too eager to go through. We grabbed our lights, scrambled over the seal remnants and hustled down a wide, but short tunnel.
I tried not to anticipate what we’d find, but based on our recent success I was expecting something strange and exotic. However, we walked into yet another complete surprise. It was a rough, hollowed out room about eight hundred feet square and maybe ten feet to the roof. The builders had made no effort to smooth or decorate the interior. It was a storage room—nothing else.
On the right, we saw perhaps thirty or forty objects, none very large. They looked like rudimentary machinery. To the left were low tables fashioned from rough wood. Each held objects that looked like leftovers from a rummage sale.
“Wow,” Alice said, as she looked around. “Ain’t nuthin easy. I don’t see a self-propelled hair dryer anywhere.”
“Nothing but piles of junk,” M2 said.
“It does look pretty shabby,” I said. “Still, it must have been important to whoever put it here.”
M1 picked up a small object.” Look what I just found on the floor.” He held up the stub of a lead pencil, complete with an eraser and German writing. “So they were even in here. It was decent of them to rebuild the block wall before they left, but I wonder why they bothered. I wonder if the bar of soap lifting things came from here.”
I shrugged and went to the tables for a closer look. The first object was a distorted chunk of rusty metal. I picked it up to check its weight. “This is iron,” I said, “fresh out of a dirty smelter. I can see little chunks of black stuff imbedded in the surface.”
Next to it were several other pieces with slightly different textures.
Jean picked up a small chunk. “It looks like they were attempting to make some form of steel. This makes no sense.”
Then we found l
umps of low quality glass, some with color and most with the shape of the firing container. I lost count of the number of clay pots containing a variety of powders and granular material. It looked like the beginnings of a chemical laboratory.
M2 clicked off another picture. “I wonder,” he said, “If any of this stuff was left here by the Germans.”
“Don’t think so, “Jean said. “Most everything here is covered with the dust of ages and why would they use crude clay pots?”
After looking, touching and speculating about the table material, we turned our attention to the other side of the room. The first thing we saw was a spinning wheel that was out of sight when we first entered. It was a different design, but its purpose was obvious. Next to it, on a little pedestal was an honest-to-God compass. It took us a few moments to realize what it was. The needle was working and hieroglyphics appeared to mark the four directions. Jean had her nose about two inches from the small object. “These glyphs look almost familiar, but not quite,” she said. “M2, can you get a close up of the dial?”
We moved on, as our photographer got busy. A large slanted tube with a screw device was the next eyebrow raiser.
“I’ll be damned,” Harry said. “This is a water pump or a model of one. These things look like they came right out of Leonardo DaVinci’s notebook.”
“You got that right,” Jean called, from behind some other strange devices. “There’s a frame model here for a set of wings next to a windmill.”
“Holy cow,” M1 exclaimed. “This box has a gyroscope on gimbals, but I can’t see any power supply. Maybe they had to wind a string around the shaft to get it going.”
At the conclusion of our inspection, several machines remained a mystery, but M2 documented them with care for the experts to puzzle over. We gathered at the entrance and just looked at each other. This was almost as surprising as finding a well-preserved McDonald’s restaurant.
“Being the suspicious guy that I am,” M1 said, “I’m wondering if maybe those sneaky Nazis created this as an elaborate fake for some nefarious reason. Could be they were trying to prove some off the wall theory about Aryans and Atlantis or something.”
Jean swiped a finger over the arm of a strange object and held it up near M1’s nose. “Look at the dust. I can only guess, but these things have been here for hundreds of years. It takes ages for this to happen in a sealed chamber.” Turning to me, she said, “James, as interesting as this stuff is, I just have to take a quick tour of that fabulous main chamber. I’ll take Kosey with me. Is that okay with you guys?”
Without waiting for an answer, she left for the land of her dreams. We all understood and continued our examination of the remaining machinery. Twenty minutes later, we finished and were waiting for M2 to take a few more pictures.
“Harry,” Alice said, biting her lower lip, “I hope you managed to bring along your liquor cabinet. I’m going to need a stiff drink before this day is over.”
“One of these things is probably a still,” Harry said. “If there’s nothing in my ditty bag we can make our own.”
“Jeepers,” M2 said, “I don’t even know what questions to ask. Where the hell do we start?”
Things got very quiet as we all dug around for a comment or a question.
Harry had a bright idea. “How’s about we do lunch?”
Grateful for a diversion, we all agreed and went back through the tunnel. When we reached the platform in front of the pyramid, our lunch was waiting for us on a newly imported card table, surrounded by some flimsy looking folding chairs. Flimsy or not, I immediately took a seat. My pride didn’t allow me to say anything, but the old trooper was a bit tired. To our delight, we saw that Kosey’s men had set up a canvas-shrouded toilet off to one side. This would be a real time saver. I asked M2 if he had photographed the carvings on the front of the platform and he told me he had several sets.
I saw some reflected lights coming from one of the many side passages. “Amisi,” I hollered, “lunch is served.”
“Can’t stop now,” she called back. “Save me a sandwich please.”
“Can I bring it to you?”
“Yes please—and a drink.”
“Anything for Kosey?”
“No thank you,” he replied. “We have our own food.”
Knowing what she likes, I put together a sandwich with ham, cheese and mustard, along with a Diet Coke. I had some difficulty finding the particular narrow path. Once inside I began to wonder if, like the long hallways at the FBI building, I would need a guide to get back out.
When I finally reached them, I saw they were not alone. Four of his men were there as observers so I joined them and watched Amisi continue her work while munching her food. I soon noted that those men were in awe of her as she and Kosey conversed in a language the group understood. There would be no concern for her safety in this place. I doubt she even tasted the sandwich she was eating as they continued. When she finished her drink, she handed me the empty can, said thanks and dove back into ancient Egypt. I scooted back to the platform and pigged out on my own ham and cheese. Only then did it occur to me there was an excellent chance that Kosey and his men did not dine on pork.
After lunch and a visit to our private latrine, we gathered again at the card table for a bull session. We sat quietly for about thirty seconds.
“You know,” Alice said, “based on Jean’s evaluation, I don’t think there’s a ghost of a chance that the Germans put that stuff in the storage room. We should however carve off a splinter of wood and send it for radiocarbon dating. Now, when I look at all of that material, I see the items needed for a society to start an industrial revolution although one never occurred back then. The problem is that these things don’t appear all at once in a particular civilization and the stuff we see in there is out of order. Somehow, these early Egyptians invented things before there was a need for them. It just doesn’t work that way.”
“I’m with you on this,” M2 said. “That room doesn’t fit.”
“Harry,” Alice said, “d’you agree”
Harry nodded. “Sure, but in my long and varied career I’ve seen a ton of things I couldn’t and still can’t explain. I don’t worry about it too much.”
M1 tapped his foot on the stone surface. “One big item of interest is this platform we’re sitting on. It looks to me like something rather large sat here and the Germans carted it out through that outsized tunnel and took it to the Hollow Mountain. I’m thinking we’ll find it behind the vault door in the map room.”
Alice popped the top of another Diet Coke. “Any recommendations for our next move?”
“I believe we’re finished here and should head for Germany,” I said. “For my money, I would let Kosey announce his discovery in a month or so because I don’t think we’ll be back.”
Alice looked at me over the rim of her drink. “Can you speculate on just what went on here and why?”
“I do have a pretty wacky idea,” I said, “but if I tell you it might focus your minds in the same direction and that would be a mistake.” I grinned. “Here’s an idea—remember when we did that office pool to guess whose ashes were in the cookie tins? Why don’t we all write down our speculation, fold them up and let Alice keep them until we know for sure?”
M1 held up the German pencil stub. “And here’s what we’ll use to write with.”
Alice passed out blank sheets from her pocket notebook and we all in turn wrote our guess. She tucked them away in one of her bags and then got back to business. “I’m open to suggestions, but I too think we should close up shop here and head to Germany.” Receiving only head nods she continued, “Okay, I’ll go outside and make a satellite call. I’m sure the Director will agree. You guys get the nasty job of telling Amisi that we’re leaving.”
“Amisi won’t be going with us.” I said, as she stood up.
After a long pause, Alice said, “Tell me about it.”
“She has done her job and she has done it well. I think you’l
l agree that although she’ll come with us without protest, her mind and her soul will be back here. Recently, she told me that she has never felt so alive. She feels like she’s been given a second life thanks to us. I think she should stay here at least for the month and inventory the tomb. There might be things here that would be useful to us or might tell any new explorers about our mission.” I looked around for a moment. “This should be our gift to her.”
Alice turned away to blow her nose and sniff a couple of times. “For Christ’s sake Biti, you almost make me cry. I’d kick your ass if I didn’t love you.”
The boys maintained a manly stance while saying nothing.
“Amisi is one lucky hombre even if she is a girl,” Harry said.
Alice took a deep breath. “Okay guys, Amisi stays. I’ll trot outside now and make that call. Biti, you go tell her the good news. M1, how about you go get a sliver of wood from the storage room?”
“I better let Jean do that. You know how finicky these archaeologist types get when you start hacking away at their artifacts.”
She left for the exit while I went to see Amisi. The class was still in session when I reached them. I told her that I needed a private word and she followed me out to the main corridor. I could tell by the look she tried to hide that she thought I was about to tell her that her adventure here was over. I pulled a James Cagney and let her have it in one breath.
“My dear,” I said, while standing straight, “the Dance Band has finished here and will be leaving shortly. Someone has to remain behind to inventory this place to see if there is anything that might be helpful to our quest. You are the logical choice.”
As I spoke, tears welled up in her eyes. Before I said the last words, she flung herself into my arms and sobbed as hard as Anna Manheim when we rescued her from the Hollow Mountain.
LOST AND FORGOTTEN: Book 2 The Secret Path Page 2