“Secret stairs,” Nanda said. “Not many know of them. They were built long ago and go all the way down, through the mountain, and come out about a mile from town, to the south. Be careful when you come out.”
Maddy gave Nanda a quick hug, pulled back, and looked him in the eye. “Thank you for everything.”
“You’re most welcome. Now go.”
They started moving down the stairs, following the small circle of light from the flashlight Maddy carried.
Nanda turned and closed the door. Quiet descended on the group and they halted.
Bear took a deep breath and regrouped. He sensed the twins did the same.
Will passed Maddy and moved down the stairs. “Sorry about Juergen. Shall we?”
“Yes, let’s leave this place.” Her voice broke a little. “I have what we need.” She started to move down the stairs again, behind Will.
Will turned on his small keychain flashlight, aimed it down the middle of the spiral staircase to add additional light, and picked up speed. “You do?”
“Yes. I ran into the master on my way to breakfast. He showed me a few things. I was able to light some paper on fire, and he gave me an amulet.”
Bear was amazed that she sounded so matter-of-fact about it. She was a fascinating woman. Or maybe she was in shock.
Will’s tone was incredulous. “No way! You lit paper on fire, too?”
“I did, but don’t know if I’ll be able to do anything like it again. I’ve choked before, remember the alley in Vilnius? And the amulet is more important now.”
“Can I see it?” Will asked.
“Of course, but we need to put some distance between ourselves and that idiotic helicopter pilot up there!” Now her tone was fast and high-pitched. Maddy’s pissed off voice.
Will already sounded out of breath. “Maybe when we rest.”
“You mean when we get to the bottom?”
“Oh god! You can’t be serious. My legs are already burning.”
“At least we don’t have to run up them!” Bear said.
“Let’s go as far as we can anyway,” Maddy said. “I cannot believe they found us again.”
Will looked back. “Well, if the Russians were watching the temple area, they would have seen only monks leave. All the monks headed here, to Popa monastery.”
“I suppose,” Maddy snapped.
They moved as fast as they could down the steep stairwell. It seemed to go on forever, but Bear remembered how long it had taken them to climb the 777 stairs to the top originally.
After five minutes, Will slowed and then stopped. “I have to have a break. My legs are cramping.” He sat down and used his flashlight to look at the back of his legs. They were dotted with red and streaked with blood in a few places.
Maddy sounded concerned. “Will, did you get shot?” She sat on the step above him.
He touched one of the red dots on his calf and his finger came away bloody. “I think it was from the stone chips flying through the air.”
“That’ll do it.” Bear drawled as he sat down, too, and groaned a little. His legs were also sore and his arm throbbed.
“Let me see what’s in your pack.” Maddy took the pack off Will’s back, rummaged around in it, and pulled out two bottles of water and several small, raw potatoes. “No real first aid but you can rinse the wounds with water. Bear, are you thirsty?” She held out the bottles.
Bear and Will held out their hands and she passed out the water bottles. They drank and Will rinsed the worst of his calf wounds. Bear followed suit.
Bear realized his stomach was growling. “I’ll eat a raw potato.”
“Eww. Really?” Maddy asked.
“Sure, my mom used to give us slices with salt when she was cooking. Must be their form of emergency rations.”
Maddy shrugged and handed him a small potato. Bear ate it with gusto. It tasted good and reminded him of happier times.
Will turned to look at Maddy on the step above him. “Can I see the amulet now?”
“Sure.” She reached into her shirt and pulled up the end of a gold necklace, leaving the silver lion’s head in place.
Will studied it in the light of his own flashlight.
Bear finished the potato.
“Cool. Looks like there are tiny pyramids on there. Want to see, Bear?”
Bear reached out his hand. “Yes, please.”
Will handed him the flashlight and the amulet. Bear used the light to study the amulet.
It was a lavish piece of jewelry. Although the outside gold filigree held numerous precious gems, it was the center stone that held his attention. Inside were three pyramids, the third one a little taller than the other two and outlined. If Bear squinted, he could also see three much smaller pyramids in front of the first one.
“The Pyramids at Giza,” he announced.
Maddy looked over her shoulder at him. “Are you sure? I thought so, but you’re the historian.”
“Yes, although there are a lot of other pyramids in Egypt, especially farther south of Cairo in the Luxor area and in the Valley of Kings, this series of three, with the three tiny ones in front of that first one, is unique in the world. They lie in the shadow of Giza.”
Bear turned it over and ran his thumb over the raised pattern. “I wonder what the Vergina Sun is doing here?”
“Is that what it is? I didn’t recognize it.”
“Yeah, it’s an ancient Greek symbol, possibly used by Alexander the Great’s family. It has caused some recent controversy in Greece,” Bear said.
Maddy held out her hand. “Hmm, the Alexander connection again. Well, hand it back and let’s finish these stairs. Maybe we’ll find out why we have it when we get there.”
“At least we have a clear destination now. Looks like the Great Pyramid is the place to start.” Bear handed it back to her and they all stood.
“Why are you thinking that, Bear?”
“It’s outlined and the others aren’t, and it’s the most famous.”
“Makes sense to me,” Maddy said.
“Why not?” Will added, as they started moving down the stairs again. “First things first, though. Wherever this set of stairs leads, let’s keep an eye out for a helicopter with machine guns.”
CHAPTER 71
Bangkok Airport, July 21, 4:30 p.m.:
As the plane landed at the Bangkok airport, Maddy reflected that it had been an extremely long, sad, day.
Juergen’s death left her with a hole in her heart and the last couple of hours were spent just going through the motions of getting away from the monastery. Part of the sorrow was stirred-up emotions from the loss of Maria and her father, but her heart also ached for the fresh loss of a friend, a colleague, and a handsome man to whom she’d been attracted.
Although she recognized that she could now pursue her feelings for Bear without conflicting emotions, the day was destined for mourning. It was not a day for new beginnings.
She also spent some time mulling over AJ’s fate, wondering if her dream did herald danger for him, and questioning where he was, how he was, if he was safe. If he was even still alive.
And so the day had gone.
The secret staircase had led to the middle of nowhere. Once they had made the bottom of the circular staircase, they emerged into the darkness of an ancient cave. They surprised a few bats into flight, which got Maddy’s heart racing for a moment, but otherwise the tall, open space looked deserted.
To one side of the cave, a narrow shaft of sunlight cut the darkness. That brightness led to a short, slender tunnel that they squeezed through in turn.
Bear went first and reported the area quiet and clear. Maddy went through next, just mildly uncomfortable with the small, tight space. Will followed her through on his hands and knees. They came out on the side of the rock outcropping that held up the monastery, in the middle of a pile of rocks.
Once free of the tunnel, there was no sign of the feared helicopter, and they heaved a collective sigh of r
elief. Ten feet away from the entrance, she looked back and was shocked that the hole they crawled through was obscured by hefty rocks and dry vegetation. She had to admit that it was a shrewd escape route.
Away from the cave, the road lay a quarter mile away and the town farther to the north. They bushwhacked their way to the road and hiked the mile into town with local farmers for company. They were alert for the sound of the helicopter to return, but it did not, so they acted like monks on the way into town, talking all the way about how they’d been found.
Once there, they grabbed a quick breakfast, ditched their disguises in the bathroom waste cans, and caught a ride in a private car into Mandalay as backpackers. Maddy was glad to get out of the robe and get a hat on her head. She couldn’t wait for her hair to grow back.
Later that afternoon, feeling quiet and subdued as a group, they purchased tickets to Cairo at the Mandalay airport. The only flights available had short layovers in Bangkok and Abu Dhabi. While in the Mandalay airport, they also purchased some clean clothes.
The first leg of their journey was on time, smooth, and uneventful, the type of flight that Maddy preferred. As they departed the plane and walked through the gate inside Bangkok’s gleaming airport, she turned to Will and Bear. “What do you guys think about grabbing some computer time at an internet kiosk and doing some research on our destination?”
Will replied first. “Sounds good. The airport in Mandalay was a little light on technology.”
She pointed past two gates on the left. “This airport looks like technology nirvana in comparison. I see a kiosk there--”
After being in the subdued light of the airplane for a few hours, the blue and white lights inside the gate area were so bright she had to squint. This airport reminded her of O’Hare in Chicago--all open space; girders; a clean, white tile floor; and copious amounts of glass.
Bear motioned with his head. “There’s another one beyond the departure sign, too.”
“Yep, I see. That one does look less crowded, so let’s head to it.”
“Okay, I’ll meet you guys there in a minute. I want to check on our departure gate and grab some sandwiches,” Will said.
Maddy and Bear gave Will their sandwich order and then worked their way through the crowd to the internet kiosk.
Maddy paid for two fifteen-minute sessions and found a computer. Bear sat behind her. She signed in with the password coded on her receipt. “I hope the internet speeds here are decent.”
“Especially since we all don’t have a lot of time on this layover.”
Maddy’s fingers flew over the keyboard with practiced ease. “Yes. Exactly.”
She was a little distracted as she familiarized herself with the computer. It was an older Windows 7 model, so she figured out where the Internet Explorer browser was located, downloaded and installed the TOR browser to maintain a level of anonymity, and opened up a search page.
Then she turned to Bear. He was looking a little scruffy from their travels and had put a blue bandanna over his bald head. Didn’t even have time to shave this morning. His strong, broad shoulders looked good under his new T-shirt. She had noticed a few women checking him out throughout their recent travels.
“So, you’re pretty sure we start our search at the Great Pyramid?”
“Let me see the amulet again, if you don’t mind,” he drawled.
She handed him the amulet and searched for photos of the Great Pyramid. “Sure, take a look while I pull up some pictures.”
Before the page with images had even loaded, Bear pointed. “See here?” He had the side of the amulet up that had the pyramids on it. “I just noticed. See how the largest pyramid, the one in the back, is the only one that has substance to it. The others are more like sketches.”
She glanced down at it for a second until she got what he was talking about. “Okay, so let’s go with that as an assumption. Check out these images.” The page loaded. She went on. “Looks like the two upper chambers are called the King’s Chamber and Queen’s Chamber. There’s a lower one, too, called the Subterranean Chamber. Oh wow, they recently found a buried secret chamber above the Grand Gallery, whatever that is.”
“What about the exterior?”
“Well, there’s no cap on this pyramid. It’s got a flat top, but it has some sort of wooden surveying tripod in the middle where the cap would be. Since all the other clues mentioned the center of something, maybe it’s under that tripod?”
Maddy noticed that Bear didn’t seem to be paying much attention to the pictures. He’d probably memorized the layout from a National Geographic magazine when he was eight. She turned to him. He was looking, with glazed eyes, off into the distance. “Bear?”
“Hmm?”
“What are you thinking about?”
“The guards.”
She realized what he was thinking. Of course, there would be guards. “Crap! You don’t think we should wait until broad daylight, do you?”
“No,” he agreed. “I don’t. We’ve had too much company lately and I’m thinkin’ a nighttime excursion would be better. We also have the need for speed.”
“Yes, we do.”
“What time do we land in Cairo?”
She rubbed her ear, considering. “Assuming all goes well in Abu Dhabi, around three a.m.”
“The dead of night. It’s perfect.”
She sighed. “We won’t get much sleep, but I think you’re right.”
They looked at each other and he nodded his head in time with hers.
He turned his attention back to the monitor. “Quickly then, there are a few details we need to know about. I’d like to make a plan that won’t get us killed.”
CHAPTER 72
Giza Plateau, Egypt, July 22, 4:10 a.m.
Will brought sandwiches back to Maddy and Bear at the airport, and discovered that they’d hatched an evil plan between them to rob him of any semblance of rest for the remainder of the night. While other passengers on the flight to Cairo slept, the three of them huddled together, whispering about how they were going to storm the pyramid in the predawn light.
At first, Will resisted the plan, but they reminded him of the annoying fact that he would soon be a wanted man by the Napa police force. He had no idea why the cops considered him a suspect for the murders that had started them on this adventure, but tomorrow, in fact, he needed to be in California, or else. They needed to end this quest and the sooner the better. He had to agree with them on that point.
Once they landed and obtained a ride, the car moved through Cairo with ease. The streets were deserted. The taxi driver dropped them off at the Sphinx View Bed and Breakfast, a stone’s throw from the Great Sphinx, and walking distance to their destination.
The night was warm and a strong breeze stirred the palm fronds. The air seemed charged. Will could sense a storm approaching. Rain in the desert? Just our luck.
Maddy swung her backpack over her shoulders as the taxi’s taillights disappeared around a corner. “Let’s hope our driver just saw three tired tourists arriving late from the States.”
Will looked at the B&B with longing, but excitement was starting to surge through him. “He’s already forgotten us. Hope you don’t mind getting wet, though. Feels like rain. Bear, which way?”
Bear took off at a brisk walk. “Follow me.”
Will and Maddy followed.
“Our online research did say it rains here once in a while. We’ll just have to deal with it,” Maddy said.
Within a half block, they could see the desert on their left. Multiple pyramids loomed in the near-distant darkness. The legendary Sphinx was right in front of them. Looking at its elongated paws and famous face, Will felt the thrill of standing at the crossroads of history.
“I’ve always wanted to come here,” Bear said, reverence in his tone. “Did y’all know that the Great Pyramid was the world’s tallest structure for over thirty-eight hundred years?”
“That’s one hell of a long time,” Will said.
Thunder boomed in the distance.
Bear went on, “Its ancient name was Khufu’s Horizon. Even with skilled workmen regularly workin’ around the clock, it took almost twenty years to build. The two other tall pyramids over there to the left were for his son and grandson.”
“Aren’t they still arguing about how they built all the pyramids?” Maddy pointed to the three smaller pyramids that lay between them and the Great Pyramid. “And what about these tiny pyramids in front of Khufu’s?”
“Yes, the arguin’ has gone on for centuries. Those little ones are for the wives.”
Maddy’s edged tone held a warning. “So, you’re saying women have been the lesser sex for four thousand years?”
“There were matriarchal cultures in the time of Mesopotamia, but we digress.” Bear did a good job dodging that bullet. “Let’s work our way along the modern village until we can cut over to Queen Hetepheres’s tomb through the Eastern Cemetery.”
He turned right on the small road that split the town from the desert.
Will pointed left, at several flat, low-lying structures. “You mean those?”
“Yes.”
In the shadow of the ancient tombs, Will felt bare, a mast without a sail. Would he join Maria tonight? The town was asleep, and the blanket of clouds oppressive overhead. At least there was no moon.
They walked about thirty meters before Bear stopped and looked to their left. “Okay, now is when we stalk the shadows. We have to get over there behind the queen’s tomb so that we can check out where the guards are stationed tonight.”
All three of them looked around. Will didn’t see a soul.
Bear gave a signal and they sprinted toward the Eastern Cemetery. Within a minute, they were inside the graveyard area, surrounded by rectangular, squat, stone structures two or three times taller than Will. They zigzagged their way between the old buildings, alert for guards. Thunder continued to build, the gods bowling in desert lanes of sand.
Bear held up his hand. “Wait!”
Will looked around the corner. A guard paced in the distance, walking near the taller of the queen’s pyramids, rifle on his shoulder. Will held his breath and the guard walked out of sight.
The Lost Power: VanOps, Book 1 Page 29