The Sahara Legacy

by Ernest Dempsey

  “Is that a fact?” a new voice echoed through the chamber.

  Dufort’s six men spun around, raising their weapons in the process, but they froze before they could squeeze off a shot.

  Standing in the doorway was Sean Wyatt and his three companions—all with guns pointed at Dufort and his men.

  Chapter 31

  Meroe

  “I’d ask how you found this place, but I suppose it doesn’t really matter. You’re here. The how is moot.” Dufort tipped his nose up into the air, reinforcing his belief that Sean and the others were beneath him.

  “Oh?” Sean said. “Sounds like someone’s being a poor sport, eh, Schultzie?”

  “Definitely. Talk about a sore loser,” Tommy said.

  “Now, before we continue this little conversation, Gerard, I’d appreciate it if you’d have your men drop their weapons.”

  “I’m sure you would, Sean. But we have what you would call a classic stalemate, don’t we?”

  Sean tilted his head to the side and then stiffened his neck. “Actually, no. See, the second one of your guys makes a move, I’m going to drop him. When another one tries something, he goes next. We have four guns on you, and despite the fact that you have us outnumbered we could take all of you out before you even pulled a trigger.”

  Dufort inhaled deeply through his nose and then sighed.

  “Oh, and your two guys at the door are dead or unconscious. I’ll be honest, I didn’t really stop to ask if they were still alive. Condolences on your loss.”

  Sean’s words seemed to have little or no impact on Dufort other than to serve as an irritant. Sean could see the guy was trying to decide whether it was worth the gamble to have his men open fire and risk their lives along with his own, but he was giving off the distinct impression that he was going to surrender. It would be foolish to do otherwise.

  “Lower your weapons, men,” Dufort said.

  “That’s right,” Tommy said, suddenly full of confidence. “Put them on the floor nice and slow.”

  The mercenaries reluctantly obeyed and put their guns on the stone at their feet.

  “All of them,” Sean said. “I know how you guys operate. Every single one of you has at least another gun or two on you, not to mention the knives. Why don’t you just go ahead and put any and all weapons on the floor for me. Thanks.” He said the last word with a heavy frosting of sarcasm.

  The men did as instructed, each pulling weapons from different parts of their clothing until there was a fairly significant pile on the floor.

  “That all of them?” Sean asked, motioning with his weapon.

  “Yeah,” Cody said. He was obviously frustrated at having to hand over his weapons.

  “Gerard…come on,” Sean urged. “I’m sure you’ve got some kind of weapon on you. What’s behind your back?”

  Dufort cocked his head to the side and offered a sardonic grin. He reached behind his back and pulled out his .50-caliber Desert Eagle. He held it for a second as if hesitating to cough it up, then set it down on the floor in front of his feet and kicked it forward into the mass of other weapons.

  “Whoa,” Adriana said. “That’s a big pistol. Looks like someone’s compensating for something, wouldn’t you say, Sean?”

  “Hardly a practical weapon, Gerard,” Sean said. “Planning on hunting elephants later? I have to say, poaching might be the perfect hobby for someone as vile as yourself.”

  Dufort said nothing in response, instead simply offering the same crap-eating grin he’d been wearing for the last minute.

  “So,” Tommy cut in again, “before we interrupted you, it sounded like y’all were having some trouble deciphering the last medallion.”

  Dufort’s eyes narrowed as he fired a glare at Tommy. “I had no problem deciphering the final piece.”

  “That’s not what it sounded like from down the hall. In fact, I heard you. You didn’t sound happy. Something about how it didn’t make sense and it was just a bunch of numbers?”

  “Precisely,” Dufort said. “It’s a nonsensical list of numbers, nothing more. If you ask me, I’d say this entire operation has been one huge wild goose chase.”

  “Good thing we didn’t ask you,” Tommy said. “Would you gents mind stepping aside and letting me take a look?”

  Dufort and his men didn’t move right away, which caused Tommy to wave his weapon around in a dramatic fashion as he tried to hurry them along.

  “Men,” Dufort said, “step aside and let our friend Mr. Schultz and his merry band have a closer look.”

  The men stepped out of the way as did Dufort, stepping to the right to give Tommy a clear path to the tablets on the floor. The medallion was still sitting on top of the tablets, right where Dufort left it just moments ago.

  “Keep an eye on ’em, will ya?” Tommy said to Sean.

  “Absolutely,” Sean said. “And if any of you so much as blinks the wrong way, you’re going to die. Understood?”

  No one said anything. They didn’t need to. Every man in Dufort’s operation knew who Sean Wyatt was, along with his capabilities. There were no doubts that he would do what he said.

  Tommy stepped forward, keeping a watchful eye on Dufort and his crew until he reached the tablets and nearly kicked them by mistake.

  He crouched down and then took a knee to read the passage more closely. It didn’t take him long to finish it, and when he did he stood up and turned around. His face looked weary, and there was something in his eyes that told the rest of the people in the room that he was perplexed.

  “He’s right,” Tommy said. “It’s just a number…a long, strange number.”

  Sean walked over to the tablets, keeping his gun trained on the bad guys. He leaned over the tablets and medallion and then looked at Tommy. “You sure it’s not something else? Maybe it’s a cipher.”

  Tommy shook his head. “If it was a cipher, there’d be a key, and we haven’t found or even heard about anything like that.”

  “May I have a look?” Adriana asked.

  The guys motioned her over, and she crossed the room with a graceful stride. Hank followed, not wanting to be the only one standing by the door.

  He stood behind Sean as Adriana knelt over the tablets and translated the inscription.

  “Ah,” she said. “Very interesting.”

  “What?” Tommy asked. “What’s interesting?”

  “Do you remember how I found Coronado’s cave outside of Las Vegas?”

  “Yeah….”

  “Well, the clue that led me to the cave was a sequence of numbers, much like this one. It’s not a code. It’s the numeric sequence for longitude and latitude. They must have understood it thousands of years ago, which is pretty remarkable.”

  “So, where is this place?”

  Sean and Tommy kept staring down the enemy.

  “Well, I don’t know right off the top of my head, but if you give me a minute I can probably find it.”

  She pulled out her phone and tapped on the screen several times. After waiting for nearly a minute, she shook her head.

  The entire room waited breathlessly to see what she’d discovered.

  “I can’t get a signal here,” she said, finally. “But those are definitely coordinates. We’ll need to get somewhere that has a cell signal or internet connection to pinpoint the exact location.”

  “How in the world were they able to understand that sort of thing thousands of years ago?” Hank asked from behind Sean and Tommy. “Are you sure that’s what those numbers mean?”

  Adriana looked up from her phone. “The ancients had greater knowledge about the earth and universe than we do. History teaches us that they were rolling things around on stone wheels and wooden carts. We’re taught that all the incredible megalithic structures all over the globe were built by slaves pulling sleds across sand and round sticks. The truth is that they probably had vast technology that we’re only now becoming aware of.”

  “Technology?”

  “She’s righ
t,” Dufort interrupted. “Long ago, the ancients had secrets that many believed came from God himself. Some say they even understood the power of a geometric grid that covers the earth and that’s why sacred sites like the pyramids at Giza, the big stone lines at Carnac, Stonehenge, and many others were put where they are. The grid lays out places of great natural energy that we still don’t fully understand. It makes perfect sense that these people understood how to use something as simple as longitude and latitude.”

  Tommy turned to Sean. “What should we do with these guys? Tie them up and call the authorities?”

  “I wish it were that simple,” Sean said with a shake of his head. “Unfortunately, I’m not sure there are any authorities we could trust around here.”

  “So, just tie them up and leave them? We’re not going to kill them…are we?”

  “I never kill an unarmed man.”

  “So, the tying thing?”

  “That sounds like a good plan,” Dufort interrupted. “Tie us up and leave us here to starve or die of thirst. I’m sure with our friend Raj gone that it would be some time before anyone came around, although you never know. However, I have a better plan.”

  “This ought to be good,” Tommy said and looked across the room at Dufort.

  Tommy’s smirk disappeared as he felt something stick into his back.

  “What the….?”

  He started to turn his head around, but Hank stopped him.

  “Uh, uh, uh, Tommy. Keep your head forward. “Sean, Adriana, that goes for you two as well.”

  Sean peeked out of the corner of his eyes. Adriana was already standing sideways in relation to the others and saw Hank holding the weapon against Tommy’s lower back.

  “Now, if you do anything stupid, I shoot your friend here. As best I can tell, his spinal cord is on the other side of this barrel. So, if I pull the trigger, it will either kill him or—best case scenario—he’ll be paralyzed for life.”

  “I knew you and Sid were up to something,” Tommy said through gritted teeth.

  “Sid? That simpleton? He’s got nothing to do with this.”

  “So, that’s the game, huh, Hank? Working for Dufort? Branching out to a life of working for the bad guy?” Sean sneered.

  “Don’t be so high and mighty, Sean. For a guy who lost everything, he pays remarkably well. Better than you two. And please, spare me the diatribe about how you and I go way back and all that. I’m tired of playing the game, tired of being a low-level guy in everything I do. Do you have any idea what my government pension will buy? Not much. With what our French friend here has promised, I’ll be able to retire and drop off the grid permanently.”

  “I hope he paid you up front,” Sean said.

  “Oh, he did, but that’s only an appetizer. The treasure from the lost city is the main course.”

  “Sean,” Tommy said. “Kill Dufort. Don’t worry about me.”

  “You know, Tommy, we thought you might say something like that,” Hank said. “That’s why I suggested to our friend Mr. Dufort that we bring in a little extra insurance so you don’t go trying to be a martyr.”

  He turned his head toward the entrance. “Hey, bring in the girl!” he shouted.

  Sean and Tommy frowned. Adriana watched the entryway with intense curiosity. They didn’t have to wait more than a few seconds to see what Hank meant by “insurance policy.”

  A henchman appeared in the doorway holding a gun to a young woman’s head. Her eyes were full of fear. Mascara was streaked down her cheeks from crying, and her normally silky blonde hair was frazzled and shooting off in every direction.

  “Tommy,” she said. “I’m so sorry.” Tears started rolling down her face again.

  “June,” Tommy said. “Let her go, you animals.” He started to take a step toward her, but Hank pressed the gun deeper into his back. “You already have us,” Tommy protested. “Let her and Adriana go.”

  Dufort took a menacing step toward the Americans and shook his head. His arms folded across his chest as he stared into the barrel of Sean’s gun. Slowly, he reached out and wrapped his fingers around the weapon.

  Sean’s finger tensed for a moment as if he might pull the trigger. He knew what that would mean. Tommy would die. And so would June.

  “Fine,” Sean relented. He let go of the weapon.

  Dufort pulled it away from him and pointed the gun at Sean’s chest. “You know…you’ve been a thorn in my side for a long time now, Sean. How many years has it been since you took my empire away from me?”

  “Your operation was built on the backs of innocent people. There’s no telling how many lives you ruined along the way. And for what? Money? Power?”

  Dufort snickered. “Of course for money and power. What else is there?”

  “Must be a lonely life.”

  “I guess you’ve never been rich. Those two things can buy whatever companionship a person could ever need.”

  “It can’t buy loyalty, friendship, love.”

  “Pfft,” Dufort scoffed. “Really, Sean? I expected more from you than some sentimental clichéd response like that. I disagree with the first, though. If you pay people enough, they’ll be loyal.”

  “I guess.”

  Dufort motioned to Adriana. “Now, if you and Thomas don’t mind, please put those guns on the floor.”

  They reluctantly obeyed, seeing there was no way out of it.

  Hank looked at his watch. “We need to get moving, Gerard. He’s stalling.”

  “Yes, I’m well aware of what Mr. Wyatt likes to do…biding his time until he can catch you in a moment of weakness. The problem here is that he’s surrounded and we have three pressure points that he simply couldn’t bear to have pushed.”

  Sean fought hard to keep his breathing as calm as possible. More than anything, he wanted to take a big step forward and punch Dufort in the jaw, drive him to the ground, and beat him until his arms couldn’t swing anymore. That fantasy wasn’t going to happen. His friends would die. While that was a distinct possibility anyway, it didn’t have to happen yet.

  “So, what now, Gerard?” Sean asked. “You going to take us out into the middle of the desert to find the lost city for you?”

  “You’re half-right,” Dufort said. “I’m going to take them out to the desert with me. You, however, are staying here.”

  The muzzle fired. Sean flew back several feet, twisting as he fell onto his chest.

  “No!” Tommy shouted and reached out his hand. Hank jammed the gun into his back, keeping Tommy from moving farther.

  Adriana screamed. She started to make a move toward Dufort, but Cody stepped in and smashed his elbow into her jaw. Stunned, she fell backward onto the floor. Her eyes blinked rapidly as she tried to get her bearings. Two of Dufort’s henchmen grabbed her under her armpits and dragged her out of the room.

  “Leave the women alone,” Tommy urged. “They have nothing to do with this.”

  “Ah, but they do, Thomas. They do. You see, if you don’t do what I ask you to do, I’ll torture them. Sure, eventually I’ll give them the mercy of death, but not before I let my men have some fun with them. Feel free to use your imagination.”

  Tommy’s breathing was coming faster than he could control. He glanced down at Sean’s lifeless body on the floor. A pool of blood collected under his chest and oozed across the stone. Tommy couldn’t cry. He couldn’t do anything except feel rage. His arms and legs went numb as he stared at his dead friend.

  “Please forgive me if I don’t give you time to mourn his death,” Dufort said. “But like Hank said, we should probably get going. Not to worry, though, Thomas. You’ll be joining him soon enough.”

  Two more men rushed over to Tommy and bound his hands behind his back. After he and the women were dragged out of the room and his men collected the artifacts, Dufort lingered for another minute. He stared at Sean’s body with amusement.

  “I have to say, Sean, you really were so predictable. I expected a better effort from you.” Dufort look
ed around the room one last time as if savoring the moment and then disappeared out the door.

  Chapter 32

  Sahara Desert, Egypt

  The chopper kicked up huge clouds of sand and dust on first landing, which forced the vehicle’s occupants to wait until the wind died down. Cody shoved Tommy out of the helicopter as the rotors overhead came to a stop.

  Tommy lost his balance and fell onto his face. His hands were still tied behind his back. He struggled to stand but a second later felt Cody’s grip on his forearms along with one of Dufort’s other men. In an instant, he was back on his feet, being held by the two mercenaries.

  Dufort approached from a second helicopter on an opposite dune. The Frenchman waded down the slope, kicking up sand with every step until he reached a basin between the two mounds.

  His men dragged the two women down the hill to join him and the rest of the group.

  “Just one big happy family, eh, Thomas?” Dufort flashed a crooked grin. “The whole gang is here. Well, I suppose there is one notable absence.”

  Tommy surged forward, but he didn’t make it more than a few inches before Dufort’s men yanked him back.

  “I’ll kill you!” Tommy shouted. “You murdered my friend in cold blood. So, you better kill me, too. Because if you don’t, I’m going to make you suffer.”

  Dufort’s right eyebrow ticked up a notch. “Well, that’s not much motivation for me to keep you alive, now is it?”

  The Frenchman turned his attention to Cody. “So, this is the spot the coordinates from the medallion gave us?”

  “Yes, sir.” Cody kept his thoughts to himself. There was nothing out there, no treasure, no oasis, just an endless sea of sand and a few rock formations a hundred or so feet away.

  “I wonder, Thomas,” Dufort said, “if you’d be so kind as to help us understand what it is we’re to do next.”

  Tommy sniffled, fighting back tears that begged to push through the dams behind his eyes. He wanted to tell Dufort where to go. More than that, he wanted to break loose the bonds keeping his wrists together and pounce on the Frenchman. Sadly, there was nothing Tommy could do. He resigned himself to the fact that he and the woman he loved were probably going to die out here, along with Adriana.