“Yeah. And I’m guessing we don’t have a whole lot of time.”
He picked up his phone from the workstation in the corner and pressed the screen. After a few rings, a tired-sounding Emily answered.
“Sean, I heard Tommy arrived safely in Athens. Looks like he’s going to be okay. The doctors said he’s regained consciousness but still doesn’t remember what happened.”
“That’s good news, Em,” Sean said. He didn’t try to hide the relief in his voice. “But, I have another favor to ask.”
“Two in one day?” she laughed. “What’s this one?”
“We were supposed to meet a man at the museum by the name of Richard Firth. He’s an Egyptologist living in the area. Can you get us his address?”
He could hear her punching keys in the background. “Didn’t realize I was running an information center here,” she said sarcastically. “Ever heard of Google?” Sean gritted his teeth, but didn’t respond.
“I got him,” she said, finally. “Sending the directions to your phone now.”
“Thanks again, Em. I owe you two.”
“Don’t think I’ll forget,” she responded jokingly. “We still have a position open here at the agency if you ever consider coming out of retirement.” She’d not stopped pestering him about returning to his former job since the day he’d quit several years ago.
He snorted a quick laugh and ended the call abruptly. A few seconds later, a new message popped up on the screen.
“I’ve got the address,” he said to Adriana. “We need to get there now. I just hope it isn’t too late.”
Chapter 6
Cairo, Egypt
A light, evening breeze brushed through Will’s hair as he knelt down on the grass just outside of Richard Firth’s home. The structure’s appearance was like many of the homes in the Garden City district of Cairo, featuring a more contemporary, elegant design. Garden City was a glaring contrast to many other areas of Cairo, especially the Islamic district.
Will had sat patiently in his car, one block from the professor’s house, and watched as the gray-bearded man had arrived home from work. Apparently, Dr. Firth’s finances were in good order, considering the comfortable house and the late model Jaguar parked in the driveway.
Once Firth was inside the building, Will made his way casually down the sidewalk amid the evening’s few pedestrians. As soon as there was a lull in foot traffic, he hopped the stucco wall into the yard just behind the house.
Normally, killing a target would have been a less hurried affair. Will preferred there to be as little chance of resistance as possible. His favorite way to execute a mark was while they slept. And there were so many ways to do it: knife, bullet, strangling, or occasionally, arson. This particular outing would most likely be messy. He didn’t have time to wait around for the professor to go to sleep. That meant he would have to be as efficient as possible and hope the man didn’t make too much of a scene.
Shouldn’t be a problem, Will thought. The old man was just a historian with no training or background in combat.
He removed the small 9mm Glock from his jacket and attached the sound suppressor, then moved toward the side door and squatted next to the steps leading into the door’s alcove. He could hear his target moving around in the kitchen, rattling pots and pans. The man was probably about to make dinner. With all the extra noise, Will would be able to enter unnoticed.
Just as he started to ascend the steps, he noticed a pair of headlights approaching a block away. He crouched back down, assuming the car would pass by harmlessly. Instead, he was surprised to see the SUV slowly come to a stop and park on the curb just on the other side of the backyard wall.
Even when the vehicle’s engine shut off, he figured it was just a neighbor or someone coming to visit another one of the many homes in the area. When the passenger door opened, what he saw sent a confused shock through his system.
Sean Wyatt and his female friend, Adriana Villa, exited the vehicle and approached the front door of Richard Firth’s home. Will thought Wyatt had certainly been killed or incapacitated by the car explosion, but there he was, alive and well, ruining everything.
SSSSS
“What if he isn’t home?” Adriana asked as they walked past the sleek black Jaguar sedan.
Sean pointed at the car with his thumb. “British historian living in the nice section of Cairo? Pretty sure that’s his car,” he replied with a smirk.
She nodded. “Good point.”
They reached an unlocked wrought iron gate and made their way through it and up sandstone steps to a dark wooden door with a small, barred window near the top. Sean pushed the doorbell button and stood back.
A few moments later, a balding man with a white rim of hair answered the doorbell. He wore a tan, tweed jacket, navy blue slacks, and brown shoes. Round glasses atop a short, thick nose and splotched face completed the picture of man who’d spent his life dedicated to the study of ancient history. He was taller than Sean had expected, standing close to 6’2’’ as best he could figure.
“Dr. Firth?” Sean asked.
“Yes,” he answered politely in a sophisticated English accent. “How may I help you?” The man looked down at Sean curiously.
“My name is Sean Wyatt. I’m with the International Archaeological Agency. We were supposed to meet with you and Tommy Schultz earlier today. May we come in?”
Firth raised an eyebrow. “You were supposed to meet me at the museum.” He seemed thoughtful for a moment. “I was running a few minutes late to our meeting. By the time I arrived, the whole area had been barricaded. Apparently, there was a terrorist bombing at one of the hotels nearby.”
“No, sir.” Sean shook his head. “They were not terrorists. It was a deliberate attack aimed at us. Fortunately, they mistimed their little explosion, though not by much.”
The professor’s eyes grew wide. He was about to make a move to shut the door, but Adriana was quicker and braced it with her foot. “You should let us in, Professor. We’re here to help you.”
His head turned from her to Sean and back to her. “Help me?”
“Professor, we really should get in the house. You’re going to have to trust us on this,” Sean insisted.
The old man appeared to consider his options for a few seconds, and then backed away from the door. The two entered and Sean closed the door behind them after giving a quick look up and down the street.
“What is all this about?” Firth asked with a scowl.
“We think someone might try to kill you,” Adriana said.
The blunt force of her words confused the professor. “Kill me? Have you gone mad? Who would want to kill me? I haven’t any enemies.” His voice was indignant.
“She’s right,” Sean agreed. “We have reason to believe that a group known as The Order of the Golden Dawn is sending someone after you. We need to get you out of here as soon as possible.”
Firth looked at Sean as if trying to figure out whether or not he was telling the truth. “Golden Dawn?”
Sean nodded.
The older man scoffed. “They haven’t been around for nearly a hundred years.”
“I know,” Sean replied. “But they’re back. And they’re after something big. Apparently, they’re looking for an ancient treasure related to the four chambers of Akhanan. Up until earlier today, we were ahead of them. Now, they may have caught up.”
Firth shook his head in disbelief, still stuck on the part where someone was coming to murder him. “I don’t understand. Why would anyone come after me?”
“As far as we know, you are one of the few people who can translate this.” Sean pulled a piece of paper out of his jacket and handed it to Firth.
The professor reluctantly took the sheet, clearly suspicious. “What is this?” he asked and started moving slowly toward the living room. He stopped under a row of track lights pushed his spectacles up his nose a little further.
“It’s a copy of the stone we found in Ecuador. We were goi
ng to meet with you to see if you could decipher the inscription on the back.”
Firth nodded slowly. “This is a very ancient form of writing,” he said quietly. “I’ve only ever seen anything like this once or twice in my entire life.” His voice was full of awe. Then he turned to face Sean. “Where did you say you found this?”
“Ecuador. A few weeks ago.”
Sean and Adriana had followed their host into the living room and were standing a few feet away.
“Ecuador?” the man asked. “You’re sure?”
Sean grinned and snorted a quick laugh. “Pretty sure. I was there when we found it.”
The professor shook his head quickly, trying to process what he’d just heard. “That makes no sense,” he began. “These writings come from a very ancient culture. They have only ever been found in two locations.”
“Where?” Sean pressed in closer.
Firth shrugged. “Well, one of them is an Egyptian temple, but it is a day’s journey by train. That whole place is an enigma. There are a lot of strange writings and hieroglyphs there. It’s unlike anything else we have unearthed, thus far, in this ancient land. Not surprisingly, it is the location of some of the oldest artifacts that have ever been discovered in the region.”
He looked down at the paper again. “These symbols have no business being in South America.” The professor emphasized his point by tapping the paper with his index finger.
Sean nodded with a grin. “I’ve heard that before,” he commented wryly. “I can tell you all about it. For now, we need to get you out of here.”
“Where are we going?” he asked.
“Well, that’s kind of what we were hoping you could tell us. We need to know what that sheet says. You think you can work it out?”
The professor nodded. “I already have.”
“What do you mean, you already have?” Adriana jumped in.
“I mean, I know the exact location this sheet is talking about. The ancient temple of Nekhen.”
SSSSS
Will listened to the conversation with his ear pressed against the side door of Firth’s home. He couldn’t hear everything, but he heard enough to know that his employer would not be happy.
He slid back into the shadows and waited until he heard the people in the house leave. A few minutes later, he heard car doors shutting and saw the lights of the SUV pulling out of the parking spot on the street. Will took off across the yard and hopped the little wall just in time to see the vehicle veer right and disappear around the corner.
The good news was that if Firth could figure out where to go, he knew where they would be headed next.
Chapter 7
Cairo, Egypt
Sean steered the SUV through the quiet streets of the Garden District, past some of the most elegant homes in the city. The sun was disappearing in the west, setting the sky on fire with a searing orange glow.
“Alright, Mr. Wyatt,” Firth began. “I’ve agreed to come with you. Now, I would like very much to know what is going on.” The professor sat in the back seat, leaning forward as he spoke.
Sean could understand the man’s agitation. He could also see why them showing up at Firth’s door and telling him someone was going to kill him seemed a little crazy. Sean made a quick left turn and aimed the vehicle toward downtown. He looked back at the professor in the rearview mirror.
“Recently, we discovered two of the four lost chambers of Akhanan.” He let the words sink in.
“I am aware of your recent discoveries,” Firth retorted. “That was one of the reasons I’d agreed to meet with you and Thomas to begin with.” It always sounded strange when people called Tommy by his real name.
Sean continued. “During the search, two professors were murdered by someone working for the Order. The men were foremost experts in ancient languages and codes, just like you.”
The new bit of information caused Firth to think for a moment. He sat back in his seat and seemed to consider the circumstances.
Sean went on. “We believe the Order is being run by a very wealthy and powerful man named Alexander Lindsey. The agency I used to work for is investigating him, but apparently Lindsey has left the country.”
Firth absorbed the information quickly. “Do you think that this Lindsey is in Egypt?”
Adriana nodded. “Probably. We think that he is only interested in finding the fourth chamber. Now that he has the clue to the third, he is close to that goal.”
“What do you aim to do?” the professor asked.
“We have to stop him. And we have to reach the final chamber before he does,” Sean said plainly.
Firth sat quietly, contemplating everything he’d just heard. Then he shook his head. “I’m sorry. I don’t understand why you don’t just let them have the treasure. I’m sure the IAA doesn’t need the money that kind of find would provide, even if it was in the hundreds of millions.”
Sean forced a laugh. “We don’t keep much from any of our finds, Doctor. Everything is returned to the governments of the area in which the artifacts are found. The money isn’t the reason we need to stop Lindsey.”
The older man shrugged. “Then why?”
Adriana turned around and held up an old canvas with a painting of an oddly shaped tree on it. “How much do you know about the Bible, Dr. Firth?”
He grasped the painting gently and looked at the name signed at the bottom. His face washed in disbelief. The old, gray eyes glanced at her, then at Sean’s in the mirror.
“Where did you get this?” he asked in awe.
“I retrieved it in Germany. It was stolen during the war. My intentions were to steal it back and return it to the rightful owners, or to a museum. Instead, the last owner gave it to me shortly before he was killed by the Order.” Adriana’s words hung heavy in the cabin of the SUV.
Firth looked back at the painting. “I’ve never heard of this piece before. The shape of the tree is so strange, two trunks forming into one.”
He continued to stare at the canvas as Sean steered the vehicle into an underground parking garage. The professor noticed where they were. “What are we doing?”
“We need to change clothes and get our things, Doc,” Sean answered as he pulled into an empty parking space.
“I’m sorry,” Firth said, forgetting about the painting for a moment. “What does this painting have to do with the sheet you showed me earlier? And what does any of it have to do with the temples in Nekhen?”
“Actually, Professor,” Adriana interrupted, “that is what we need you to tell us.”
He raised his eyebrows at her statement. “You don’t know where you’re going and you don’t know what you’re looking for? Not a very well thought out plan, eh?”
Sean ignored the jab and shut off the ignition.
Firth shook his head slowly as he returned his gaze to the painting. “I cannot believe you have been driving around Cairo with a Van Gogh in your car.”
Chapter 8
Nile Valley, Egypt
Alexander Lindsey’s phone rang in his jacket pocket. He reached into the folds and answered it quickly.
“Is it done?” he asked.
“No,” Will’s response on the other line was not what Lindsey had wanted to hear. “Sean Wyatt and his female friend got there before I did. They’ve already left.”
“Do you know where they’re going?” Lindsey asked, concerned.
There was a moment’s pause. “They’re headed your direction. But they’re travelling by train, so you will have a few hours head start on them.”
Lindsey appeared concerned. “Take care of it,” he ordered.
“I’m already on the train, sir. I’ve got two of the men with me. We will handle it.”
“See to it that you do.”
Lindsey hung up the phone and put it back in his jacket.
“Problems?” DeGard asked from the other side of the back seat.
Lindsey shook his head. “Nothing we need to worry about.” He changed the su
bject. “How much longer until we get to this place?” he asked.
He and Luc DeGard had been traveling south for nearly two hours by car. They hoped to arrive in the early morning. Behind them were two SUVs with a total of eight armed guards.
“We should be there in another seven hours,” said DeGard.
Lindsey sighed. He wished they could have taken a plane, but with all the extra men and equipment, it would have taken longer to make the arrangements to fly.
“It appears we may need to hurry once we arrive in Nekhan. Sean Wyatt has Dr. Firth, and they are on their way. So, when we get there, be sure you don’t piddle around.”
DeGard seemed to resent the comment but said nothing.
Outside the vehicle, the Nile Valley whirred by silently in the early evening darkness. Even though he was in the lead, Lindsey looked perplexed as he stared through the window. Sean Wyatt had caused enough trouble and Lindsey hoped Will could take care of him once and for all.
“If I may ask,” DeGard interrupted his thoughts. “Why are you seeking the lost treasures of Akhanan? You are obviously a wealthy man. You have power. The treasure may be of significant value, but I would think a man like you wouldn’t need it.”
Lindsey continued looking out the window as he listened to the Frenchman’s question. “How much do you know about the lost chambers, Professor?”
“They are ancient rooms of gold, thought to be legend until recently. Apparently, your enemies with the IAA found two of them,” DeGard shrugged after his statement. “I would have turned your offer down three months ago. The chambers were the stuff of legend, myth. But, now that they have been discovered, I am willing to take the chance that we can find the next one, for a share of the spoils.”
“You shall have a large share, indeed,” Lindsey added.
“So, that begs my question, Monsieur. What is it that you are after?”
The question lingered in the car for a moment. A large shipping truck zoomed by on the other side of the road, interrupting the quiet hum of the road.
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