“But what about the queens?”
“We never found anything inside the queen’s sarcophagi. They were always empty, most likely waiting for the death of the kings.”
“Sure. But what if they were never intended to house the remains of ancient queens?”
Billie grinned. “I don’t believe it!”
“What?”
Billie cursed loudly. “I don’t believe it. The answer’s been staring us in the face all this time.”
“Are you just going to keep celebrating your intelligence or are you going to tell me what you think’s happened.”
She smiled. “The great kings may strive to maintain power with far reaching eyes. Ultimately it is only the queens who hold the key to salvation.”
“I’m reading the same thing you are…” Sam said. “But I’m not getting anything.”
“What about the queen’s chambers?”
“What about them? They were always empty.”
“That’s it!”
“What the hell are you talking about? We’ve been through the queen’s chambers. There’s nothing inside. The sarcophagi are empty, awaiting the king’s death for the queen to follow.”
“The queen’s sarcophagi. They’re empty. But they’re not waiting for the queen. They’re waiting for the stones.”
Sam swore. “You’re right, let’s go.”
They raced down the grand gallery.
Billie stared at the queen’s sarcophagus. Compared to the king’s, which was covered in pictographs and intricate stone carvings, this one appeared insipid and mundane.
Sam asked, “What do you think?”
She removed her backpack and took out the small iron pry bar. “There’s only one way to find out.”
Together they pried the stone lid off, sliding itonly a few inches to the side. Billie flashed her light inside. The final resting place was empty. If she’d uncovered it previously she would have assumed it was nothing more than an empty sarcophagus, waiting for a king or queen to die. But at its center was a single indent, slightly smaller than a typical house brick.
Sam passed her the black light wand. Billie took it and shined it into the narrow recess. It revealed the image of the Greek letter Theta and a single horse.
“Got you!” Her eyes widened. “Now what?”
“Insert the stone and see what happens.”
Billie looked at the small metallic casing that housed the sacred stone in a complete vacuum. She ran her fingers along the airtight latches.
Her eyes met Sam’s. “Are you ready?”
“Go for it.”
Billie removed the safety latches. A small gush of air rushed into the casing. She quickly removed the stone. It felt lighter than air. She carefully placed it into the recess at the bottom of the queen’s sarcophagus.
The sacred stone seemed to lock in place.
She tried to jiggle the stone and make sure it fit properly, but it was now locked permanently. Sam had a try at removing it afterward, and agreed the stone had now become permanently fixed to the recess at the base of the sarcophagus.
“Now what?” she asked.
Sam shrugged. “Nothing.”
“Nothing happens?”
“It’s like Professor Capel suspected. Something needs to trigger the stones to start gaining mass.”
She considered what she saw when she watched Sam pick up the stone back inside the lab at Arizona University. It started to immediately gain mass the second it was removed from the Death Stone.
“You think they’re aligned, don’t you?”
“I’m hoping so.”
“Once all four of the sacred stones are joined, it will trigger the response — and all the stones will start gaining mass?”
“Yes.”
Billie looked at the sacred stone one last time and then heaved the sarcophagus lid back into place. “Come on, let’s not waste any more time. One down, three to go.”
They moved with determined and purposeful strides, racing to reach the outside of the temple. Once there, they quickly climbed the first sand dune. From the crest, Billie spotted the little Cessna 172 still parked where they’d left it. On the horizon, a strange cloud formation approached. It was like a heavy rain, but darker — and completely out of place for a region that normally receives less than ten inches of rain annually.
“What is that?” she asked.
Sam stared at it for a minute. “That looks to me like icy sleet!”
“In the Kalahari Desert?” she asked, incredulously.
Sam swallowed, hard. “Looks like it, and that means we’re going to have to pick up our pace if we want the human race to survive.”
Chapter Forty-Six
Ilya Yezhov picked up his cell phone and made the call he was dreading.
“What have you found?” came the response from Leo Botkin on the other end.
“We just got a hit on our traveler’s database. Sam Reilly’s passport was just used to leave Hosea Kutako International Airport in Namibia.”
“Leaving?” Botkin’s voice took a dark tone. “When did he arrive? Why didn’t you inform me when he arrived?”
“It has to do with their reporting system. They’re an older airport, and sometimes their internet connections go down. When that happens, all documents relating to incoming and outgoing passengers are entered into the database afterward.”
“Then how long has he been there, for Christ’s sake!”
“Twelve hours and fifteen minutes. He hired a light aircraft. Took it for a short flight and then returned.”
Botkin swore again.
Ilya said, “I don’t understand. He knows the world’s about to go to hell, so what’s he doing hiring a light aircraft from an out of the way airport?”
“He’s gone to visit an ancient ruin in the Kalahari Desert,” Leo said without hesitation.
“Really? Why would he possibly do that?”
Botkin paused. “I have no idea. Find someone to locate him, and work out where he’s going.”
Ilya was certain his boss knew a lot more than he was letting on, but he’d learned long ago not to try questioning Botkin about anything he hadn’t revealed. If Leo was going to let him know something, he would have already done so. If not, there was nothing Ilya could do to pry the information out of him.
Instead, he said, “There’s something else.”
“Yes?”
“Sam Reilly’s friend, Tom Bower, and his girlfriend are in Orvieto, Italy. I’m overseeing a team who’s shadowing them both now.”
“Good. Do you know what they’re doing there?”
“Right now, it appears they’re doing nothing more than having a romantic vacation in a medieval city.”
“That seems unlikely, given what they know is coming.”
“Maybe they’re making the most of their last few days together?”
Botkin didn’t laugh. “Whatever you do, don’t fucking lose them.”
“Okay. Do you want me to bring them in and see if we can get some answers?”
“No. Just watch them. If they try to leave before you have those answers, bring them in.”
“Very well, sir. Anything else I can do for you?”
“Yes. See if you can track down where the rest of his crew are currently.”
“Reilly keeps his business on board the Maria Helena highly secure. His overshadowing company, Global Salvages, doesn’t even keep records of his staff.”
“I know. Lucky for me I happen to have a secret list of those who are under his regular employ. There’s just two names on it that are almost certainly fake. One is named Elise. She used to work for the CIA as a child prodigy, before she apparently lost interest, set up a new passport and name for herself, and disappeared. I have a fair idea who she really is and why the Secretary of Defense lets her hide in plain sight, despite never using the same passport twice.”