He groaned. As he saw it, there were two choices. Climb to the top and hope that the scorpion did not sting him before he could get it off him, or let go with his left hand and try to dislodge the scorpion without falling or being stung. Figuring his odds were better if he reached the top before dealing with the nasty creature, he made up his mind to continue his climb. His plans changed when the scorpion, for no apparent reason, put on a burst of speed and shot over his shoulder and onto his neck.
Instinctively, he grabbed for it with his right hand. His stomach lurched as he swung to his left, holding on with one hand. Without thinking, he grabbed the scorpion and flung it away in one quick motion. He exhaled slowly, unable to believe what he had done, and even more surprised that he had not been stung. His adrenaline pumping full-force now, he hauled himself the last few feet up to the ancient stairway.
He reached the top of the steps and took a moment to catch his breath and gather himself. After a moment, he stood and surveyed the wide plateau. It was a featureless landscape, save a few stray boulders and some sparse patches of dry grass. At least it would be an easy walk. Bones consulted his GPS, and found that his target location lay to the southeast. He quickly made his way to the site, keeping an eye out for more scorpions. When the GPS display told him that he had hit his spot, he stopped, looked down, and swore.
He saw nothing. The ground beneath his feet was flat, clear of any debris. Whatever the sword was pointing to must be underground somewhere. After a visual inspection revealed nothing out of the ordinary, he set about inspecting the area around the target location.
Keeping his eyes on the ground, he began by walking around the spot in a square pattern: four paces, turn left, four paces, turn left, and so on. With each complete circuit, he stepped out two paces, and enlarged his square. Eventually, he had covered most of the plateau, and found nothing.
He supposed he had better snap a few pictures before the folks at the dig started wondering what had happened to him. He unslung the long case that held his camera equipment and the sword, and removed his camera and tripod. Making his way to the ledge directly above the dig, he wondered if perhaps the blocked tunnel Dane had found might be the passageway they sought. From what his friend had said, that would be a hard row to hoe.
The faint sound of shouting caught his attention. It seemed to be coming from beneath him. He laid the camera down, knelt and looked down over the edge. The dig was deserted, but at the base of the cliff, he could see several people milling around and talking loudly. They appeared to be looking at something in the face of the rock. He called down to them, but they seemed to be unable to hear him above the sound of their own conversation.
His cell phone rang. Dane was calling him.
“Yeah?”
“Bones, you’ve got to get down here right away,” Maddock’s voice, though tense, sounded excited.
“Sure. Where are you?”
“Look down.”
Bones peered back over the edge and saw Dane standing on the outer fringes of the crowd. Neither of them ventured to gesture to one another, maintaining the fiction that they were complete strangers.
“What are you doing with my dig group?” Bones asked. “Mr. Jonas will smack you with his pocketbook if he catches you.”
“Just get back down here. You’ll see when you get here.”
The connection went dead. Bones cursed, and debated dropping a rock down on Maddock’s head. Just a very small pebble, something that would sting a bit. He thought the better of it, though. He was eager to find out what exactly was going on down below.
The climb down was much easier than the climb up had been. A few minutes later, he trotted up beside Dane who was standing at the edge of the crowd. He fixed his friend with a questioning look. The blond man merely nodded toward the wall. Bones turned toward the wall and gasped.
Someone had apparently uncovered a false wall in one of the broad recesses in the rock. The wall had been knocked down and the rubble hastily cleared away. Real archaeologists will have a fit at the impulsiveness, Bones thought, but they won’t scream too much once they see what these amateurs have uncovered.
Beyond where the wall had been, was a deep alcove. In the foreground was what appeared to be a well, but it was the back wall that drew everyone’s attention.
Carved into the back of the alcove was an incredibly well-preserved relief sculpture depicting five giant men engaged in battle with a throng of much smaller warriors. The two giants on either side were displayed in profile, laying about with heavy broadswords. Dead soldiers lay strewn about their feet, graphically depicted in various states of dismemberment.
In contrast, the warrior in the center was rendered from the front, facing directly toward them. Bones was fascinated by the detail. The towering warrior was outfitted in typical Bronze Age armor and a small helm, from which flowed a wild mane of hair. His face was framed by a thick beard, and his eyes seemed to bore into Bones with evil intent. He held his giant sword upraised, and his small, round, shield in the center of his body.
Dane turned to Bones, smiled broadly, and whispered one word. “Goliath.”
CHAPTER 23
Dane, Bones, Kaylin, and Meriwether crept along the pathway that led down into Petra. The full moon cast odd shadows among the tombs and dark recesses in the walls. In the places where the pathway narrowed significantly, the darkness was almost complete.
“What do you think we’re going to find?” Bones whispered, looking around.
“Hopefully, a doorway of some sort,” Dane answered in a hushed voice. He was not certain what they would discover, but he had a strong suspicion. “The carving in the center,” he began.
“The one you believe represents Goliath?” Kaylin asked.
“Right. You notice he’s facing forward, but the others are all facing sideways. Well, there’s another difference.” He paused, waiting to see if anyone was thinking along the same lines. “His shield is different, as well. It’s much smaller, perfectly round, and held at the very center of his body.”
“You’re right,” Bones said after a moment. “I didn’t really think about it at the time, but it does look…wrong.”
Dane held up a hand to silence everyone as they approached the dig site. Though the discovery had initially caused a bit of a stir, it had quickly become business as usual in an area rife with history. Only one person, an archaeology student from Tel Aviv, minded the site. The term “minded” was used loosely, Dane thought, as the young man was apparently asleep in his tent, a good fifty yards away.
They crept closer to the site, moving cautiously so as not to disturb the sleeping scientist. They cautiously made their way around the ceremonial well, gaping black in the darkness, and walked to the center of the wall.
Dane knelt in front of the center figure of the carving, produced a small flashlight, and shone its tight beam on the carved shield. After a brief inspection, he put the flashlight between his teeth, stood, and grasped the shield with both hands. Meriwether and Kaylin added their flashlight beams to his. His heart pounded. He hoped this would work.
He gave the shield a great twist to the right, grunting with the effort. Nothing happened. He took a breath and tried again, with the same result.
“What do you think?” Bones whispered.
Dane did not answer. He was thankful that the darkness kept the others from seeing the redness in his face. He had been so certain. What if…