‘What we’ve got,’ said Nina, ‘is a puzzle involving these eagle carvings.’ She wiped another block. ‘So far, I’ve seen eleven different points of variation: the position and direction of the heads, the feet, wings outstretched or bent, these feather details on the chest, and so on. That’s two thousand and forty-eight possible combinations, and while there are a lot of blocks in this roof, I don’t think there are that many.’
More panting and scrabbling signalled Fisher’s arrival as Paris and Eddie pulled him on to the roof. ‘So… so what are we looking for?’ the director asked as Fortune climbed effortlessly up behind him.
‘Based on the legend, I’d say we need to find the eagles that match — that are family, so to speak.’ She indicated smaller markings on one of the slabs, Rivero moving in to film them. ‘I’m not sure what these mean yet, but they’re probably some kind of directional clue. Three rows up and eight blocks over, something like that. Find the first eagle, and it points you towards the next.’
‘The obvious question,’ said Ziff, joining her, ‘is: which is the first eagle?’
‘I don’t know, is the answer.’
‘First time for everything,’ said Lydia under her breath.
Nina ignored her. ‘We’ll need to check the whole roof.’
‘Do we have any high-resolution pictures of the model in the First Temple?’ Ziff asked. ‘Perhaps there is a clue on its roof?’
‘My God, you’re right,’ she realised. ‘Why didn’t we think of that before? It’s a perfect replica — so its roof should be an exact copy of this one! Steven, Howie; do we have backups of everything from Jerusalem?’
‘Yeah, but I’ll have to dig ’em out from the hard drives,’ Howie told her.
‘Okay, do it! It’ll be a much faster way of finding the entrance than cleaning this entire roof.’
‘I know an even quicker way,’ said Eddie.
Nina knew from his tone that he had discovered something important. ‘What is it?’
‘See that tower? It’s got a little tree growing on top of it.’ He pointed. A spindly plant stood upon the flat top of one of the towers along the palace’s western side, stretching hungrily towards a gap in the overhanging canopy. ‘None of the others have got anything more than creepers on them — so how’s it taken root?’
‘I don’t know,’ she said, curious. ‘It’d need soil, but not much would accumulate up there. It’s not even that thick here, and it’s a much bigger surface.’ She dug her boot’s toe into the dirt on the rooftop, easily scraping through to the stone beneath.
‘I’ll tell you how it could, though,’ Eddie said. ‘If there’s a hole in the roof for it to build up in!’
‘A hole?’ said Ziff. ‘Or — an entrance?’
‘Maybe. It could be! We’ve got to look.’ Nina hugged her husband. ‘I know there was a reason I married you.’
Eddie grinned. ‘What, my enormous cock?’
‘Eddie!’ Blushing, Nina punched his arm. ‘We’re being filmed!’
‘Oh, are we?’ he asked innocently, winking at Rivero’s lens.
‘We could just bleep that,’ suggested Fisher with a chuckle.
Wemba brought up another ladder, which was taken to the tower and extended. It fell short of the top, but this time only by a few feet — enough for someone on the top rung to pull themselves up.
Eddie was about to scale it, but Nina pushed in front of him. ‘No, no. I want to do this.’
‘You don’t know if it’s safe,’ he objected.
‘We’re on the roof of a three-thousand-year-old temple on top of a cliff in the middle of the jungle. How safe is anything?’ She started to climb.
Eddie sighed and looked into the camera again. ‘Some day, our daughter’s going to watch this and use it as an excuse for why she should be allowed to ride her bike down Fifth Avenue without a helmet.’
‘Yeah, yeah,’ Nina said dismissively. She quickly reached the ladder’s top and peered over the edge of the new roof.
Even from her low angle, she saw at once that the tree had taken root in more than a thin layer of dirt. The platform was square, about twenty feet along each edge — but set into its centre was a recess some six feet by six, full of dark, moist soil.
She pulled herself up. ‘What can you see?’ Ziff called.
‘There’s a pit in the middle of the roof. Enough dirt’s built up in it for the tree to grow.’ She scooped out some soil. While it seemed rich at the surface, it was gritty not far below. ‘There’s sand underneath it!’
‘Sand? Do you think—’
‘Yeah, I do think,’ she said. None of the other towers had any features resembling the one at her feet. ‘Eddie was right. This is the Palace With Entrance!’
12
With a crackle of tearing roots, the little tree toppled over the tower’s side and plunged to the ground over fifty feet below in an explosion of leaves and dust. Those watching from the roof whooped and cheered.
Eddie, who along with Fortune, Paris and Wemba had dug the tree out from the pit, was less vocal but equally exuberant. ‘Bye, you bugger,’ he said, shaking off sweat.
‘Nice work!’ Nina shouted from below. ‘Was anything underneath?’
‘God, give us a chance!’ He turned to the ragged hole where the tree had stood. ‘More sand, but…’ He jabbed a shovel into the newly excavated space. Muffled thuds as the blade cut into the soil — then came a harsh clank as it struck stone beneath. ‘The bottom’s about a foot down.’
‘How long will it take you to clear it?’
‘The four of us? Twenty minutes, if that.’
‘More digging?’ said Fortune. ‘I am glad I took off my jacket.’
Eddie regarded him sidelong. ‘Yeah, and there’s still not a speck of dirt on you. How do you do that?’
The African gave him a gold-toothed smile. ‘I am just lucky.’
‘If you were that lucky, you wouldn’t be up here digging a bloody hole in eighty-degree heat.’
Fortune laughed, then picked up another shovel. With the four men working in concert, it did not take long to clear the pit. ‘Okay, we’re done,’ Eddie finally announced. ‘The people with an archaeology degree can get their lazy arses up here now.’
‘We will get out of the way,’ said Fortune. He and the two other Congolese descended the ladder.
They were soon replaced by Nina, Ziff and the documentary crew. Nina stepped into the pit to examine its floor. ‘This,’ she said, running a finger along a narrow gap surrounding a block at its centre, ‘looks like it might lift out.’
Ziff probed the crack with a fingernail. ‘It will be heavy.’
‘I came prepared.’ She unslung a backpack, metal clanking inside it.
‘Bollocks,’ said Eddie as she produced some crowbars. ‘No prizes for guessing who’ll be hoiking big stone blocks out of the floor. I should’ve gone back down with Fortune when I had the chance. He is bloody lucky.’
‘Oh, stop moaning,’ Nina said, smiling. ‘You sound like…’ She realised her eyes had gone to Lydia. ‘Mona the moaner,’ she hurriedly concluded.
‘Who?’ Eddie asked, puzzled. Rivero snickered.
‘Nobody, never mind.’ She picked up a crowbar to cover her embarrassment as the New Zealander’s look of suspicion grew. ‘Help me get this thing open.’
Both bars were jammed into the gaps on each side of the block. The couple readied themselves, then pulled. The slab inched upwards as they repositioned the tips of their crowbars in turn. ‘Nearly — got it,’ Nina grunted. ‘Just a little—’ The stone slab jerked upwards. ‘Whoa, wedge it, wedge it!’