Nina nodded. “Too bad there’s not much you can do about it.”
“We’ll see. The Frost Foundation is doing what it can.”
While they waited for the maître d’ to return, Chase examined a menu and grimaced. “I’m more of a fish and chips kind of bloke,” he objected. “Think I’ll sit this one out and grab a burger later.”
“First you complain that the Mona Lisa’s ‘a bit small and grubby,’ and now this? You’re such a philistine, Eddie,” Nina said, amused. “You’re not just going to sit there and get drunk, are you?”
“Not while I’m on the clock. Besides, I can keep a better eye on the entrance from the bar,” Chase told her. “Make sure nobody tries to ruin your dinner.”
“You, ah… you think there might be trouble?”
Chase gave her a smile that was simultaneously reassuring and ominous. “There’ll only be trouble if anyone tries anything. You two enjoy your nosh, I’ll watch out for you.” With a final survey of the other patrons, he headed for the bar, perching on a stool where he could observe the restaurant.
Their table now prepared, a waiter led Nina and Kari to it. Nina glanced over towards Chase once they were seated. “Do you think we really might be in danger?” she asked Kari.
“It’s always a possibility,” she replied. “Qobras and his people will almost certainly have found out by now that we escaped from Iran. Which is why we need to work as quickly as possible-the longer it takes, the greater the risk of him finding us.”
“And trying to kill us again?”
“We’re not going to allow that to happen,” Kari said firmly. Her expression softened. “Nina, I never thanked you properly.”
“For what?”
“You saved my life! In Hajjar’s fortress, when you shot at the helicopter. That was a very clever and incredibly brave thing to do.”
Nina blushed. “Ah, actually… I was terrified that if I shot the chopper, it would instantly blow up!”
Kari laughed again. “That only happens in movies! No, you were very brave, and I am incredibly grateful that you were.” She gently squeezed Nina’s hand. “If there is anything you ever need-anything-just ask me.”
A little overwhelmed, Nina had no idea what to say. “Thank you,” she eventually managed.
Kari held her hand for a moment longer before releasing it. “Anything for you.”
“So, er, do Eddie and Hugo get the same deal?” she asked, blushing again with the attention.
Kari’s smile became more jokey. “Not exactly. After all, they’re being paid to look after us!”
“From what Eddie said, it sounds like you don’t need anyone to look after you. Did you really escape from Hajjar on your own?”
“You helped me again! When you turned off the power,” she added on seeing Nina’s confusion. “It distracted them for a second, and I… Well, I’ve done a little self-defense training. And another reason I’m glad you cut the power when you did was because I think Hajjar was about to accept Qobras’s offer and shoot me.”
“That was Qobras?” Nina remembered the face of the man she’d seen on the videoconference split screen.
“You saw him?”
“Yes, there was a computer room in the basement; I saw him on a monitor.”
Kari looked solemn. “So now you know who we’re up against. And how ruthless he is. He offered Hajjar five million dollars to kill the Russian, Yuri, there on the spot. He’s an extremely dangerous man, a psychopath… and he will do anything to stop us from finding Atlantis. I won’t underestimate him again. But for now, we’re safe. We have the artifact, and more important, we have you. We’ll find Atlantis, I know it. Now,” she asked, “are you ready to order?”
By the time they returned to the hotel later that afternoon, Nina was exhausted. How much of it was just tiredness caused by touring Paris, and how much was a delayed reaction to her experiences in Iran, she didn’t know. All she did know was that before Frost’s expert in ancient languages arrived, she needed a nap.
Even lying on the huge, comfortable bed, however, Nina’s rest was uneasy. Part of her mind was still trying to process all the frightening and violent events she’d witnessed-been part of-since Starkman’s phone call. Her academic life in New York seemed almost like another world.
And even in her half-sleep, she couldn’t escape from the mysterious artifact, her mind still focused on the puzzle within her dreams. There was something about the piece, the strange feeling of memory she had experienced when holding it in the farmhouse.
Something familiar.
Something here.
Nina jolted to full wakefulness, knowing what it was, and how she knew it. She was curled up, knees tucked almost to her chest, one hand resting on the base of her neck.
Holding her pendant.
That was the sense memory she’d felt.
She leapt from the bed and raced to her desk. She snatched the artifact from under the magnifier and with her other hand hurriedly pulled the loop of the pendant over her head, holding the two pieces next to each other.
That was the connection! She’d had it all the time, and never even realized.
The telephone rang, startling her. Still clutching both pieces of metal, she clumsily picked up the receiver. “Yeah! Hello?”
“Nina?” It was Kari. “Are you all right?”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine! I just woke up.” She was about to tell Kari what she had just discovered, but the Norwegian spoke first.
“I just wanted to tell you that the expert is here, so when you’re ready, could you bring the artifact?”
Nina caught a glimpse of herself in a mirror. Her hair was standing up on one side where she’d slept on it. “Uh, can you give me five minutes?”
“That was seven minutes,” whispered Chase as Nina entered the lounge.
“Oh shut up,” she whispered back, looking around the room. Kari was sitting expectantly in an armchair, Castille leaned against the door to the corridor, eating an orange, and on a couch, sipping a cup of coffee, was…
“Hello, Nina,” said Philby, standing up.
“What are you doing here, Jonathan?” Nina blurted, thinking-hoping-this was a joke. Of all the people in the world Kristian Frost could have called upon to help analyze the artifact, he had chosen Professor Jonathan Philby?
“I think that’s the reason,” said Philby, looking down at the object Nina was carrying, wrapped in its cloth. “I got a call yesterday morning from none other than Kristian Frost, who told me that you’d helped find a most remarkable item but were having difficulty translating what was written on it. He asked if I would be willing to help you out. It was rather short notice, but…” He glanced at Kari. “Your father does have a way of making offers that can’t be refused!”
“Horse’s head in your bed?” asked Chase.
Philby looked at him uncomprehendingly. “No, a rather generous donation to the university. And, well, a flight in a private jet! Not something I’ve had the plea sure of before.”
“So, Jonathan,” said Nina, looking at him askance, “since when did you become the world’s greatest expert on ancient languages?”
“Really, Nina,” said Philby, “not wanting to blow my own trumpet, but I would have hoped you’d read my recent papers for the IJA. I think it’s fair to say that I’m one of the top five authorities in the world on the subject, and certainly the top man in the West. Although I’m sure Ribbsley at Cambridge would disagree!” He chortled at his joke, stopping when he realized that the absence of undergraduates in the room meant nobody else was laughing with him. “Well then,” he continued, “shall we have a look at what you’ve found?”