Sam pushed the recalcitrant trolley loaded with their bags towards the Arrivals exit doors. She had always wondered what this moment of coming home from an overseas trip would feel like. She'd been on the other side often enough, waiting for her friends in a sea of strangers waiting for their friends or families. She kicked the trolley wheel again, thinking it was a pity that not a soul knew they were coming; there'd be no one jumping up and down outside to greet them.
"This airport has changed since I was last here," Pavel commented, as he helped Sam by kicking the wheel on the other side.
"When were you last here?"
"Maybe 20 years ago," he replied.
Sam laughed. "If you think the airport has changed, just wait till you see the city," she said.
The doors opened and the sea of strangers, plus one familiar face, all leant forward to see if they should get excited yet.
"Rivers? What are you doing here?" Sam asked, as he ducked under the barrier and followed them out.
"Maggie called me from the plane," he said. "Hi Maggie," he added with a grin.
"I'm so pleased you could make it," Maggie smiled. "Herc, this is my dear friend Pavel Mercier, Pavel this is my new dear friend Hercules Rivers."
Sam lost control of the trolley as Pavel and Rivers shook hands, as men absolutely have to do right then and there on the spot, across her and the luggage. "Can we do the male bonding thing outside, please?" she asked, picking up the bag that had fallen off.
"Pavel Mercier?" Rivers said, once they got out into the carpark and he had stopped grinning like an idiot at Maggie. "But I thought you were…"
"Dead? Not any more my boy," Pavel said. "I got bored, so I decided to visit a few friends."
"It's a long story," Sam said. "What's been happening here?"
"Not a lot actually," Rivers said, opening the back of his hatchback car and packing the bags in.
"Prescott has been in a completely deranged state ever since you left. Rigby put me in charge, thank you very much, of keeping the assistant director informed so that he wouldn't go off the rails and call an international press conference to deny his own rumours of a sabotage plot." Rivers held the front passenger door open for Maggie, and let Sam and Pavel fend for themselves in the back.
"Rigby in the meantime," he continued, "is gathering his evidence against Haddon Gould, who is still his number one suspect, and Peter Gilchrist who is running a close second. Although the fact the Andrew Barstoc disappeared for three days, and Enrico Vasquez just up and left the country threw a serious spanner in his works. He now thinks you might be right about one or both of them being up to something, but he's pressing on with Gould and Gilchrist anyway.
"That's all I know really," he said, pulling out of the parking spot and heading for the exit. "I've actually been on sick leave for two days," he added, lifting his fringe to show Maggie the wound on his head.
"Good heavens, what happened?" she asked.
"I had an altercation with a drunk who used my head to see how strong his pool cue was. My head was stronger," Rivers laughed, "but it bled a lot more than his broken stick."
"If you're not on duty Rivers, perhaps you could drop me off at Jack's office," Sam suggested, "and then take Maggie and Pavel, oh and my stuff I suppose, to their hotel."
"Well, well, well, if it isn't the world traveller home again, home again," Jack boomed as Sam approached his office 40 minutes later. "So how was Egypt?"
"Egypt was just fine, Jack," Sam said dropping into the chair opposite his. "Peru was pretty good too," she added.
"Peru," Jack repeated. "I see. No I don't. Let me guess, you found another cryptic note."
"Not so cryptic," Sam said. She pulled out the photo of Manco City 1962 and placed it on the desk. "We found out why Professor Marsden was murdered, and why nearly everyone else in that photograph has also met an unpleasant end in the last two years."
Rigby stared at the photo then eyed Sam warily. "I suppose you're going to tell me a story that involves a mysterious relic and probably a curse of some kind," he said.
Sam raised her eyebrows in surprise.
"Oh god, you are aren't you?" Rigby said.
"What on earth made you say that?" Sam asked.
"This photo. It looks like a still from an Indiana Jones movie."
"Well, it's funny you should say that Jack, because…"
"Before you go telling me any bizarre fairytales, Sam, there's something you should know."
"What?"
"I've arrested someone for the murder of Professor Marsden."
"Who?"
"Haddon Gould. He confessed this morning. We've got him locked up downstairs." Rigby leant back in his chair and smiled at Sam. "Reality is such a bitch, isn't it?"