CHAPTER SEVEN

September 24, 7:00 P.M.

Sedona, Arizona

CASH WAS SURPRISED by the modern three-bedroom house Olivia Begay called home and taken aback by the stunning woman who opened the door and invited them inside. By the way Diane had portrayed her sister, he had half expected Olivia to be dressed in a feather headdress and a 1960’s tie-died halter top, wearing moccasins, and living in a cave dwelling overlooking the Arizona desert.

“I’ve been expecting you. You must be Cash,” Olivia said as she extended a slender hand in his direction. “My sister’s description didn’t do you justice.”

“Nor you,” he replied as he grasped her warm hand and admired all the rings on her delicate fingers. “I pictured more of a Jerry Garcia meets Pocahontas look.”

The shove in his back from Diane drew Cash’s gaze away from Olivia and reminded him of his colleagues standing behind him. He flinched as Diane slugged his arm, pushed by him, and made herself comfortable in her sister’s home.

“Let’s get after it,” Diane ordered.

“Would anyone like something to eat or drink before we begin?” Olivia asked.

“We ate on the plane. We’ve got work to do. Most of the world doesn’t have time to sit around sipping tea and meditating. We need to learn everything you know about the legends surrounding the crystal heads or skulls, or whatever you people call them.”

Cash flinched, expecting a sisterly cat-fight to erupt, but rather than being pulled in by Diane’s condescending words, Olivia smiled as she ushered the rest of the group into the living room and motioned for everyone to sit.

“The relics of legend have many names, depending on who’s telling the story. More modern versions, including the Navajo version, refer to them as skulls. I tend to think of them as heads, since a true skull is hollow, and to my knowledge, these objects are solid crystal. Also, the term skull indicates something once-living, and even though some of the relics resemble humans, most have a much more mythical quality about them and are quite fanciful,” Olivia replied.

Diane rolled her eyes and grunted.

Cash couldn’t suppress his laughter. “I thought you reserved all your charm for me, but apparently you have plenty to go around.”

Diane shot him a cold glare and returned her attention to her sister. The gracious smile Olivia offered so freely, and all her effortless hospitality, grated her nerves. She always resented that her sister was taller, slimmer, and had glorious almond-shaped eyes. Diane took after their fathersturdy, dependable, and bordering on plain looking. Olivia was their mother’s daughterfrom her beauty and grace right down to an enviable carefree spirit. And no matter how hard she tried to dislike all of Olivia’s traits, she loved her. What infuriated Diane was the certainty that Olivia was aware of how much she cared.

“Are you sure I can’t get anyone anything?” Olivia asked, bringing Diane’s focus back to the present.

“I bet we’d all appreciate something to drink. It was a long flight, and I imagine you have a lengthy tale to share with us,” Cash replied as he followed Olivia into the kitchen.

Cash watched as Olivia stretched to reach glasses on the top shelf of the cupboard. He thought about lending his 6’2” height to the task, but he couldn’t pull his eyes away from the shimmering dark hair hanging straight down her slim back to her waist, or all the rest of her perfectly proportioned attributes framed in front of him.

“Well, Diane was accurate about one of your habits at least,” Olivia said as she turned to face him with a knowing smile.

“Sorry, couldn’t help but admire the view, and I’m still having a hard time believing you two are sisters.”

“We’re more alike than most people realize. We both study history, her in college, me at the tribal level. We inherited Mother’s creative imagination and free spirit. Diane hides hers behind books and law, whereas I express mine openly. She likes to think I’m soft and not ambitious by the lifestyle I’ve chosen. I just approach problems from a different perspective and seek answers in less obvious places. Papa always used to say when we learned to complement rather than oppose each other we would be a force to reckon with. I guess that hasn’t happened yet, but I have faith it will soon.”

Cash mulled over Olivia’s assessment of Diane as he followed her back into the living room carrying a tray full of glasses. He failed to see how the two women were anything alike. Diane was moody and explosive and constantly tormenting him in a kid-brother kind of way, whereas he doubted anything could ruffle cool, collected Olivia’s feathers, though he couldn’t help fantasizing about ways to try.

“Grab a drink, get comfortable, and let’s give Olivia our undivided attention,” Cash stated as he set the tray on the coffee table. “I’m curious to find out what’s so special about these supposed artifacts and where we might find the rest.”

Diane picked up a glass of tea and dropped into a turquoise-colored beanbag resting on the floor. Cash smiled at her and she rolled her eyes in return. If so much devastation hadn’t already occurred over a bunch of crystals, he would be enjoying the comical interaction of his newest partner with her intriguing sister. As is, they needed to focus on business and track down some dangerous people before any more innocent civilians died. He squeezed in between Pete and Marjorie on the sofa and focused on Olivia’s soothing voice.

“First, consider the separate parts. Many cultures, especially the ancient ones, found the representation of the skull to be a very powerful symbol, regardless of the type of material the object was constructed from. Actual human skulls were especially revered. Think of the carvings on countless Mayan temples, depictions on pirate flags, and the various cultures that shrunk heads as a symbol of strength and success. Add the symbolism associated with skulls to a myriad of beliefs about the powers and unique properties of quartz crystal, and you have the stuff of enduring legends.”

“What do you mean by powers and properties?” Cash asked.

“I’ll leave the scientific principles to your more qualified staff and stick to lore. For starters, some allege that communication between the human mind and natural quartz crystal is possible through the dissemination of electro-magnetic signals over an unheard wavelength. More popular beliefs claim crystals possess curative and magical powers and have divine origins. The material, regardless of form, has played prominent roles in religious, mystical, and healing rituals. I’ve seen crystal referred to as wild stone, firestone, healing stone, and holy ice, but my favorite is tears of the gods. When the gods looked down and saw the turmoil on earth, it saddened them and they cried. As their tears fell to earth, they transformed into quartz crystal. No matter the name, all relay the mystery and veneration tied to the mineral. I could go on for days about all the theories surrounding crystal, but I understand you are primarily interested in the legendary thirteen, so I’ll focus on those.”

The group hardly moved, listening to stories about lost continents, talking skulls, alien contact, complex ancient portrait glyphs representing numbers and Mayan gods, sunken continents, and cultural dispersion. For nearly three hours, no one interrupted as Olivia related the Navajo version of the magnificent legend and touched on the variations handed down by other cultures.

Normally Cash would have scoffed at such a tale, but the way in which Olivia presented the story made it seem like historical fact, rather than myth. By the time she finished, his mind was spinning. He stood and walked to the window, arching his back to stretch the muscles, which had been idle for too long between the flight and sitting on Olivia’s sofa.

Night had fallen and the stars drew his eyes, making him speculate, for the first time in his life, if the human race living on Earth was truly alone. He turned and met Olivia’s gaze. She was watching him and he couldn’t help but wonder what she was thinking. Cash smiled and she quickly averted her eyes.

“Sweet, sweet Olivia, that’s one story my mates will never believe. You’ll back me up on this one when we get home, won’t you, Marjorie?” Ian asked as he winked at his fellow countrywoman.

Ian’s term of endearment for Olivia annoyed Cash, and he wasn’t sure why. He had no doubt Ian was friendly with everyone, so he pushed the thought of slugging Ian out of his mind and returned his attention to the present.

He couldn’t believe he had never even heard of crystal skulls before, since their existence and accompanying legends were widely known among many cultures, including the Navajo, Pueblo, Mayan and Aztec ancestors, and apparently a cult-following of Internet junkies, and a group of ruthless individuals.

“With the heads being such common knowledge among so many groups, why isn’t their origin more understood?” Pete asked, echoing Cash’s thoughts. “And how did a Mayan artifact find its way to Egypt?”

“Well, some believe the Mayan people originally possessed all the crystals and brought the magnificent relics to Mexico and Central America from a lost continent after it disappeared into the sea. The artifacts were then dispersed throughout the world in order to keep the sacred knowledge safe and the power from being abused,” Olivia answered.

“If you’re talking about Atlantis, I thought it was located in the Mediterranean, off the coast of Santorini, so why travel clear to the Americas?” Pete added.

“That’s the predominant belief, but some evidence supports a Caribbean theory. If you slide the African continent over, the shape almost fits like a jigsaw puzzle piece with Central and South America, supporting the tectonic plate migration model, except for missing fragments in the Gulf of Mexico and the eastern Caribbean. It’s speculated that dozens of islands dotting the area are remnants of the much larger continent of Atlantis. In Plato’s writings, an inconsistency exists between the time when Atlantis reportedly sunk and the violent volcanic eruption on Santorini—which was thought to be the cause—thus in some minds ruling out the Mediterranean theory.”

“Don’t most scholars think the inconsistent dates are just an error in Plato’s text?” Pete asked.

“That’s one possibility, but the Caribbean enthusiasts cite a host of other facts and perhaps fantasies. Marlin growing to record size, aircraft mysteriously crashing, and ships sinking under suspicious circumstances, making some believe there is a powerful force under the sea in the Atlantic near the Bahamas and, of course, we’ve all heard about the Bermuda Triangle. The fabled fountain of youth is rumored to exist in the shallow pools of South Bimini in the Bahamas. There is archeological evidence offshore of Paradise Point on North Bimini, which excites speculators. A half-mile of precisely aligned sixteen-foot square limestone blocks, called the ‘Bimini Road’ rests on the sea floor. Some are convinced the stones were placed by humans as a seawall and are proof of a sunken ancient civilization. Some even believe one of the crystals is still hidden within the rubble.”

Cash studied Olivia as she spoke. Her tone remained steady and her expression neutral, concealing her biases. She seemed to be reporting and nothing more, but he had no doubt she held strong opinions on the subject.

“I imagine there have been numerous dives in the area, so surely, if a priceless artifact ever existed down there it would have been found,” Cash stated as he walked back toward the group.

“Many have investigated the area and, in particular, the Bimini Road, not to look for the mythical artifacts, but to find proof Atlantis was in the Caribbean, not in the Mediterranean. Those seeking the relics wouldn’t have known where to search, and anyone who might have an idea where to look would never disturb the object’s resting place. Our ancestors took great care to hide the crystals so their collective power could not be abused.”

“The relics are now being brought back together by some ruthless group,” Marjorie mused. “I can only imagine the abuse they dream of. This can’t be for money.”

“No,” Olivia replied, her voice barely above a whisper. “It’s always been about power and knowledge, and often they are one in the same.”

“Well, unless these maniacs can be stopped, the world will soon find out how much truth the legend holds,” Cash said as he surveyed the group assembled in Olivia’s living room.

As Cash continued to mull over everything he had just learned, he was no longer certain what he believed. All he knew for sure was that he and his team had to find a way to locate the culprits behind the thefts and put an end to the madness before anyone else died.