CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR

October 3, 1:00 P.M.

Cusco, Peru

“SO MUCH FOR plan A,” Cash said as he gathered his team in the common room of the safe house. “Zara suspects Marjorie retrieved one of the crystals in Argentina and that we know where the last is located. She wants both relics handed over by midnight, or Olivia pays the price.”

Cash watched as Diane shot to her feet, turned her back to the group, and strode toward the window. She ran her fingers through her hair and paced, her emotions hidden from view.

“What’d you tell her?” Diane asked as she stopped and turned to face Cash.

“I’d see her at midnight.”

“In case you forgot, we don’t have the last crystal, nor are we sure where to find the cursed thing.”

“Then we better figure it out quickly. Marjorie?”

Marjorie shrunk down in her chair as all eyes focused on her, issuing a silent plea for her to work some kind of relic-discovery magic. She had been certain the final head was in Cusco, but now, with so much on the line and everyone counting on her, her confidence waned. When she studied Cash, rage emanated from him, but the intensity of Diane’s fear radiated even stronger vibes. Being an only child, she didn’t understand the sibling bond, a somewhat envying connection, but refused to let that link be broken. Marjorie buried her doubtsthey needed something to grasp onto. They couldn’t lose hope, because at the moment, that was about all they had.

“Well, so far the relics located in their original hiding places were discovered in underground manmade chambers, like in Bimini and Arizona. The ones which were re-hidden in relatively modern times, such as the one I found and the Asháninka relic, were stashed in dark places for obvious reasons. So I suggest we split up into two teams to cover more ground and start below the Church of Santo Domingo in the old foundation of the Temple of the Sun. Since we’ve uncovered no mention in any historical records referencing an artifact, I’m guessing the Spaniards did not find the object when they constructed the church over the original ancient Incan Temple.”

“It’s a place to start. Pete and Diane work together, and Marjorie will partner with me,” Cash stated. “Stay alert, since I doubt Zara plans to sit around the pool sipping margaritas at the hotel until our scheduled meeting. She and her people will try to track us and snatch the crystal the moment we locate it, assuming we’re successful. She wants to kill me, probably all of us for that matter, and she won’t want to do the deed in a public tavern.”

“Got any ammunition for this?” Marjorie asked as she pulled her 9mm out from underneath her sweatshirt. “There are only two rounds left.”

The responsible “by the book” thing to do as a federal officer would be to take the gun from the civilian and put her on the next plane to London, but instead, Cash rummaged through his duffle until he found a full box of ammunition and tossed the bullets to her. According to the report on Ahmed, Cash concluded that Marjorie needed no additional instruction on the weapon’s features.

Within ten minutes, they left the safe house and worked their way toward the church along a circuitous route to shake anyone who picked up their trail. Marjorie left off her disguise, though her black-dyed hair blended in a bit better than Pete and Cash. The men’s height made it impossible to look local, so they played up the tourist routine.

Large chaotic groups of visitors entered the Church of Santo Domingo, making it easy for the team to get inside without drawing attention. Cash scanned the crowds for Zara, Heinrich, and Marabout. He spotted none of the three and speculated on how many others were working with Zara whom he wouldn’t recognize. He also couldn’t help wondering whether or not the eleven relics already in her possession were in Peru. Retrieving the stolen goods was paramount, but at the moment, his focus remained solely on getting Olivia back, even if that meant handing over the last two heads to Zara.

As quickly as possible they located a door leading below ground. They picked the simple lock intended to keep tourists from exploring the lower level and descended into the immense underbelly of the structure.

Starting in opposite corners of the foundation, they established a grid and began the search. For hours they scoured the dank, dark chambers, yet came up with nothing. The church was now closed to visitors for the day, and no other people roamed the massive building, as far as Cash could tell, but with the thick stones deadening all sounds from above it was impossible to be certain.

“Any luck?” Pete asked as he and Diane approached Cash and Marjorie.

“None. The most logical assumption is the artifact must be in the original temple, and this foundation is all that remains, so there aren’t that many places to look. If the relic isn’t here, I’m afraid I haven’t a clue where to search next,” Marjorie responded, glancing at Diane with sympathy.

“We’ve only got about five hours before I meet up with Zara. We don’t have time to start over. Think, Marjorie. You make a living hunting for antiquities lost for hundreds and thousands of years that no one else has been able to find. You’re our only shot.”

Marjorie hated the pressure. Usually funding dictated the pace of a dig, not the need to save a life. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. “The only other possibility I can come up with is a possible hidden chamber or compartment beneath the foundation. Look for a loose block.”

“Split up and stomp on, kick, and push on each stone in the floor and footers,” Cash ordered as he walked to the far corner and began testing each block.

Another two hours passed, and they still hadn’t touched every stone in the massive foundation. Cash recognized their time was nearly gone. He glanced around for Diane and noticed her crouched down, slamming her fist into each footer block. Cash flinched at the thud of her fist making contact. The punches landing on the stone had to hurt her knuckles, and he suspected she was trying to punish herself for putting Olivia in such a dangerous position. Lord knew that’s what he wanted to do to himself, but he also needed to keep a clear head if he had any hope of seeing her again.

“Hey, you probably don’t need to apply so much pressure,” Cash said as he walked up behind her.

“I can’t afford to overlook anything. There’s no time to go back over every block a second time,” she replied as she balled-up a fist and slammed it into another.

Cash grabbed her wrists and pulled her to her feet. He examined her knuckles, raw and bleeding. He wiped the blood off with his handkerchief and dropped her hands.

“Take the floor and save those fists for Zara’s face. I’ll finish up the footer.”

Diane nodded and started stomping on the flat stones, while Cash kicked the footers with the toe of his boot. He wished he had a better plan, because this route seemed hopeless.

“Over here,” Marjorie called.

“Did you find it?” Cash asked.

“I’m not sure yet. Help me move these loose blocks.”

Cash knelt down and examined the four stones Marjorie had identified. Each measured about twelve inches by twenty-four inches, and the small gap between them had filled with fine dust over the decades.

“Give me some light.” Marjorie pushed her shawl aside and removed a long machete tied to her waist. She wedged the blade in between two of the stones and wiggled the handle back and forth, oblivious to the stares as she began to widen the gap. “What?” she asked, finally noticing all eyes focused on the machete clutched in her hand.

“You continue to surprise me,” Cash stated, shaking his head in disbelief.

“Most of the locals carry some sort of large knife for cutting firewood, grass, garden weeds, you name it. Just trying to keep my disguise accurate,” she replied with a smile.

As Marjorie eased one of the blocks up, Cash and Pete were able to get a good enough grip to lift it out. The stone was only about four inches thick, and once removed, the other three came up easily.

Cash pierced the blackness of the hole with his light and removed the supports keeping the blocks in place.

“Steep narrow steps lead down into the darkness.” He wedged his body into the small opening, his head soon disappearing from sight.

Marjorie scrambled in behind him, anxious to explore where the tunnel led. “By the appearance of the stones the cavern hasn’t been accessed in hundreds of years, and the entrance is so well camouflaged. I’m not surprised no one else has made the discovery.”

“Well?” Diane asked, while looking at Pete.

“I’m even less thrilled about tight dark places than I used to be after my harrowing experience in Bimini, but Marjorie is carrying a knife nearly the length of a baseball bat, and Cash is a good shot and is carrying most of the extra ammo, so I guess I’d rather stick with them than stay here alone.”

Diane nodded agreement and slipped into the hole. Marjorie’s light was fading by the time she slithered into place. The narrow steps looked more like toe holds than stairs and there was nothing to hold onto. Diane braced her palms on both sides of the shaft and inched her way toward the fading light, hoping the uncoordinated scientist above wouldn’t come crashing down on her head.