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A distant sound caught Stone’s attention. He turned toward the door and frowned. Someone was unlocking a door somewhere in the temple.
“Something wrong?” Alex instinctively lowered his voice to a whisper.
“Someone’s inside the building. I heard a door and now footsteps. More than one person. Three or four would be my guess.”
“You and your supersonic hearing. I swear you have bat ears. What do you say we make like dynamite and blow this joint?”
They left the library and crept along the dark hallway. The footsteps were coming closer. Stone grimaced. The newcomers were blocking the way to the storeroom that led to the passageway. Perhaps that meant the front door was unguarded.
They hurried away in the other direction. Alex glanced back over his shoulder.
“Kane just turned the corner. He’s got a couple of brunos with him.”
Stone grabbed his friend by the arm and hauled him into the nearest room. He handed him the object they had found in the library.
“I’ll lead them away. Hide here until they’re out of sight, then make your way back to the passageway.”
“I’ll never find my way back,” Alex said.
“The front door, then. Just wait for me to cause a distraction.”
“We tried that in High School when we pulled that prank on Mr. Green. Remember what happened?”
“It’s not my fault you ducked into the ladies’ room by mistake.”
“That was a good day.” Alex smiled dreamily. Stone lightly smacked him on the side of the head. “Ouch!”
“Focus,” Stone said. “Are you ready?”
“I suppose.” Alex looked like he was going to be sick.” He took a deep breath, gave a firm nod. “Get on with it.”
Stone stepped out into the hallway. Kane and his thick-necked lackeys froze.
“Who are you?” Kane asked.
“Cleaning crew,” Stone said. “Just finished up.”
Kane wasn’t buying it. The brunos looked at him, questioning. “Bring him here,” Kane snapped. The big men made a dash for Stone.
Stone had played running back at Virginia Military Academy and hadn’t lost a step over the years. He took off at a slow run, letting his pursuers close the gap between them just enough to give them hope of catching him. He led them on a merry chase through the slippery marble-lined hallways. It wasn’t long before the men were gasping for breath. Stone picked up his pace and left them behind.
He emerged into a broad, marble-lined hallway
Someone stepped out of the shadows up ahead. From the size of him, he presumed it was another of Kane’s goons.
The man aimed a pistol at Stone.
Alex waited for the sound of running feet to subside before he left his hiding place. He turned and found himself face-to-face with John Kane. There was no time to react. Kane punched him square in the jaw.
Alex’s knees wobbled and he staggered back a few steps. Kane was on him in an instant. Alex tried to fight him, but he was a boxer, not a brawler. He quickly found himself caught in a chokehold.
“Where is it?” Kane’s breath smelled of cloves and black coffee.
“What?” Alex rasped.
“The map you stole from the museum, for starters. And whatever you took from here.”
“Don’t... know... what... you’re...” His sentence squelched to a premature end as Kane tightened his hold.
“Tell it to Sweeney,” Kane said. It was a common saying that meant, ‘tell your tale to someone dumb enough to believe you.’ “My patience is wearing thin.”
“Gave... map to... the Bureau.”
“The blonde girl who was at the museum?” Kane caught on fast. “Are you in on it together?”
“She got... caught up... in my scheme,” Alex said.
“If the Bureau has the map, I’ll know soon enough.” What did he mean by that? Bribes? Or did Kane have spies planted within the Bureau’s ranks? “Tell me what you expected to find here tonight?”
Alex tried to reply but he could not form the words. The supply of blood to his brain had been severely restricted. He would lose consciousness soon. Kane let off the pressure a little bit.
“I heard a rumor that the Illuminati have maps of Egypt in their secret library.” His voice sounded like wet sandpaper. “I hoped to match it up with the map from the museum.”
“So it is a map of Egypt!” There was a note of triumph in Kane’s voice that made Alex want to smile. Alex was getting good at inventing stories on the fly. “But you said you gave it to the Bureau.”
Alex wasn’t sure what to say. He faked a cough and grabbed his throat to buy himself time. A moment later, Kane hauled him to his feet and began patting him down like a copper making an arrest. As he searched Alex’s pockets, he continued to speak.
“You’re a fool, you know that? I happen to know for certain the Illuminati has no secret library here.” He paused when his hand found the hard lump that was the book Alex had taken from the library. “What’s this.”
“A book. It was the only thing I found that had a map of Egypt in it.” It was true. There was a rough map of Egypt at the front of the book, but it lacked detail.
Kane turned to the map and barked a scornful laugh. “This is useless.”
Alex shrugged. “I didn’t have time to really look at it.”
Kane flipped through the book, turned it over and shook it. Nothing fell out. Shaking his head, he thrust the book back into Alex’s hands and continued his search. He started out at Alex’s ankle and patted his way up his trousers.
“Buy a man a drink first, sailor,” Alex said.
“You don’t appear to be carrying anything.” Kane narrowed his eyes as if taking Alex’s measure. “But I still don’t believe you. I think I’ll have my boys rough you up a little in case there’s something you forgot to tell me. If that doesn’t work, we’ll cut off your eyelids.” It was easy to tell he wasn’t lying. The indifference to the suffering of others was apparent.
Alex was running out of time. He had swapped out his grappling hook hand for a plain one, so firing the hook at Kane was not an option. He had one play left.
“I did find a map. It’s in my shoe.”
“Take it out. Don’t make any sudden moves and I might not kill you.”
Alex knelt and started to unlace his shoe. He wore a pair of black leather Skips—hi-top sneakers with rubber soles. But there was something special hidden inside.
The gadget he carried with him was one of his simpler creations. It was a short metal tube, about the circumference of a drinking straw. It operated like a blowgun, but it was spring-powered and only good at close range. It fired a needle coated with a powerful tranquilizer. It only had one round. Alex needed to be fast.
“Shake a leg.” Kane prodded him with the tip of his Oxford.
“Just trying to work this knot free.” His fingertips closed around the dart gun. He was dizzy from fear and adrenaline. If this didn’t work, he was a dead man.
This is for all the marbles.
Alex gave the base a twist to release the safety. Before he could change his mind, he sprang to his feet and swung his hook at Kane’s head. Kane blocked the attack with disdainful ease.
“That was the stupidest thing you...” Kane began.
Alex sent a puff of air through the blowgun. Kane flinched as the tiny needle pierced his neck. He frowned and slapped at it, thinking it was an insect. The blow drove the needle all the way in. His eyes went wide.
“What did you do to me?” His words were slurred. The tranquilizer was already taking effect.
“A great deal less than you deserve.” With that, Alex gave Kane a hard shove. The dazed man wobbled and fell. “Pleasant dreams.”
Alex took off at a dead sprint. Now, all he had to do was find the front door.
Stone dodged to the left as the weapon fired. The report of the pistol reverberated through the corridor. The bullet pinged off the marble floor and ricocheted off the ceiling. Kane’s henchmen blocked both exits. Stone saw only one option, so he took it. He made a dash for a concealed door at the corner of the room. Its location was one of the few things he had been able to learn about the temple in his reading.
Gunshots boomed. Bullets sizzled through the air, bouncing this way and that. He shouldered through the door and made a dash up a narrow spiral staircase. At the top, a door opened up onto the roof. No sense getting trapped there. Stone pushed it open, then headed in the other direction.
It didn’t fool the thugs. They took one glance out the door and then they were hot on his tail again.
Through another doorway and Stone found himself standing at a glistening square of glass—the oculus that looked down onto the Temple Room.
Kane’s thugs were now hot on his heels. He made a run for the oculus, reached the edge, and jumped. The long jump had never been his strong suit, but he was an athlete, and the leap, while a long one, was not beyond his abilities.
Or so he thought.
He fell just short of his target, landing on the oculus where two glass panels met at a metal crossbeam. There was an angry shriek as the framework gave way beneath his weight. But it held enough for him to make it.
Kane’s men were not so fortunate. Fueled by rage, eyes locked on Stone, they never noticed where they were running. The sound of breaking glass filled the air. Shouts of surprise turned to screams of abject terror. The sounds died seconds later when the thugs struck the marble floor far below.
Stone skidded down the sloped roof of the top level and dropped down onto the narrow ledge that ran all the way around the temple. It was still a long way down, but he had no other choice. He turned, slipped over the ledge, and dangled there by his fingertips.
Time seemed to freeze as he hung between life and death. In the distance, the Washington Monument glistened in the moonlight. He heard a shout from below him and looked down to see Alex.
“Let go. I’ll break your fall,” Alex said.
“You’ll break your back trying to catch me.”
A shot rang out. A bullet struck the ledge an inch from his hand. One of Kane’s thugs had not fallen for Stone’s trick. Another shot, another near miss.
Stone said a prayer and released his grip. He felt like he was falling forever, and then a jolt of pain shot up his spine as he struck the ground. Groaning, he clambered to his feet.
“Let’s go.” He and Alex ducked behind the columns where they could not be seen, sprinted around the corner, and dashed across the street.
Kane’s thug fired one more shot before his cylinder was dry. He spewed invectives and described the graphic punishment he would deal out when he finally caught them.
As they ran, Alex filled him in on his encounter with Stone. By the time he had finished, they felt safe walking.
“I don’t understand,” Stone said. “Why didn’t Kane find the ushabti when he searched you?”
“Secret hiding place.” Alex grinned and removed his hook. Tucked inside was the cloth-wrapped figurine. “He never thought to look under the hook.”
“Have I told you you’re a genius?” Stone said. His friend never failed to impress with his inventiveness.
“I know.” Alex winked. “But it’s nice to hear all the same.”