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Tupac was tired. His feet were hot and sore. The damned mosquitoes wouldn't leave him alone. The men were jumpy and sullen after the deaths of Pablo and one of their friends. Then they had almost mutinied when they came across the skulls mounted on poles.
It didn't take a genius to understand the message. Turn back, or your skull will join the others. The men were loyal, but they were peasants, uneducated, superstitious. Tupac persuaded them to continue by promising them more of the gold that was waiting in the jungle ahead of them.
It had always been like this, with soldiers and gold. The Romans had understood that basic truth. They had conquered an empire with their legions, and kept them loyal by letting them loot to their heart's desire. If the gold existed, there was more than enough to reward his men and finance the revolution.
Eduardo walked next to him.
"Damn this place," Eduardo said. "If there's hell on earth, this is it."
"It's worth it, if we find the gold," Tupac said.
"If it's there."
"It's there. I can feel it. We're getting close."
Eduardo stopped suddenly.
"Listen," he said. "A helicopter."
Tupac held up his hand. The column halted.
"Out here? It has to be military."
Somewhere ahead, the harsh sound of a heavy machine gun cut through the humid air.
"Dios," one of the men said.
"What are they shooting at?" Eduardo asked.
"How would I know?" Tupac said. "Spread out. Move forward, but keep under the canopy."
Tupac's tiredness vanished as adrenaline kicked in. They moved silently along the trail of Livingston's party. It wasn't long before they saw the pyramid rising out of the endless tangle of green hell surrounding them.
"That has to be it," Eduardo said. "I didn't think it was real. Not until now."
Tupac signaled a halt.
"Eduardo, you come with me. The rest of you, wait here. Aldo, you're in charge."
"Si, Comandante."
Crouched low, Tupac and Eduardo made their way to the edge of the Plaza. Eduardo looked at the markings on the helicopter.
"DIRCOTE," he said. "It's that bastard Alvarez."
"They were killing Indians," Tupac said. "That was the shooting we heard. There must be thirty or forty of them lying there."
One of Alvarez's men walked among the bodies, executing anyone still breathing.
Tupac looked at the pyramid. Nick and the others were coming down the steps.
"There are the Americans. But where is the Englishman?"
Tupac and Eduardo watched the exchange between Nick and Alvarez. One of the women cried out in pain and kicked at something on the ground. Then Alvarez disarmed them and tied their hands behind their backs.
"Why treat them as enemies?" Eduardo asked.
"Perhaps the Americans found the gold. If they did, Alvarez will not want to share it."
A few moments later, Alvarez started up the steps of the pyramid. He left two of his men behind to guard the prisoners.
"What do you want to do? Eduardo said.
"Keep watching. We'll know soon if there's any gold in there."
An hour later, Alvarez's men started coming back down. Each man carried something made of gold and took it to the helicopter.
"I've seen enough," Tupac said.
They made their way back to where Tupac's men waited.
"The gold is there," he said.
His words produced broad smiles. The smiles disappeared with his next words.
"There's a problem. That prick Alvarez is here, with a dozen soldiers. He killed a bunch of natives with his machine guns. That was the firing we heard. He has made prisoners of the Americans we've been following."
"Why would he do that?" Aldo said.
"Because of the gold," Eduardo said. "Alvarez wants it all."
"If he takes it, there won't be any for us."
"Yes," Tupac said. "We're going to stop him."
Perhaps because he was tired, or perhaps because he was thinking about Alvarez and how to attack him, Tupac didn't see the figures hiding in the jungle. Even if he'd been fresh and alert, it might not have made any difference. The People had long ago mastered the art of concealment. If Tupac had been looking straight at them, he would not have seen anything unusual.
Many had been lost when the strange bird came from the sky, spitting death and flame, but many more remained. After they fled from the pyramid, the warriors regrouped. That was when they learned another group of strangers had come. Angry, their bloodlust aroused, there was never a doubt about what they had to do.
The first sign of the ambush was a feathered arrow that pierced Eduardo's throat. He choked as blood poured from his mouth, then fell forward into the dirt.
The air filled with spears and arrows. Tupac felt a sudden, awful pain in his gut. He looked down at an arrow sticking out of his body. Then came a terrible feeling of something tearing inside him. He fell to one knee. He looked up to see a painted man running at him, a heavy war club raised over his head. Tupac tried to bring up his rifle, but the gun was impossibly heavy.
No, he thought. Not like this.
Then the club came down.