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by Ruth Hartzler

  “You can date it by looking at it?” Riley said.

  “It’s chapters and verses from the Book of Revelation’,” Abigail told him. “The Book of Revelation from the Bible was written around 96 AD, seven hundred years after Croesus.”

  “So it seems to me we’re presented with a choice. One tunnel is booby-trapped and the other one isn’t.”

  Abigail clutched her stomach in fear. “Or maybe they’re both booby-trapped.”

  “Okay. So it seems the inscriptions were written at the end of the first century A.D. or later. Clearly, the treasure hasn’t been stolen, so I’d hazard a guess that the tunnels were built by someone protecting the treasure and leaving instructions as to the safe way out.”

  “Maybe.” Abigail’s head was spinning. She wasn’t sure that Riley was making any sense until the realization struck her. “Of course! Eymen’s interest in the Book of Revelation and all the clues from the Book of Revelation! These inscriptions must have been left by Eymen Bulut’s ancestors, the group protecting the copper scroll.”

  “Actually, I think you’re right. What do the inscriptions say?”

  “The inscription on the right says, ‘Revelation Chapter 2 Verse 13’, and the inscription on the left says, ‘Revelation Chapter 2 Verse 14’.”

  “That’s it?” Riley said, unable to keep the concern out of his voice. “We don’t have a Bible on us. How do we know what the verses mean? I presume they offer clues as to what we’ll meet inside the tunnels.”

  “I was raised Brethren,” Abigail told him. “My parents were very strict and I had to memorize large portions of the Bible. I can’t remember these verses word for word, but I am fairly sure that Verse 14 complains that some people follow the teaching of Balaam. That represents the tunnel on the right.”

  “And what about the tunnel on the left?” Riley asked her. “Verse 13?”

  “That one says,

  ‘I know where you dwell, where Satan’s throne is. Yet you hold fast to my name, and you did not deny my faith.’”

  “Pergamon,” Riley said without missing a beat.

  “Yes, and that’s written over the tunnel to the left.”

  “All right, so Revelation was speaking in a favorable manner about the people in verse 13, which is the tunnel on the left, and in an unfavorable manner about the people in verse 14, and that represents the tunnel on the right.”

  Abigail agreed, thinking it through as she spoke. “Yes. I think we’re right about the clues. We have a choice of two tunnels, so we are making an educated guess that one is booby-trapped and the other one isn’t. Verse 13 speaks about people favorably, whereas the other verse doesn’t. On those grounds, I think we should take the tunnel on the left.”

  “We will still proceed carefully, just in case,” Riley said.

  Abigail was about to agree when the bright white light of a chem light burst behind them. Riley acted quickly, pulling Abigail into the darkness of the tunnel.

  Abigail’s heart was in her mouth. She knew they had no choice but to edge forward quickly without knowing what could be in front of them.

  Just ahead of them, the tunnel took a right-angled turn to the left. Riley rounded the turn and then pulled Abigail around after him, holding her close to him.

  They were so close she could feel his heart beating and his breath in her hair. She was trembling and he tightened his arms around her.

  The man following her must be the man Riley had knocked unconscious, the man who had fallen next to her. Or maybe it was another man entirely. For all she knew, it was a whole army of men.

  Over the sound of her beating heart, she could hear boots crunching. It did sound like only one man. Maybe if he took this tunnel, Riley would have the element of surprise. She jumped as a chem light flew into the tunnel, illuminating everything.

  Abigail couldn’t hear the man enter and she wondered if he had walked into the other tunnel.

  All of a sudden, a scream rent the air.

  “He’s taken the other tunnel,” Riley whispered in her ear. “Stay here. I’ll be right back.”

  Abigail didn’t want Riley to let her go. She felt safe in his arms despite being in such a predicament.

  He detached from her and moved silently away. It was only after he had gone that Abigail wished she had told him to be careful in the tunnel.

  Presently, he returned. “I didn’t venture far inside the tunnel, but there was no sign of him.”

  “I’m glad you didn’t go in,” Abigail said. “There might have been a floor trap onto spikes or something.”

  “At least you know you chose the right tunnel,” Riley said brightly.

  Abigail forced a smile. “Let’s hope both tunnels are not booby-trapped. I don’t think they are, though,” she added.

  Riley tapped her elbow and urged her forward. “I think it’s safe to use our flashlights, if not chem lights, at this point.”

  They crept along the tunnel shining their flashlights over the rocks and the rubble on the ground.

  Abigail was terrified that boiling oil would suddenly pour on their heads, even though she knew it wasn’t a logical fear. She realized most fears weren’t logical, but the notion afforded her no comfort.

  For a few steps, Abigail thought they were climbing, and hoped they would come out onto the surface any minute. She was dismayed when their tunnel ended and their flashlights shone over the entrance to another two tunnels. Each had a verse from Revelation over it.

  “The inscription over the tunnel on the left says ‘Revelation Chapter 2 Verse 17’ and over the tunnel on the right it says, ‘Revelation Chapter 2 Verse 16’.”

  “What do they mean?” Riley said.

  Abigail’s mouth ran dry. “Um, I don’t know,” she stammered. “My mind has gone blank.”

  “That’s understandable under the circumstances,” Riley said. “Don’t worry, it will come back to you. This is all a terrible shock.”

  Abigail nodded. She ran through the seven churches of Revelation in her mind. First the church of Ephesus, then Smyrna. Finally, she said aloud, “I’ve got it! Verse 16 is about the church of Pergamon. It says,

  ‘So repent. If you do not, I will come to you soon and war against them with the sword of my mouth.’”

  “So that’s the tunnel to avoid,” Riley said. “The tunnel to the right again. I assume Verse 17 is favorable?”

  Abigail nodded and quoted the verse.

  “To the one who conquers I will give some of the hidden manna, and a white stone, with a new name written on the stone that nobody knows except the one who receives it.”

  “I don’t pretend to understand that,” Riley admitted, “except for the fact that it definitely seems favorable.”

  Abigail let out a long sigh of relief. “Thank goodness I remembered the verse. Yes, it looks like we go into the left tunnel again.”

  They stepped into the left tunnel, shining their flashlights over the tunnel walls and the ground. Immediately, something whizzed over Abigail’s head.

  “Bats again!” Riley said. “Are you all right?”

  “Yes, fine.” Abigail fervently wished for a breath of fresh air. “The bats smell pungent, and the tunnel air is no better.”

  “Bats are great news, though,” Riley said. “Bats live at the entrance to caves. This surely means we’re close to the exit.”

  The thought that she might be getting out of that place soon filled her with renewed hope. Maybe she would survive this after all. If only the tunnels remained wide enough for her to stand upright.

  As they progressed further along the tunnel, there was an increasing amount of rubble on the ground. Abigail didn’t know whether it was the result of earthquakes or simply the ravages of time. Riley helped her over the worst of the rubble. She went carefully, not wanting to twist an ankle.

  “We’re going up, although slowly,” Riley said.

  That’s what Abigail had hoped. “Do you have any idea how far it would be to the surface?”

&nb
sp; “Not a clue, but the bats give me hope.”

  “I hope there are no more tunnel choices,” Abigail said, just as they rounded the corner and were met with two more tunnel entrances. She groaned aloud.

  The inscription over the tunnel to the left said, ‘Revelation 2:19’ and the inscription over the tunnel to the left said, ‘Revelation 2:20.’

  Abigail rubbed her brow furiously. “Verse 20 is about Jezebel, I’m certain of it, but I can’t quite remember what Verse 19 says.”

  Riley hurried to reassure her. “That’s okay. We know the left tunnel is the tunnel we shouldn’t go in, so this time we take the tunnel to the right.”

  “I’d better make sure,” Abigail said. She shut her eyes tightly and then said. “Oh yes, I remember now. Verse 19 states,

  ‘I know your actions, your love, faith, service, and patient endurance, and that your latter actions are better than your former actions.’”

  “Definitely favorable! The tunnel to the right it is.”

  Once more, they proceeded carefully along the tunnel. Abigail hoped they wouldn’t come across any more tunnels. She was also afraid the tunnels would circle and take them back to the Temple of Artemis. Still, no Vortex agents had appeared behind them, not since the man who had gone into the wrong tunnel.

  As they continued, to Abigail’s dismay, the tunnel became a little smaller, forcing Riley to stoop although Abigail could still stand upright.

  “I can see light at the end of the tunnel,” Riley said with a laugh.

  “Are you sure?”

  Abigail’s eyes took a moment to adjust and then she said, “Yes, it does look a bit lighter there.”

  “Turn off your flashlight.”

  Abigail did as he said, and to her delight, he was right. There was a faint glow ahead. Abigail was so relieved, she was afraid she would burst into tears.

  Her relief vanished in an instant when they moved toward the light and found themselves in a round pit. It had been made by human hands; Abigail estimated many centuries earlier.

  A narrow hole was above their heads through which Abigail could see a narrow strip of blue sky.

  Riley touched the walls. “It’s like some kind of a well.”

  Abigail was aghast. “We’ll never be able to climb up these walls!”

  “We won’t need to,” Riley said. “There’s a rope.”

  Abigail hadn’t noticed the rope due to the vegetation and tree roots growing in the cracks between the stones.

  Riley turned over the end of the rope in his hands. It was awfully thick.

  Abigail looked at it askance. “I wonder how old it is. It doesn’t look too good.”

  Riley pulled hard on it a couple times. “It looks secure enough,” he said. “You go up first, and I’ll catch you if you fall. Do you think you can make it?”

  “I’m sure I can,” Abigail said. They were deadly booby-traps and just as deadly Vortex agents behind her. Ahead was the surface. Abigail was going to make it up that rope one way or another. She only hoped the rope had been put there sometime after the first century B.C.

  Abigail had thought it wasn’t too far to the surface, but climbing up the rope, it felt ten times longer than she had estimated. Dirt and debris fell on her as she climbed. Her hands and shoulders ached and her legs felt like jelly. Finally, she managed to pull herself through the narrow opening at the top. There was a small tree nearby, the one, no doubt, whose roots were protruding through the pit walls. She grabbed it and hauled herself over to it, and then lay on her stomach, panting.

  The bright sunlight forced Abigail to blink rapidly several times in succession. She gulped the fresh air. Abigail never wanted to see the inside of a cave again as long as she lived.

  She looked around. It looked like any other bright sunny day on a pleasant Lydian hillside.

  “Appearances can be deceptive,” Abigail muttered to herself. She called down to Riley, “It looks perfectly safe. You can come up.”

  It was an anxious wait for Abigail. What if the rope wouldn’t hold Riley’s weight? At least she knew where he was and could fetch a rope from somewhere, but what if Vortex agents beat her to him?

  To her relief, Riley climbed the rope quickly. He then pulled the rope from the pit. “That will stop anyone else coming up,” he said with satisfaction. He looked around. “I wonder where the car is in relation to our present location?”

  “The car? Wouldn’t Vortex have slashed the tires or something like that?”

  Riley shook his head. “No, because they’d leave it for Thatcher.”

  Abigail tapped herself on the side of the head. “Of course!”

  “We will have to go carefully. There could be more Vortex agents about,” Riley said, looking at his watch.

  It took Abigail a moment or two to realize his watch was also a compass.

  Abigail followed Riley to the top of a sheer rock face. She wished she could feel relieved, but wasn’t going to allow herself the feeling until she was safely in a hotel room, or maybe even back home. All her life she had wanted adventure, but now was thinking that maybe adventure was overrated.

  Riley pointed to the dirt road just below them. Abigail couldn’t see the car from her position, but she had a good idea where it was. Now, if only she could manage to avoid being shot.

  They turned around.

  Abigail gasped at the sight before her. It couldn’t be true!

  28

  SARDIS: ANCIENT SITE

  A man was standing there, silhouetted by the brilliant white glare of the sun.

  As Abigail’s eyes adjusted, she saw the man was Berat. He was holding a gun.

  Riley pushed Abigail behind him.

  “Isn’t this a stroke of luck!” Berat said. “Imagine finding you two here. Where are your two friends?”

  Riley held up both hands, palms outward. “They’re both dead. Look, we’re on the same side here. There are agents from the covert organization I told you about in the Temple to Artemis right now. They followed us inside. My agency is trying to cover up the existence of the treasure.”

  Berat uttered a harsh laugh. “Do I look like I was born yesterday? I’m not stupid. Your government wants to get their hands on the treasure.”

  Riley hurried to assure him otherwise. “I work for an international organization that wants to stop valuable relics falling into the wrong hands.”

  Abigail peeked out from behind Riley. Berat looked hesitant. Did he possibly believe them?

  Berat gestured into the pit. “Is there anyone alive down there?”

  “Not close to the pit as far as I know,” Riley told him, “but I can’t be sure. We were attacked.”

  Berat dropped something into the pit. He waved the gun and gestured that they move to a position behind some rocks. Abigail took that as a good sign—Berat hadn’t shot them yet.

  The ground shook. Abigail staggered and Riley put out his hand to steady her.

  “The pit has caved in now. Nobody will ever find that entrance.” Berat raised his gun.

  “You’re not a bad man,” Riley said. “You don’t want to shoot innocent people. Our mission was to hide the treasure and now it’s hidden. We’re on the same side.”

  Berat appeared to be thinking it over. After what seemed to Abigail to be an age, he said, “That might be true, but I can’t take any chances.”

  “At least let the woman go,” Riley said. “She’s an academic. She most certainly doesn’t want anyone finding the treasure. Check our pockets; you can see we haven’t taken any of the gold.”

  As he spoke, Abigail saw a figure creeping up behind Berat. It was Ellis.

  She did her best not to gasp and stare at him. She tried to focus on Berat while watching Ellis out of her peripheral vision.

  Was Ellis working for Vortex? She didn’t think so. Thatcher had been, and he told them he had done away with Ellis. She supposed she would find out soon enough.

  It was over in a flash. Ellis jumped on top of Berat. The gun went off,
causing little bits of stone from a nearby rock face to shatter over Abigail’s face. She put her hands over her eyes. When she took her hands away, Ellis had disarmed Berat and was standing over him holding Berat’s gun.

  “Ellis!” Riley exclaimed. “We thought you were dead.”

  Ellis put his hand behind his head and pulled it away, holding it out for Abigail and Riley to see. It was covered with blood. “Thatcher hit me hard over the back of the head. I’ve probably got a concussion. I must’ve been out cold for a while.” He hesitated before adding, “At least I think it was Thatcher. I was with him when I was hit from behind.”

  Riley gave him a nod of affirmation. “Yes, it was Thatcher. He was working for Vortex.”

  Ellis shook his head and then clutched it with both hands. “Ouch! I had no idea. I should have seen it coming.”

  “We both should have seen it coming,” Riley said. “How did you find us?”

  “When I came to, I heard an explosion, and I saw this man heading up the hills. I figured he was responsible for the explosion, so I thought I should follow him.”

  “Just as well you did!” Abigail said.

  Ellis afforded her a thin smile. He pulled Berat to his feet. “What are we going to do with him? I take it he’s not working for Vortex?”

  “No, but Thatcher had called other agents. There were Vortex agents in there,” Riley said.

  “You can let me go,” Berat said. “I only want to protect the treasure and I’ve already done that.”

  “There was no treasure in there,” Riley said.

  Abigail did her best not to look shocked at his statement.

  “It was obviously looted centuries ago,” Riley continued.

  Berat gasped. “What? No treasure? But you said…”

  “Not so much as a small gold brooch,” Abigail said, catching onto Riley’s intent to keep Ellis out of the loop. “Looters had obviously removed it all at some point over the centuries.”