by Tom Hunter
“Looks like everyone’s already here,” he said, smiling at Abby as he bounded up the few steps to greet her. He wrapped her up in a great big bear hug.
“Ooof! Yep, time to meet the team, kiddo. Abby took him by the arm, and walked him inside. Just inside the foyer she stopped, and asked quietly, “I have to say, I’m a little worried about you. How you been doin’…since…”
His shoulders tensed at the question, but he summoned his stock answer.
“I’m dealing with it, if that’s what you mean. Best I can anyway. Thought I’d honor his memory, though, by dedicating this expedition to him. It’s the only thing I can think to do to honor his sacrifice. He gave his life for me. There’s no way else I can thank him.”
“Shit, Thom. Every time you tell me that, my eyes well up. It is a beautiful gesture to remember Howard this way,” Abby whispered quietly to him. She knew that answer. She’d said it a million and one times to herself. She knew his pain better than anyone. Her fingers reached for a coral brooch fastened at her throat, and she rubbed it like a worry stone.
Then louder, and in a clear voice, “Have you told the family yet, Thomas?”
“I did.” He swallowed. “There’s a letter in my car from them. It’s unopened…I can’t, I can’t open it. I can’t read it. It’s only been a few weeks, and everything is still a bit…raw.” Thomas’ drawn face, and chagrin at the events under his watch, tugged at Abby’s motherly heartstrings.
“I see. Yes, of course, I can understand.”
“Well,” Abby said, more brightly, “the rest of the A-Team is inside. In the study. I’ll take you to ‘em.”
Abby had her arm around his shoulders as she guided him into the study. He’d been to her home a number of times, but just then he was glad for her support, in word and deed. Thomas’s mind went in several directions at once: Howard, meeting his new team, Abby and her own troubles, and Noah. He needed to focus, to be doing something. Thomas reached for his comb and did a few quick downward swipes on his beard, before surreptitiously returning the comb to his pocket, just as they turned toward the door into the study.
He’d smiled at her calling his new crew the A-Team, and joked as they entered the study, “I didn’t know Mr. T was into archeology.” Abby glared at him, in mock horror at his bad joke.
Eight
Thomas and Abby walked into the study. It was a study in taxidermy, archeology, history, and humanities. Glass cases dotted the large room, displaying teeth from elephants, tigers, bears, and several others Thomas couldn’t identify. On the walls hung unique paintings with no rhyme or reason – a Warhol hung next to a Renoir, a Hopper next to a Da Vinci. The Da Vinci, the Mona Lisa. It had to be a replica, of course; the original hung in the Louvre. But, then again, this was Abigail Hogan.
Thomas watched the team gathered off to the side, admiring the displays in the room, from afar. They weren’t nervous, just respectful. Good. That’ll be important on this expedition, Thomas thought.
Pediah Lapp was there. Good. There was a young woman, with a darker olive complexion and athletic build. Also present was a young man, also with dark hair, about the young woman’s age, he guessed. He knew neither. Only Pediah was a familiar face.
“Wow, you have a beautiful home,” began the young woman. I get the teeth and bones and artifacts from your travels. The whole hunting lodge vibe suits you. What I don’t understand is the Mona Lisa replica. I even get some of the other paintings. But, why the Mona Lisa? It doesn’t seem to fit with what you’re going for here.”
“Everyone asks about it their first time here, so it’s a handy ice breaker.”
Thomas strode toward Pediah quickly, his hand outstretched.
“How’ve you been, Thom?” Pediah asked.
“Good. Good!” exclaimed Thomas, not entirely truthfully, grasping Pediah’s hand, and pulling him into a brotherly hug. Pediah beamed, and threw his arm around Thomas’s shoulder, both happy to see a familiar face. Pediah was the only one in the room Thomas knew, besides Abby, and was glad when she at last called their meeting to order.
“First things first. Let’s meet the team,” she began. “Team, meet Thomas Knight, intrepid explorer, professor, and archeologist extraordinaire. Also, a former student of mine. He is your leader. You will defer to him at all times. He thinks with his beard comb,” Abby explained, a sly smile on her face. Thomas smiled, waved, and patted the pocket which held his comb.
Abby gestured toward Pediah. “Pediah Lapp, experienced spelunker in charge of assisting with on foot surveys to verify readings that our equipment uncovers, er discovers. For those of you that don’t know,” Abby went on, “Pediah was on the initial survey with Thomas. So, if Thom is unavailable for questions, comments, concerns, or what have you, Pediah’s your man. He’s a good egg, fresh from the farm, preferring adventure to Amish life. A fun game? See how many times you catch him running his thumbs up and down or snapping the suspenders he wears.” Abby winked at Pediah, in warm hearted humor. “Love ya, kid.”
“Here we have,” –Abby walked over to the young woman–“Alexia Fraga. She’ll be handling maintenance and repairs during your trip.” Abby squeezed her shoulders, and Alexia smiled.
“Something breaks or breaks down, I’ll fix it. Have you back up and running in no time,” Alexia said brightly.
“I’ve got this fried dishwasher,” joked a kid, who looked to be around twenty or so.
“Then, you shouldn’t let her spend so much time in the sun,” retorted Alexia.
Stepping between the two, Abby put her hand on the young man’s arm, “And last, but certainly not least, our very own attention hound. This is my son-in-law, Robbie.” She leaned in close, her cheek to his. “He’ll be around for general labor, floater, assist where needed, kind of an extra hand always at the ready. He asked to be here, to be in on this dig, for a chance to work in the field. Don’t coddle him. For the duration of this trip, he’s a work horse.” Abby squeezed his arm gently.
“I look familiar to you, don’t I?” Robbie’s eyes sparkled, expecting immediate recognition. No one moved, but it didn’t deter him. “I should. I’m kinda famous.” Everyone’s eyebrows shot up in question, which animated Robbie further. “Really? You don’t know who I am? I’m a pretty big deal online. YouTube, to be exact.” His voice trailed off, still surprised no one knew him or who he was.
“We don’t have time to watch YouTube.” Alexia spread her hands to indicate the others in the room. Pointing to Thomas, and then Pediah, she exclaimed, “he’s teaching, he’s exploring, I’m tinkering. In other words, we’re all working. Are you sure you’re ready for this?” Alexia commented, suddenly concerned he was on the team to play and not to work. This was a get-your-hands-dirty kind of deal, and one where everyone depended on everyone else.
“Sure, I’ve got everything all set up, and my subscribers are super excited to be following this dig,” Robbie replied. “I’ve already got a line of merchandise, mostly T-shirts and mugs, selling like hotcakes. So far, my top sellers are the items with the catchphrases ‘I dug it,’ and ‘my career is in ruins…’ He trailed off at the mock horror in their faces, then smiled as he heard a laugh. It was Thomas Knight.
Egged on by Thomas’s chuckling, Robbie turned brashly toward Alexia. “Hey baby, where you been all my life? Glad I finally unearthed you.” Alexia rolled her eyes.
Abby swatted Robbie on the arm. “Really! You’re a married man, son. Behave like one.” Well, technically, she thought, he’s a widower; a widower too young. She forgot sometimes, and pushed the knowledge as far down as she could muster, what they had both lost, and the kinship they now shared in that loss. She had lost a husband and a daughter, but she had gained a son. She knew his antics covered up his feelings. But sometimes, the boy went too far.
“What’s the big deal? A little compliment here and there doesn’t hurt anyone.” Robbie turned to her, and saw the shadow of loss. He was immediately cowed. He looked down at his hands. The white gold ring shone like a halo aro
und his left ring finger. He hadn’t yet taken it off. Maybe he never would.
Well, this ought to be interesting, Thomas thought, before he interrupted the exchange between Abby and Robbie. “Thanks for the introductions, Abby. Looks like we’ve got a good team here. What say we move on to the next order of business – the reason we’re all here. The expedition.”
“Absolutely,” Abby agreed. “Let me get my projector and laptop set up.”
Soon, she was displaying the photos Pediah had taken at the initial survey. “Okay, team, Pediah and Thomas stumbled onto something pretty amazing a few weeks ago. The pictures are by Pediah, and Thomas recorded the findings. Let’s show you what they found.” Then with a flourish of final introduction, she shifted to make room for those who had made the discovery, and said gently, “Thomas. Pediah. You have the floor.”
The audience was rapt as the video played. A chorus of whoas and wows filled the large room, as it came to an end.
Nine
“I had no idea. Do you think someone lived under there? That there was a civilization down there?” Alexia asked, breathless.
“Great shots, Pediah,” interjected Robbie. “But, seriously, wow. I’m super excited to be in on this thing. What an adventure!”
“Every time I watch this, I’m still floored,” Abby said. “Those doors set in the walls, do they open?”
“Well,” Thomas began, “the doors may open, but when we tried,” – he waved a hand between himself and Pediah – “they seemed to be stuck. I don’t know if it was just the time, and the shifting of the earth and sediment. Or they could be false doors. But, because of the doors so deep in the caves, it implies, no not implies,” – he shook his head. “It proves there was a civilization beneath Death Valley. Our job is to figure out who they were, what they did, and how they lived.”
“Now, as we went down into the mine tunnel there was a tremor. We don’t know if it was a fault line, shifting earth, or just the reverberations of all our feet as we tromped the downward slope. We simply don’t know. But, it did subside, and I think it was because we were the first people down there in quite some time,” Thomas concluded.
“So, what does this discovery mean? What are the implications here?” asked Alexia and Abby almost in tag team.
“Other than an, as yet, undiscovered civilization?” quipped Thomas.
“You know what I mean,” Abby shot back.
Pediah stepped in. “For my two cents, I think it may the find of the century. Our very own King Tut’s Tomb, right here in the US of A. Death Valley, guys! Who would have thought it possible?”
Everyone shook their head, in wonderment and awe. A chorus of not I’s and not me’s, in answer.
Thomas nodded in agreement with the rest of the team. “Yes, yes. Pediah’s right. If we find we’ve discovered an ancient lost civilization beneath Death Valley…yes, Robbie?” Thomas nodded at Robbie’s raised hand.
“The tremor you mentioned. Will that area be safe to explore?” he asked.
Abby interjected, “I’ve requested seismic readings to be made, and it’s been determined the tremor was a freak occurrence. It should be safe to explore now. But, there will also be people at the site, to take additional readings and to make sure we aren’t stirring the pot overly much.”
“Thanks, Abs. I feel a little better, but I’m now thinking about that other explorer… Howard, was it? I heard a few bits and pieces through the grapevine, but if we have this guy Noah to contend with, I think we might need to know a bit about what happened.” Robbie had shed his excitable YouTube persona, and Thomas and Abby both were impressed at how much more mature he suddenly sounded.
Thomas frowned, saying, “Pediah and I filed charges, but things are tied up in court at the moment. Ashbridge’s lawyers made sure things are stalled pretty good, and I don’t hold out much hope for restitution. His wealth and influence has us mired deep in legal purgatory, even though we have a solid case.”
“So…do you think Noah will be a problem? Any other steps we should take?” asked Robbie.
“No, I don’t think so. He seemed much more interested in the book,” Pediah suggested, “and besides…” He looked to Thomas, who took up the thread.
“Besides, I’ve taken the liberty of hiring a security team. They’ll be around to keep an eye on things, since we were threatened by an armed gunman. And though Noah has the money, the muscle, and the mental acuity, we have the heart. We are the heart of this excavation. This dig. And no one else is going to get hurt. I hired the security team to keep my team safe.”
“Not to mention, for my own piece of mind, I plan to be much more thorough in checking backgrounds from now on, and am considering hiring a PI. I think we need a professional, and I think this for two reasons,” he rushed on at the raised eyebrows around the room, “we need to focus on the excavation and an investigator can focus on background checks and making sure Noah and company don’t become a problem.”
Abby shot a sideways glance at Robbie, then addressed the team. “So, are you guys actually interested in the work described or do you just want to stand around asking questions all day?”
Around the room Alexia, Pediah, Robbie, and Thomas nodded eagerly. Thomas rubbed his hands, fished out his beard comb, and made a few downward strokes as he thought about the upcoming expedition, the light back in his eyes once again.
Pediah rubbed his thumbs against the inside of his suspenders, then tugged and released, their snap back into place a loud confirmation of everyone’s agreement.
Alexia looked around at the team, her eyes narrowed slightly, as she thought through the parts and equipment she’d need to maintain everything on site.
Robbie took in each team member, studying them, committing their roles to memory. Though he’d asked to be on this dig, he still looked for opportunities to prove himself, to “make it”, and imagined the favors and credibility he might gain by taking part in this expedition. But, as self-centered as his purposes were, he was as excited as the rest of the team about the pure adventure and excitement of discovery.
Heightened by the excitement, a nervous tension to get moving penetrated the air, and Abby in her motherly wisdom, saw the folly in racing to the finish without a few hours’ sleep. She could tell a lot by people’s body language, how and where they looked at others, and often just got a general “vibe” about a group. This would be a good team, she could feel it. After all, except for Thomas and Pediah, she’d pulled them all together.
As the silence lengthened, and Abby saw the shadows of evening cross the study floor, she stood up from her seat across the room, and called for attention. “Hey team, guys, I know you’re all excited. But, I want to remind you, this is a big undertaking. I propose everyone get a good night’s rest here, tonight. There’s plenty of room.” Abby looked to Thomas, who nodded for her to go on. “Tomorrow we’ll go back to our homes and bases and begin preparations. Plan to be ready in a few weeks’ time.”
Everyone nodded their agreement and, after enlisting Robbie’s help, Abby had soon assigned rooms to everyone. They thanked her, hugs all around, and left to enjoy the rest of their evening.
Ten
It was a house on wheels, and gleamed like a new car just driven off the lot. With two-tone browns and champagnes, and wavy lines emulating the landscape, the Class A RV seemed to blend into the desert. Inside, it was a plush oasis from the heat and empty expanse. Everything was state-of-the-art; air-conditioned against the elements, and beyond the basics – bed, bath, and kitchen – it boasted useful toys. Amusements included an Augmented Reality (AR) on-demand opera performance, a robotic valet designed to assist with grooming functions, and a hot tub. The hot tub had been set to “on” by the robotic valet. It burbled its invitation to Noah Ashbridge to slough off the grit and dirt of the day.
Just outside the window, holes in the earth and small dunes where old dirt was piled, dotted the landscape. This was a remote campsite, far away from all the unpleasantness at Mustar
d Canyon.
The digging just outside his window continued, as the sun began to set. His excavation crew were under orders to continue until it was too dark to see. Fresh from his quick jump in the hot tub, his bald head still steaming, Noah now sat at his desk, his ancestor’s journal open in the middle. A hard spine would have cracked, but the supple leather bent easily as he picked it up. Noah studied the prize he’d taken from Thomas Knight. He supposed he should feel bad about the kid that died but, then again he, Noah, didn’t shoot him.
He’d been through this book too many times to count, first flipping through it, then page by page, and still nothing. If Reginald Ashbridge III had left a clue, he couldn’t see it. Noah Ashbridge didn’t fail. It wasn’t in his nature. He might lie, cheat, and steal to get what he wanted, but he never, ever failed.
But, he reasoned with himself, you also can’t lie, cheat, or steal from a book, and that’s the trouble!
Not enough water and too much caffeine added to his frustration, his heart pounded in anger, and with a resounding thump! He slammed the book shut and threw it at his desk, his wild movements nearly spilling his coffee.
Somewhere in the back of his mind was a niggling concern about mistreating the precious artifact. But, at that moment, Noah was blind with rage. Not understanding, or being able to solve the puzzle, brought immense anger to the surface, from when he had been shamed as a child for anything less than perfect performance in school.
He leaned back in frustration and tapped his fingers on his desk to calm himself. He was glad the coffee hadn’t spilled, and picked up his mug in an effort to still his nerves. Just then, there was a soft rap on the door. Oh god, who could that be? “Who’s there?!”
From the other side of the door, “Miss Welker, sir.”
Oh, he’d forgotten about her for half a second. “Come,” he commanded, and the door to his RV opened. He looked her over in quick assessment. She wore a skin tight faux-military uniform, which sharpened her already angular features. Somehow, the uniform and the now sharpened edges of her face made her 5’7” frame and gymnast’s build look intimidating and formidable. She was perfect. His very own femme fatale. Looks like a million and kills on command. The best of both worlds.
