Island of the Sun (Dark Gravity Sequence)

by Matthew J. Kirby

  “I think we should at least check it out,” she said. “Get a bit closer.”

  “Closer is dangerous,” Luke said. “They’ve got to know we’re coming. I think we can assume Watkins has put the word out, and they’ll be ready for us.”

  “That’s why we need a plan,” Eleanor said. “Maybe just a couple of us can get close enough to find out if they’ve discovered the Concentrator.”

  “Close?” Samir asked. He’d brought them a plate of baklava and some bowls of sweet rice pudding. “Close to what?”

  “The pyramids,” Eleanor said.

  “Ahhh,” he said, glancing up toward the horizon. As he turned back toward the kitchen, he said over his shoulder, “The UN thinks it is okay that the G.E.T. takes our history from us.”

  “I say we do it.” Finn took a big bite of baklava. “That’s why we’re here.”

  “It might be possible,” Luke said. “Might. But we can’t have more than two of us going. And even then, it seems pretty risky.”

  “Too risky,” Eleanor’s mom said. “I’m not convinced.”

  “Convinced of what?” Eleanor asked, irritation with her mom growing.

  “That we can do this.”

  “So then what?” Eleanor asked. “We just give up?”

  “I didn’t say that—”

  “Yes, you did. But if we don’t try, and try now, the mission is a bust. If they haven’t found the Concentrator yet, they will eventually, and once they start tapping its energy, that’s it. We’re running out of time.”

  “That doesn’t mean we should lose our heads and go rushing into something,” Betty said.

  “Then we don’t rush in,” Eleanor said. “We get closer, carefully, and find out more. Then we make a plan.”

  “Either way, we’re going to be here for a little while,” Luke said. “Maybe we should find a hotel and make this plan you’re talking about.”

  “Fine,” Eleanor’s mom said, and when Samir returned, she asked him if he might call Youssef for a ride.

  “He is almost here,” he said. “I call him a few minutes ago.”

  Eleanor looked once more at the pyramids before they left the table and went to wait out in front of the café. The traffic seemed to move through the streets without pattern or rules, or at least none that Eleanor could discern. But no one got in an accident, either, which meant there had to be a method to it. Youssef pulled up, and as he leaped out of his van he smiled at them as if they were the oldest of friends, and his enthusiasm felt genuine.

  “You liked the food?” he asked, opening the door to the van. “It is very good, yes?”

  “Very good,” Luke echoed, the last to climb in.

  Youssef scooted around to the driver’s side, hopped behind the wheel, and eased the van into a slight gap in the traffic.

  “You know a hotel?” Eleanor’s mom asked.

  “Yes,” Youssef said. “Very good hotel. It is my cousin’s.”

  Luke smirked. “You guys sure take care of each other.”

  Eleanor wanted to jab him with her elbow.

  “Oh, yes, of course.” Youssef looked back at them in his rearview window. “Family is everything, yes?”

  The open and earnest way in which he said it drove the smirk from Luke’s face and brought silence to the vehicle.

  “Yes, it is,” Finn said.

  Eleanor leaned forward. “Could you drive us closer to the pyramids first?” Her mom whipped a glare at her, but Eleanor knew they needed more information and kept going. “We know they’re closed. We just want to get a closer look.”

  “Certainly,” Youssef said.

  “What are you doing?” Luke whispered.

  “Let’s just see,” Eleanor said. “If it looks bad, we don’t even have to get out of the car.”

  The others accepted that, grudgingly it seemed, and the cab drove them through the chaotic streets, and again Eleanor witnessed the disparity between the refugees who had nothing and the wealthy who had everything. It took some time, but eventually they reached the pyramids, which rose up like mountains above a chain-link G.E.T. fence.

  Youssef brought the vehicle to a stop some distance from a large throng of people. They carried signs printed with GET OUT G.E.T., and they shouted before the gates of the encampment. There were at least a hundred of them, while dozens of guards stood watch on the other side of the fence, armed with guns and stationed at regular intervals.

  “Protesters,” Youssef said. “They march every day.”

  “Looks like the G.E.T. has a lot of security because of it,” Luke said, looking at Eleanor.

  “Yes,” Youssef said, shaking his head.

  But Eleanor and everyone else in the car knew what that meant. Because of the protesters, the high level of security meant it really would be impossible to get into the site and search for the Concentrator. They had come all the way to Egypt for nothing.

  “Uh, guys?” Finn said.

  He nodded toward one of the nearest guards, who was looking right at them and talking into a radio.

  “I think we’re ready to go to our hotel,” Betty said. “Quickly.”

  “Very good,” Youssef said.

  He pulled away from the encampment, and Eleanor looked through the back window, watching as the guard with the radio rushed away from the fence.

  It was now safe to assume that not only was the encampment impenetrable, but the G.E.T. knew they were here and would be out looking for them. Perhaps her idea had been reckless, after all.

  “Do not worry,” Youssef said. “I’ll take you to hotel. Then I bring someone to meet you.”

  “Who?” Eleanor’s mom asked.

  “A niece of Samir,” he said. “He heard you talk about the pyramids, and he called her. She is a . . . I don’t know the word. She studies the pyramids.”

  Eleanor looked at her mom. This could be good for them. This niece could somehow help them get closer to the Concentrator site. But it could also be bad for them, if she turned out to be affiliated with the G.E.T. Eleanor reassured herself that Youssef and Samir clearly didn’t trust the G.E.T., and hopefully neither would a relative of theirs.

  A few minutes later, they pulled up to a nice-looking hotel, quite new, made of white stone and glass, with round archways that grew wider before they closed at the top. Youssef walked them in and spoke with the concierge at the front desk, then told them he would return in one hour with Samir’s niece and to meet them in the lobby. Then he left, and Eleanor’s mom checked them in, crowding into just one room this time.

  “We really need to watch what we spend,” she said. “Our money won’t last forever.”

  But the room was large, with two wide beds, angular furniture of modern and sterile design, and a carpet with no pile that still felt thick and plush.

  “So who do you think this niece is?” Luke asked.

  “I have no idea,” Eleanor’s mom said.

  “Do you think it’s safe meeting with her?” Betty asked. “I feel like the fewer people know that we’re here, the better.”

  “You’re right,” Eleanor said. “But she could be someone who can help us get onto the pyramid site. We’re going to need all the help we can get. And we’ve been lucky with the people we’ve met so far.”

  “Have we?” Finn asked. “How do you know they won’t turn on us the way Amaru did?”

  “Intuition,” Eleanor said.

  “Alien intuition?” he asked. “That’s worked out well.”

  Eleanor was about to fire back at him, but she noticed that Betty, Luke, and even her mom didn’t seem to have noticed Finn’s jab, or weren’t nearly as bothered by it as she was.

  Luke threw himself down on one of the beds. “Whoever she is, I’m taking a nap until she gets here.” Almost as soon as he finished saying it, he was snoring.

  Finn shouldered his backpack. “I’m going for a walk.”

  Eleanor’s mom reached out for him. “I really don’t think you—”

  “I just need a f
ew minutes to myself, all right?” he snapped, then softened. “I’m going to check out the hotel. That’s it, I promise.”

  Eleanor just stared at the wall. She would probably have wanted to go with him, had he not just made that alien comment.

  Her mom nodded. “Okay, but don’t be long.”

  “Yeah,” Finn said, and left the room.

  “That poor boy,” Betty said. “What do you think is going on with Julian and their dad?”

  “That depends,” her mom said. “The G.E.T. put out that bulletin you read back in Fairbanks, calling us terrorists. But we don’t actually know if they’ve pursued any criminal charges. Are there warrants for our arrest out there? Or are they worried we’ll talk if the authorities take us in?”

  “So you think the G.E.T. is just keeping them prisoner?” Eleanor asked. “They’re not in a jail cell?”

  “I doubt it,” her mom said. “The G.E.T. is above the law at this point. If Watkins does what Skinner did with us, he’ll first try to convince Simon to sign on with the Preservation Protocol.”

  “I can’t see Dr. Powers doing that.”

  “I can’t either,” her mom said.

  But Eleanor wasn’t so sure about that, based on some of the comments Dr. Powers had made. All that talk about going from offensive to defensive.

  The room had a television, and Eleanor turned it on to pass the time while they waited. The channels were mostly in Arabic, so she didn’t understand much of it, but the images kept her distracted. At one point, she landed on a news program, and it showed aerial footage of the G.E.T. encampment near the pyramids.

  “Mom, look.” Eleanor leaned forward and scanned the image for something relevant or useful. There were plenty of vehicles and several large structures and tents, with smaller ones between them, arranged in a loose grid. None of them appeared at first glance to be more significant than any other. But as she watched, she noticed most of the agent activity clustered around one particular tent. Two rows down and three in, toward the middle of the site. Eleanor pointed at it and said to her mom, “That one, maybe?”

  “Perhaps,” her mom said. “There seems to be something going on in there.”

  The show cut away to an anchor talking into a microphone, a crowd of those angry protesters behind him, and Eleanor leaned back again.

  Finn returned a short time later. “Luke still sleeping?” he asked as the door shut behind him. “Are we meeting Youssef soon?” His voice sounded lighter than when he’d left. Maybe the time away had helped him calm down.

  “Yes,” Eleanor’s mom said. “We should probably go down.”

  Eleanor walked over to Luke and shook his arm. “Hey, lazybones.”

  He opened his eyes and stretched his arms upward, climbing out of what seemed like a pretty deep nap. “Okay, I’m up,” he said, and when he got to his feet, he smacked his mouth a couple of times. “So, we ready for this?”

  “Ready as we’ll ever be,” Betty said.

  They left the room and walked down to the lobby, which was carpeted with enormous, intricately patterned rugs, while fronds and plants reached out from so many corners it gave the impression of a greenhouse atrium. They found a group of low, cushioned benches arranged in a semicircle and claimed them while they waited.

  Some minutes later, Youssef strode into the lobby, eyes up and scanning. With him was a young woman in her twenties, wearing khaki cargo pants, a long-sleeved, white button-down shirt, and a teal head scarf that covered her hair and her neck. She was quite beautiful, with a narrow face, smooth features, and lips that pulled slightly downward without looking as though she were frowning.

  Eleanor and the others rose from their benches as Youssef spotted them and nodded the woman in their direction. As they approached, Eleanor noticed a name badge clipped to her jacket, but she couldn’t read it from so far away.

  “Hello!” Youssef said. “You like my cousin’s hotel? It is good?”

  “Yes, very nice,” Eleanor’s mom said.

  Youssef beamed and then said, “Please, I am honored to present Nathifa, the niece of Samir. She is a . . .” The word seemed still to evade him, and he turned to the woman for help.

  “I’m an archaeologist,” she said. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.” She extended her hand to shake with Eleanor’s mom, and Betty, but not Luke, and then they all sat down on the benches. “Samir called me and told me you were interested in seeing the pyramids?”

  “Yes,” Eleanor’s mom said. “But we didn’t mean for him to go to so much trouble. It was only something we mentioned in passing.”

  Nathifa offered a knowing smile and nodded. “Well, that’s Samir. I’m sure you noticed that he takes care of every customer of his. It’s an important point of pride for him.”

  “Yes, we did notice that,” Betty said.

  “And the pyramids are a source of pride for me,” she said. “I’m sorry for the current situation.”

  “Not your fault,” Luke said.

  “Actually,” Nathifa said, “in a manner of speaking, it is.”

  “How so?” Eleanor’s mom asked.

  Nathifa moved her lapel to reveal her name badge. “I’m a part of the team there.”

  Her badge bore a large G.E.T. logo.

  Eleanor’s whole body went cold and rigid, and for a moment no one spoke. They had flown halfway around the world and walked right back into the hands of the enemy.

  “Oh—” Eleanor’s mom said. “I, um . . . Is that so?”

  “Yes, though I’m more of a consultant,” Nathifa said. “They have their work, and I have mine. I’m there to make sure they don’t damage our national heritage.”

  “I see,” Eleanor’s mom said.

  So she wasn’t actually a G.E.T. agent. That made Eleanor feel a bit better, but she still wondered how much Nathifa knew about everything. An archaeologist might even know about the Concentrator. “Why are the G.E.T. there in the first place?” she asked.

  Nathifa shrugged. “They’re digging for something that is ‘relevant to global energy interests.’ My team is just there to assist with the excavation and make sure they don’t disturb any of the ruins or artifacts, wake any mummies, that sort of thing.”

  Eleanor suddenly wondered if the power of the Concentrator might have indeed brought any mummies back to life. Nathifa must have noticed her expression and chuckled. “I’m only kidding.”

  “But have they found anything?” Eleanor asked.

  “That is technically classified,” she said. “You probably saw yourself they are still digging, which means I can’t take you to the site, unfortunately. It truly is closed to the public. But as a favor to Samir, I’m here to answer any questions about the pyramids you might have.”

  “What do you say to people who think aliens helped build them?” Finn asked.

  Eleanor wanted to kick him.

  “Aliens?” Nathifa’s downturned lips did appear to be frowning then. “I usually say it is historical arrogance to assume that the ancient Egyptians couldn’t have built them on their own. Not to mention a little more than crazy to believe that aliens actually landed on our planet. Isn’t it?”

  “Humph,” Luke said.

  “So there’s no way we could get closer to them?” Eleanor asked.

  “I’m afraid not,” Nathifa said. “Is there a special reason why you want to?”

  “No,” Eleanor said, shrugging casually. “We just . . . hoped to see them.”

  “Of course,” Nathifa said. “You have traveled far?”

  “Yeah.”

  “Where did you come from?”

  “We were in Italy,” Eleanor’s mom said.

  “Really?” Nathifa said. “Where?” Her frown still hadn’t gone away, and her tone was a bit harder than before.

  “Florence,” Betty said. “Quite a lovely city.”

  “Is that so?” Nathifa said. “Are you sure you weren’t in Peru?”

  Eleanor nearly gasped. She knows.

  Youssef looked a b
it confused by the conversation, while Eleanor’s mind scattered in fear. No longer a statue, she wanted to run.

  “N-no,” Eleanor’s mom said. “Why do you—”

  “Because I know who you are,” Nathifa said, her eyes darkening. “And I know why you’re here.”

  CHAPTER

  18

  ELEANOR LOOKED AT HER MOM, AND LUKE, AND BETTY. They were just sitting there, perhaps too stunned to do anything else. But Eleanor felt they had to get away, now, while they still had a chance. Her body screamed at her to move.

  Eleanor’s mom swallowed. “What do you—”

  “This isn’t the place to discuss it,” Nathifa said.

  “I do not know what you are saying,” Youssef said next to her. “What is this?”

  “Oh, it is nothing to worry you,” Nathifa said to him. “Please thank Samir for calling me when you see him?”

  “Of course.” Youssef blinked and nodded. Then he spoke in Arabic with her, and Nathifa replied to him in Arabic, and Youssef nodded again and rose to his feet.

  “I leave you now, but here is my number.” He handed Luke a card. “Call me, please, if you want me to drive you.” A few more good-byes followed that, and then he left.

  Nathifa leaned closer to them and lowered her voice. “I have another van coming. It will take us somewhere we can talk.”

  “Hold on,” Luke said. “You’re crazy if you think we’re going anywhere with you.”

  “Please,” she said. “You must.”

  “No, we mustn’t,” Luke said, rising. “And unless you brought a few of your friends from the G.E.T. with you, it looks like you’re outnumbered, pal.”

  “I have not told the G.E.T. you are here,” she said, motioning for Luke to sit again. “And I won’t. I promise. There is someone who would like to speak with you, and I’m here to take you to him. But it’s not the G.E.T. You must trust me.”

  “The last person we trusted pointed a gun at her head.” Luke nodded toward Eleanor.

  Even then, in that moment, Eleanor’s mind flashed briefly to the sight of Amaru’s bleeding chest, and she shut her eyes tightly for a moment.

  “And he was working for the G.E.T., too,” Betty said.