The Emperor Awakes

by Alexis Konnaris

  He was moving as if led by an invisible force that took hold of him, pulling him to a destination and a destiny he could not know. Suddenly he saw it clearly and was surprised at his earlier confusion.

  What he saw that cleared his mind was a play of the light, but one that was intended for him as a message.

  As the sun was setting on a magical landscape, he thought his eyes were deceiving him. He thought it was a trick of the light. But of course it couldn’t be.

  The rays bounced off the Ayia Napa Church and then set off past the city’s Western suburbs heading North towards the Troodos mountain range in a mad rush, as if being chased by an invisible enemy only they could see.

  They seemed to have stopped at a point at the foot of the Troodos Mountains, still visible despite the distance. He blinked into the light and squinted. Was it meant for him to follow?

  He must be out of his mind. But he knew he had to follow immediately. It could not wait. What he was meant to see might not be there tomorrow or even later on. He might be overtaken by his enemy and rival, the Ruinand group he smelled on the plane, even though they surely must have thought they were in the most amazing and deceit-proof disguise.

  They were on his tail and he could not allow them to know what he knew, to go where he was going. He had to shake them off. But how? Think hard, Vasilis. Then he had an idea. He got onto a phone and got the people at Valchern Corporation to see if they could get one of their satellites to zoom in and attempt to detect the signal or the heat signature left behind to locate the signal’s final destination.

  When they got back to him they confirmed that it was visible. The signal seemed to have stopped at Mount Zalakas in the village of Trimiklini, a twenty-minute drive North of Limassol on the way to the Troodos Mountains. Vasilis had to check it out.

  But he had to do something first. He could use the opportunity to follow up on the Mount Zalakas site and get some information. Kill two birds with one stone. Lara was just back from Brazil where she had been excavating a site made all the more intriguing for the discovery of Athenian pottery of the fifth century B.C.

  She planned to stay in Cyprus for the next year assisting an excavation on Mount Zalakas. The head of the expedition had specifically asked for her and she jumped at the chance. She accepted on the spot without the slight hesitation.

  It sounded like a once in a lifetime opportunity. She would not have missed it for the world. It was also convenient that she could take, at a moment’s notice, a sabbatical from her excavation work in Brazil.

  That was because she was not the head of that expedition, but a mere observer attached to the excavation team as a travelling consultant. Vasilis wondered whether it was a coincidence that Lara was working at Mount Zalakas. It was a long time since he had seen her.

  CHAPTER 59

  Cyprus

  Present day

  Giorgos and John stood in the tunnel in Limassol wondering what happened to Vasilis. Elli and Katerina were back too, in the tunnel on the other side, wondering about Aristo.

  Suddenly Katerina gestured towards the further reaches of the tunnel, a perplexed expression pregnant with worry blackening her face. ‘Elli.’ She called out and paused until she had Elli’s attention. ‘What are those figures appearing to be coming in and out of the openings, but not quite reaching the tunnel as if restricted by an invisible force blocking their way and keeping them in the confines of their own worlds?’

  Elli’s face had become white as a sheet. ‘I don’t know, but it’s giving me the creeps.’

  * * *

  Aristo, when he came to after blacking out, woke up in the tunnel next to his mother and Katerina.

  The tunnels had a strange effect on people. Aristo had already forgotten about the room and the strange man, and the memory of being surrounded by something or someone before he blacked out could not be further from his mind.

  He searched his brain frantically for the last thing he could remember, but came out wanting. He seemed anxious and obsessed about something.

  ‘I thought I caught a glimpse of Vasilis through one of the openings. Come on, we need to find him.’ Elli decided to stay behind. Katerina and Aristo stood in front of the opening where Aristo thought he had seen Vasilis and took the plunge.

  * * *

  They landed on a beach at the same time as the naked Vasilis was getting up. But they were too far away to call to him. They walked as fast as they could to catch up with him. They watched him go through the admiring glances and winks of a multitude of people on the beach.

  They then saw him go into the beachgear shop, and after a while come out dressed in what could be generously described as fashionable beach tosh. They were grateful that particular fashion passed them by.

  ‘Now let’s see what this brother of mine is up to.’ Aristo said.

  ‘He’s calling for a taxi. Come on.’ Katerina grabbed Aristo’s arm and, starting to move, dragged him forward oblivious to the consequences of her act. Aristo was not expecting the gesture, and the force she employed, and almost tripped in her wake nearly toppling on top of her.

  A few seconds behind Vasilis’ departure at high speed, Katerina hailed a taxi and they were on Vasilis’ tail.

  The day was hot and humid and sweat was dripping down their foreheads and exiting their pores in spades. Vasilis’ taxi stopped abruptly outside the Limassol Palace Hotel.

  Katerina and Aristo’s taxi left them at the spot Vasilis had occupied a few seconds earlier. Aristo gave the driver a generous tip and they entered the lobby of the hotel just a few paces behind his brother.

  ‘Aristo, why don’t we just go and talk to him?’

  ‘No, not yet. I want to see what he does. And he may be followed in which case we could be his rear guard security detail.’

  They waited in the lobby and wandered around the shops browsing and pretending to have a keen interest in buying an engagement ring.

  When they next saw Vasilis, he was coming out of the lift, dressed in a very smart suit and strutting across the lobby with his trademark dark good looks and air of self-assurance.

  One could not ignore Vasilis. He never failed to cut quite a swathe and to turn heads. People crowding the lobby turned and paid attention, spellbound.

  The glory of youth, Aristo thought to himself. Katerina broke the spell.

  ‘I think he may be on a date. He has that look and he appears to have switched on the charm ready to go out on the offensive all guns blazing. Come on, let’s follow.’

  A few moments later they were standing outside the “La Marassant”, the queen of dining experiences and the toast of Limassol high society and high-roller fast life.

  Inside, in a quiet corner, delicately pinching at an exquisite dinner, were Vasilis and Lara, appearing to be in their own bubble, flirting with and teasing each other, and laughing, totally at ease in each other’s company, obviously having a very good time indeed.

  Aristo smiled to himself at Vasilis’ selection of a table. Typical cautious Vasilis always covering his back, but presenting it as seeking privacy.

  Vasilis had not seen Lara for what felt like ages. Lara was born and grew up in Greece, but could never settle in any one place. She was an archaeologist who travelled the world searching for challenges and never did things by the book.

  She and Vasilis had known each other for many years and they had a child together. The child was being raised by Lara, but Vasilis was a regular visitor and financial contributor to the lives of mother and child. For the last three years she had lived in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, partly because of her work, partly because she loved the place and partly to create a home for their child. That was why she had become resistant to constant moves around the world to quell her curiosity and ambition.

  Vasilis had tried, repeatedly, to persuade Lara to move to Cyprus, so that he could see her and their child more often, but she refused. Her home and her career were currently based in South America. The Mediterranean with all its archaeologic
al and historical fascination and wealth could not replace it. At least for the time being.

  Vasilis knew she could not be moved once she had made up her mind and planted her feet firmly on the ground and he, reluctantly, accepted her decision. That was how they ended up living apart with an ocean and a continent separating them.

  Suddenly Vasilis’ voice betrayed a surprising urgency. ‘I want to ask you for a favour. I was intrigued when you told me about that small icon you found inside that cave on Mount Zalakas. That’s the main reason I’m here. From the picture you sent me it looks to be surprisingly well preserved. I would like to have a look at the cave myself. Could you get me inside?’

  ‘Vasilis, you know I cannot do that. I’ll be putting my job on the line. No unauthorised access is allowed and I am not the person to give that authority. The bureaucracy in this place is astounding, beyond comprehension. I really don’t know how people do anything here, as it makes things so expensive and time-consuming.

  ‘I actually admire them for persevering and achieving so much. It challenges my patience every single hour of every single minute of every single day. Well, I am exaggerating a bit, but you get the picture. If I let you in and they find out, I’ll be in big trouble. They’ll have my guts for garters. They’ll no doubt deport me and put me on a black list, never to allow me to enter the country ever again.’

  Vasilis said nothing, but gave her that look she could never resist. She looked at him for a while, lost in her own thoughts.

  Lara was debating with herself. She felt it was a mistake to think that this place, this setting, was the set of her dreams. Maybe she had to change it. Was Vasilis the answer? Was what Vasilis wanted the answer? Was Cyprus the answer?

  But then again it didn’t have to be like that. They both had compromised in the past and she was sure they could do it again. There had never been any regrets. She was sure they would both do it all over again the same way, not changing a thing, if they had to.

  But her mind had gone into overdrive. Both sides of her brain were fighting a battle with her heart. The jury, selected and approved, was growing impatient. It was split down the middle, still not ready to deliver a verdict.

  The decision was floating there in the air, almost invisible, like an indecisive cloud, becoming more elusive with every passing second. She suddenly pushed the thoughts out of her mind and focused her eyes on Vasilis, an air of selfishness, a healthy dose of defiance raising its ugly head and animating her face.

  ‘I will help you on condition that you re-arrange your schedule, so that you start spending at least a few weeks at a time here in Cyprus with me. Perhaps not this time as you seem to be busy with something, but after this, whatever it is, is finished.’

  His mouth twitched and started to droop, his eyes spoke volumes in their own special language she knew so well. He looked hurt, but his eyes were saying “maybe”, and yet they seemed to be passing judgement condemning her conduct as screaming of intransigence and belligerence that was so unlike her.

  She almost felt sorry for him and was close to relenting and capitulating.

  ‘OK, alright, stop that. Don’t give me that sorrowful pleading charm of yours.’

  His face spoke with the raising of a quizzical brow.

  ‘Vasilis, stop it. Don’t make that face. Come, on. You know you are doing it. It’s always like that. You always do it when you want me to do something. This time it’s not working.’

  The brow rose higher.

  She broke the impasse. ‘What do you expect to find there?’

  ‘A body.’ Vasilis blurted out with no qualms about shocking Lara.

  ‘You mean bones, a skeleton?’

  ‘No, I mean a body or more specifically a part or parts of it.’

  Even with her belief that nothing could shock her, Lara had gone white. This was serious. The reality that Vasilis might be involved in something shady began to dawn on her, but she chose not to voice her suspicions and her concerns in case she was wrong.

  She didn’t want to mess things up between them, if she was wrong, especially as things had been going well between them lately, and she was in no doubt that it was all legitimate and above board. He would never forgive her, if she insulted him by thinking him capable of anything illegitimate. She had to know more about this matter.

  ‘I don’t understand. What’s so special about this body you are looking for? What research do you have to back it up? How do you think you can find something where we have been excavating for months and have found nothing?’

  ‘I just know. I have a feeling.’ Vasilis said, an inner voice leading him to waters untravelled, and Lara could see his firm belief in his words. Her scepticism began to waiver, but she could not help a bit of mocking for her amusement. And there was also the fact that she could not be seen to so easily capitulate and accept that there could be the possibility of some truth in what he had said.

  ‘A voice at the back of your mind is speaking to you?’

  ‘Something like that. You know I’ve always been a bit unconventional, for some people crazy even, in doing things my way, but my instinct has served me well so far. So indulge me on this. Have some faith.’

  Lara took a quick decision. ‘OK. But I’m coming with you.’

  ‘No, you’re not. You are staying here to watch my back.’

  ‘It’s non-negotiable.’ Lara was adamant. ‘I can get you a pass and have you attend the dig for a couple of days for people to get used to you. We’ll introduce you as a visiting expert archaeologist from Crete.’

  ‘Will that work? Who’s checking authorisations?’

  ‘Trust me, it won’t be a problem.’

  ‘Won’t they recognise me?’

  ‘You have a bit of a high profile, but I don’t think they read the society or the business pages. But we’ll give you a little disguise just in case.’ Lara said and winked at Vasilis.

  Suddenly Vasilis had a strange feeling that they were being watched. He turned to the two men at the table next to them. The eyes he saw were empty and cold and licensed to kill. They had to get out of there.

  There was another reason for Vasilis’ urgency to leave. Vasilis did not want to involve the other diners in any violent altercation that might follow. They had to leave before anything happened that got people hurt.

  A waiter was passing by with the most humungous tray split in two, one half laden and piled on high with a mountain of meat laced with rice, the other half with fruit and bordered in semi-circle shapes with two jugs full of steaming hot juices and gravy.

  Vasilis tripped the waiter as he was passing by the adjacent table. The whole pile practically buried and burned the two men. But it was enough to distract the two men and put them out of action for long enough for Vasilis and Lara to make their escape.

  Vasilis grabbed Lara’s hand and they ran outside where a taxi was already waiting with the meter running. Vasilis had taken that precaution in the event that they had to make a quick get-away.

  They got into the taxi, and, in a movie-like moment, Vasilis fired a sharp order to the taxi driver to step on it. The taxi speeded off.

  Katerina and Aristo had witnessed Vasilis’ and Lara’s sudden rush for the exit. They stood to the side of the restaurant and waited. It took less than a minute for the two men, whom they suspected to be Ruinands, to come out of the restaurant, get into another waiting taxi and follow at great speed.

  Katerina and Aristo got into a taxi that had at that moment left a couple on the kerb and followed close behind the other two taxis, bringing up the rear.

  ‘Katerina, we will need to find a way to sabotage the taxi in front of us to give Vasilis a fighting chance to break free of the pursuit.’ Aristo’s mind was working furiously for a solution.

  The car chase was on. Inside the first taxi, Vasilis turned to Lara, who was almost a wreck from the sudden excitement, his voice on the verge of breaking.

  ‘Lara, we cannot wait for a few days. We’ll have to go to the site
tonight. They must be after the same thing that I am. We have to shake them off first, though. How the hell did they know where to find us? I was careful. I was sure I had not been followed.’

  ‘And to think that they were sitting next to us for all this time and we didn’t suspect a thing.’

  ‘I’m not surprised. We were a bit engrossed in our own world back there as is always the case when we get together.’ Vasilis said and smiled sweetly at Lara.

  ‘I dare say more than a bit engrossed.’

  Vasilis leaned towards the driver. ‘We need to shake off the taxi following us.’

  ‘No problem, sir. Though there are actually two taxis following us.’

  ‘What? Two?’ Vasilis turned back to look, but couldn’t be sure that the third taxi was not an innocent bystander.

  At that moment the taxi took a sharp left and increased speed, but the Ruinands were with them and catching up fast. They were driving on the coastal road now and it was busy. They had to weave in and out of the cars ahead of them and avoid incoming traffic as well.

  The chase had been going on for about fifteen minutes when, out of nowhere, Vasilis and Lara saw a sudden flash of light and, turning to look back, they saw the chasing taxi carrying the Ruinands suddenly veered off course and, closely avoiding collision with a bus, climb the pavement and smash its way to an abrupt stop inside the elaborately-decorated window of a patisserie.

  Vasilis and Lara had no way of knowing that the spectacle had the hallmark of Aristo’s handiwork stamped all over it.

  Aristo had an inspiration. He used a laser gun to blind the driver of a truck travelling towards them in the opposite direction while it was almost level with the taxi carrying the two Ruinands in front.

  The truck veered to the right while another car in front of them did not hold back, but like a horse rearing up when frightened, speeded up to avoid the truck, and crashed into, actually almost climbed on, the Ruinand taxi and forced it off the road on a straight collision course to oblivion. The truck rushed to join that car, and like comrades-in-arms, the two vehicles blocked the Ruinand taxi in a half bear hug, determined not to let their prey escape.