The Crystal's Curse

by Vicky de Leo

  Chapter Thirteen

  After all the artifacts were labeled and shipped, the crew backfilled the village and cave, but left the steps to the room clear. Now that they knew Joshua was safe, Ricardo left with the crew. Sam and Maria hadn’t decided what to do about the room yet. It would have to be sealed again at some point to preserve the carvings and to appease the Quiche, but they were reluctant to backfill it. Maria felt she was close to finding the key to the translations, so they decided to stay on for a couple of days. Sam spent his time working on the site description.

  One afternoon, Maria came running out of the cave to the tent where Sam was working. “Do you know the longitude and latitude for Boston?” she asked breathlessly.

  “Actually I do,” he said. “I don’t know why it sticks in my mind, 42.22 degrees north by 71.04 degrees west. Have you found something?”

  “I think so. Come with me, and let’s see if it checks out.”

  Sam got up and followed her through the cave and on into the room.

  “I discovered not only do the stones recess, but the metal rings around them can be rotated. We thought the marks around the edges of the stones were decorative, but now I think they serve a purpose. If you look closely, you can see that the metal rings around them have tiny little grooves as well. By rotating the rings, it’s possible to match up the grooves on the stones and the grooves on the rings. Remember I told you that I thought these glyphs are the four directions, well, I think that the ones in between represent degrees of longitude and latitude. You said 42.22 north.” She counted over four stones from the north stone and twisted the metal band on it. “Now 71.04 west.” She counted seven stones over from the west stone and twisted that band to the appropriate line. “If I am right, then this should be exactly how it looked when Joshua disappeared.” Sam and Maria looked at the photographs they had taken just prior to Joshua’s disappearance.

  “You’ve done it!” Sam exclaimed.

  Maria was all smiles. They embraced. “Now if we only had the right rock, we could test it to see if it really is a transporter,” Maria said thoughtfully. She looked up at Sam. “It’s nice to know what the glyphs mean, but it really doesn’t help us prove or disprove anything, does it? I can’t even enter these translations into our work up without sounding ridiculous.” She realized for the first time that without being able to prove her calculations were correct, she'd wasted all the time she had spent on the translations. She looked deflated.

  “I think you’re wrong. I think we can put your translations in our work up, with the theory that the Maya were able to calculate longitude and latitude. We just can’t postulate that they are here as a means of transportation.”

  “I would still have a difficult time proving that, but I’m too tired to think about it right now. I know I’m right, and for now, that’s all that counts.” She smiled and took Sam’s arm. “Let’s go stir up something for dinner.”

  They only got as far as the mouth of the cave. Erik and two other men holding guns stepped in front of them blocking the exit.

  Sam stepped in front, pushing Maria behind him. “What’s this all about? All the artifacts are gone. There’s nothing left here to steal.”

  “We’re not here to steal anything. We just want information,” Erik said. He poked the gun into Sam’s chest, forcing him back into the cave. “Let’s go back inside where we can have a nice quiet conversation.”

  Sam and Maria backed into the cave. Erik waved them on into the recess room, falling in beside them. “Ari, guard the entrance and make sure no one interrupts us. Con, secure the woman.”

  Con grabbed Maria around the neck and pulled her close to him.

  Sam whirled around. “Take your hands off her.”

  Erik stepped between them, sticking the gun in Sam’s chest again. “Let’s not do anything stupid. She’ll be fine as long as you cooperate. Now, I want to know where your son is.”

  Sam stayed where he was. “Why? What do you want with him?”

  “We believe he may have something of ours.”

  “He’s just a kid. What could he possibly have?”

  “Don’t play dumb with me,” Erik growled. “Your son is not here, and he didn’t leave here by truck or plane. No one passed through the village. There’s no other way to the airport. The only other way he could have left here is by using the portal. So let’s not waste anymore time pretending. I want the power stone. Don’t bother lying to me. I know that someone activated the chamber. That takes a power stone. I know that neither of you did it because touching it leaves traces. Therefore, your son must have done it. I also know that he called you, so you must know where he is. Just tell me, and I’ll go get it from him. I don’t want to hurt either one of you or your son. I just want the stone.”

  Erik’s calm assurances didn’t convince Sam. He tamped down the anger. Unarmed, facing two men with guns, he had no choice but to stall and hope for some kind opening, or information that he could use to bargain. “I don’t know what you are talking about. What stone?”

  Erik rolled his eyes. “The stone that powers the portal, of course. The one your son used to leave here. Now where is it?”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” insisted Sam.

  Eric walked casually over to Maria. He ran his hand gently down her face. “Such a pretty face.”

  Sam’s hands balled into fists.

  Erik casually turned away and then viciously backhanded her across the mouth, snapping her head to one side and drawing blood. When Sam growled and rushed him, he pointed his gun at Sam. Cold hard eyes dared him to make a move. “Come on, I only need one of you.”

  Maria wiped the blood from her mouth, sending Sam a warning look.

  Knowing any action he took now would only further endanger her, Sam stayed where he was. He shook with the effort it took to stand still. With the blood pounding through his veins, he forced his voice to sound natural. “As far as we know the stone burned up during the transport.”

  Eric shook his head. “It doesn’t work that way. The crystal transports with you.”

  Sam needed time, time to understand what was going on, time to decide if there was any way to protect his family. “If I tell you where he is, why should I believe that you’ll leave any of us alive? I’m sure you don’t want any witnesses.”

  Eric laughed, a short bark without real amusement. “Witnesses to what? Who are you going to tell? What exactly are you going to tell them? Do you honestly think anyone will believe that three men held you up at gunpoint to steal a rock that operates a time and space portal?” Erik waved his gun at the niche. “Without the power stone, this is just ancient graffiti. I don’t need to kill you,” he said calmly with an evil grin.

  Stubbornly Sam crossed his arms. “Why should I believe you?”

  “Good point,” Erik said lifting one eyebrow. “Okay, I was hoping I could convince you, but I guess we’ll have to do this the hard way.” He walked over and sat down on the stool Maria had been using while studying the glyphs. “I’ll make this easy for you. Either you tell me what I want to know or I shoot your wife,” he said calmly. “Oh, don’t worry, I won’t kill her, then you would just play the hero and die yourself to save your son. Maybe just a kneecap. Of course, if you lie to me, I’d have to come back and shoot some other part of her until you told me the truth. All this time, she’s laying there bleeding and in pain. Seems messy and unnecessary to me. One more thing, even if you both decide to die, I can still track down your son. It’ll just take more time and I’m in a hurry. So you see, you really have no choice. One way or the other, I will find your son and retrieve the stone.” He waited patiently allowing them time to absorb the hopelessness of the situation.

  Hearing a noise in the cave, they all turned. The man Erik had told to guard the entrance stuck his head through the door. “Sir, you have a call from command, they say it’s urgent.”

  Erik nodded and then spoke to Sam. “Lucky you. You can have some time to discuss thi
s.” He told the other guard, “Release the woman, but keep an eye on them.” He strode out of the room.

  When Con let Maria go, she ran to Sam. He put his arm around her. Holding her close but still watching the guard, he took a handkerchief out of his pocket and gently wiped the blood from her mouth. They could hear Erik’s footsteps as they receded.

  Con relaxed his stance, but continued watching them. He was thin but well muscled. He cradled his gun on one arm. Sam assessed his chances of escape. Erik had made it clear that he wouldn’t hesitate to shoot them. Even with only one guard, Sam could see that any move he made would only put Maria in even more danger. His only option was to continue to stall, hoping for some opportunity.

  He looked down at his wife, wanting to reassure her. Before he could say anything, another man appeared out of nowhere right behind the Con. Without a word, the man reached out, and Con collapsed on the ground without making a sound. The man picked up the gun. He looked at Sam and Maria and put his finger to his lips to caution them to keep quiet. Then he dragged the guard outside the entrance of the room.

  When he came back, he checked the settings on the portal, quickly walked over to them, thrust a crystal into their hands, and whispered, “I’m here to save you. Do exactly what I tell you. Both of you step into the portal. Hold on to each other tightly. Put this crystal in the top hole. I’ll be right behind you. I’ll explain everything once you’re safe.”

  Sam considered his options. He didn’t know this man or his intentions. He’d seen him disable the guard without a sound, which could make him a formidable enemy. On the other hand, Erik had made his intentions clear and Sam didn’t want to think about what would happen when he returned. Wherever this new man took them, they couldn’t be worse off than they were now. Sam decided to take his chances. He nodded to Maria. They crowded into the portal. Sam placed the crystal in the top hole. There was a bright light and they disappeared.

  The man placed a small device at the foot of the portal, stepped in. He took another crystal from his pocket and placed it in the top hole. With a bright flash of light, he too vanished. Seconds later, there was a loud explosion. The portal disintegrated spewing rock and sealing the entrance to the room.

  Erik ran back into the cave, cursing when he saw the unconscious guard and the sealed entrance.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Sara and Joshua returned to her house after the movie. Sara wanted to make a plan for the next morning. “Meet me at The Peabody Museum of Archeology on campus around ten a.m. tomorrow. It has one of the most comprehensive Mesoamerican collections. I want to see if we can find any references to this stone or the recess that your parents uncovered. Also can you make a sketch of the room you found?” Sara asked.

  “I can make you a general sketch, but I can’t remember any specifics on the characters. I’m sure Mom has been working on translating the glyphs. They expect to be here sometime the end of next week,” he replied.

  When Joshua reached up to the mantel to retrieve the stone, Sara said, “Could you leave it here? I’m thinking of asking Gran if she knows anyone who can analyze it for us.”

  He took Sara by the shoulders. “You can’t tell your grandmother that I believe I was transported here with that. She’ll never let me in the house again. I haven’t told my grandfather any of this. He thinks I flew here on the spur of the moment. If we’re going to get your grandmother and my grandfather together to talk, I don’t want him hearing this from her. He has been too kind and generous to me. We have to leave them out of this for the time being. When my parents get here, Dad will know someone who can analyze this.” Letting her go, he picked up the crystal and put it in his pocket. “Please, let’s just keep this between us.”

  “Okay, just research for now,” she conceded. “Speaking of getting them together, when should we do that?”

  “I’ll see if my grandfather is free tomorrow night. We’ll plan on drinks at our house to start. I found some pictures of Harry your grandmother might like to see. If everything goes well, we can plan on going out to dinner together later.”

  “Sounds perfect. I’ll check with Gran.”

  They spent several minutes locked in each other’s arms. Neither one of them wanted the evening to end. Finally, with one last kiss, Sara pushed Joshua out the door.

  They met at ten the next morning. Both grandparents had agreed to meet. Joshua arranged to pick up Sara and her grandmother at six. They spent four hours in the library but could find no reference to anything that looked like the recess.

  With a sigh, Sara slammed the book she been reading closed. “There’s nothing in any of these books that refers to a niche like the one you drew. You were right. Without pictures of the actual glyphs, it’s impossible to make any comparisons. I guess we have no choice but to wait until your parents come.

  Joshua closed the book he’d been scanning. He stood and drew her to her feet. “Let’s go get something to eat. I’m starving.”

  They stopped to eat at a café close to campus. Since it was a popular place for students, they weren’t surprised to see several people they knew. Nathan and Rachel, just sitting down at a table, waved for Joshua and Sara to join them.

  Sliding into the booth, Sara noticed that Nathan was holding Rachel’s hand. She leaned into Rachel and whispered, “How long has this been going on? I didn’t realize that you two were dating.”

  Rachel blushed. “About a week. You’ve been pretty busy yourself,” she said glancing at Joshua.

  Joshua slid in next to Nathan. As he studied the menu, he noticed Frank and Clay, and two girls enter the café. It was the first time he’d seen him since the altercation. He nudged Nathan.

  Nathan looked up. “Crap.”

  Rachel asked, “What?”

  “Nothing.”

  The waitress came and they placed their orders. Joshua continued to watch as Frank waited at the podium for a table. When the hostess started to seat them in another section, Frank shook his head and pointed at a table directly in front of Joshua.

  Joshua sighed.

  Nathan looked up. “So much for a nice quiet meal.”

  Sara frowned, but before she could ask, the server came to deliver their food.

  Frank continued standing as his party scooted in to the booth. As Joshua’s server walked past, carrying a heavy tray of plates and glasses, he leaned in to the aisle and bumped her, making her lose control of the tray. Joshua jumped up. He managed to save the plates. Only a coke tipped over and spilled on Joshua.

  Without an apology, Frank took his seat, facing Joshua.

  The waitress said, “Oh, I’m so sorry.”

  Joshua mopped up the spill. “Don’t worry about it. It wasn’t your fault. See good as new. No harm done.” He looked up to see Frank smirking at him.

  Sara and Rachel, having no idea who caused the accident, began eating and talking.

  Nathan leaned in to Joshua and said quietly, “I told you. He’s never going to let this go.”

  “Good. I’d love another go at him,” Joshua said under his breath, giving Sara his best innocent look in case she heard him.

  “What are you two whispering about?” She asked.

  “Just sharing beauty secrets,” he quipped. “Nathan’s been telling me about this great new shaving cream he found.” She threw a French fry at him. He caught it, dipped it in ketchup, and offered it back to her. They all laughed. When Joshua looked up again, Frank had the scowl back in place. They finished their meal and left.

  Joshua took Sara back to her house and he went home to change. His grandfather was in his study. They hadn’t had much time to talk this morning before Joshua left other than to agree that Joshua could extend the invitation to Sara and Helen to come over for drinks. Joshua stopped in the study and after getting his grandfather‘s attention, said, “Grandfather, I think I should prepare you for this evening.”

  Joseph smiled. “Why, are you afraid I’ll embarrass you in front of your girlfriend?”

  �
��Of course not, it’s just that I wanted you to know that Dr. Whiting knew Uncle Harry. She actually fainted when she saw me, thinking I was him. Sara believes she was in love with him. She may be coming to ask you questions about him.”

  “Oh . . . I’m glad you told me. I haven’t talked about Harry in a long time.” He sat with his head down for a moment. “Don’t worry, Josh. I don’t really mind talking about Harry. It’s just been a long time since I met anyone who knew him.”

  Joshua used his grandfather’s car to pick up Sara and Dr. Whiting. Once the introductions were over, Mrs. Stewart brought in drinks for everyone. Helen and Joseph talked about their work and various people that they knew in common.

  Finally, Helen could contain her curiosity no longer. Seated in one of the chairs, she looked up at Joseph standing by the fireplace. “Joshua tells me that you had a brother named Harry.”

  Joseph set his drink on the mantle. “Yes, he was a couple of years younger than me.”

  “I think I may have known your brother. I can’t be sure because he never told me anything about his family. Joshua tells me you said he looks like your brother. I have to admit the resemblance to the man I knew startled me.”

  “How well did you know him?”

  “We dated for about six months in 1968 and then I never saw him again. He refused to talk about himself. The only thing I can really tell you is that he played the piano beautifully,” she said looking down at the drink in her hands.

  Joseph nodded. “That sounds like Harry. My brother was a gifted pianist. He studied at Julliard for two years. Everyone was sure that he would go on to become a premier concert pianist. During his second year, our parents were killed in a car accident. At the beginning of his third year, he simply dropped out. He refused to talk about it to anyone. Naturally, I assumed he was just grieving. I figured that after a period of time, he would get over it and go back to school, but he never did.”

  Sara, sitting next to Helen on the couch, asked, “Were you close?”