The Mask of Destiny

by Richard Newsome

  Gerald smirked. ‘You’re evil, you know that?’

  ‘Only when I’m pushed,’ Ruby said evenly.

  They rounded a bend and the valley opened up, revealing a sight that stopped them in their tracks. Sam finally caught up with them.

  ‘What’s with the route march?’ he puffed. ‘Where are—’ He stopped mid-sentence.

  They stared down at an ancient ruin on a broad terrace beneath the ridge.

  It was a rotunda, set on a platform with three steps encircling it. Three of the building’s towering columns were intact; the rest were broken stubs that marked out the perimeter, like a mouthful of busted teeth.

  Gerald couldn’t believe his eyes.

  ‘It’s exactly the same,’ he breathed. ‘Exactly the same as the burial chamber under Beaconsfield.’

  Chapter 19

  They scrambled down the path towards the rotunda, shoes skidding over loose stones.

  Chunks of white marble were strewn across the grass like discarded toy blocks from the gods. Gerald jogged down a broad path of crushed stone, with the eerie sensation that it was a trail trodden hard by the feet of millions of pilgrims before him.

  Finally, they were at the base of the rotunda, staring up at the columns.

  ‘Just like Beaconsfield,’ Gerald said. ‘It’s in ruins, sure, but it’s exactly the same.’

  ‘Can’t you just see the Major and Mr Chesterfield walking up there,’ Ruby said, her voice a library hush. ‘Just before they…’ She didn’t finish the sentence. The vision of the two men being cut down in a volley of arrows was still fresh in her mind.

  ‘How can there be one of these buried under Beaconsfield and another one perched on a Greek mountainside?’ Sam said. ‘I mean, it’s not like they come flat-packed with an allen key. What’s the connection?’

  Gerald sat on a broken plinth and gazed up at the ruins. ‘I think when we can answer that, we can answer everything.’

  A dragonfly droned past Gerald’s ear and he took a distracted swipe at it. Ruby settled onto a boulder next to him. ‘So let’s go over what we know,’ she said. ‘Your great aunt left you a bunch of letters.’

  ‘Which the thin man stole from my bedroom in London and gave to Mason Green before I could read them,’ Gerald said.

  ‘Right. Now we know that one of the envelopes had the word Delphi written on the front.’

  ‘Yep.’

  ‘What was on the other ones?’

  ‘Um, Family Tree…’

  ‘Which Mason Green used to connect you with Quintus and his sons,’ Sam said.

  ‘…and Fraternity.’

  ‘Which was the brotherhood in India that swore to protect the emerald casket,’ Ruby said. ‘Both your family tree and the Fraternity are central to this mystery. So Delphi must be really important as well. Otherwise, why would Geraldine single it out? And why would Lucius carve it in stone as his dying act? This must be the place. Gerald, give me your backpack.’

  Ruby fished out the guidebook and flipped to a dog-eared page.

  ‘Look, here’s a map of Delphi,’ she said, holding the book up for Gerald. ‘This must be the road we followed out of town. We came around this bend, so down here must be—’

  ‘The Sanctuary of Athena,’ Sam said.

  Ruby and Gerald both looked up at him.

  ‘How did you know that?’ Ruby asked.

  Sam pointed to a block of stone by their feet. ‘It’s carved into the side of that thing,’ he said.

  Ruby exhaled and turned back to the guidebook. ‘Thank you, geography boy. Invaluable, as ever. Now, it says that this building was called the Tholos. It dates back to the fourth century BC.’

  ‘Wow,’ Gerald said. ‘Old.’

  ‘No one knows exactly what it was used for but it could have been a meeting place, or a burial chamber,’ Ruby said.

  ‘That makes sense,’ Gerald said. ‘Gaius was buried under the one at Beaconsfield. That’s where the professor found this ring.’ He held out his right hand and studied the gold band. Then he held out his other hand. ‘And this one was with Lucius in France.’

  Sam picked up a handful of pebbles and started tossing them into the undergrowth. ‘So the ring that Charlotte has round her neck must be from Marcus,’ he said. ‘From India.’

  ‘Of course,’ Gerald said. ‘It was Viridian, Mason Green’s ancestor, who killed Marcus, trying to find the emerald casket. He must have stolen it, and it’s been passed down through the family.’ Gerald closed his eyes and thought hard. ‘Three brothers. Three rings. Three caskets.’

  ‘And three golden rods,’ Sam said. ‘Do the rods somehow unlock the treasure of Delphi?’

  Gerald tilted his head back and took in the view. It was so tranquil. From nearby came the sound of water tumbling over rocks—a spring or underground stream perhaps? Stray cats warmed themselves on sun-baked stones. Wildflowers added sprays of purple and red to the marble white and blue sky. Gerald could see how Delphi had been the ancient world’s spiritual capital. It was a place ripe for contemplation.

  ‘Okay, how’s this for a theory,’ Gerald said. Sam and Ruby turned to him. ‘My ancestors were sent here on a secret mission by the emperor of Rome. That mission was to steal the greatest fortune ever amassed in the ancient world: the treasures of Delphi. But when Quintus and his sons get here they see just how vast the treasure is.’

  ‘What? And they decided to take it for themselves?’ Ruby said.

  ‘Do you remember what Green said to us outside the Rattigan Club? Greed can make people do strange things. And what did you say before, Ruby? The main street of Delphi was lined with banks brimming with gold and diamonds? That would tempt the strongest man. I think Sam’s right. Somehow, the three golden rods unlock the vault where the treasure is hidden.’

  ‘So if they had the golden rods, why didn’t they steal the loot and take off?’ Sam said.

  ‘Maybe it was just too much to haul away,’ Gerald said. ‘And maybe they didn’t trust each other.’

  ‘I bet that’s it,’ Ruby said. ‘They put the rods into three different caskets, and then gave each other a different key: a diamond, a ruby and an emerald. That way no one of them could open the vault, or whatever it is, without the other two being there. Then they split up.’

  ‘But why split up?’ Sam said. ‘That’s what I don’t understand.’

  ‘Maybe they’d agreed to meet back here at a set date and bring horse carts or whatever to haul the money away,’ Gerald said.

  ‘But wouldn’t they already have carts with them if they were going to steal it all for the emperor anyway?’ Sam said.

  Gerald rubbed his chin. ‘That’s a good point,’ he said. ‘I can’t answer that. But that’s the best theory I can come up with. And when the emperor learned that his loyal servants had decided to take the treasure for themselves, he sent an assassin after them.’

  ‘But what about the map in Green’s room at the Rattigan Club?’ Ruby said. ‘It showed three paths leaving from Rome.’

  ‘I think Green’s map was wrong. The brothers did take three separate journeys, but they went their separate ways from Delphi. Not from Rome. That letter from Quintus that Dr Serafini had at the Vatican showed they were all together when they left Rome for Brindisi. They were coming here.’

  Ruby picked up a stick and traced a pattern in the dirt. ‘I like it,’ she said. ‘It answers all the questions.’

  ‘So you’re descended from a bunch of thieves?’ Sam said to Gerald. Then he shrugged. ‘I suppose you did grow up in Australia.’

  Gerald smiled. ‘You know what they say: you can choose your friends but you can’t choose your relatives.’

  He stood up and dusted off his backside. ‘The three golden rods are the key. And for the first time since when—394AD?—they’re all together again. Charlotte has them and if she’s not here somewhere already she can’t be far away.’

  ‘Wherever she is,’ Sam said, throwing the last of the pebbles into the bush, ‘I don’t
plan on meeting her with an empty stomach. Let’s find something to eat.’

  Gerald pulled Ruby to her feet and they took a last look at the Sanctuary of Athena, then set off to the village to the sound of birdsong, cascading water and Sam’s rumbling stomach.

  Chapter 20

  ‘Would it kill you to wash?’

  A look of disgust spread across Ruby’s face like an oil slick as Sam and Gerald pulled on the same shirts they’d been wearing all week.

  ‘What’s the problem?’ Sam said, running his hands down his chest to flatten out the creases. ‘This look fine.’

  ‘It’s not the look I’m concerned about,’ Ruby said, wrinkling her nose. ‘You two really smell.’

  Sam stuck his nose under his armpit and sniffed. ‘Only to other people,’ he said.

  Ruby was dressed in a clean blue T-shirt and dark shorts that she had bought the night before. She had tied back her freshly washed hair and was stuffing dirty clothes into a laundry bag. ‘Nico’s aunt said she’d wash our clothes if we wanted. Last chance.’

  Gerald and Sam looked at each other and shrugged. Ruby let out a weary sigh. ‘I’m living with pigs.’

  ‘Don’t worry about it,’ Sam said. ‘It’s not like we can smell any worse.’

  Over a breakfast of olives, feta and bread they decided that a trip to the town’s museum might be useful.

  ‘A bit of local history could fill in some gaps,’ Ruby said.

  Gerald rocked back in his chair. This whole adventure had started in a history lesson back in Sydney two months earlier. He shook his head at the memory of the daydream in Mr Atkinson’s class—of fighting a shaggy giant who kept bellowing, Nothing is certain!

  Gerald stifled a laugh. He’d got that much right— nothing over the past two months had been even close to certain.

  They stepped out into the morning sun. The day was promising to be a scorcher. Before they got down half a dozen steps, Nico had scampered to join them.

  ‘I can show you the museum,’ he said. ‘I know all the old stories.’

  ‘I bet you do,’ Ruby said. ‘You’re quite the tour guide.’

  Nico gave an earnest nod. ‘Yes,’ he said. ‘I am.’

  Sam tapped the boy on the shoulder. ‘Hey Nico,’ he said. ‘Here’s another one for you? What’s a Grecian urn?’

  ‘I beg your pardon?’ Nico said.

  ‘What’s a Grecian urn?’ Sam asked again, his eyes sparkling.

  Nico raised and lowered a shoulder. ‘It is a large—’

  ‘About twenty pounds an hour!’ Sam slapped Nico across the shoulders and laughed.

  Nico didn’t miss a beat. ‘Agreed. That is what you will pay me for today’s tour.’

  Sam stopped laughing. ‘What? No, I didn’t mean—’

  ‘It is agreed,’ Nico said with a note of finality.

  ‘Twenty pounds an hour.’ He then strode ahead, towards the Sanctuary of Athena.

  ‘Looks like it’s your shout today, Sam.’ Gerald threw an arm over his friend’s shoulders. ‘Very good of you.’

  Sam’s confused expression stayed with him until they reached the museum. It was a modern structure on the high side of the road, built into the rocky cliff. The occupants of half a dozen tour coaches milled around the forecourt waiting for the museum to open.

  ‘There are many visitors today,’ Nico said. ‘It would be better to visit the ancient city first, then the museum.’

  ‘There’s an ancient city?’ Gerald said. ‘Not just the sanctuary that we saw yesterday?’

  ‘Of course,’ Nico said. ‘That is why the tourists are here.’ He paused for a second, studying Gerald closely. ‘Isn’t that why you are here?’

  Nico stared into Gerald’s eyes. Gerald could feel the gaze piercing his soul. He had to look away.

  ‘Of course,’ Gerald said. ‘Like you said—why else would we be here?’

  Nico looked at Gerald for a second longer, then he turned and led the way along a broad footpath beneath shady trees.

  ‘Does this kid ever smile?’ Gerald whispered to Ruby. He held back a few metres to let Sam catch up with Nico for his latest attempt at a joke.

  ‘He’s a curious one all right,’ Ruby said. ‘Why? You’re not suspicious of him, are you?’

  ‘No, I guess not,’ Gerald said. ‘He’s just a bit strange.’

  Ruby looked ahead at Nico and Sam. She grunted. ‘No stranger than most.’

  They stopped in a small clearing just inside the entrance gates and bought their tickets. Nico cleared his throat and pointed to a path leading up a steady slope. ‘The Sacred Way,’ he said. ‘This is where the pilgrims would walk to get to the Temple of Apollo.’

  ‘Who’s this Apollo, then?’ Sam said.

  Nico stared blankly at him. ‘Delphi is dedicated to Apollo. It was he who killed the giant python that lived in these rocks at the beginning of time. He was a god of many things: music, art, medicine. But mostly he was a sun god. He is usually shown with a bow and arrow. What is the word? Archer.’

  Gerald’s brain skipped a gear. ‘Did you say archer?’

  ‘Of course,’ Nico said. He pulled his ticket from his pocket and held it up. A colour illustration on the back showed an archer with his bow at full stretch against a blazing sun.

  Ruby yelped. ‘The Archer Corporation logo!’

  Gerald stared at the ticket in Nico’s hand. His great aunt had chosen a company logo with some history in mind.

  ‘Nico, was there some huge treasure here?’ Gerald asked. ‘Maybe hidden in the temple?’

  ‘Oh, there was a very big fortune here,’ he said. ‘But it wasn’t hidden.’

  ‘What do you mean it wasn’t hidden?’ Ruby said.

  ‘Come. I’ll show you.’ Nico started the climb up the Sacred Way. ‘Do you see the remains of all these buildings?’ Both sides of the path were lined with the foundations of ancient stone structures. ‘All of these were treasuries. Each from a different kingdom or region. They were filled with gold, jewels, pearls—untold wealth.’

  ‘Why would people send all that stuff here?’ Sam asked.

  ‘To thank Apollo. This is where kings and princes would come to have their questions answered. Should I invade this country? When should I plant my crops? They would send riches as a show of gratitude. And they wanted their gratitude to be known by all, so it was displayed in these treasuries for the pilgrims to see.’

  ‘So it was a status thing,’ Ruby said. ‘I’m richer and more powerful than you and here’s my mountain of diamonds to prove it.’

  ‘But what stopped people from stealing it all?’ Gerald said.

  Nico’s face grew dark. ‘No one would risk the wrath of Apollo,’ he said. ‘No matter how great the temptation.’

  ‘How does a Greek god respond to a question?’ Sam asked.

  ‘He does it with a helper,’ Nico said. ‘And he does it here.’

  They had reached a broad terrace halfway up the slope. High above them stood the remains of a vast amphitheatre. Rows of seating stepped up the hillside and looked back over the valley and the waters of the gulf. In front of them was a rectangular expanse of stonework, the foundations of a once-large building.

  ‘This was the Temple of Apollo,’ Nico said. ‘At one time, it was the most important place in the known world. This is where Apollo spoke to the mortals.’

  Sam stared at the broken columns and paving stones that marked out the boundary of the temple. ‘So was there a flash of lightning and a voice booming down from the clouds?’

  Nico frowned at Sam. ‘Have you not heard of the Pythia? Of the Oracle of Delphi?’

  Sam blinked back at him. ‘Should I have?’

  Nico’s frown deepened. ‘Apollo was the god of prophecy. He knew everything that would ever happen.’ He pointed to the far end of the temple. ‘The Oracle would bathe in the waters of the Castalian spring before going into a chamber beneath the temple. There, she would burn laurel leaves and breathe in the smoke. Pilgrims would ask her
questions and she would commune with Apollo, then pass on the answers.’

  ‘She?’ Ruby said. ‘The Oracle was a woman?’

  ‘Only women could be the Oracle,’ Nico said. ‘An unbroken chain of women for over a thousand years.’

  ‘So was she any good?’ Gerald asked.

  Nico shrugged. ‘The pilgrims heard what they wanted to hear.’ He jerked his thumb towards the boulevard of treasuries they had climbed past. ‘All of those were filled with gold and jewels. You don’t get that for disappointing people.’

  Gerald’s eyes traced the trail of buildings up to the temple steps. ‘She obviously knew how to play to the audience.’

  ‘It was one of the richest places on earth,’ Nico said.

  ‘But what happened to it all?’ Gerald asked. ‘What happened to Delphi?’

  ‘No one knows for sure, but they say the emperor in Rome was jealous of the Oracle’s influence. So around 400AD he sent out a squad of assassins to kill her and destroy the temple. The gold probably ended up back in Rome.’

  Gerald’s voice caught in is throat. ‘The emperor sent killers here?’

  Ruby put a hand on Gerald’s arm. ‘Quintus and his sons?’

  ‘My ancestors were a Roman hit squad?’ Gerald dropped down onto a boulder in the grass. ‘Nothing surprises me anymore.’

  Nico surveyed their faces and his brow furrowed. ‘Do you want to visit the museum now?’

  Gerald could barely muster the strength to stand. If the day’s heat wasn’t draining enough, the news that he was descended from killers wasn’t exactly putting a spring in his step. And not just ordinary killers—the Antonius boys had managed to end a thousand-year-old culture and tradition. The weight Gerald had felt wrapped around his shoulders since he’d inherited his great aunt’s fortune seemed to double as he plodded down the rocky path.

  He and Ruby walked in silence, following Sam and Nico towards the museum. Gerald scuffed his shoes through the leaves that littered the way.

  ‘Know what I think?’ Ruby said at last. Gerald didn’t respond, stuck in his fog of despair. ‘I think it doesn’t matter. Whatever happened here was a long time ago. You can’t be blamed for stuff that your ancestors did.’