by David Wood
“Tree? You mean the tree Wesley blew up?” He had seen it happen from a distance. The reckless soldier had gone barreling in to the fray, not even thinking, and started blowing up everything in sight.
“Yes.” The fellow was either too smart or too frightened to look triumphant. “It’s gone.”
Kennedy thought hard. Had he lost all his men for nothing? There had to be an answer. “Can they plant a new one?” Once again, the truth was in the man’s eyes, and he didn’t try to deny it. “What do they have? Cuttings? A seed?”
“The seed is in the temple, in an urn on the altar.”
“Show me.” Kennedy yanked his knife hand free from the man’s tiring grip, stood, and hauled him to his feet. “Don’t make a sound. If we see someone, we hide. Don’t you do anything, anything to rat me out. I can spill your guts and be gone in an instant, and you’ll die slowly and painfully for nothing. Got me?”
The man nodded, turned, and guided them back down the path, Kennedy holding on to his shirt tail. They reached the pyramid without incident, and the man led him up a sloping tunnel, then down a steeper one. He wondered if he was being led into a trap, but how could one have been set?
He spotted the urn the moment they stepped into the gloomy temple.
A brown-haired woman with olive skin knelt before the altar. At the sound of their entry, she turned and her eyes went wide with shock. “Brian,” she gasped. “What has happened?”
“Miri, I…”
“Don’t say another word, or you both die!” Kennedy might just kill them anyway. He’d had more than his fill tonight. “Is this the urn?” The man, Brian, nodded, and Kennedy gave him a shove that sent him sprawling on the ground at the woman’s feet. She knelt beside him, scowling at Kennedy and taking Brian in her encircling arms like a mother bear protecting her cub.
Kennedy mounted the steps to the altar, reversed his KA-BAR, and brought it down hard. Miri cried out as the urn shattered. Fishing through the shards, he pulled out a large, grayish seed. He held it up in the lamplight to get a closer look.
“That is not…” the woman began. Too late, Brian clapped a hand over her mouth.
“What do you mean?” Kennedy formed each word like a death sentence, because that’s exactly what it was—Brian’s death sentence.
The woman shoved Brian’s hand away, and they both clambered to their feet and backed away. “That is not the seed,” she whimpered. “That man must have taken it. The one from outside.”
“Dane Maddock?” The name was a curse on Kennedy’s lips. He leapt down and stalked the pair as they backed around the altar.
“I suppose so. He and his friends took the seed and left through the door. Look back here!”
“Miri! No!” Brian’s words fell on deaf ears as Miri ran to the altar, pressed something, and a hidden door swung open.
“This is the way out,” she said. “It will take you under the land of the Mot’jabbur. The dead warriors. You will not have to pass through their lands this way.”
Kennedy’s eyes narrowed. What if this was a trick? Maybe she had just opened the door to a pit like the one that had taken the life of one his guides just two days before. Then again, why would you build a death trap into the back of an altar?
Kennedy leaped forward, grabbed the woman by the wrist, and yanked her to him. “Tell you what, lady. You go first and show me the way.” She screamed and clawed at his arm, trying to get loose.
“No!” Brian yelled. “Take me! I’ll show you the way.” He started babbling, explaining how he had stolen the seed, replaced it with a fake, and given the real one to Maddock. He even described the woven grass pouch in which he’d placed the seed.
Kennedy was seriously considering killing him just to shut him up when a roar filled the temple, and he whirled to see a burly man with brown hair and a short beard bearing down on him, holding an ancient sword aloft. This was Hamilcar, the one who had chased him earlier. Kennedy owed him. He turned and charged.
Hamilcar’s sword sliced through empty air as Kennedy dodged to his left and delivered a swift kick to the man’s foreleg. The man was sturdily built, though, and the kick didn’t faze him. Hamilcar was also faster than Kennedy expected, and his backhanded swipe nearly opened Kennedy’s throat, but the miss left him vulnerable. Seeing the opening, Kennedy struck, and his KA-BAR opened a gash in Hamilcar’s side.
Hamilcar didn’t even wince, but took a step back and resumed his attack. The Bronze Age sword was no more than two feet long, but that still gave Hamilcar a decided reach advantage over Kennedy with his knife. Kennedy parried a thrust and danced to the side, looking for an opening.
Something flew through the air, just missing his head. Brian was atop the altar, hurling pieces of the broken urn at Kennedy’s head as fast as he could.
The distraction was almost the death of him. Hamilcar aimed a vicious thrust for his heart, but Kennedy spun at the last second. The sword whistled past him. Hamilcar had overextended his attack, and before he could draw back, Kennedy lashed out with his KA-BAR, going for the throat. Hamilcar ducked, and the blade caught him on the crown of his head, nearly taking his scalp. He roared in pain and swung his sword at Kennedy’s legs. Kennedy sprang back and crouched, ready to finish it, when a half-dozen armed men burst out of the passageway and through the antechamber.
Out of options, Kennedy turned and ran for the trapdoor.
Chapter 32
The passage spiraled downward as if a giant had twisted a corkscrew into the ground. Maddock walked hunched over, one hand on the wall, the other on the cold stone above, until the ceiling was finally high enough that he could stand. Deeper into the darkness he went, with every step seeming to heap a greater weight upon him. Two thousand year-old passageways didn’t inspire confidence, but he reminded himself this place had stood for this long. Why shouldn’t it last a bit longer? He soon caught up with the others, and was pleased to see Matt had held on to his flashlight.
“You didn’t think to snag a few of those for the rest of us?” Maddock joked.
“Nope. You were all guns and munchies, so that’s what I got for the rest of you. Besides, we were sort of in a hurry.” Matt let the light play around the sloping passage. The stonework was solid, with every block fitted together with precision.
Breathing easier now, Maddock checked on Willis and Tam, both of whom insisted they were fine, though Willis was keeping one hand on the wall and moving slowly.
“What’s supposed to be down here?” Bones asked. “Jimmy Hoffa?”
“A subterranean river. We follow it, and it will take us to a canyon close to the lagoon where we left the boats. This way, we won’t have to fight our way through the Mot’jabbur.”
“Sweet!” Bones clapped him on the shoulder. “Looks like things are finally going our way. In fact,” he cocked his head to the side, “I think I hear the river up ahead.”
Maddock listened intently, and could just make out the whisper of water running over rocks. “Great. Now, let’s take stock. What do we have in the way of weapons and provisions?”
“I have my flashlight!” Matt replied. “But you already knew that.”
Willis still had his Mossberg, but was running low on ammunition, and everyone except Tam still carried a side arm. If they did manage to avoid the Mot’jabbur, they should be okay. Food was in short supply. Everyone carried a pack with a few freeze dried meals and a canteen. They would try to supplement along the way back, but there was no reason they couldn’t make it back to what passed for civilization in these parts on what they had, though they’d all probably be a few pounds lighter when they arrived. The worst part would be listening to Bones complain, but it would hardly be the first time.
The passageway came to an abrupt end at a rock ledge that jutted out into the swift-moving water. Matt directed his light downstream. Stalactites dangled from the ceiling like sinister chandeliers, waiting to fall on unsuspecting travelers.
“So, do we swim it?” Tam pursed her lips,
looking doubtfully at the dark water.
“We can take off our pants and make flotation devices out of them.” Bones sounded eager. “Ladies first!”
“You couldn’t handle it, sweetie,” Tam said. “Not in a million years.”
Something in the corner of his eye caught Maddock’s attention. “Matt, turn your light this way.” Leaning against the wall, just a few feet upstream from where they stood, was a raft.
“A two thousand year-old raft from Carthage? No thank you,” Bones scoffed. “I say we put my ‘no pants’ idea to a vote. Who’s with me?”
Maddock and Matt took a closer look and were surprised by what they found.
“This thing is new.” Matt rapped on the logs and tested the vines which bound it together. “I wonder who put it here and why?”
Maddock knew in an instant. “It was Fawcett. He was the one who told me about this place.”
“How do you think he got it down here without them noticing?” This was the first thing Kaylin had said since leaving the temple.
“I got the impression he has someone, maybe a girlfriend, in the temple priesthood. I suppose she could have let him slip a few things down here at a time. It wouldn’t have taken much.”
“Look here, Maddock!” Matt knelt and looked behind the raft. “There’s a basket of food here: nuts, dried fruit and meat. There’s even a gourd for water. You don’t think…” He looked up at Maddock.
“He was planning on leaving.” The full impact of what Fawcett had done for them hit him hard. Fawcett had been preparing for his escape, was possibly even planning on taking his priestess girlfriend with him, but he had given it up so they could get away.
“We’d better not let his sacrifice go for nothing, then.” Kaylin’s voice was husky with emotion, but her resolve was clear. “Let’s get out of this place.”
The raft could not bear everyone’s weight, so Maddock and Bones handed their guns over to the others for safe-keeping, and swam behind, holding on to the back. The water was frigid and Maddock immediately missed his diving suit.
“Dude, I am never going to be able to have kids after this,” Bones said. “Matt, we’re trading places in a few!”
“Can’t. Somebody has to hold this flashlight.”
Maddock laughed. “Bones, you don’t want to have kids anyway.”
“I don’t know. Heck, I might already have kids scattered all over the world. Who can say? Lots of little Bones running around.”
“Stirrups,” Tam said absently.
“Say what?” Bones looked at her like she was crazy.
“The stirrup is the smallest bone in the human body. You know, ‘lots of little Bones…’”
Bones grimaced. “Science hurts my head. Of course, I’m not feeling any other pain thanks to this ice water. I might not feel anything ever again.”
“Do us all a favor,” Maddock said, “and stick your mouth in the water until it’s numb.”
Everyone, including Kaylin, laughed, and they relaxed as the current swept them along. They shared some of the food Matt had found, and as the distance between them and Kephises increased, their spirits rose in turn. Soon, they were laughing as they ducked low-hanging stalactites and the miles swept away behind them.
It was difficult to track the passage of time, but Maddock knew they were making much better time floating down this river than they had hiking through the jungle. He assumed they had to be getting close to their destination.
“Um, Maddock,” Matt called. “Do you see what I see?”
Maddock peered up over the raft and saw a faint glow in the distance.
“We must be getting close to the end. Cool!” It would be a relief to get out of this cold water and onto dry ground.”
“That’s not what I’m talking about!” Matt’s voice rose as he called out. “Look in front of us!”
At first, Maddock saw nothing but low-hanging stalactites shrouded in gray mist. Then he realized that the sound of the river had been growing progressively louder for some time now. He raised up a little higher to get a better look.
“Aw, hell!” Willis exclaimed. “Waterfall!”
Thirty feet ahead and closing fast, the river poured out over a rock shelf and tumbled into a void. There was no way they could all leap from the raft to the rock shelf—the water was moving too fast.
Maddock and Bones grabbed hold of the vines that knotted the raft together and began kicking furiously, trying in vain to swim against the current and arrest the raft’s momentum. Tam and Willis both began paddling backward on the same side, almost upending the craft.
“It’s not going to work!” Maddock looked all around, but the walls were worn smooth by the passage of water and time. There was nowhere to get a handhold. And then he looked up. “Grab a stalactite!”
Everyone looked at him as if he was crazy, but then understanding dawned on Willis’s face. He reached up and grabbed hold of the closest one.
It broke off in his hand.
“Damn!” Willis tossed the stalactite aside and reached for another, but by this time, Matt had stood and wrapped his arms around the biggest stalactite he could reach. The raft pivoted under his feet and Maddock and Bones were spun about so that they were now downstream of the craft, their feet precariously close to the edge of the fall.
“It’s going out from under me!” Matt shouted, still hanging on. By this time, Willis had gained his feet and found two handholds. He stood, arms spread apart, holding on for dear life.
“You look like Samson!” Bones shouted. How he could still make his wisecracks at a time like this was beyond Maddock.
“Let’s hope for a better outcome than that story.” Tam grunted, struggling to find a handhold of her own without tipping the raft.
“Bones, can you at least be serious when we’re feet from going over a waterfall?” Maddock was working his way to the corner of the raft, which would put him close to the rock shelf, but still not close enough to reach. “Okay,” he called to the others on the raft. “We need to start working the raft over to one side. Willis, can you reach a little to your left and grab that next one?” Willis nodded and shifted his grip. The raft wobbled as he reached out, but didn’t tip. One at a time, each person on the raft took hold of a new stalactite and, on Maddock’s command, pulled. The raft inched closer to the side.
“Again!” Maddock shouted. He was holding on, still kicking for all he was worth, but he could feel the water inching him closer to the edge. The moments seemed to melt into hours as they hauled the raft ever closer to the edge.
Finally, the raft struck the side and Maddock scrambled out onto the ledge. He hauled Bones up, and the two of them helped Kaylin and Tam to safety. Now only Matt and Willis remained.
“You first!” Matt shouted.
“Naw, man. I’m closest to the edge. You’d never make it over.”
“But you’ve got the hurt leg.”
“Just go, and make it fast. And when you get off this thing, get the hell out of my way.” Willis took a deep breath and tightened his grip. Veins bulged in his neck and cords of muscle on his powerful arms rippled in the half-light under a sheen of sweat and mist as he held the raft in place against the powerful current.
Matt took two steps, leaped, and rolled as he landed, clearing the way for Willis, from under whom the raft was already moving.
Willis let go, bent his legs, getting his balance, and, as the raft came even with the rock shelf, jumped. The wobbly foundation of the moving raft, plus his injured leg, betrayed him, and his leap fell short. He hit the water inches short of the ledge and was swept downstream.
Maddock leaped and caught Willis’s wrist. His wet skin was hard to hold on to, but Maddock maintained his grip as the heavier man pulled him down toward the edge of the waterfall. Maddock tried to dig in with his feet in order to arrest his slide, but he found no purchase on the smooth stone.
Then he felt strong hands grasp him by the legs, holding him fast. Matt stepped over him and hauled Will
is up out of the water.
“You don’t have to do everything by yourself, Maddock.” Bones stood and helped Maddock up.
“Like I’d be anywhere without you guys.” He took a moment to assess their situation. No one was hurt. They had lost his and Bones’s backpacks, the basket of food, and Willis’s Mossberg.
“There goes our raft.” Kaylin pointed down to where the river flowed across the subterranean chamber in which they stood, dropping out of sight at the other end, continuing its descent to places unknown. Pieces of the shattered raft bobbed in the churning water, carried away by the current.
“That’s okay. We don’t need it anymore.” Maddock pointed to a spot on the far side of the chamber, where a shaft of light shone through the mist. “We’ve found the way out.”
The climb down was an easy one, save for Willis, but he managed. They picked their way across the stone, buoyed by the promise of daylight and warmth.
Bones crinkled his nose. “You smell that?” He sniffed and frowned. “It’s like a pole cat or something.”
He was right. There was an unpleasant odor in the air, faint, but definitely that of an animal. “Could be anything. All sorts of creatures in the Amazon.”
“Can’t be any worse than what we’ve already bumped into.” Bones grinned. “It’s not a zombie native smell, so I’m game for whatever we find.”
The morning sun was a blessed relief to Maddock’s waterlogged body, and he soaked in its warmth with a smile on his face. As Fawcett had described, they were in a high-walled box canyon. Kapok trees towered above a forest of palm, Brazil nut, and other trees he couldn’t identify. All around, he heard the calls of bird as they welcomed the break of day.
“Now this is nice.” Kaylin managed a weak grin. All they had been through was taking its toll on her, even more so than anyone except Willis, who, despite his brave exterior, looked like he was about to drop. A blue macaw landed in a nearby tree and turned its head to look at them in curiosity.
“How about we find a place to rest for a few hours?” Maddock suggested. No one looked at Willis, but they all knew why he made the suggestion.
