Arkana Archaeology Mystery Box Set 2

by N. S. Wikarski

  “What are your orders, scion?” Matthew asked stonily.

  Daniel assessed the impossible situation. If his men fired on the Arkana, their security team would shoot the Nephilim. He had to pick a side, and he had to do it now.

  “Your orders, scion,” Matthew prompted again.

  Daniel stared incredulously at the security chief. “How can you even ask me that question, Commander Matthew? You witnessed the judgment of God with your very own eyes. The Lord struck my father down for his many crimes. Would you compound his folly by slaughtering even more innocents?”

  “They are Fallen,” the Argus chief protested.

  “They are human beings!” Daniel retorted. “If you persist in living by the sword, you will surely suffer the same fate as Father Abraham. Tell your men to lower their weapons. Immediately!”

  Matthew nodded slowly and gave a signal to his men to stand down.

  “I am no longer your scion,” Daniel told them. “I am your new diviner, and you will do as I say. Go back to the helicopter and wait for me there.”

  With chastened expressions, they marched down the hill to their aircraft.

  Daniel next focused on the Arkana group who continued to eye him warily. Their own sentries still held guns trained on him, but the new diviner was too drained to feel afraid.

  “I’m sorry about your dad,” Cassie offered. “Even if he did try to kill me.”

  Daniel regarded her bleakly. “I feel nothing for the man entombed inside this mountain. I can only mourn the loss of a father I never had.” His gaze slid to the Gladstone bag clutched in Maddie’s hand. “Abraham Metcalf’s one true love was power. He gave his whole heart to that collection of trash you’re holding. I never want to lay eyes on any of it again.” He abruptly turned his back and went to rejoin his subordinates.

  ***

  The Arkana group watched their enemies fly away. Nobody spoke as they filed into their own transport with Maddie and Cassie bringing up the rear.

  As Cassie was about to ascend, Maddie laid a hand on her arm. “You did good, kiddo. The Nephilim fell for it completely.”

  The pythia paused and faced the chatelaine. “I don’t mind lying to the bad guys, but I hate lying to my friends. At some point, we have to tell Daniel that nothing he saw was real.”

  “Agreed.” Maddie nodded. “At some point but not right now. This day has already been long enough, and it’s only noon.”

  Cassie gazed off pensively toward the seide stone. “It’s funny that Metcalf would be the one to insist it was all an illusion.”

  The chatelaine gave a short laugh. “Not the illusion he had in mind, but the diviner actually divined the truth for once.”

  They exchanged a rueful glance before climbing aboard the helicopter.

  As soon as the two were settled, the aircraft lifted off cleanly and rose above the crest of the mountain. Erik and Lars administered first aid to Griffin’s injury which turned out to be less serious than they’d all feared. Hannah and Zach clung to one another, seeking mute reassurance that their nightmare was really over.

  The pilot came on the intercom, interrupting their torpid silence. “Maddie, a message just came through for you from the vault. The memory guardian is awake. She wants to know where everybody is.”

  Chapter 53—The Last Detail

  An Arkana agent named Darryl leaned back in his chair and rubbed his bloodshot eyes. He glanced up at the clock on the wall. It was six in the morning. He’d been at his desk for the past twenty hours straight—ever since the first urgent call came through from Tokyo at dawn. Of course, the local time in Chicago had only been mid-afternoon of the previous day. From that moment, the vault security division had worked feverishly to log in captures and coordinate the activities of its teams in the remaining strike zones.

  “That was the last one.” An agent named Hector announced from the next cubicle. “The final Argus agent was intercepted before he got to the Atlanta airport. We did it! We snagged all one hundred and fifty canisters.”

  Cheers rose from the exhausted office staff.

  Darryl let out a sigh of relief and put his head down on his desk.

  The security director strode into the room. “Good work, folks. Those Argus agents never knew what hit them. Everybody go home and get some rest. As of this moment, you’re all off the clock.”

  “I’m outta here.” Darryl rose to leave.

  “Hang on,” the security director laid a hand on his shoulder. “I have one more assignment for you and Hector.”

  ***

  “This is crazy,” Darryl protested as he descended the steps of the schoolhouse.

  “Orders is orders, man,” Hector reminded him laconically.

  “I don’t know what we’ve got to worry about,” Darryl countered. “All the weaponized plague has been bagged. The world is safe, at least from the Nephilim. So, I don’t understand why we have to go out and patrol our own backyard. The vault was never on their hit list to begin with. I’ll bet the Nephilim didn’t even know about this location.”

  “I don’t care,” Hector asserted. “The memory guardian said we should do this.”

  “And that’s another thing. Faye wakes up from her coma, and the first thing she says is ‘check the grounds around the schoolhouse’?”

  “Maybe there really is something out there.”

  “And maybe she’s still got a concussion from that fall down the stairs!”

  “Look, she didn’t get to be memory guardian because she’s got an overactive imagination.”

  Darryl groaned. “I’m just saying somebody should clear this with Maddie.”

  “We can’t clear this with Maddie,” Hector pointed out. “She’s stranded on a mountain in Sweden with the rest of the A-Team. They’re in a dead zone, and nobody’s been able to reach them for hours. So, I think we should do like Faye wants and sweep the perimeter.”

  “For what exactly?”

  “Beats me.

  “I still say it’s a concussion.”

  Both agents checked their pistol magazines and headed off into the woods.

  ***

  Brothers Shem and Paul crept through the thicket surrounding the schoolhouse. The dawn sky was already too bright to provide much cover. Both men wore camo fatigues to better blend into the woodland setting while they searched for the exact location of their target. They carefully scanned the ground around them.

  “Are you sure this is the right place?” Shem scratched his head.

  “Yes,” Paul answered confidently. “Leroy Hunt gave the diviner the exact coordinates. There should be an air intake vent close by.”

  They combed the ground carefully, seeing nothing in the underbrush until Shem tripped over the object they were searching for—a wide metal pipe protruding three feet from the earth with its top curved downward like a faucet. The two men crouched beside it.

  “It has a grille covering the vent,” Shem observed. “We’ll have to take it off.”

  “I don’t think so.” Paul took a few moments to study the design. “The opening is big enough.” He removed his backpack and began sorting through its contents.

  “We’re very lucky the diviner trusted us with a task as important as this,” Shem said. “After what we almost did.”

  “Thank God, we repented in time,” Paul agreed. “Killing the diviner, his favorite wife, and the scion are crimes which the Lord would never forgive. It’s too bad our traitor-brothers died in their sins. Even though everybody says that Enoch and Lemuel were banished, I know better. They were executed just like Brother Joshua, who is surely burning in hell right now.”

  “He should be, for leading us astray. It’s a wonder we weren’t condemned too.”

  “We will be if we fail in this mission,” Paul cautioned. “This is our only chance to make amends.” He went back to pulling objects from his pack.

  Shem watched the operation, periodically turning to scan the woods for
any sign of human activity.

  “We’re ready,” Paul announced. He held up a metal canister of pressurized gas and then fitted a long segment of flexible plastic tubing to the nozzle.

  “How many people do you think are down there?” Shem asked, inclining his head toward the air vent.

  “In the bunker below?” Paul shrugged. “Who can say? It’s enough to know that they’re enemies of the Nephilim. Enough to know that the diviner wants them dead. He said this canister holds ten times as much plague as was entrusted to our brothers around the world. It might take days for the toxin to spread, but it’s certain to kill everybody in this underground lair. Now help me feed this tubing through the vent cover. We need to lower it deep into the air ducts for maximum effect.”

  Threading the tubing through the narrow gaps in the grille proved more time-consuming than expected. Both men became completely focused on the task. They were deaf to everything else until Shem heard a twig crack behind him. By then, it was already too late.

  ***

  Hector and Darryl studied the unconscious men lying at their feet.

  Hector stooped down to collect the tubing and canister. “Good thing we got here when we did. They were on the point of dispensing the gas.”

  He handed the canister to Darryl. “Why don’t you run this back to the vault? I’ll keep watch over our sleeping beauties.”

  “And then what?”

  “We toss these two into my truck and drop them off near their compound gates. After they wake up, they can walk the rest of the way home.”

  Hector glanced at his fellow agent. “So, you think Faye’s still got a concussion?”

  “Nope.” Darryl loped off to deposit the final plague canister into storage.

  Chapter 54—Back to the Garden

  Hannah parted the drapes in the front parlor and spied a sedan parked in the driveway. Its three occupants were ascending the porch stairs. “She’s here!” she called out excitedly. “Everybody, Granny Faye is here!”

  Griffin, Cassie, and Erik hurried to take up positions near the door. Hannah pulled it open to reveal Faye flanked by Zach and Maddie.

  “Welcome home!” everyone shouted in unison.

  The memory guardian’s hand flew to her heart. “Goodness gracious.”

  “Are you trying to give Gamma a heart attack?” Zach accused. “For crying out loud, she just came out of a coma.”

  “Zachary, it’s quite all right.” Faye scanned the room and its occupants, her eyes twinkling. “It’s so good to be home again. Of course, I would have preferred to return right after I woke up but the doctors insisted on another week in the infirmary. Better late than never, I suppose.”

  Zach and Maddie stepped back, trading conspiratorial smiles. Faye extended her arms, and the other four rushed forward for a group hug.

  “We’re so happy to have you back with us,” Griffin said.

  “Ditto,” agreed Erik.

  “And you don’t have to lift a finger at your party,” Cassie added. “We did all the cooking for a change.”

  They led her towards the kitchen.

  “Really?” Faye sounded mildly incredulous. “Did everything... er... turn out all right?”

  “We didn’t burn the house down if that’s what you mean,” the paladin reassured her.

  “Although you came quite close when you nearly set fire to the yard,” Griffin reminded him. “Grill master, indeed!”

  “Hannah supervised us,” the pythia said. “We might be expert artifact hunters, but none of us knows our way around a kitchen like she does.”

  “Everything is set up in the garden.” Griffin held open the back screen door. “Step this way, if you please, and we’ll do the rest.”

  “The pie!” Hannah scurried off in a panic to check the oven.

  Erik and Griffin guided Faye to the place of honor. They’d set up the picnic table, so she could sit at the end directly beneath her beloved wisteria pergola. The table was already spread with summer salads, grilled spare ribs, corn on the cob, and pitchers of iced tea and lemonade.

  The pythia registered dismay. “I forgot the cole slaw.” She dashed back inside the house.

  Hannah was pulling a cherry pie out of the oven and setting it on a rack to cool just as the doorbell rang.

  “I’ll get it,” Cassie offered, running to the front of the house.

  Three more guests stood on the porch.

  “Hi! C’mon in.” She motioned them into the parlor.

  “After everything that’s happened, I wasn’t sure we’d be welcome here,” Daniel demurred.

  “I invited you, didn’t I?”

  Daniel’s companion extended his hand. “You must be the fabulous Cassie.” He smiled, revealing a row of perfect teeth.

  “I am all that.” She laughed. “And you must be the equally awesome Chris.”

  “She’s a great judge of character,” the librarian said to Daniel. “I like her already.”

  The pythia focused on the child standing between the men. “And who might this be?”

  The girl took a step back, daunted by the question.

  “My daughter Sarah,” Daniel explained. “I want her to get used to the outside world.”

  “After the party, we’re taking her clothes shopping,” Chris added.

  Cassie scrutinized the gray smock the five-year-old was wearing. “And just in the nick of time.”

  “Tell me about it.” Chris shook his head. “Abraham Metcalf spawned an entire generation of fashion victims just like her. He truly was evil.”

  “Is Hannah here?” Daniel searched the room. “Sarah is a bit shy, but she knows Hannah. It might make her feel at ease to see a familiar face.”

  “Oh, of course. Right this way.”

  Cassie ushered them into the kitchen where Hannah was in the process of untying her apron.

  At the sight of her, Sarah cried, “Sister Hannah!” and rushed forward.

  “Oh, my goodness. I haven’t seen you in such a long time.” Hannah crouched down to hug her.

  Sarah gravely studied Hannah’s short hair and Fallen attire. “You look different.”

  “And if my Bloomingdale’s charge has anything to say about it, Sarah will look different too in a few hours,” Chris whispered to Cassie.

  “I’m still the same old me,” Hannah reassured the child. “And to prove it, I just might have an oatmeal cookie for a special little girl.” She glanced up at Daniel for permission.

  He nodded. “I don’t think one cookie will spoil her appetite.”

  “Why don’t you two come out into the garden while Hannah plies Sarah with sweets,” Cassie suggested.

  The pythia and her guests squeezed past Hannah with Sarah grafted to her waist—the child’s eyes glued to the cookie jar.

  The trio made their way across the yard which was a beehive of activity.

  Maddie was seated to Faye’s left, giving her the highlights of what she’d missed during her coma. Erik was at the grill tending a rack of ribs. Zach was bringing folding chairs from the shed while Griffin was setting up a card table as an extension of the picnic table.

  “Time to get everyone acquainted.” Cassie stepped forward to perform introductions.

  Once greetings had been exchanged, the pythia seated Chris and Daniel on the bench beside Maddie and poured them both glasses of iced tea.

  At that moment, Hannah and Sarah emerged from the kitchen.

  Cassie ran forward to take the bowl Hannah held out to her. “The cole slaw! I can’t believe I forgot it twice.” She promptly thumped the elusive salad down with the rest of the food.

  Hannah and Zach lifted Sarah into the chair between them at the folding table.

  “I’m seventeen, I just helped save the world, and I still get stuck at the kiddie table,” the tyro complained.

  “With me, Zachary,” Hannah said pointedly as she took her place. “You’re sitting at the kiddie table with me.
”

  “Oh, yeah.” He smiled sheepishly at his gaffe. “Best seats in the house.”

  Erik shut down the grill and laid another platter of ribs on the groaning board before seating himself to Faye’s right.

  Griffin took the middle spot on the bench next to Erik, leaving room for Cassie on the end.

  The pythia assessed the offerings to make sure nothing had been forgotten. Giving a nod of satisfaction, she sat down and announced, “That’s it. Everybody dig in.”

  The assembled guests required no coaxing, and for several minutes nobody spoke as a flurry of hands passed plates and bowls around the table. They made small talk for much of the meal, commenting on the various dishes, the warm summer weather, and other bland topics. When Daniel asked about Lars, he was informed that the guide would be coming to the States for the Concordance ceremony honoring all the Arkana personnel who had helped prevent doomsday. While the adults conversed, Sarah contentedly ate her food and watched all the oddly-dressed people surrounding her.

  “Zach, I must say, my flower garden looks splendid.” Faye couldn’t keep a note of wonder out of her voice.

  The teenager shrugged. “I wasn’t going to let everything fall apart just because you were napping. I knew you’d come back eventually.”

  His ancestor smiled warmly. “Thank you for your unwavering faith in that favorable outcome.”

  Daniel squirmed in his seat, apparently recalling that the Nephilim were responsible for Faye’s injury.

  As if sensing his discomfort, the memory guardian smoothly changed the subject. “And how are the Nephilim faring under your leadership, Daniel?”

  “It’s an uphill battle,” Chris answered on his behalf.