CRO-MAGNON (42 page)

Calder said, “Why are you slicing below the boy’s Adam’s apple? If you cut higher—”

“
I’m taking his voice box, too. I want to study it.”

“
Wouldn’t you get a replica when you cloned him?”

“
At present, cloning is almost as much art as science,” Blaine said. “Although I’m an optimist, I can’t really be sure what I’ll get. Nor can I be certain the DNA didn’t undergo some deterioration before freezing.”

“
In other words, you may be decapitating the boy for naught.”

“
Nothing ventured . . .” Blaine bore down with the serrated blade. “Are you thinking about what we discussed?”

“
Bringing out all three heads?” Calder took another measurement. “I’m not sure Salomon and Teague will let us out of this valley in our own skins, to say nothing of a collection of human heads.”

“
I wasn’t planning on asking them.”

“
Not to mention what the Tajik government will do if Fitrat catches us. I don’t image their prisons are very nice. Maybe they just lop off a hand or something.”

Blaine continued to cut, the blade rasping through the boy’s frozen vertebrae. She’d get to the others this afternoon, if Fitrat or Teague didn’t thwart her.

#

Motoring back across the lake, Calder could see ice beginning to form around the shoreline. The outboard was again running rough. Watching Zinchenko fiddle with the controls, he wondered whether the camp master could keep the decrepit engine in service for their final dive. He’d pondered Caitlin’s desire to smuggle all three human heads, weighing pros and cons. What if her cockamamie scheme was actually doable, and he sank it?

He came to a decision and opened his mouth, but she spoke first.

“
Uh-oh. Fitrat.”

He felt the heft of a round hip as she turned toward the bow. Swiveling on the thwart, he saw the Tajik director of antiquities pacing by the steps to the work trailer. He could make out the tendril of smoke from her cigarillo, the puffs closely spaced.

“
She’s got her dander up,” he said. “She knows we’re doing something unauthorized.”

“
We need to hold her off for one more dive,” Blaine said.

“
Two,” Calder said.

“
But this is our final day.” She sounded puzzled.

“
There’s no way we can bring a sackful of human heads across the lake in broad daylight with Fitrat and Teague around. We’ll need to get Fedor to ferry us one more time after dark.”

“
We could leave them on the shore above the cave,” she said. “It’s plenty cold enough outside. Then we wouldn’t have to dive again.”

“
The shore is so steep that there’s only a thin covering of snow. There’s no way to secure the heads and hide them, unless we suspended them in the lake from the little flagpole. Is the water cold enough?”

“
I don’t know. I guess we’d better dive one more time.” She peered into his face, her blue eyes slitted against the splintered light coming off the lake. “You’ll do it, then?”

“
If we can, without jeopardizing our lives.” Calder glanced at Zinchenko, who was babying the controls. “Fedor will have to ferry us over on some pretext like checking the engine.”

The boat nudged the floating dock and the camp master cut the throttle.

“
Think he’ll agree?” Blaine said, climbing out and leaning to steady the gunnel.

“
If he won’t, we’ll have to row ourselves in order to avoid noise.” Calder clambered ashore. “And hope nobody misses the boat.”

As they approached the cabin, Fitrat stepped into their path.

“
We must talk.”

“
We’re pretty busy, Gulnaz.” Calder made to edge around her, but she moved to block him.

“
I told you before, you will address me by my proper name, ‘Ms. Fitrat.’”

“
Just trying to be friendly,” he said.

Still edging forward, he watched Zinchenko enter his trailer. He knew Teague must be in there. He wondered how much Salomon’s ‘facilitator’ had guessed about his and Caitlin’s intentions.

Well, it would be finished tonight. Assuming they managed to get the heads out of the cave, they would have to strike overland to the south. They would need Ayni’s help, but the ranger wasn’t scheduled to return before tomorrow afternoon.

He shook his head. This was getting too complicated. Murphy’s Law was bound to— Fitrat’s stumpy body brought him up short.

“
I am not your friend,” she said, blocking his way. She waved the cheroot, forcing both scientists to step back.

Calder, still trying to lighten the moment, indicated the little cigar. “With those things, nobody will need to buy chemical weapons.”

Fitrat ignored the jibe. “As an official of the government of Tajikistan, I order you to tell me exactly what you are doing in the cave.” She puffed, inhaled, and blew a noxious cloud. “If you refuse, I will suspend the project now.”

Blaine glanced at Calder, who was the designated archaeologist.

“
I’m in the midst of inventorying the bones and tools,” he said. “And Dr. Blaine has not finished assessing the parietal art.”

Fitrat waved her twist. “I know there is something more.” She squinted through the smoke. “The cave must be frozen, and probably has been since the Upper Paleolithic. From the extent of your effort, I believe it contains bodies that are intact or at least mummified.”

Bad news.

Calder felt anything he could say might worsen the situation. Maybe if he just ignored the comment . . .

“
Tell me now, or consider yourselves confined to quarters.” Fitrat puffed the lethal-smelling cigarillo. “I can summon troops.”

Calder sensed he could not stall any longer. He’d have to edit the truth.

“
Actually, Ms. Fitrat, we did find mummified—” The door to Zinchenko’s trailer banged open and the camp master stepped into the doorway. Teague appeared behind him, gripping his arm, but the big Russian shook it off and came down the steps. Calder stepped forward as the camp master approached with bear-like strides, and Blaine followed, leaving Fitrat puffing on her cheroot.

“
Uri, my trek manager, try radio me,” he said. He turned and stared at Teague until the facilitator went back inside. “Not get through.”

“
How do you know?” Calder said.

“
Uri then radio Ayni.”

“
That works?” Calder wondered if the camp master had found some reason to deceive him. “You’ve got a base station and Murzo’s got a hand-held radio.”

Zinchenko shrugged. “Murzo west of lake. Different path through mountains. Uri say helicopter crash in northern Afghanistan, ask Murzo pass message.”

Calder felt a chill. “Where, Fedor?”

“
Uri say mountains near Tajik border.”

Accidents did happen, Calder thought. Mathiessen had been headed for the airport at Dushanbe. The direct route lay across a 65-mile segment of northern Afghanistan. The time and location were right.

“
Survivors?”

Zinchenko shrugged. “Uri say ball of fire.”

Calder thought about the priceless Venus of Willendorf he’d slipped to Mathiessen’s pocket after the meeting with Salomon, and then felt guilty for dwelling on a material object. Rolf’s life was what mattered.

“
Any details?”

“
Nyet.
Ayni’s radio go out. That all
ya
know.” The camp master turned and walked back to his trailer, where Teague still stood in the doorway.

Blaine said, “Salomon.”

Calder nodded, feeling powerless. “I expect so. He figured we told Mathiessen too much.”

He looked down, trying to regain his composure. This was his fault.

If he hadn’t drawn Mathiessen into their intrigue . . .

Blaine laid her hand on his arm. “You couldn’t have known, Ian.”

“
I knew enough. You’d told me how ruthless Salomon is. I knew that Teague bugged the work trailer and that Salomon suspected we had our own agenda.”

“
Still, murder . . .”

“
If he was willing to murder once, he’ll do it again.” Calder glanced toward the other trailer. “And he has his personal hit man.”

“
This changes things.” Blaine nodded toward Fitrat. “I don’t think we can let Gulnaz go unwarned just to protect our own interests.”

“
I agree.” Calder turned toward the director of antiquities. “Gulnaz—I know you told me to address you by your last name, but this is partly personal—you need to know some things.”

Fitrat took a drag on the cigarillo and exhaled, the wind whipping away the cloud.

“
So, I was correct.”

“
Yes. The cave is indeed frozen. We knew it contained intact bodies before we left the States.”

She puffed again. “The diver reported to the geologist, and she reported to Mr. Salomon.”

“
Yes.”

“
What kind of bodies?”

“
Prehistoric. All you need to know right now is that Salomon may plan to use the DNA of one of the bodies to clone a race of super tough mercenaries, probably for lease worldwide.”

She dragged again, exhaled a plume of brown smoke. “What kind of bodies?”

“
I don’t know if you heard Fedor tell us that a helicopter, probably Mathiessen’s, crashed in the mountains. We suspect Salomon may have caused it because I foolishly talked to Rolf privately, and Salomon was afraid he knew too much.”

Fitrat’s dour face clenched. “Did he?”

“
Yes. And we suspect Salomon may have instructed Teague not to let Caitlin and me out of here alive.”

Fitrat puffed, inhaled, blew a cloud. “You Americans. No one could ever trust you.”

Blaine said, “Gulnaz, we’re afraid Teague might go after you, also. Especially now that we’ve talked to you.”

“
What kind of bodies?” Fitrat said again.

For her safety, she needs to know.

“
A Neanderthal man, an anatomically modern female—”

“
Like a Cro-Magnon, you mean?”

“
Yes. As you may know, there’s a recent hypothesis that they inhabited Central Asia before spreading to Europe.”

“
I believe it is becoming more than a hypothesis.”

“
Plus a boy, who we believe is a hybrid.”

“
Hybrid! Our scientists do not believe—”

“
And a wolf that we assume was tame. And a cave lion that of course was not.”

Fitrat squinted into the thin blue sky.
“Panthera leo
. . .”

Calder nodded. “
Spelaea.”

She puffed. “The lion killed the people?”

“
Yes.”

“
The permafrost preserved the bodies.” Her eyes narrowed as she exhaled. “Later, an earthquake formed Lake Achik and the entrance to the cave flooded, leaving the cave dry but hidden from the world. Like Cos … Cos …”

Calder nodded. “Cosquer cave in France.”

Puff. “What are your real orders from Mr. Salomon?”

Blaine said, “He wants me to extract the Neanderthal’s DNA.”

Exhale. “And did you?”

“
Yes. I gave him a sample yesterday. But I allowed it to thaw before re-freezing, so it’s not viable.”

“
So you are a genetic expert.”

“
That’s right,” Blaine said. “We’re sorry we deceived you—”

“
Why are you still diving?”

Blaine said, “Mainly on my account. I want to use the three people’s DNA to search for medical benefits—”

“
You know I must report this.”

“
Yes,” Calder said. “Actually, we’ll all be safer if the world, or at least a level of your government higher than the minister of nature conservation, knows about the discovery.”

Fitrat ducked her head and spat a glob of brown juice into the snow. “Do not place too much faith in my government. It runs on
rishvat.
”

“
Dr. Mathiessen told us. Gulnaz, Caitlin and I think you should get out of here as soon as possible.”

Fitrat’s tight-lipped face registered scorn. “I will do my duty.”

“
In view of Teague, that may not be feasible.”

Fitrat glanced at Zinchenko’s trailer, and Calder thought she looked ambivalent. “Does Fedor know?”

“
Not yet. But we’re planning on informing him before this afternoon.” He took a breath. “That is, if you don’t order him not to help us.”

“
I will tell him.” Fitrat pulled on the nearly consumed cigarillo, blew another cloud, and gazed across the lake. “You risked the success of your project to warn me. I believe that you mean well.”

“
We planned to make one or two more dives today,” Calder said.

“
You may continue your work. Any samples that you take, you will pass to me. I will allow you to keep a portion of them and I will see that the rest do not get to Mr. Salomon.”

“
How about Delyanov?” Calder said. “We think he may be in league with Salomon. We don’t want Salomon using the discovery to upset the world any more than it already is.”