The Crystal's Curse (4 page)

The old man looked into Maria’s eyes. “Perhaps, if you hide the room again before the evil gods can activate the chamber, Kukulkna will show mercy and return your son.” The old man picked up the wooden plank and began to carve again. Obviously, the interview was over.

Maria, Ricardo, and Rob got up and left. They walked in silence to the Jeep. Once seated, Maria started to shake. Tears poured down her face. She pictured Joshua held captive, alone and afraid.

Ricardo reached over and patted her hand. “It’s going to be all right. We’ll get him back.”

Angrily she brushed away the tears and tried to pull herself together. Even in movies, she’d always detested the stereotypical female who felt apart in a crisis. Crying was stupid and useless. She took a deep breath and motioned for Ricardo to start the Jeep.

Once they were out of earshot of the old man, and Maria more in control, she said, “We can’t go by the village now. We need to make sure that no one else finds out about the room. If word gets out, the Quiche will never give Joshua back.”

Ricardo agreed. “Let’s get back to Sam, wrap up the dig, and get the crew out of here as soon as possible, before anyone else is taken.”

*   *   *

Sam had extended the search area deeper into the jungle. Returning to the campsite after several futile hours, he spotted a Jeep coming. He stood watching, hoping it was Maria and Ricardo with better news.

The Jeep pulled up and stopped. Erik Johansen jumped out. Sam recognized him from Ricardo’s description. He was a little taller than Sam, with a blond crew cut, and an air of arrogance. His crisp khaki pants still had a perfectly ironed crease. He wore a light blue polo shirt that showed off the muscles on his arms and chest.

He took off his sunglasses, revealing startling ice blue eyes. He approached Sam and extended his hand. “Hi, I’m Erik Johansen. I heard about your amazing discovery in town.”

“Samuel Carson,” Sam said, wiping his hands on his pants before reaching out to shake the other man’s hand. Sam noticed Mr. Johansen’s manicured nails, hands that were large and smooth without any calluses, not the hands of an archeologist. His grip was firm and lasted a little longer than necessary. Something about the man was unsettling.

“I was hoping to be able to see your find for myself. That is if you don’t mind,” Erik said with a smile that failed to reach his eyes.

“I’d be happy to show you around the village we found,” Sam qualified. “But first, let’s get a cold drink. You must be thirsty. I just came in from the field. I’d like to wash up and rest a bit.” He led Mr. Johansen over to the mess tent, trying to stall until he could think of some way to get rid of the man. Maybe if he sees the village, he’ll go away happy, he thought. He left Erik no choice but to follow him and wait at the table while Sam washed up.

Sam returned with two bottles of water, setting one in front of Erik and taking a large swallow from the other. He sat down across from Erik and said, “We haven’t had any visitors before. We’re quite a ways from civilization. What brought you out this far?”

“I heard that there were ruins in this area. I’m scouting a place for my next expedition.” Smiling Erik looked directly at Sam.

Sam frowned slightly. “Really, who did you hear that from? I’m curious because I was pretty sure that we’re the only ones interested in this area. I haven’t told anyone exactly where we are or about the ruins we found.”

Erik shrugged. “I don’t remember exactly. You know how it is. Someone probably mentioned it at a convention I was attending.”

“Who did you say was sponsoring your expedition?” Sam asked, taking another drink.

“I don’t actually have a sponsor yet. That’s why I’m here scouting on my own. I was hoping to get sufficient evidence to convince the British Archeological Museum to sponsor a dig. I’m sorry to hear that your son’s missing,” he said.

Sam hesitated. Finally, he said, “Yes, it’s really upsetting his mother. He’s a teenager. I’m sure he is just hiding nearby because he’s mad at us. He’ll show up soon, when he gets hungry enough.” Sam wasn’t sure why he said that. Something about the way the man’s eyes narrowed when he asked about Joshua alerted some inner sense of unease. Trusting his instincts, Sam decided not to enlist his help, nor give him any reason to stay.

At that moment, Sam saw Maria, Ricardo and Rob drive up. Jumping up he said, “Excuse me, that’s my wife. I’m afraid we’ll have to postpone your tour. I need to take care of her. Perhaps another time,” he said walking away.

Erik rose as well. “I understand. But since I’m already here, perhaps your man could show me around,” he called to Sam’s back.

“I’m sorry, not today,” Sam threw out over his shoulder. As Sam helped Maria out of the Jeep, he spoke quietly to Ricardo. “Make sure he leaves, and post guards so he can’t get anywhere near us.”

Ricardo nodded. He went to escort Mr. Johansen to his Jeep. Erik was still protesting, but Ricardo was firm that he must come back another time.

“What’s he doing here?” Maria whispered.

“He heard about our discovery in town and wanted a tour,” answered Sam.

“Did he see anything?”

“No he just got here. I was stalling, trying to decide what to do when you drove up.”

Maria sat down at the table.

Sam could see from her expression that the news wasn’t good. “What did you find out?”

She told him about the old man and the Quiche legends. “He made it sound like the Quiche took Joshua as punishment for opening the room.”

When Ricardo came back from posting the guards, he joined them.

Maria went on, “If the Quiche did take Josh, the only way we’re going to get him back, is by making sure that the Quiche know we’ve hidden the room again. But how do we do that? I mean we can cover it up, but how do we get the word out to them and will they trust us enough to give Joshua back?”

Ricardo added, “I am also worried about the rest of the
crew. What if they decide the gods won’t be satisfied until they eliminate all the witnesses?”

Sam shook his head. “I am still not sure that’s what happened to Joshua. How did the Quiche get him out? No one saw anyone around. We haven’t been able to find any doors or other openings. What did the elder say about the glyphs?”

Maria spoke up, “He confirmed that the inner-ring glyphs are part of a calendar. He said these outer glyphs helped them predict disasters, but he also said that only the gods were able to operate the chamber to travel between worlds. That would suggest that if it is a door, they don’t know how to open it.”

Ricardo shifted in his seat. “Perhaps, if we close up the site, then we can invite the Quiche to come help us search for Joshua. That way if they have him, they can give him back without admitting they took him. And if they don’t have him, maybe they’ll be willing to help us search the area for him once they know the site is sealed.”

Sam thought for a minute and then said, “That’s a good idea. Maria, can you fix up something to cover the entrance to the room that makes it look like we’ve sealed it up again?”

“Sure. If you can rig up a piece of plywood that fits the opening and secure it to the cave walls, I can faux finish it so it looks like we bricked it up,” she replied.

“If the Quiche don’t have Josh, I don’t want to permanently seal that room yet, but we have to make it look as though we did, if we want the Quiche to help us. Ricardo, can you get the exact measurements for the plywood tonight?”

Ricardo nodded. “It should be easy to cut the plywood without anyone getting suspicious tomorrow while we’re making crates for shipping the artifacts.”

Sam said, “While you keep the crew busy packing the artifacts and backfilling the village, I’ll make a production out of hauling bricks and mortar into the cave. Maria can stay in there, painting the plywood. The crew needs to believe that we’re sealing the room as well. We’ll make sure that the crew is gone before we ask for the Quiche’s help.”

Maria and Ricardo both nodded their agreement.

Sam got up. “I’ll take the phone to a clearing and call the Smithsonian to let them know to expect the artifacts.” Ricardo handed Sam the keys to the Jeep.

Driving to the clearing, he couldn’t help thinking that wherever Joshua was, he was running out of time.

Chapter Three

Once Erik was away from the camp, he stopped the Jeep in a clearing. Frustrated, he couldn’t see any way to investigate the site without making a scene. Something he was not prepared to do, yet. He took out his communicator and called the command center.

“Field Agent Erik to Watcher One. Watcher One, please come in.”

“This is Watcher One. Please report.”

“I’ve located the general location of the portal, but I haven’t been able to conduct an extensive search. There’s an archeological team here excavating. They’ve posted guards to protect their latest find. The portal may be an old one unearthed during their excavation. They’re asking questions of the locals about some setting symbols, claiming they copied the symbols from a painting. I haven’t been able to confirm that.”

“And the power source?”

“One of their team is missing, a teenage boy. However, they’re conducting a search for him, so he may just be a runaway. There’s no indication they have a power source. It’s still possible an insurgent triggered the surge, and the archeological team is just in the wrong place at the wrong time. I won’t know for sure until I can find the exact location of the portal.”

“Could an insurgent be one of the archeological team?”

“I’ve met the leaders of the team. They’re all human. It would be difficult for one of us to pose as a mere worker.”

“How long will it take to find the portal?”

“It could take another couple of days, unless my orders are changed with respect to casualties.”

“Maintain cover and report in when you’ve located the portal. Watcher One out.”

Chapter Four

Joshua opened his eyes to darkness, not total darkness, varying shades of black and brown, punctuated with pinpoints of light. Moving his hands out to the side, he realized he was lying flat on his back on what felt like wet grass. As he continued to stare upward, the points of light resolved into stars peeking through some kind of foliage. Dressed in khaki shorts, tennis shoes and a t-shirt, he shivered. The grass and the surrounding air were cold, not just cool, but icy. Goose bumps stood out on his arms. He sat up. A wave of dizziness passed quickly, leaving only a slight throbbing behind his eyes like the beginning of a sinus headache. Even though it was dark, he could see his breath as little puffs of white mist. Patches of snow covered the ground around him. He shivered again.
Where am I? This is
not
Guatemala. It doesn’t snow in the jungle. It doesn’t even get cold.

He lowered his head in his hands, and tried to think.
The last thing he remembered was being on the dig with his parents
.

That’s right; I was standing in that odd recess looking at the holes. I pulled the crystal thing out of my pocket to see if it would fit into one of them. Then nothing, until I woke up here. How did I get here? Where
is
here and, how long have I been out?

He looked at his watch. If it was the same day, only a few minutes had passed, and yet it was dark. He reached down to pick up the faintly glowing crystal lying on the ground next to him. Warm in his hands, it represented tangible proof that he hadn’t lost his mind.

He stood and looked around. He’d been lying on a patch of ground surrounded by trees. It looked like a park with large oak trees, not the sort of trees that formed the canopy of the forest in Guatemala. Only the sound of the leaves crunching beneath his feet marred the stillness. Off to his left and a short distance away he could see lights. He rubbed his arms and blew on his hands. Dressed as he was he needed shelter soon. Deciding to head for the lights, he began walking. A surge of energy coursed through his limbs. Instead of walking, he found himself running effortlessly.
Moments later he reached the edge of the park, a least a mile from where he started, without even being out of breath.

He stood under streetlights next to a paved street dotted with colonial style houses. Modern cars parked randomly on either side of the street, and in driveways. Lights glowed through curtained windows. Joshua looked up and down the street trying to decide what to do next. He had an odd sense of
déjà vu
. This street, even the houses looked familiar somehow. He turned right and decided to walk down the street a ways to see if he could find a street sign or some other indication of where he could be.

Half a block later, on the left side, he came to a stop.
It couldn’t be
. He stared for a long time at the house in front of him. He recognized this house, and the yard with the large oak tree out front. He knew that the white picket fence, peeking out under the ivy behind the tree, encircled the back yard. He’d been here before. This was his grandfather’s house.

Boston! I’m in Boston? How did I get here? I remember thinking about coming here. How could I possibly get from Guatemala to Boston?

He opened the hand holding the crystal.
Maybe this crystal is some kind of transportation device.
He shook his head trying to make sense of what he was seeing. There had to be a logical explanation for why he found himself alone in Boston outside his grandfather’s house, without any memory of how he got there.