Truthseekers (30 page)

John cautiously stepped back into the central court over the wall and beckoned for David to step after him. David got to the wall and stopped. Although the wall was only a few blocks high he knew that if he stepped over it John could shoot him, shoot Abbey and get away.

“My love?” It was the first time that Abbey had spoken since they had found themselves confronted in the Tripartite Shrine.

“You trust me, don’t you?” she spoke softly. John looked at her cautiously but he knew she was unarmed and in fact had her hands in front of her in a submissive pose.

“Yes,” said David softly and slightly looking back in her direction.

“Good,” Abbey spoke authoritatively but with calmness. John started to feel the heat boil under his clothes. He nearly turned the gun on her when he heard her yell: “Duck!”

All in a motion John saw David dive left, and Abbey also dived. The others were standing still. In slow motion John felt something of great force hit his left shoulder, the one holding the gun. Then an instant later he heard it. A loud crack. Out of the corner of his left eye he saw
clothing, skin, blood, muscle and tissue explode out of his left shoulder throwing him forward over the wall and smashing his face on the rock. As he was falling he found it rather weird that he was no longer in control of his body and yet there was no pain. He hit the rock hard and the last thing he recalled hearing was a ringing of sorts in his head.

40

The others picked themselves off the ground. Professor Miltosis was helping Stacey up. Rocko was abruptly wiping blood and stuff from himself. He threw his shirt with Chant’s remains off and stood there, bare chested. By the time David realised what had happened Abbey was by his side lifting him up.

“You trusted me when it really mattered. That is so cool. I am going to eat you up.”

“What… what happened?” said David.

“Oh… I just couldn’t resist accepting some help. Sometimes even I need it you know.”

David and the others turned and strolling across the courtyard was a beaming Eagle, sporting what to David seemed one hell of a gun; a long range sniper rifle.

“Hello, David. Looks like you guys got yourself in a spot of bother. Thought I’d zip up overnight and help my little girl out,” said the Eagle, his stern brow mellowing at the site of his Princess as he sometimes called Abbey.

“Oh my dad, you are the best.” Abbey left David and threw her arms around the Eagle hugging him tightly and kissing his cheek. She then held onto him as he came in to the shrine area. The Eagle embraced the others and looked at Stacey and said: “You poor little girl. What a day for you.” Then he looked at Rocko and said: “I’m keen for pizza if you are, big boy.” Rocko beamed a big smile and patted his bare tummy. The Eagle shook Professor Miltosis’ hand and then grabbed David in a tight embrace. “You certainly are one brave son of a bitch, my boy. Those things you said really pissed that old guy off.”

David responded: “How did you hear that? I was barely talking.”

“Oh yeah,” the Eagle responded. “Guess I won’t be needing this now.” He reached into his ear and took out his comms piece. Abbey also removed hers, smiling.

“Of course,” David recoiled “Your cell phone in the hotel. I saw the screen was lit. You knew he was here the whole time.”

“I did, my love, but I daren’t share it. As it turned out we needed his surprise numerous times,” Abbey smiled and held David by the arm.

“Awww crap,” said Rocko, “I guess they were your bullets sailing past my ears back there. You mean I wasn’t such a good shot at the OK Corral. It was the Eagle… right?”

“Yes, sorry about that Rocko. I almost nicked your ear with one,” said the Eagle. “I was behind the complex where Abbey wanted me to be. I was able to help pick off people. No one knew I was there, I simply fired when you did. But you did a good job, old boy.”

The team laughed in unison as Rocko looked disappointed he wasn’t Jesse James any longer.

“But Dad, there were people dropping left right and centre out there. That’s even a good count for you,” said Abbey inquisitively.

“Oh I may have had some help from your stepmom.” The Eagle beamed a broad smile.

Abbey clapped her hands together laughing. “The Condor, she is here too.” David and the others looked strangely at each other.

“She is, my daughter. She is just tidying some things up and… oh look here she comes now.”

As David looked around he saw a regal woman in her early fifties, hair brushed back in a short ponytail, greying at the side but with incredible beauty for her age. Eyes alight and a vibrant green colour and full lips beaming a wide smile. She also had an incredible looking long-range sniper gun on her back. The Condor as she was known was coming around a corner at the other end of the court. When she saw Abbey she started waving. Abbey waved back and was jumping up and down. Then the woman stopped and turned around. “Come on,” she said and from behind a wall came two walking wounded, a limping and dusty Phillip Glenville, assisting a Chief Lone Bear who had blood dripping from a patched wound in his upper chest.

“Phillip!” Stacey screamed and almost lost consciousness. She ran to them both and hugged them tightly. Chief Lone Bear simply said “Ouch.”

Abbey was genuinely excited to see the Condor and loved to see her and her father together, a romance that had lasted since she was a little girl.

Phillip explained that both he and Lone Bear were knocked unconscious by the blast and that he was suffering from some major bruising all over his body and legs from the shock. Basically he had been lucky: the female assassin’s body had taken the brunt of the force and had been pretty cut up. She did not survive. Lone Bear was not in the best of ways, but he was strong and on coming to he had applied some good old Indian treatment to the wound, dirt and spit, and had woken Phillip. Together they were pretty knocked around but they were alive and in reasonable shape given the ordeal.

The Eagle turned to David and said:

“I’ve been communicating with the chief of police who was grateful we were here. I knew him when he did compulsory military service. He’s a good man. Has an awful hangover today he said and he is going to help clean this up for us. I’m not sure what to do with him yet.” The Eagle
indicated to the contorted body of John lying halfway over a small wall, feet unceremoniously stuck up in the air, face bleeding from a broken nose and cuts on his forehead and a left arm that was now useless and would probably need amputation.”

“Yes my dad. You didn’t shoot to kill. I noticed that,” said Abbey.

“I didn’t know if you still needed him or not. It was obviously a split second decision. I didn’t like him opting to shoot you David, although it was a better choice than my daughter. That is for sure,” replied the Eagle.

“I agree,” smirked David. “Professor Miltosis, I wanted to see the tripartite and we came here to do so. Where is it?”

Professor Miltosis took David and the others to the west side of the shrine area, where excavations were and where there was a wall covered up by a tarpaulin. The Eagle covered Chant’s body with another tarpaulin so Stacey would not have to look at him any longer and checked John’s vital signs. His pulse was weak and he did need urgent medical attention yet for the moment he was left in his unceremonious state.

Miltosis drew back the covers and emblazoned on the wall was a tremendous fresco.

The fresco showed a single black column that featured in the centre of four other columns standing like a massive 11:11.

“It was here that Arthur Evans, the archaeologist who discovered the Palace of Knossos, found the two statues of the ‘snake goddess’ in 1903,” Professor Miltosis told the group.

“Of course,” Stacey piped up. “The snake goddess symbolised renewal of life. It was a funerary symbol that went all the way back to Egypt. David, I gave you some notes on it.”

David stretched his mind to recall, but Professor Miltosis was the one who spoke.

“David, the statues were found with a text, the Linear Text A as it was called. It was the original language of the Minoans, and consists of hundreds of symbols. The text found here has never been deciphered except for the one word: ‘asasarame’. That word literally translates to ‘mistress’.”

“Jesus’ mistress. Whoever was connected to here knew about this find and that’s why the tribes were able to get to this point in the temple. It has to be a map of sorts.” David’s mind was now fully engaged.

“There’s more.” Professor Miltosis was engaged too. “Evans also found the marks of master masons in this place and this is the only place in the Minoan world where pottery was found with the chevron and circle on it. I believe a symbol of the Talpiot Tomb of Jesus. That symbol somehow transgressed from the Minoans to the family of Jesus. Someone had found this place before Arthur Evans, or perhaps it was Evans himself. Maybe the Templars or one of their faction… and one last thing I think you will find very interesting. The Linear Text A was dated to around 1600 BCE, but one symbol is modern, in fact it’s not quite 100 years old. It is a hooked X.”

“Wow, we are at the spot. But why this spot? Minos is the name. We know that but there must be hundreds of them here on Crete. Why did the tribes hide clues in this spot? This is a key spot in the whole story, but how does it fit?” David concluded and just kept staring at the tripartite.

Stacey was on Abbey’s phone. She had borrowed it and was starting to Google various connections. David and Professor Miltosis started to
look around for other clues. Rocko sat on a rock and let the sun shine on his skin. If the truth be known, he had felt better. He was feeling pretty tired and beaten around.

“Ah ha. David I think I have it. Come and have a look at this. It seems someone has a history with this palace going back hundreds of years,” Stacey looked up smiling from Abbey’s phone.

As David was getting his head around it, the Eagle and Condor had finished what they were doing outside and had come through to join the others. With them was another person, a man. He was Greek, and around sixty years old. He seemed shy, balding yet with striking blue eyes and had an intelligence and sprightliness to his demeanour.

The Eagle spoke: “Folks, the hotel owners have been found safe and the police chief has everything under control outside. We are bringing in a team to clean up. But this man here has come to inspect damage to the site and was directed to us by the police chief, who asked me if it was ok. His family has been the caretakers of the Knossos palace for hundreds of years. Of course I said yes. Team, meet Mr Minos.”

David and Rocko looked at each other and Rocko looked at the newcomer and said: “You look about my size. Do you have a spare shirt?”

41

“Mr Minos,” David stepped forward and shook Minos’ hand enthusiastically. “I am so sorry that this has happened here. We have been on a great mission that has taken us halfway around the world and eventually to this stunning place. I am not sure why, but everything we have been searching for has come to a head here. These people, like the one’s you have seen at the entrance to the Tripartite Shrine, have followed us, and they were determined to stop us from finding the truth. We have reason to believe that you may be able to assist us.

“The person we are after – their name is Minos, your name, and this symbol here in the Tripartite Shrine, were told to us by a mighty elder of the Hopis, Chief Ghost Wolf, and our friend here Chief Lone Bear has affiliations in Crete through our other friend, Professor
Miltosis.” David stopped talking and was looking around for answers. He did not want to say much more than he had. Minos looked at them all and then turned his eyes to Lone Bear. “You do not remember me, do you?” he said softly to Lone Bear Lone Bear stood up from the rock he was leaning on. Obviously in pain, he clutched his chest, most likely from a punctured lung as he was gasping for air and steadying himself: “No I don’t, my friend. I am not sure my sight is completely returned from the blast.”

Minos smiled: “No, I feel your ego won’t admit that you never paid me any attention in your visits here. I did not mean anything to you.”

Lone Bear put a hand up. “I’m sorry, Mr Minos. You are most likely correct. I have found my life to be largely about ego and I have been humbled in recent times in many ways.”

Minos turned and spoke to David: “It’s not me who can answer your questions. It is my brother’s wife Sophia. You see, Sir, our family is no stranger to this sort of violence. Her husband, my brother was killed many years ago. I will let her explain. Come… the house is not far.”

It was decided that the Eagle and the Condor would stay at the site. The Eagle would co-ordinate clean-up and disposal with the local authorities. John was still unconscious and in a very weakened state. Abbey was not sure what to do with him. She did not kill in cold blood, neither did her father or step mother, but nor could they release him to a hospital at this stage, so the idea was that they would make him comfortable and apply a field dressing as they would any other wounded individual. The chief of police was asked to take any wounded from the battleground to the local hospital. If they were Chief Lone Bear’s men, only one of whom had survived, they were to be treated with full honour and priority. The others, of whom three survived the ordeal, were to be taken care of, charged for the crime on the hotel, destruction to the sacred site and finally handed over to the appropriate authorities, who no doubt knew of their existence anyway.