Curse of Atlantis (17 page)

“Yeah, I remember, but there’s two distinctive ridgelines on this one that look out of place to me,” Jack responded. “They sort of dead-end about halfway up the mountain.”

“I really don’t see it, Jack,” Burt responded. “They appear as part of a much larger system of features that run toward the top of the mountain. It’s clear to me the upper portion has been eroded away over time,”
Jack continued.

“Erosion or earthquakes,” Javier added. “We can’t forget this area has seen a lot of seismic activity over the past few thousand years. It’s possible that the upper sections were fractured during earthquakes and simply crumbled away over time.”

Jack thought about his earlier observation regarding the expertise of his colleagues. He knew they knew what they were talking about. Accepting
their
explanations, he moved his focus to another hill closer toward shore.

“Hey, check out the hill a few hundred yards from shore at the base of the larger mountain
!
” Jack said excitedly.

“I saw that too, Jack. It’s a little small, but it has potential,” Javier responded. “We could probably knock that on
e
off pretty quickly if we chose to examine it further. What do you think, Burt?”

“It’s a little close to shore, I think. Although it’s protected somewhat by the larger mountain, I think if the pyramid was located there, the tsunami could really have impacted it in the aftermath, probably washing away most of it,” Burt explained.

“I think we have to keep in mind that this isn’t about where we would like it to be located so we’ll find the pyramid intact. It’s about where the Atlanteans could have located it… plain and simple. I think it’s definitely possible it could have been built at that location,” Javier countered.

“That’s a really good point, Javi. I keep thinking that it still exists intact because the scrolls and crystal say they are, but that was seven thousand years ago. That hill might be all that is left of a much larger pyramid,”
Burt said.

“For Serena’s sake, let’s hope not,” Javier said grimly.

For a moment, the boat fell silent as they considered the real reason for their search.

As the boat drifted south, the view of the city of Avlemonas became less visible and now
their
focus was on the rockier section of the coastline. Immediately, Burt discounted the area.

“No way… no way a wave could have cleared those cliff
s
and still had enough momentum to travel inland,” he said.

“Agreed. As I was saying to you last night, from here all the way to just east of Kapsali, the coastline and landscape are far too mountainous and rugged to have seen much destruction from the tsunami,”
Javier said.

“Furthermore, the city of Atlantis would be a coastal city. I’m certain it wouldn’t have been built up in the mountains w
h
ere they wouldn’t have much access to it,” Burt added.

“Let’s head to Kapsali,” Javier recommended.

With a simple nod form the others, Javier instructed the captain to bypass their present location and head to the southern coastline. Thirty minutes later, as they rounded the southern tip of the island, the beautiful city of Kapsali came into view.

“I see the two mountains you guys investigated,” Burt called out, looking through his binoculars. “I can see why you picked them, Javi.
Their
structure and position are perfect. If I were King of Atlantis, that’s where I’d build them too.”

“My exact logic, Burt,” Javier replied. “I put myself in the shoes of the King and realized that those first two locations were perfect. Unfortunately, they weren’t perfect enough.”

“Yeah, that IS disappointing, but
I see
a couple of other spots over
t
here that I think have potential,” Burt said.

“They’re on the map,” Javier responded, already pointing to marks on the map.

“Sorry, we discussed so much last night, it’s hard to keep track of everything,” Burt explained in a softened tone.

“Perfectly understandable.
I know where this stuff is and I’m still having trouble keeping track,” Javier joked mildly.

As the three men scanned the area, they spotted the main valley that traveled inward. Searching in that vicinity, more targets were confirmed and added to the growing list. Satisfied they had accounted for every possibility, the
y
left the Kapsali region and continued toward the west, up and around the rest of the island.

Four hours later, after the exhaustive search came to an end, the captain docked his boat back on the northern shore. Waiting patiently for them was the beat-up old Ranger Rover and a smiling Darrien.

“
Y
our search
was
successful, yes?” he asked, as he loaded the small packs into the back of his car.

“We didn’t find the
pyramid just yet, but we did find other locations that looked promising… so yes, it was successful,” Jack replied.

“Will you be making a trip to the mountains again today?” he asked, now looking at his watch.

“Well, we didn’t come here for a suntan, so I suppose we will,” Jack replied, half joking.

“The suntan I give to you for free,” Darrien responded back in humor.

Nicolae’s office:

Nicolae sat in his Italian leather, high-back chair and rocked impatiently. Fidgeting with his pen, he tapped it repeatedly on his marble desk top. He scanned the header of a manila folder and frowned at its contents spread across his desk.

He shifted some papers and found a ledger underneath. Grabbing a bookmark inserted between the pages, he instantly pulled it open and began to record data into it. Scanning from papers to ledger, he worked purposefully, transcribing the numbers.

He paused momentarily and searched through the paperwork, frustrated by the interruption. Unable to locate the answer, he left the entry blank and continued. Several minutes later, he encountered more areas of missing data.

He sat back in his chair and shook his head in frustration.

“Bullshit!” he spat in anger as he reached for the phone.

He tapped out a number and listened for the other end to connect.

“Yes, Boss,”
Dimitri
sounded through
the
receiver.

“
Dimitri
, I’m running the data on the Novechek file. They’ll be here tomorrow and there’s a lot of data missing. This was supposed to be completed by now. What the hell is going on?” Nicolae said, trying not to lose his temper.

“Sorry, Boss. I’ve been working the Schezustokov pipeline contracts as well as monitoring the progress on the pyramid. I guess I must have overlooked a few of the figures,”
Dimitri
defended. “But I did give the file to Alexi. I’m sure he finished up the work on that by now.”

“Overlooked?
Dimitri
, we don’t overlook details like this in our business. You should have insured Alexi got me the data before you left. How am I to negotiate this deal without the numbers? This is completely unacceptable,” Nicolae shot back, nearing his breaking point.

“I’m sorry, Boss. I’m making flights twice a day, back and forth between Moscow and Kythera. There’s a lot to stay on top of.”

“Those damn Americans are taking too long. My business is suffering. I need you here. This is what happens when you mix business with pleasure. Kill ‘em all and let’s get back on track,” Nicolae ordered.

“Boss, we’ve invested a lot of time in this. They’ve found the pyramid and are excavating it now. Shouldn’t we wait a little longer when we’re this close to a discovery?”
Dimitri
explained, then added, “If we kill them and someone else continues on, they could find unimaginable treasures that you would no longer have access to.”

Nicolae thought about
Dimitri
’s words. His personal desire for ancient treasure was now creating trouble in his business, but with success so close, he knew it would be foolish to close down the operation. He searched within himself for greater patience.

“Ok
,
Dimitri
, status quo… proceed as planned, but push the Americans harder,” Nicolae ordered. “Any more delays, I want to know immediately.”

“Understood,”
Dimitri
responded.

Nicolae hung up the phone and immediately dial
ed
a new number.

A man’s deep voice answered on the other end.

“This is Alexi.”

Alexi was in his mid-thirties, strong and confident. He had ascended through the ranks of Nicolae’s organization through determination and nerve. Working under
Dimitri
, he typically ran his affairs when he was away on business.

“Alexi, this is Nicolae. What’s the status on the girl
?
” he asked.

Nicolae heard the receiver being covered and some muffled voices exchanging shouts back and forth. A moment later, the receiver cleared and Alexi spoke.

“Boss, the boys are watching her and they say she
is
doing fine,” Alexi responded.

“Hmm, keeping her fed?”

“Yes Boss, although she doesn’t eat much. Should we worry?”

“Stupid American. If she gets hungry enough, she’ll eat what’s in front of her,” Nicolae spat.

“Yes Boss.”

“Anyway, I’m having trouble with the Novechek contract. Did you finish the work on that job?” Nicolae asked.

“I did, Boss. Do you need it now?”

“Right now,” Nicolae shot back. “Drop what you’re doing and get over here with that file right away.”

Alexi could hear the strain in Nicolae’s voice. He’d heard it many times before and knew not to disappoint him.

“I’m on my way now. Give me an hour or so,” Alexi responded quickly.

“I’ll be waiting,” Nicolae snarled.

~~~~~  ~~~~~  ~~~~~

“The Boss want
s
to see you, Alexi?” Sergei asked.

Lounging back on an old office chair with the two front legs lifted off the ground, Sergei smoked his cigarette and sipped his stale coffee. He took another drag, then flicked the butt across the room. Reaching behind his ear, he pulled another cigarette out from under his black greasy hair and lit it. In his early twenties, he was muscular with many tattoos.

“Yeah, should be back in a couple of hours… if everything goes alright,” Alexi replied, he voice betraying his fears.

“One of those moods again, eh Alexi? Bring your vest,” Misha said jokingly.

Misha was middle-aged, slightly overweight, with a full head of prematurely gray hair. He’d worked for Nicolae for many years and knew his disposition well.

“A vest won’t help a head shot,” Sergei said, with a sick laugh.

“Alright you two, knock it off. Keep an eye on the girl. Under no circumstances do you let her out of your sight. Is that clear?” Alexi ordered.

“She’s already out of our sight. Should we open the door and stare at her?” Misha teased.

“Maybe while I’m discussing business with Nicolae, I should request for you two morons to be replaced,” Alexi shot back in turn.

An eerie silence fell across the room as Sergei and Misha considered the proposal.

“Don’t you just love Alexi’s sense of humor
?
” Sergei said in uneasy tone to Misha.

With a quick wink to Alexi, then back to
Sergei
, Misha replied, “He wasn’t joking.”

Sergei looked nervously between the two. A bead of sweat developed on his forehead. He shifted in his metal office chair and tried to ga
u
ge the seriousness of the last response.

“I’m joking
,
you idiot,” Alexi finally blurted out loud, now laughing with Misha.

Sergei joined in with the laughter, pretending not to be offended.

“Ok, I’m off. Make sure you keep a close eye on the girl,” Alexi reiterated.

As he headed for the exit, he turned and walked to Serena’s room and checked her door. Satisfied it was locked, he flashed a short wave to the other two and left.

Turning to Misha, Sergei said, “Card
s
?”

“You still owe me from last time, you slag.”

“I’m good for it,” Sergei protested.

Rotating his chair down on all four legs, Misha stood up and dragged
it
over to an old office desk.

“I’m keeping track,” Misha smirked, then said simply, “Deal.”

~~~~~  ~~~~~  ~~~~~

As the two played cards, they talked and laughed, with Misha continuing to increase his winnings. An hour later, Misha broke out a bottle of vodka. Without cups or glasses, the two drank straight from the bottle, passing it between them. Within the next hour, their loud voices carried through the dingy office and into Serena’s room at the back of the building.