Iron Horsemen (15 page)

Genevieve and I followed Ignatius toward the stone
remains. Once we were close enough, we could see megalithic stones standing upright, some covered in vegetation, some sunk deep into the rocky soil. Pulling away some vegetation, I saw a circular design etched into one of the stones.

The professor was at my side as soon as he saw what I'd uncovered. He ran his fingertips over the engraving with an excited grin. “These are the eyes of the earth mother and this here, these lines, may represent the waters of the Mediterranean.”

Genevieve asked, “Who lived here? It doesn't look Egyptian or Greek.”

“It's older than both those civilizations. When people used these temples the Mediterranean was nothing more than a series of large lakes. Long before Hercules smashed through the Straits of Gibraltar with his sword, the people lived in villages below, and these temples sat atop mountains. They may be the oldest buildings in the world.” Professor Armitage let his fingers dance over another carved stone. “I could spend years here.”

“We don't have years.” Baldarich spit the words like grit. “Kannard will be coming.” He looked at the toppled stones. “I've sent the Sparrowhawk up the coast to fool him.”

“We need to find the entrance.” My father surveyed the site. “It may be covered with stone or dirt, so look for any openings.”

We fanned out over the site, poked at the dirt and checked the seams of the rock. My father and I drifted to the center of the complex where the temple would have stood. Grass grew through the cracks looking like an emerald mortar in the moonlight. The professor ran over to the edge of the circle to a pair of thin columns, two half-buried standing stones with a lintel on top. He began tearing weeds, dirt, and stones out of the way, tugging and pulling brambles and branches fast as he could.

“Alexander.” He twisted around toward me. “Come look at this! I've found the entrance.”

Everyone rushed to the professor's side. Ignatius and Mr. Singh pulled small octagonal lanterns from their packs and coaxed the light to life. Captain Baldarich unhooked the palm-sized kerosene underwater lamp from his belt and lit it, too. Orange and yellow flickering flames illuminated smooth stone columns as, one by one, we squeezed under the lintel and into a mysterious world from the far, distant past.

My heart thudded and I wondered if anyone else could hear it. I glanced at Genevieve, but she was staring at the surroundings with wide-eyed wonder. Walls with cutout niches greeted us as we entered a surprisingly large room. Debris littered the ground, a mix of bones, shattered pottery, and dirt built up over the centuries. A doorway at the back of the chamber led deeper underground.

With Ignatius standing right behind him holding a lantern so he could see, my father carefully traversed a couple of steps cut into the rock. Light crept over the statue of a very curvy naked woman. The headless statue with its arms crossed under voluptuous breasts had wide hips that flowed down to a pair of rounded legs standing upon an elaborately decorated base.

Professor Armitage gasped, and his hand went to his chest. “The Earth Mother, the idol worshiped by the oldest cultures known to man.”

Ignatius cocked his head to the side staring at the body. “Captain, she's just your type.” The captain chuckled.

“She is the first sign listed in the ancient account. The passageway should be right here.” He scrabbled around with his fingers, pressing and pulling until he found what he was looking for. A loose stone. He grasped it in his fingertips and pulled. It crashed to the ground and the sound rumbled through the temple like a lion's growl. The professor spun
around, and everyone else raised their weapons.

I ran over to my father. “You found it.” Together we pulled away the other stones to reveal a hidden passageway. I took Ignatius's lantern and stepped into the unknown. After a moment, I stuck my head back through the opening. “It's amazing! There are steps leading deeper into the rock.”

We all climbed through the secret opening, and I led them down the rock cut steps. For some reason, I wasn't afraid at all. Not of the potential danger from Lord Kannard. Not of the dark and the unknown waiting for us at the end of the steps. Instead, I was filled with so much energy, my head buzzed.

The stairs ended at a wall flanked by two statues, one of which had fallen over. The wall's flat face held a relief of four men on horses. Professor Armitage wiped the stone clean with his sleeve and studied the carving.

Each horseman looked different and had a symbol above them I couldn't read. My father decoded the symbols, and then pushed on the carving, which slid back into the wall.

A low grumbling grinded above, and the entire ceiling, one continuous slab of granite, fell down upon us. We dropped to the floor, and the slab hit the fallen statue. The granite cracked into several pieces and dust filled the chamber.

Baldarich pushed off the chunk resting above him. “Indihar, did everyone make it?”

Mr. Singh replied. “I see everyone from the crew, but not…”

“We're here,” I said as I crawled from beneath the slab.

No one had been crushed, and I thanked the statue. Without it, we'd all be dead. I saw an opening at the top that had been blocked by the slab. The smooth bare walls held only the anchor holes where the granite had been secured. The dusty stone mechanics looked as pristine as the metal interlocks of a London factory.

Think you can get us up there, Mr. Singh?” Baldarich asked.

“All we need is rope.”

“Who brought the rope?”

I reached in my bag and pulled out the tightly bundled coil. “I did.”

The captain looked around at his men who shrugged their shoulder. He gripped his nose and shook his head. “Thanks kid. You saved my crew polishing duty.”

Mr. Singh took the coil from me and placed the coil on the stone floor just below the opening. He studied it for a moment and then nudged it slightly to better position it where he wanted it. Then he pulled a delicately carved flute from the scarf bound around his waist. He handed me his lantern and the lowered himself to sit cross-legged beside the coil, looking up once more as if checking to be sure the position was just right. I glanced at Genevieve and got a questioning glance in return. We both turned to Captain Baldarich who winked as Mr. Singh closed his eyes and began to chant in a soft, reverential voice. Then he put the flute to his lips and played, swaying back and forth ever so slightly. His methodical movements entranced me, and I watched in shock as the tip of the rope moved. At first it simply poked up from the coil like the head of a snake and swayed back and forth as if mirroring Mr. Singh's movements, but then it began to rise. Higher and higher. And higher, until it reached twenty feet up, just an arm's length from the opening.

Ignatius stepped up and tugged. The rope didn't move. It was as stiff and sturdy as a pole. He nodded at the captain and then began to climb. Once he reached the opening, Baldarich motioned for Genevieve and I to follow. One after another we pulled ourselves up the rigid rope. After all of us reached the top, save Mr. Singh, Ignatius stepped to the edge and grabbed the rope.

“Your turn,” he said.

Mr. Singh stopped playing, and the rope went limp in Ignatius' hand. He and the captain held the rope tight as Mr. Singh scampered up. At last we were all together again, and I was filled with relief, as if the worst was over. I held up the lantern and surveyed a long passage cut in the rock. My father stood quietly, stroking his chin and peering off into the darkness as if trying to decide which way to go. Mr. Singh pulled the rope up as Baldarich pushed us on. “Keep moving people.”

I started to run toward him, but stopped in my tracks as strange and frightening sounds rang out from the entrance. Pounding metal on rock reverberated, ricocheting off the stone walls, echoing louder and louder throughout the passage. Baldarich raised his lightning hand-cannon, prepared to shoot whatever appeared. But none of us were prepared for what materialized out of the darkness.

Lord Kannard. Holding a blazing torch and riding atop a white-shrouded mechanical steed with hooves and legs of iron, Kannard was flanked by Colonel Hendrix and several other henchmen on foot and dressed in long black coats and Bowler hats with goggles around the band. Col. Hendrix raised his arm, the gears spinning and clicking as the rifle barrel locked in place.

Lord Kannard's eyes blazed in the torchlight as he smiled. “So good of you to lead me to the right temple.”

“How did you get in here,” my father rasped, stunned to see his kidnapper below him.

“You were so easy to follow, I'm almost glad you were rescued. Once we saw which set of ruins you headed for, the rest was easy. Now if you'd be so kind as to lead us on the final leg of our journey….”

Baldarich backed up a couple of steps. “I knew it was too easy getting away from you fools.”

Lord Kannard laughed. “Who's the fool, now?”

“Lead the way, professor,” the captain whispered, and my father shuddered and ran headlong down a darkened passageway. “Run,” Baldarich said, shoving Genevieve and me down the passage. “Let him find his own way up here.”

I ran as fast as I could, following my father's lead, and keeping up with Genevieve's long strides. Behind us, I heard laughter and the thundering echo of iron hooves slamming into bedrock as the mechanical horse leapt from the shattered debris of the entrance into the large passage with Lord Kannard upon its back. I dared to look back and terror filled this space from floor to ceiling. The machine had made the jump with ease causing its rider to cackle with delight as he charged after us.

Then I heard a sharp metallic zing of and clank and saw behind the charging iron steed, a grappling hook had snaked out from Col. Hendirx's sleeve and snagged one of the stone mechanisms from the trap. He flew through the air and landed with a lurching thud. Baldarich yanked on my collar and I turned and ran again, continued down the passage.

Behind us, Lord Kannard called out. “Miss Kensington, are you sure you want to run? I have the antidote to your father's poison.”

She stopped and turned. I spun around and saw Kennard hold up a glass vial. It glittered in the torchlight.

“I don't believe you,” she yelled back.

“It's now or never, Genevieve. Do you want to save your father or not?”

She took a step forward, but Baldarich grabbed her by the arm and pushed her down the passageway in my father's wake.

Genevieve, Baldarich, and I ran around one corner and then another trying to catch up with my father, Ignatius, and Mr. Singh. I saw a broken sconce on the wall that would have held a torch in ancient times.

We had passed it before.

More than once.

Baldarich pushed us down another passage. “We're lost in a labyrinth.”

As we ran, I tried to study the symbols marking the walls and floor, but we were moving too fast and it was too dark. Then a shot echoed along the passage.

“That's a Colt Peacemaker,” Baldarich smiled. “Ignatius is telling us where he is. This way.”

We turned down the first right and ran toward the sound. I started to see one symbol over and over again and realized it was the marker. I stopped as we were about to change direction.

“Captain, this symbol is the marker, the four chevrons.” I looked around and found the symbol on a floor straight ahead. “Follow them and we get through.”

Baldarich smiled and slapped me on the back. “Excellent!”

Iron hooves thundered behind us. Looking back, I saw Lord Kannard several junctions away.

Before Baldarich could grab her, Genevieve drew her saber and charged back toward Kannard. Baldarich cursed under his breath, and set off after her. I stared down the passage I knew would lead us toward my father, and then turned and ran after Baldarich.

“Lord Kannard, give me that antidote or I shall take it by force,” Genevieve cried out. Her voice was hard, determined. But Kannard just laughed and held up the vial to taunt her.

“Come and try, my sweet.”

“Genevieve, no!” I yelled, but she paid no attention.

She lifted her saber and charged the horseman. He drew a flamebrage broadsword and aimed it at her heart, the wicked, undulating blade slithering like a serpent. The iron horse charged, four hooves galloping toward Genevieve, but she showed no fear. I stared in horror, and could barely breathe as, at the very last second, she dove under the blade and leapt up as he thundered past.

Baldarich raised his lightning cannon and fired, but Lord Kannard veered and turned down another passage and out of sight. Together we chased after him until I noticed the four chevron design again.

“The chevrons,” I pointed as I ran.

“Follow them!” Baldarich said, breathing heavily.

We ran until the passage opened into a cavern with a large trench gutted through the center. On the far side, my father stood before a large stone door. Ignatius and the rest of the crew took cover on a rocky ridge beside him. Kannard charged toward my father and the crew opened fire.

At first Ignatius and the others stopped him from reaching my father, but then shots rang out from the other side of the cavern. Col. Hendrix and the henchmen of the Knights of the Golden Circle had arrived. They forced
my father's protectors to duck behind their ridge of fallen stones as Lord Kannard continued toward my father with Genevieve on his tail.

Baldarich stopped and aimed at the colonel, and in return, chipped stone and dirt flew up around the captain's feet as Hendrix fired back.

Genevieve swung her saber. Metal on metal rang out as she caught the mechanical horse in the leg. Lord Kannard kicked, but she danced away and struck again. His face twisted in fury. He attacked wildly, but she jumped out of the way and grabbed for his belt where the vial was tucked. The horse reared and Kannard tried to cut her in two, but again, Genevieve was too nimble for him. She kept him busy while I ran to my father's side. He studied the sealed stone door, running his hand over the etched symbol to decode it.