Curse of Atlantis (31 page)

Darrien looked down in
horror,
as Javier’s leg remained buried.

“Jack, pull harder! He’s still stuck,” Darrien shouted, his voice rising to
a
shrill from fear.

Jack pulled harder, but it was no use. He didn’t have the strength to pull him out. Sitting Javier upright, he held his friend steady as the sand filled up around them. As the sand reached Javier’s neck, Jack let go and tried to free himself. Thrashing clumsily, he was unable to dislodge his legs. Moments later, the sand covered Javier’s head. Jack looked up sympathetically to Darrien, but only saw the blurred light from his flashlight. Hyperventilating wildly, Jack was now overcome by faint. The edges of blackness closed in on what little sight he had left. As his arms went limp, he felt a heavy tug from behind.

Five feet from the top of the hole, Darrien watched helplessly as Jack went faint from exhaustion. He looked back for Burt, but he was nowhere in sight. Pushing aside his fears, he leaped into the hole next to Jack.

Instantly, he lost his footing and fell to his side. He floundered momentarily as the sand poured down on top of him. Thrashing to free himself, he rolled to a kneeling position, then stood up next to Jack. Grabbing him under his arms, he rocked him wildly and shouted his name.

“Jack, wake up. It’s me, Darrien. I can’t do this all by myself.”

Jack
’s
eye began to part.

“Jack, come on. Wake up. Fight for your life,” Darrien shouted above the continuing roar of the sand.

Jack’s eyes snapped open. The searing pain of the sand in his eyes caused them to tear and wash out some of the debris. As Darrien rocked him back and forth, his vision improved and his strength returned. He began to pump his legs and rotate his hips. Suddenly, his legs broke free of the sand’s clutches and both men fell back against the wall.

As they stood up, for the first time, their heads were now above the pouring sand. Jack’s vision was blurred but he could see lights heading his way.

“Get them out of there,” Burt shouted frantically.

In seconds, men leaped in the pit of sand, now mere feet from the top. They hauled Jack out and lay him on his back. Seconds later, Darrien lay next to him.

“Jack, how far down is he buried
?
” Burt asked, his voice on the edge of hysteria.

“Five feet or so… dead center,” Jack shot back, still out of breath.

“Ok
,
guys, get in there
NOW
!” Burt ordered. “He’s in the center of the pit about five feet down… and for God sake, be careful.”

Instantly, six men jumped into the pit and began to shovel out the sand. In seconds, they had removed two feet from the center of the pit. In a minute’s time, they were shoveling sand out from around Javier’s face. In less than two minutes, his lifeless body was hauled from the pit and laid on the stone floor of the corridor.

Burt dropped down beside him and checked his vitals.

“Oh shit, he’s not breathing,”
he
said aloud.

Instantly, he began CPR. With his fingers locked together, he placed them on
Javier's
chest and began to compress
it
. After thirty compressions, he breathed in two breaths of air into Javier’s mouth. He checked his vitals once more, then returned to the chest compressions. For the next minute, he repeated the cycle of compressions and breaths.

Burt breathed in another two breaths, then listen
ed
for any sounds of Javier’s breathing. At
first,
h
e
thought he felt a light breeze blowing through the chamber. Suddenly, he realized there were no breezes that deep inside the pyramid… Javier was breathing.

“He’s breathing. Quick, grab me the oxygen,” Burt shouted.

A man pulled the waiting gurney to Javier’s side. Four men lifted him onto it and placed a clear plastic mask over his face. With a quick turn of a lever, oxygen flowed freely into the mask. Moments later, Javier’s eyes opened slightly and he smiled up at Burt.

“He’s alive!” Burt shouted in relief. “Let’s get him to the hospital
,
NOW
!”

Burt knelt down beside Jack.

“You saved his life. Thank you.”

“You better go. He’ll need you,” Jack replied simply. “I’ll be along shortly.”

He
lay
back down and poured water over his face, trying to flush the sand from his eyes. With a simple nod, Burt stood and quickly ran down the corridor.

~~~~~  ~~~~~  ~~~~~

With the sand flushed from his eyes, Jack sat up and rested momentarily. Looking at the sand-filled pit that almost claimed two lives, he felt overwhelming relief he had twice cheated death.

“What do you say we get out of here, Darrien?”

“Are your eyes ok? Do you need more time?”
Darrien
asked, sympathetically.

“I think I might have scratched corneas. I know I flushed all the sand out of my eyes, but it still feels like I have a few grains left in there. I think we’ll both need to see the doctor when we get to the hospital.”

Darrien reached up and lightly touched the gash on his forehead. Dried blood and sand had now formed a large scab that looked worse than the wound actually was.

“I think it’s nothing. Probably just needs a good cleaning,” he replied.

“And a couple of stitches, I’m guessing.”

“I sure hope Mr. Arista is Ok
.
He was under that sand for a long time,” Darrien said, his face still carrying a worried expression.

“I can’t be sure, but I think I heard him speaking as they left.”

“You did a great thing, Jack. You saved his life,” Darrien responded with admiration. “I’ve never seen anything like that before. You’re a hero.”

“Are you kidding me? Darrien, if it wasn’t for you, Javi and I would both be dead. I think you’re the real hero here,” he replied modestly.

Darrien thought about Jack
'
s words and smiled.

“My mother will be so proud,” he said, now beaming with pride.

“And you thought this was going to be a boring job,” Jack teased.

As he started to stand, Darrien reached over and helped him to his feet.

“After today, boring sounds really good,” Darrien joked.

“Amen
,
brother, Amen,” Jack said with a smile.

Jack and Darrien slowly worked their way through the narrow corridors. As they approached the exit, the bright light
s
shined in, guiding them safely out of the pyramid. Standing in the sunlight, Jack breathed in a great breath of air.

“Phew, sunshine never felt so good,”
he
said, matter-of-factly.

“Good to hear everything’s ok,” a deep voice called out.

Jack stiffened at the sound of the familiar voice. Turing to his left, two dark suited men stood stoically just off to the side of the entrance.

“Man, don’t you guys ever take a rest?” Jack spat out in frustration. “A couple guys almost died in there… including me.”

“We’re delighted to hear you’re alive,”
Dimitri
replied, in an unsympathetic tone. “Can we have word with you… alone?”

Jack shot Darrien a knowing stare and said, “Take five. I’ll be back shortly.”

“I’ll get the car,” Darrien responded, flashing the two dark suited men a foul sneer.

Dimitri
waited momentarily for Darrien to leave, the
n
asked, “We appreciate you locating the traps.”

“All for you,” Jack replied sarcastically.

“How close are you to the burial chamber?”
Dimitri
asked, ignoring Jack’s negative comment.

“We’ve reached it by probe this morning, but there’s a door blocking it. We were about halfway there when Javi got caught in the trap.”

“This door you speak of. Can you open it?”
Dimitri
now asked, callously ignoring Javier’s welfare.

“Burt and Javier both believe the crystal will open the door.”

Dimitri
laughed sardonically to himself and replied, “Then it is most fortunate that we are in possession of the crystal, isn’t it?”

“Sure,” Jack responded simply.

Dimitri
eyed Jack with suspicion, then turned to his partner. Speaking Russian briefly, they turned to Jack, then back to themselves and laughed.

Turning to Jack,
Dimitri
became serious and said, “Tomorrow… the boss will be here tomorrow. You will have the pyramid cleared of all traps by then.”

“Dude, Javier’s in the hospital. I can barely see. We’re going to need more time,” Jack said, acidly.

“Mr. Arista was talking when he left a short time ago. The hospital is just a formality. You can walk and talk too. Everyone is fine,”
Dimitri
shot back, angrily, then added, “Tomorrow night, when all have gone home, we will all enter the pyramid. Is that clear?”

Opening his jacket, he lightly tapped his holstered weapon. With a simple nod, his threat was
delivered
.

“What about Serena?” Jack asked, defiantly.

“As I said, we will all enter the pyramid,”
Dimitri
replied, now visibly seething.

“This is such bullshit,” Jack said under his breath, but loud enough for the Russians to hear him.

Instantly,
Dimitri
pulled his handgun and hit Jack across the side of his head. Jack fell to the ground, stunned. With little recourse, he feigned unconsciousness. Lying still, he heard the sound of the hammer cock on the
Dimitri
’s gun, but held his bluff.

“
Dimitri
, no!” the other Russian said.

Trying not to flinch, Jack held his face and body perfectly still.

“You’re right. It would be a waste. I want him to see me pull the trigger,”
Dimitri
shot back. He laughed momentarily, then added, “Tomorrow, they’ll all see me pull the trigger… maybe even that stupid girl.”

“You can’t shoot the girl too. Nicolae has her sold already,” the shorter Russian warned.

“Accidents happen,”
Dimitri
replied, cryptically.

The two laughed sadistically, turned
,
and headed back to their black sedan.

As the car drove out of sight, Jack staggered to his feet. Rubbing the throbbing bump on the side of his head, he looked at his bloody fingers. Rage welled inside him.

“Enough of this bullshit!” he spat out angrily. “Two can play this game.”

~~~~~  ~~~~~  ~~~~~

Argos General
Hospital
,
Argos
Greece
:

Jack and Darrien entered Javier’s room in the emergency ward of
Argos General
Hospital
. As they rounded the corner, Javier instantly shot the pair an ear-to-ear grin.

“Well, well, looked what the cat dragged in. If you come to pay your last respects, you’re a bit early,” Javier joked.

“How’re you feeling?” Jack asked, his face nearly devoid of all expression.

“Jack, I know that look. What’s wrong?” Burt asked, now visibly concerned.

“We’ve got problems. We’ve got big problems,” Jack responded.

“Problems? Not another trap?” Javier asked, his face now turned serious.

“You might call it that,” Jack responded cryptically. “The Russians paid me a visit after you left. They told me in no uncertain terms that we have to have the pyramid cleared of all booby traps by tomorrow night.”

“Tomorrow night?” Javier blurted out. “Don’t they know I had to go to the hospital?”

“They know… they just don’t care. The big Russian was very explicit about the orders,” Jack said, now rubbing the bruise on the side of his head.

“What orders?” Burt asked.

“We’re all supposed to meet tomorrow night. We’re supposed to lead them into
the
pyramid and when they have what they want, they’ll make the ‘exchange
,
’” Jack said, using his fingers to bracket the word.

“You think they’re planning funny business?” Javier asked.

“Yes… I do. The big Russian pulled his gun and gave me this bruise on my head. As I pretended to be knocked out, I heard his partner persuade him not to shoot me. The big Russian responded with ‘I want him to see me pull the trigger
.
’”

“Oh my God, do you think he was really going to shoot you?” Burt blurted out in shock.

“Absolutely. If I hadn’t faked being knocked out, I’d be dead right now.”

“Wow, that’s awful. Sorry you had to go through that,” Javier said.

“There’s more,
” Jack continued. “As they were leaving, I overheard them both talking. The big Russian plans to shoot everyone tomorrow after they have what they want.”

A gasp came from Burt as the reality of Jack’s words immediately struck him.

“No! We’ve got to do something,” Javier responded in both anger and fear.

“There’s one more thing. I overheard them talking about Serena. I’m pretty sure they plan to sell her into slavery.”

“Oh no… human trafficking. Tha
t’s worse than a death sentence
I’ve heard,” Burt said,
h
is voice filled with anguish.

Javier sat motionless as his mind visualized the atrocities in store for his daughter. His eyes welled and a tear rolled off his cheek.
As the rage built inside him, his
face turned a deep red and his fists clenched.

Grabbing the sheet that covered him, he threw it off to the side and stood up.

“Javier, what are you doing?” Burt protested. “
Your
results haven’t come back yet.”

“To hell with the results. I need to save my daughter,” Javier said in a low determined voice. “I’m calling the police.”

“One step ahead of you,” Jack cut in.

“You called them?” Javier asked, his eyes nearly piercing Jack’s.

“I did,” Jack responded simply.

“And?” Javier asked, now growing impatient.

“I gave them all the details. They’re handling it.”

“You don’t sound convincing, Jack.”

“These Russians scare me: they’re unpredictable and I have my doubts about the police.”

“What other recourse do we have?”

“None at the moment, but that could change.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Javier asked, suspiciously.

“Only that if we see an opportunity to resolve this ourselves, we shouldn’t overlook it just because the police are involved.”

“Jack, I don’t want you doing anything unless you talk to us first… ok?” Javier demanded.

A moment of silence and Javier repeated, “Jack?”

“I understand,” he shot back, reluctantly.

The Pyramid; The following morning:

“Well, I didn’t see anything. We’ve been through the corridors and chambers twice now and I just don’t see anything from the probe that looks like a trigger for a trap,” Javier said, staring at his computer screen.

“That’s what I’ve been saying now for the past four hours. I think it’s safe for us to go in, at least up to the last chamber with altar,” Jack responded, exasperation creeping into his voice.

“Jack, just because you didn’t see another telltale etching on the floor, doesn’t mean there aren’t other methods to trigger a trap,” Burt added.

“I understand that, but
my gut feel
ing
is there’re no hazards until after we open that huge
door in the last chamber,” he
argued.

“We can’t go on gut feel
ing
here, Jack. It’s just too dangerous. One miscalculation and someone will die, if not all of us,” Javie
r countered. “We need to take it
slow, especially once we get beyond that last trap. I know we’ve all seen what it looks like from the probe’s cameras, but until I step foot in there, I consider it all uncharted territory.”

Jack nodded simply, choosing not to argue the point further.

“Ok, let’s get our equipment and get in there. We need to have this thing cleared in less than two hours,” Burt said, now looking at his watch.

Javier checked his watch
too
and noted the time, “Right, it’s eleven-thirty. We need to be back at this entrance and waiting by one-thirty. I don’t want to give the Russians any reason to walk. I just hope it all goes as planned.”

“Me too,” Jack said apprehensively.

“I don’t see the police. When do you think they’ll show
?”
Darrien asked.

“They’re here now. You just don’t see them. They need to blend in with the workers, otherwise the Russians will see them and run,” Jack responded.

Darrien looked around and tried to locate the plain-clothes policemen.

“Unless you know every worker here and can spot the strange faces in the crowd, you probably won’t find them,” Jack said.

“I can’t wait to see the looks on their faces when the police step out of the crowd and arrest them,” Darrien added.

“Me too, Darrien, me too,” Javier jumped in.

The four men stood just outside the entrance and checked their equipment. Fear and apprehension flowed freely through Javier, Burt
,
and Darrien as they contemplated their fates. Jack sat quietly off to the side and adjusted the controls of his radar platform.

“Jack, what are you doing with that thing? I thought it was broken,” Javier asked.

“I fixed it. I think it was just a loose wire. It could come in handy while we’re in there,” he replied.

Javier nodded simply and donned his backpack. “Why don’t you use our GPR device, Jack? It’s probably more sophisticated than the one you made.”

He thought about Javier’s suggestion, then said, “I would if the car wasn’t so far away.”

“Well, either way, it doesn’t hurt to have one on hand just in case,” Javier said.

Jack stood and donned his own pack. With a flashlight in one hand, and his radar device in the other, he stepped just inside the pyramid.

“Coming?” he shouted to the others.

“Right behind you,” Javier replied for all three.

As Jack led a hurried pace, the others followed quickly behind him.

Within minutes, he ascended the incline and disappeared around the first corner.

“Jack, hold up a minute,” Javier shouted.

Moments later, Jack’s light appeared around the corner and shined down the corridor as the three continued higher up towards his position.

“Sorry guys. G
uess I’m a little impatient,” he called down to them.

“
Your
impatience is going to get you killed,” Javier shouted back.

As the three stopped at the landing guarded by the two stone warriors, Jack turned and continued around the corner. He ascended the next shallow incline
,
stopped at the point of the previous collapse
,
and waited. Several minutes later, the other three joined him.