Curse of Atlantis (38 page)

“I believe so, albeit behind heavy glass.
I also overheard a conversation by the Board of Planning. I believe
they're
considering changing the name of one of these coastal towns to Atlantis and building a mock city around it based on the etchings they found in the King’s chambers,” Burt said.

“Wow, talk about a boost to an ailing economy,”
Serena
responded. “Once they build the infrastructure to handle the masses, tourism should be their biggest trade.”

“Between the city of
Atlantis
and Poseidon’s pyramid, I suspect they’ll draw more crowds than
Egypt
, especially with the tours they’re planning,” Burt said.

“What tours?” Jack asked.

“From what I’ve been told, t
hey’re planning on building stairs to Poseidon’s tomb and allowing tours
, of course
that’s only after a thorough search
is made
and
all the
‘curses’
are
removed
,”
Burt
said, using his fingers to bracket the word.

“So you think there’re more booby traps in there?” Serena asked.

“
Actually, n
ot in the chambers we examined already. I think we found all the ‘curses’ in those,” Burt said with a laugh. “
But, t
here is another chamber on the right side that
we haven’t
entered yet.
I can only assume that it’s booby trapped
too
.
”

“
I think I’ll pass on that one, if you don’t mind,” Jack said with a chuckle. “I’ve had enough near-death experiences lately to last me for a while.”

“I
don’t blame you. If the Grecian government hadn’t personally picked me to manag
e the affairs of the pyramid, I probably would have left that task for someone else,” Burt said.

“So any guess to what’s in the other chamber?” Serena asked.

Burt turned and smiled to Javier, then said, “We’ve been speculating on that for days now. What we’
r
e hoping to find is a long shot.”

“Do you remember the two golden statues in the lower chamber?” Javier asked, now cutting in.

“Sure, Poseidon and Zeus. How could we ever forget that?” Jack responded.

“Well, Burt and I are speculating that if they made a golden effigy
of both, then there must be sarcophagi of both also.”

“Another crystal coffin? No way, that’s unbelievable,” Jack said, excitedly.

“Whoa, Jack.
Don’t get too excited.
We’re just speculating here. You have to keep in mind it’s just a long shot,” Burt responded.

“Long shot or not, the idea behind it
IS
pretty exciting,” Jack replied.

Javier shot Burt a knowing look, then said, “I’ve seen that look in his eyes before. We better change the subject before it’s too late.”

Playing along with the joke, Burt said,
“
It’s already too late. We’ve ignited the flame.
There’s no stopping him now.”

Jack was about to respond, when he spotted a news team heading for their table.

“Uh oh, my spider senses tell me another interview is in our future,” he said,
humorously
.

Javier and Burt turned and spotted the smiling faces of the four-member news crew heading their way. Checking his watch, he said, “Ah ha, right on time.”

“You invited these guys?” Serena asked, somewhat defensive.

“Don’t worry, Honey, we’ll be taking it outside. They wanted to ask Burt and
me
some technical questions. I would have invited you two, but I didn’t want to interrupt your dinner,” Javier said.

“Thanks
,
Dad,” Serena said simply.

Burt and Javier excused themselves, stood
,
and greeted the news crew. As they turned the corner to leave, Serena smiled seductively at Jack. 

“So, where were we… ah yes,” Serena said slyly. Picking up the carafe, she continued, “Would you care for some more wine?”

“Is this a trick question ‘cuz I’m pretty sure you know what my response is going to be,” Jack teased.

“Don’t worry, I’ll be gentle,” Serena said softly as she poured.

-END-

Message from the Author:

Hi, I’m Christopher David Petersen,

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For
another
Adventure
/Thriller
by Christopher David Petersen, please
read the sample chapters
below:
Tear in Time (tear as in torn)

Tear in Time
:

TT: Chapter 1

 
Chattanooga
,
Tennessee

Alton
Park
region

June 8th, 2005
 

 
Life and destiny stood for one last moment, perfectly synced in time. Never again would the world see the past as they remembered, as one death would change the world’s destiny forever.

--- --- --- --- ---

Trae Williams leaned to one side as he sat on his mother’s decrepit front porch and watched his sister play in their front yard. Lena Williams, an energetic eight-year-old, raced back and forth across the worn lawn as she chased after tiny moths that had hidden themselves on the blades of grass. With each swipe of her hand, she expertly snatched the tiny white targets out of midair, then released them back to the world safely.

“Oh yeah! Trae, did you see that?”
Lena
asked proudly.

“Damn, Le, you’re like a ninja or something,” Trae replied.

Beaming with pride,
Lena
replied, “Too bad Mom can’t see my skills.”

“She’s working, Le. She’ll be home in a couple hours. Maybe you can show her then,” Trae answered.

“Mom’s always working,”
Lena
said disapprovingly, then added, “Too bad we don’t have a dad like Sharice’s, next door. Then Mom could stay home too.”

“Le, you do have a dad. He just don’t come around no more… and Sharice’s mom don’t work ’cause she’s lazy,” Trae replied as delicately as he knew how.

Lena
stopped running and sat down next to Trae.

“Do you ever see your dad, Trae?”
Lena
asked sincerely.

“Not for a long time. Not since before he went to prison. That was before you were born,” Trae replied.

“Oh,”
Lena
said simply. “Do you miss ’im?”

“Nah. He wasn’t around much, even before he got sent up,” Trae answered.

“Well, I miss my dad,”
Lena
replied.

“Damn, Le, you never even seen ’im before. How could you even miss ’im?” Trae blurted out in quick reaction.

“I just do, Trae…
 
I’m sure he misses me too,”
Lena
replied.

Trae knew his sister was hurting from her father’s rejection. Hoping to take her mind off her pain, he searched for anything to distract her.

 
“Hey, Le: check out those moths over by the street. Bet you can’t catch ‘em all,” Trae said, with a challenging smirk.

 
“Bet I can,”
Lena
replied, laughing.

 
Immediately,
Lena
sprang to her feet and darted to the edge of the road, both hands sweeping through the air as she lunged for more moths.

 
Trae watched her for a moment, then became distracted as an older Buick with faded paint slowly drifted toward the stop sign at the beginning of their street. Unremarkable at first, the long length of time spent at the stop sign made the old sedan a conspicuous sight.

Trae focused more of his attention on the car. Something just wasn’t right. He squinted hard as he tried to see through the darkened, tinted windows, but it was of no use. The occupants remained a mystery.

Trae began to feel uneasy. The old Buick was literally parked at the stop sign for what now felt like an eternity. He glanced over to
Lena
, then back at the suspicious car. A knot in the pit of his stomach began to grow.

“Le, come here for a minute,” Trae said in nervous tone.

“Just a minute, Trae. I almost caught ‘em all,”
Lena
replied, indifferent to the world around her.

Trae saw the brakes release from the old Buick, then quickly stop again, almost as if by accident. He looked up the street to see if the vehicle had intended on pulling out but reconsidered due to another passing car. Strangely, there were no other vehicles in sight.

“
Lena
, come here,” Trae said.

Hearing Trae use her full name,
Lena
stopped and stared at her brother for a moment. She could see the peculiar look spread across his face as he turned back toward the mysterious Buick.

“Trae, what’s the matter?”
Lena
asked innocently.

“Dunno. That car’s been there a while. Maybe you should go in the house for a minute,” Trae replied, now feeling the anxiety of the moment.

“Ahhh,”
Lena
sounded out in protest. “I don’t want to go inside. It’s just a car, Trae. Besides, I can take care of myself,”
Lena
stated proudly.

“Uh huh, sure you can… just get in the house,” Trae responded bluntly.

“Just one more m.…”
Lena
began, but she was cut short by the revving of the Buick’s engine.

“
LENA
,
GET
IN THE DAMN HOUSE
NOW
!” Trae shouted loudly.

 
Suddenly, aggressively, the old Buick released its brakes and stormed around the corner. With tires squealing and smoke billowing from behind the car, the old sedan charged up the street toward them.

 
“Oh no,” Trae murmured to himself, almost in sobbing tone.

 
With little time to react, Trae sprang to his feet and hurried toward his sister.
Lena
stood paralyzed in confusion. She knew something was wrong, but was too young and naive to understand fully Trae’s actions.

 
Trae watched in horror as the Buick’s dark tinted windows began to lower. In seconds, his worst fears were realized as the occupants extended their guns out from the windows. With deafening sound, their automatic weapons came to life.

 
As bolts of white light streaked from the ends of the gun barrels, Trae lunged for
Lena
, knocking her to the ground. He instinctively rolled on top of her to protect her as a hail of bullets tore up the ground around them. As the faded Buick roared past, Trae and
Lena
lay motionless on the front lawn, their minds and bodies unable to react.

As time seemed to slow, Trae could almost count the bullets as they exited the guns. One by one, each bullet miraculously missed its mark. Trae looked into his sister’s eyes. She had not been hit. Suddenly, he realized they both were alive and had made it through the drive-by shooting.

 
Quickly, Trae leapt to his feet, pulling
Lena
up with him. The sight of the two still alive spread quickly to the driver of the car. In an instant, he slammed on his brakes and brought the old Buick to a quick halt. Throwing it in reverse, he immediately roared backward down the street toward Trae and
Lena
. Seconds later, the driver slammed on the brakes once more and brought the heavy vehicle to a quick stop.

 
Trae grabbed
Lena
around the waist and sprang from the edge of the road. Like the stride of a gazelle, he bounded across the front lawn with amazing speed and agility, his adrenaline pumping at full capacity.

As the faded Buick came to a stop, all its doors were flung open and four young men exited the vehicle quickly. With their guns still drawn, they wasted no time in continuing their task. Trae leaped to the top step of his front porch and felt a sharp razor-like object strike his left side. Before the first bullet could even register, a second bullet struck him in the right shoulder, rendering his arm useless. Instantly,
Lena
dropped onto the porch, Trae collapsing beside her.