The Last Chamber (23 page)

Ararat, Armenia

“We should find a place to hole up for the night,” Sean suggested as
the group climbed back into the SUVs.

Snow had begun to fall, and from the looks of it, the storm wasn’t
going away anytime soon. Little snowflakes were settling on the windshield.
While none was accumulating on the ground yet, Sean had a feeling that would
only be a matter of time.

Darkness had begun to settle in as well, as if the clouds themselves
had ushered it. The few derelict people on the sidewalks had disappeared,
apparently unwilling to stay outside in the cold any longer.

“I suppose finding a hotel is out of the question,” Sean joked with
Jabez as they closed the doors to their vehicle and brushed off some of the
snowflakes from their jackets.

Jabez must not have gotten the joke because he cast Sean a curious
glance. “There are no hotels near here. But there is a church we might be able
to take shelter in.”

Sean let go of the fact that the Arab had missed the joke. “Do you
think there will be anyone there?”

“I doubt it,” he replied. “It looked like it had been abandoned when
we passed it.”

“Oh,” Sean raised his eyebrows.

Jabez cast a wry grin and stepped on the gas. The two vehicles whipped
around the town square and headed back in the direction they’d come. “Remember
the direction we need to go. We will come back through this part of town on our
way out in the morning.”

Adriana was busy in the back seat with a tablet in her hands, scanning
through aerial images of the mountains to the northeast. Firth couldn’t help
but ask.

“What are you looking at?” he said in a polite a tone as he could.

“These are satellite images of the mountains where we believe the ark
may be,” she pointed at the screen and made a circular motion. “I’m looking for
an anomaly, the footprint that we discussed earlier. I imagine it would closely
resemble a small canyon at this point. So, it would remain unnoticed to someone
who didn’t know what they were looking for.”

The professor seemed impressed. He slid a little closer and continued
staring at the screen as she scrolled through the regional view. It all pretty
much looked the same. There were some spots where erosion had cut away deep
valleys, but other than that, spotting anything unusual was more difficult than
she had first suspected.

“What is that, right there?” he jabbed a finger at a point on the
screen where there was something strange sticking out from one of the seemingly
endless mountains.

She shook her head. “It’s an old rock quarry.” Adriana continued
scrolling through the images for a few more minutes.

“This is it,” Jabez announced and slowed the vehicle to a stop.

The little convoy was parked in front of a ragged old building. The
sign dangling over the front entrance was barely hanging on by one point. Sean
wasn’t sure what the lettering said on it, but he wasn’t impressed by the
facility.

“Jabez, this thing looks like it’s been closed for a long time.”

“It probably has,” the Arab shrugged. “Most of the Christian church
members left this region a long time ago when Muslim influence became
overwhelming. Some still clung to their homes, though, and their churches. This
one was probably one of the last ones to be left behind.”

To say the gray building was dilapidated would be an understatement.
But the roof was intact, and except for a few spots where it looked like the
paint had cracked and rotted, the walls seemed sturdy enough.

Jabez sensed Sean’s hesitation. “It is either this or we head on into
the mountains. My men have tents we can pitch. But it will be dark before we
can get them ready, and by then the temperature will have dropped
significantly.”

Sean knew he was right. They didn’t have many options. At least Jabez
had prepared for the worst. “Ok,” he said after a few more seconds of
consideration. “This will do.”

They stepped out of the vehicles into the darkening town. There were a
few lights on in some of the buildings, but no signs of life. It was one of the
strangest things he’d ever seen, like an entire city had been abandoned, but
with some of the lights still on.

Snow flurries had been falling on their drive to the church. Now they
were full-fledged snowflakes, dropping and an ever-increasing pace.
 
The men in the rear vehicle began
unloading black plastic supply crates and black bags. One of them marched over
to the front door of the church, and after discovering it was locked, kicked
the thing in.

Sean and his companions followed Jabez up the sidewalk and into the
entrance of the little church. Inside, the smell of dust filled Sean’s nose.
But as he looked around, he was surprised to find things left in remarkably
good shape. The pews were all in their rows. Church hymnals had been left in
their slots on the back of the seats. And the cushions in the pews seemed to be
in decent repair.

The sanctuary was minimally decorated, featuring white walls with dark
window frames, and a few dark buttresses pointing up to the angled ceiling. Two
bronze chandelier-style light fixtures hung from the roof over the center aisle
between the rows of seats. In the front, the wooden pulpit sat alone with a
cross emblazoned on the front of it. There were a few pots to each side, but
they were empty. The plants that were in them at one point must have been
removed long ago.

It was cold in the room, but not as cold as it was out in the
elements. A few of Jabez’s men had brought in small heaters. Sean had wondered
how the things were going to operate on no power. Then he realized they had
fuel cells in them. The men placed the devices on the floor in each corner of
the sanctuary and turned them on, causing them to hum quietly in place as they
put out warm air.

“We can sleep on the pews,” Jabez stated. “Those cushions are much
better than sleeping on the floor or an air mattress. And there are enough for
all of us.”

Firth let out a deep sigh and shook his head but said nothing. Sean
wondered if the professor had reached his maximum output for complaining.

Adriana didn’t wait for anyone to say anything. She dropped her gear
off in the next to last row and started pulling out some of her things, making
herself at home. When she was satisfied with her claim to a spot, she sat down
on the pew and pulled out her tablet again, diligently trying to find the
anomaly they were looking for in the mountains.

Sean watched her, mesmerized. She was an intriguing woman. Once her
mind was set to something, Adriana wouldn’t let anything get in the way of
finishing. Since they’d met, there hadn’t been much time to spend in a
social-type setting. But something inside him ached to. He hadn’t felt that way
in a long time about anyone. There had been some flings here and there, but
nothing serious. He had been intrigued by Allyson Webster. She, however, had
done what he felt so many others had done to him, which was why he preferred to
fly solo. Allyson hadn’t been who she claimed to be, instead turning out to be
some kind of international criminal only along for the ride to see what kinds
of priceless treasures she could steal and sell on the black market.

There were any number of women he’d met through the years, but there
had only been one Sean had ever really trusted. Much less given his heart to.
That was a long time ago. And she was gone. He blamed himself for it for years,
only forgiving himself after drowning his guilt in work for the government.
Axis had been a blessing in that regard. It was tough to think too much about
the past when you had people chasing you, shooting at you, lying to you.
Paranoia had become his best friend, and had made him alert, cautious, and
tenacious. Maybe now he was getting soft. He’d let down his guard with Allyson.
And now he found himself doing the same with Adriana.

Sean told himself that Adriana was different. She’d stuck around, and
proven herself over and over again. Deep down, he wondered if he was simply
justifying his feelings because of her good looks.

She looked up from the tablet, catching him in the act of staring at her.
A crease reached out to her cheek in a little smile.

“What are you thinking about?” she asked innocently.

He looked away briefly, ashamed that he’d been caught staring, but
quickly brought his eyes back to her. “Just impressed with how diligent you are.
You don’t give up easily. That’s an admirable trait.”

“I get it from my father,” she replied and returned her attention to
the screen.

Her face resonated in the glow of the electronic device’s retina
display. “He taught me to never give up on anything I set my mind to, even if
he believed it to be silly.”

“That’s good advice.”

She nodded. “It has served me well in my endeavors. Some people might
call what I do a childish venture; that I am playing a fairy tale hero. But to
be able to return great works to their rightful owners, or to a place where
they can be shared with the rest of the world, is good work.”

He shook his head. “I don’t think it’s childish at all.” His face
twisted slightly. “Although, I’m glad to be out of the game where people are
chasing me and trying to kill me all the time.”

Adriana smirked and glanced back up at him. “It would seem you are
hardly out of that game.”

Touche.
He snorted at the comment. “Well,” he hung his head
for a second, “I guess I’m still trying to get out of it.”

Her eyes returned to the screen again while she spoke. “For people
like us, Sean, I am not so sure we can ever retire to a life of gardening and
bridge. While I do not enjoy the dangerous aspects of what I do, I believe some
part of me needs it.”

“Not me,” Sean disagreed and took a seat next to her. “I’ve got other
plans.”

She continued to scroll her finger across the screen, zooming in
occasionally to get a closer look at a peculiarity then moving on.

“What kind of plans?”

He hadn’t really talked to anyone about his retirement goals. But it
was something that weighed on his mind, and had been even heavier over the
course of the last few months. The thoughts reminded him of Tommy, and again
his heart panged slightly. He hoped his friend was okay.

“I’m a man of two places,” Sean began. “I’ve got some land up in the
Blue Ridge Mountains in Georgia. Going to build a cabin there near a lake. I
figure I’ll spend some of my time there, and some of it at my beach house.”

He could see her eyebrows rise in the glow of the tablet’s screen.
“You have a beach home?” she seemed surprised.

He shifted uneasily. “Well, no. Not yet. But I’m looking at some
places down on the Gulf of Mexico. Nothing too touristy. Just a quiet beach
town.”

“And what will you do in your cabin and in your beach house?” she
sounded dubious.

“I dunno. I’ve always enjoyed mountain biking. Tons of places in the
mountains to do that. And I’m really interested in flat water kayaking. My
cabin will be right on a lake, so I can do that anytime I want. It’s so
peaceful being out on the water, paddling, cruising along. Who knows? I may
even open up a sea kayaking shop near my beach house. That looks like it might
be fun, too.”

There were a few moments of silence before she asked the question that
was already stuck in his head. “Have you spoken to your friend about this?”

“Tommy?” Sean knew exactly who she meant. “No. Not yet. I haven’t had
the time. And now that he’s…I guess I feel a little guilty about wanting to
walk away.”

“But do you not enjoy the work, the traveling, discovering ancient
artifacts and secrets that have long been hidden?”

“I guess,” he shrugged. Actually, he did love that part. But he was
tired, and just wanted to be in one place for more than a few weeks at a time.

“That did not sound convincing,” she said skeptically. “However, you
must do what your heart calls for.” Her words hit him in more than one way.

He wanted so badly to move a little closer to her. The outline of her
face, the smooth texture of her creamy skin beckoned to him. He thought better
of it, though. She could be like an untamed animal. If he moved too quickly, it
might startle her. Maybe he had become gun shy with women. Or maybe he just
didn’t want to get too close to someone again.

Jabez’s men had finished bringing the supplies in and closed up the
front door and were busy making sure the building stayed as warm as possible
for the night, repositioning the heaters and plugging up any holes in the
walls. Firth found an empty pew near the front of the church where he placed
his few belongings then headed back to where Adriana and Sean were talking.

The professor had overheard their conversation and decided to add his
two cents. “You know, Sean, it isn’t just about what your heart and mind want
to do.”

Sean looked up from the screen with a quizzical stare. “I’m sorry?”

Firth helped himself to a seat in the pew directly in front of his two
companions and turned around awkwardly to face them. “In this life, there are
always three parts to our path. The first is what our minds want to do. We
think we know, and sometimes we use logic to uncover our way. But in the end,
that isn’t always the right decision.