course.”
“But you still have secure Internet access?”
A nod from Mario.
“Then I’ve got some good news.”
Ten minutes later, the blip on Mario’s laptop screen settled on a point in the Swiss Alps. Timmy hovered over the keyboard.
Marshall sat beside him. “Zoom it,” he said.
“Chill, man,” Timmy said. “I’m three steps ahead of you.”
Marshall bristled, Lacey chuckled, and Francesca translated.
Jake watched the screen. The satellite image tightened on a tenth-century castle. A blanket of snow covered the surrounding terrain.
“The radio frequency identification—RFID—chips are microscopic,” Timmy said. “My own design. I floated them in a metallic coating that matched the mini’s finish. They latch onto any cell or wireless signal within a quarter mile.”
Marshall sat back in his chair. He nodded. “Respect.”
“Thanks,” Timmy said. They fist-bumped.
Lacey rolled her eyes. “Oh, brother.”
“So that’s real time?” Tony asked.
“Yeah.”
“Do you really think that thing will restore my memory?” Jake asked.
Francesca’s hand clasped her locket as she relayed the question in English.
Timmy turned around to face Jake. “I can’t be sure. But it seemed to work when you held it yesterday. Besides, what other options do we have?”
Jake nodded. “Then we’ve got work to do.”
“Here we go again,” Tony said.
Chapter 18
Swiss Alps
V ICTOR TIGHTENED THE fur collar around his neck. He watched as the ten-person gondola swung to a stop at the far side of the space. The suspension cables creaked. The storm had dumped two feet of snow on the surrounding terrain. But the weather front had broken, at least temporarily. Sunlight lanced through the opening in the cliff face. All but one of the crates of precious cargo had been taken off the mountain. Four men and a hand-operated lift waited patiently for access to the final package.
Victor turned to face the steel door behind him. “Open it,” he said.
Hans entered a code on a panel beside the door. The lock clicked and they stepped inside the small room. The door closed behind them. Halogen track lights illuminated a single five-foot-square crate. Its hinged top was open. An ink-black upside-down pyramid was supported inside. The artifact had been found by Victor’s ancestor a thousand years ago.
“The time is upon us,” he said softly. He removed his gloves and ran his hand over the smooth surface of the object. It felt cool to the touch. The detail of the etched images around the perimeter of its upward-facing base never ceased to impress him. Each laser-like engraving depicted ancient man rainingviolence upon his brethren. Clubs crushed skulls, sharpened stones pierced bellies, and infants were smashed underfoot. His hand stopped on the final glyph. Three hairless humanoid figures stood on an outcrop of rock above a tribe of ancestral fur-clothed
Homo sapiens
. Their backs were turned, and Victor imagined expressions of serenity on their faces. A small pyramid hovered over their outstretched hands. Lances of light shot from the object and pierced the heads of those below. Their wild-eyed expressions were frozen in anguish.
There was a series of embossed shapes and patterns inside the track of perimeter images. Over the centuries, the Order’s scholars and scientists had been unable to solve the riddle they represented. But Jake Bronson had done so in a matter of minutes. Victor shook his head, marveling at the irony. His gaze traveled to the center of the pyramid. There was a four-inch square etched into it, its surface untouched by engravings. Victor reached into his coat pocket, removed the mini, and placed it on the square.
It was a perfect match.
Chapter 19
Swiss Alps
L ACEY NOTICED J AKE scratch his fake whiskers again. He said they’d itched almost as much as the silicone nose he wore.
“Even your mother wouldn’t recognize you,” she said in Italian. She sat across from Jake in the
“But you still have secure Internet access?”
A nod from Mario.
“Then I’ve got some good news.”
Ten minutes later, the blip on Mario’s laptop screen settled on a point in the Swiss Alps. Timmy hovered over the keyboard.
Marshall sat beside him. “Zoom it,” he said.
“Chill, man,” Timmy said. “I’m three steps ahead of you.”
Marshall bristled, Lacey chuckled, and Francesca translated.
Jake watched the screen. The satellite image tightened on a tenth-century castle. A blanket of snow covered the surrounding terrain.
“The radio frequency identification—RFID—chips are microscopic,” Timmy said. “My own design. I floated them in a metallic coating that matched the mini’s finish. They latch onto any cell or wireless signal within a quarter mile.”
Marshall sat back in his chair. He nodded. “Respect.”
“Thanks,” Timmy said. They fist-bumped.
Lacey rolled her eyes. “Oh, brother.”
“So that’s real time?” Tony asked.
“Yeah.”
“Do you really think that thing will restore my memory?” Jake asked.
Francesca’s hand clasped her locket as she relayed the question in English.
Timmy turned around to face Jake. “I can’t be sure. But it seemed to work when you held it yesterday. Besides, what other options do we have?”
Jake nodded. “Then we’ve got work to do.”
“Here we go again,” Tony said.
Chapter 18
Swiss Alps
V ICTOR TIGHTENED THE fur collar around his neck. He watched as the ten-person gondola swung to a stop at the far side of the space. The suspension cables creaked. The storm had dumped two feet of snow on the surrounding terrain. But the weather front had broken, at least temporarily. Sunlight lanced through the opening in the cliff face. All but one of the crates of precious cargo had been taken off the mountain. Four men and a hand-operated lift waited patiently for access to the final package.
Victor turned to face the steel door behind him. “Open it,” he said.
Hans entered a code on a panel beside the door. The lock clicked and they stepped inside the small room. The door closed behind them. Halogen track lights illuminated a single five-foot-square crate. Its hinged top was open. An ink-black upside-down pyramid was supported inside. The artifact had been found by Victor’s ancestor a thousand years ago.
“The time is upon us,” he said softly. He removed his gloves and ran his hand over the smooth surface of the object. It felt cool to the touch. The detail of the etched images around the perimeter of its upward-facing base never ceased to impress him. Each laser-like engraving depicted ancient man rainingviolence upon his brethren. Clubs crushed skulls, sharpened stones pierced bellies, and infants were smashed underfoot. His hand stopped on the final glyph. Three hairless humanoid figures stood on an outcrop of rock above a tribe of ancestral fur-clothed
Homo sapiens
. Their backs were turned, and Victor imagined expressions of serenity on their faces. A small pyramid hovered over their outstretched hands. Lances of light shot from the object and pierced the heads of those below. Their wild-eyed expressions were frozen in anguish.
There was a series of embossed shapes and patterns inside the track of perimeter images. Over the centuries, the Order’s scholars and scientists had been unable to solve the riddle they represented. But Jake Bronson had done so in a matter of minutes. Victor shook his head, marveling at the irony. His gaze traveled to the center of the pyramid. There was a four-inch square etched into it, its surface untouched by engravings. Victor reached into his coat pocket, removed the mini, and placed it on the square.
It was a perfect match.
Chapter 19
Swiss Alps
L ACEY NOTICED J AKE scratch his fake whiskers again. He said they’d itched almost as much as the silicone nose he wore.
“Even your mother wouldn’t recognize you,” she said in Italian. She sat across from Jake in the
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