Indiana Jones and the Secretof the Sphinx by Max McCoy
Authors: Max McCoy
Tags: Indiana Jones
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flinch.
"You must have a phenomenal memory," Indy said.
"Beg your pardon, sir?"
"I don't remember telling you that I was a professor."
"We do receive newswire reports, even in Calcutta," Pasha said. "It would be a very uninformed citizen of the empire who did not know the name of the famous archaeologist."
Pasha backed out of the room.
"You don't trust him," Faye said.
"There's not many people I do trust," Indy said. Then, when he felt Mystery's eyes on the back of his neck he added: "Present company excepted."
There was the sound of a closing door somewhere nearby, and hushed voices followed by approaching footsteps. A tall, white-haired man wearing a black turban and jacket entered the room.
His skin was the color of walnut, but his eyes were a piercing blue.
"Guests," he said. "Forgive me for making you wait. Had I known you were here, I would have hurried. Please, come into my inner office."
"Thank you," Faye said.
They followed him into a dark, well-carpeted room where a ceiling fan turned slowly. The magician sat in a richly upholstered chair and withdrew a cigar from a wooden box on a side table, then offered the box to Indy.
"No thanks," Indy said. "I don't smoke."
"I do," Faye said.
"As you wish," Jadoo said and allowed her to select a cigar.
Jadoo lit his cigar with a wooden match, then passed the matches to Faye. She bit off one end of the cigar, then sucked flame into the other end of it.
"I didn't know you smoked, Mother."
"I've had to give it up," Faye said as the smoke serpentined around her head, drawn upward by the ceiling fan. "It's difficult to get American cigarettes, and the local stuff they smoke stinks too much. My, this is strong."
Jadoo smiled.
"Dr. Jones, I know you by reputation. And madam, Pasha tells me that you are the wife of my peer, Kaspar Maskelyne. How may I help you?"
"It is because of my husband that we are here," Faye said. "We've been told that he may have visited you before his disappearance, some four years ago."
Jadoo puffed on his cigar.
"Yes," he said. "Of course I remember him. He spent the day with me, in 1930, I believe. He has disappeared? I am sorry to hear that."
"We were hoping," Indy said, "that you could share with us the substance of your conversation with him, to better inform our search."
"Ah, it was so long ago," Jadoo said. "And, I am sorry to admit, my memory is not what it once was. What strikes me most about the conversation now is how pleasant it was. We discussed the history of magic, of course, and he took notes for a book he said he was writing."
"A book?" Faye asked. "He never told me about a book."
"Now, let me think," Jadoo said and closed his eyes. "It does seem to me that a book was involved in the discussion. We talked of so many things."
"Kaspar was not the type to attempt a book," Faye said. "He was more the adventurer than the scholar. In fact, I only received three letters from him before his disappearance, and those were maddeningly brief. I have wished many times that he had been more inclined to document his activities, because it would have made the search for him that much easier."
"Now I remember," Jadoo said. "He was not writing a book about ancient magic, but looking for one. I was not familiar with it, because it seemed to deal more with religion than magic."
"Did you have any advice for him?" Indy asked.
"Yes. He asked me about ancient Hindu texts, and I was able to tell him something about Sanskrit. We also talked of the nearly universal belief among the world's religions of a book or tablet which contains the histories of every person who will ever live."
"The Omega Book," Faye said.
"That is what some cultures call it," Jadoo said. "The ancient Egyptians, for example, believed that in the city of Heliopolis, near Cairo, there was a great sacred pillar named Annu that stood before civilization existed, and contained secret knowledge on 36,535 scrolls hidden inside. The knowledge could only be revealed to the
"You must have a phenomenal memory," Indy said.
"Beg your pardon, sir?"
"I don't remember telling you that I was a professor."
"We do receive newswire reports, even in Calcutta," Pasha said. "It would be a very uninformed citizen of the empire who did not know the name of the famous archaeologist."
Pasha backed out of the room.
"You don't trust him," Faye said.
"There's not many people I do trust," Indy said. Then, when he felt Mystery's eyes on the back of his neck he added: "Present company excepted."
There was the sound of a closing door somewhere nearby, and hushed voices followed by approaching footsteps. A tall, white-haired man wearing a black turban and jacket entered the room.
His skin was the color of walnut, but his eyes were a piercing blue.
"Guests," he said. "Forgive me for making you wait. Had I known you were here, I would have hurried. Please, come into my inner office."
"Thank you," Faye said.
They followed him into a dark, well-carpeted room where a ceiling fan turned slowly. The magician sat in a richly upholstered chair and withdrew a cigar from a wooden box on a side table, then offered the box to Indy.
"No thanks," Indy said. "I don't smoke."
"I do," Faye said.
"As you wish," Jadoo said and allowed her to select a cigar.
Jadoo lit his cigar with a wooden match, then passed the matches to Faye. She bit off one end of the cigar, then sucked flame into the other end of it.
"I didn't know you smoked, Mother."
"I've had to give it up," Faye said as the smoke serpentined around her head, drawn upward by the ceiling fan. "It's difficult to get American cigarettes, and the local stuff they smoke stinks too much. My, this is strong."
Jadoo smiled.
"Dr. Jones, I know you by reputation. And madam, Pasha tells me that you are the wife of my peer, Kaspar Maskelyne. How may I help you?"
"It is because of my husband that we are here," Faye said. "We've been told that he may have visited you before his disappearance, some four years ago."
Jadoo puffed on his cigar.
"Yes," he said. "Of course I remember him. He spent the day with me, in 1930, I believe. He has disappeared? I am sorry to hear that."
"We were hoping," Indy said, "that you could share with us the substance of your conversation with him, to better inform our search."
"Ah, it was so long ago," Jadoo said. "And, I am sorry to admit, my memory is not what it once was. What strikes me most about the conversation now is how pleasant it was. We discussed the history of magic, of course, and he took notes for a book he said he was writing."
"A book?" Faye asked. "He never told me about a book."
"Now, let me think," Jadoo said and closed his eyes. "It does seem to me that a book was involved in the discussion. We talked of so many things."
"Kaspar was not the type to attempt a book," Faye said. "He was more the adventurer than the scholar. In fact, I only received three letters from him before his disappearance, and those were maddeningly brief. I have wished many times that he had been more inclined to document his activities, because it would have made the search for him that much easier."
"Now I remember," Jadoo said. "He was not writing a book about ancient magic, but looking for one. I was not familiar with it, because it seemed to deal more with religion than magic."
"Did you have any advice for him?" Indy asked.
"Yes. He asked me about ancient Hindu texts, and I was able to tell him something about Sanskrit. We also talked of the nearly universal belief among the world's religions of a book or tablet which contains the histories of every person who will ever live."
"The Omega Book," Faye said.
"That is what some cultures call it," Jadoo said. "The ancient Egyptians, for example, believed that in the city of Heliopolis, near Cairo, there was a great sacred pillar named Annu that stood before civilization existed, and contained secret knowledge on 36,535 scrolls hidden inside. The knowledge could only be revealed to the
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