“Okay sure, no hurry or anything. We’ve got all night down here, I’m sure.” He made a goofy expression that indicated he was being sarcastic.
“So first line, from left to right, goes from the lake on Mt. Ararat to here, Axum.”
“Okay. So why were the other two lines even needed?” Jayden asked.
“Let’s see. The second, middle line, is from Mt. Ararat to Israel. And the third line goes from Israel to Axum, passing through the Red Sea, the only one of the three lines to cut across any major body of water.”
“Still don’t get it.”
“I know this isn’t exactly our private study hall,” Carter said, looking over at the bound priest, “But let’s unpack this a little.”
“Be quick about it.”
Carter nodded. “The significance of each line: As you said, the line from Ararat to here is obvious. It’s where Noah’s Ark was, to a place long rumored to be the final resting place of the Ark of the Covenant.”
“Right, so the others?”
Carter traced a fingertip along the map, following one of the invisible contours. “Ararat to Israel. So, real quick: Ararat has two lines leading away from it: one to Axum, and one to Israel.”
“What happened in Israel?”
Carter thought for a moment before speaking. “We know that Ethiopia is heavily associated with the Queen of Sheba lore.”
“Okay, so Sheba who had the kid with King Solomon of Jerusalem, the son who eventually brought the Ark of the Covenant back here to Axum.”
“Right, Menelik. And that makes sense because there’s also the third line connecting Israel to Axum; that could literally represent Menelik bringing the ark back to Ethiopia. Also, the Red Sea is clearly a Moses reference.”
“Because he parted it.”
“Yeah. And of course he’s the one who brought the Ten Commandments down from Mt. Sinai. So that’s what all these invisible line-connected places have in common.”
Jayden shook his head. “Those are all great stories, man, but we need some numbers here.” He pointed to the combination lock in the floor. “Four of them.”
But Carter seemed not to hear him. He was staring at the map, utterly transfixed as if oblivious to the world around him.
“Carter, seriously, if we can’t figure this thing out right now, we’re just going to have to come back. We know there’ something down there. We can—”
“Let’s try one thing.”
“Numbers, Carter, we need those numbers.”
“Right, so how about this: it’s weird to me that the lines are curved instead of straight, like we were talking about. So what if the lines are curved so that they have to pass through more countries or distinct regions as dictated by the lines on this map.”
“Explain, hurry.” Jayden looked over at the trussed monk, who was trying to shout from behind his gag.
“The left line passes through…” His pointer finger parsed the map as he counted. “Six countries or regions.”
“Okay, six.”
“The middle line passes through only one demarcated region or country.”
“One, got it. So that’s six, one.”
“And the third line passes through, let’s see here…”a total of nine countries.”
“Okay,” Jayden said, “That gives us six, one, nine.” He made a sour face as he looked down at the floor lock. “But it’s a four digit code. Come on, Carter, this is a waste of time!”
But Carter did not panic. He stared some more at the map, lost in deep thought. Jayden was just about to interrupt when he looked up and said, “Queen Sheba, King Solomon… Jayden, it’s Kings!”
“Huh?”
“The verse in the Bible.” Carter nodded to the book in Jayden’s hand. “Look for it. In the Book of Kings, verse 6:19.”
Jayden opened the book. “Okay, but there are two Books of Kings: 1 King and 2 King.”
Carter hesitated for a second and said, “Maybe there’s only one of them with a 6:19?”
Jayden flipped through the pages, running his finger down a particular passage, holding his place and flipping to another section where he did the same. “Sorry, but both of them have a verse 6:19.”
“Okay, then just read both of them, starting with the one you’re on. What’s it say?”
“This is from 2 Kings.” Jayden read aloud from the scripture. “This is not the road and this is not the city. Follow me, and I will lead you to the man you are seeking.”
Carter chuckled softly. “I think we can rule that one out. So what’s verse 6:19 from 1 King say?”
The sound of pages turning was the only noise in the chapel for a few seconds. Then Jayden read aloud: “The inner sanctuary he prepared in the innermost part of the house, to set there the ark of the covenant of the Lord.”
“Bingo!” Carter stood up and put the map away back into his backpack.
Jayden’s face transformed into a mask of wonder as he still stared at the Bible. “Yeah, now we’re talking! Inner sanctuary… innermost part of the house…” He stared at the section of floor with the lock.
“Now I’m thinking this definitely isn’t a safe.” Carter also stared at the locked section of flooring. “It’s a trapdoor.”
“That makes good sense, but we still need the combination.”
Carter looked up from the Bible and smiled at him. “What did we just do? Think of the verse number: 1 Kings 6:19.”
Jayden’s eyes widened. “Four digits: one, six, one nine! I’ll do it!” He quickly knelt and turned the dials until they were positioned to 1 6 1 9 from left to right. “They’re lined up. Pull it!” Jayden backed away from the trapdoor and Carter leaned over to grab the handle.
He pulled it upward and the section of floor lifted away with silent ease, on well-oiled hinges. Carter was able to pull the floor piece up and back until it rested in place, exposing the square cut opening in the floor. Jayden moved in with his flashlight and shined it down into the new space.
“There’s a ladder. Bare stone floor about ten feet down. That’s all I can see from here.”
Carter grabbed his backpack off the floor and put it on. “Let’s check it out.”
“Ladies first,” Jayden said, stepping back and aiming his light down the open trapdoor.
“Feels nice and cool down there.” And with that, Carter descended the ladder.
Chapter 34
Carter swept his flashlight around the space while Jayden climbed down. He could see a bulky object not far away, but a panel on the wall caught his attention first. Walking to it, he found what he was looking for: a light switch. Flipping it up bathed the room in clean fluorescent light from tubes hanging from the ceiling that flickered to life. Next to the switch on the wall was a thermostat. Odd, Carter thought. A climate-controlled room wired for electricity beneath a church out-building in a small Ethiopian town.
“Oh my God!”
Jayden’s voice caused him to turn around, and then he laid eyes on it, too.
Another Ark of the Covenant, full size, occupied this subterranean room. On first glance it looked like the other replicas they’d seen, but after gazing at it, subtle differences became apparent. The intricate embellishments, etchings and carvings on the sides and lid, for one thing. Strikingly detailed, a powerful statement of original artistic might, patience, and attention to detail. Another difference was that the light gleamed off of its golden surfaces in a different manner.
Carter couldn’t help himself, he seemed to be drawn to the object, this cynosure of the room. He traced his fingertips along the sides of the ark, and instantly recognized the cool, smooth touch of metal, in stark contrast to the wood-covered paint the other replicas had to offer.