"Come on, Director. The bones of a biblical king guarding tons of gold? You're going to send us out to try and find it, aren't you?"
Elizabeth smiled. "As a matter of fact, I was thinking of doing exactly that."
"How are we supposed to find it, assuming it still exists?" Nick asked.
Selena said, "The scroll says the path begins at Bir es Seba, near the well of the Patriarch. That has to mean the well of Abraham."
"Where's Bir es Seba?"
"The modern name is Beersheba. It's a city in southern Israel, in the Negev desert. Beersheba is at the edge of the Wilderness of Zin. "
"What does it mean, following the steps of Moses?" Ronnie asked.
"It's probably referring to the biblical journey of Moses when he led the Jews out of Egypt," Selena said. "Part of that journey led through Beersheba and south through the Arabah Valley on the border of Jordan."
Nick shook his head. "How do we keep getting involved in these biblical stories?"
"I don't have an answer for that," Selena said. "Ask your buddy Adam, next time you see him."
"He's not my buddy, whatever else he is."
Elizabeth tapped her pen on the desk. "If there is any possibility the tomb exists, it needs to be found."
"We're not equipped for that," Nick said. "It could be anywhere. It would take an archaeological expedition to find and recover it."
"That could be arranged," Selena said.
"What do you mean?" Elizabeth asked.
"I could fund it. I can't think of a better use for the money."
"You're not an archaeologist," Nick said.
"No, but Alan Friedman is. He'd jump at a chance to go looking for this. Can you imagine what it would mean to find the tomb of King David? Not to mention the gold?"
"I can imagine the trouble it would create. Why do we need an archaeologist?"
"For one thing, he can authenticate anything we do come across. For another, it lends us a respectable cover if anybody asks. He is the Director of the Jewish Museum, after all."
"Us?"
"You don't think I'd let you go looking for something like this and stay here, do you?"
"Selena…"
"This isn't like parachuting into Syria or looking for terrorists hiding in the mountains. All we'll be doing is driving around the desert looking for a tomb. How dangerous can that be?"
"Have you told Friedman about the scroll yet?" Elizabeth asked.
"I wanted to talk with you first."
"You think he'll want to go looking, based on the scroll?"
"I'm certain of it."
They waited while Elizabeth thought about it.
"We have to pursue this," she said. "It's too important. The last thing the Muslims would want is for Israel to find the tomb of David and part of the money that built the First Temple. It would be proof that Israel and the temple existed long before Mohammed came along, which of course they deny."
"Those people are nuts," Lamont said. "Where do they think all those big stones in the Wailing Wall came from?"
Elizabeth continued. "This is the sort of thing that can lead to war over there."
"Give us the Gulfstream," Nick said. "We'll fly in and follow the clues on that scroll. We should know pretty quick if we're going to get anywhere or if it's all a wild goose chase."
"You're dreaming if you think you can just fly into Ben-Gurion and head off into the desert," Elizabeth said. "As soon as you set foot on Israeli soil, Mossad and Shin Bet will start asking questions. They'll never believe you're there on a simple archaeological expedition. After all the times you've been in Israel and everything that's happened there, they're going to want to know exactly what you're doing. You're going to have to tell them."
"If we tell them, they'll take the whole thing over."
"What do you expect me to say? Of course they'll want to take it over. It's their country and their history. If you do find anything, it belongs to Israel. The only possible way is to play it straight with the authorities."
"It would be better if we didn't tell them," Selena said.
Elizabeth raised her eyebrows. "Why?"
"You said yourself that once word gets out it will raise tensions. Telling the Israelis is the best way I can think of to let everybody know what's on that scroll. When it comes to leaks, Tel Aviv is as bad as Washington."
"Nothing's as bad as Washington," Nick said.
"Do you have a better plan?" Elizabeth asked.
"I could stall Friedman and we could go ourselves. Disguised. We've done it before."
"You're the one who said you needed Friedman to lend credibility."
"That's if we travel openly."
"Security in Israel is tighter than a gnat's ass," Lamont said. "No way we're gonna sneak around in the desert without getting caught."
"He's right," Ronnie said. "Out in the open is the only way to go. We could be in country for weeks. There's no cover and we can't avoid their patrols."
"Director, can you can talk to someone over there and smooth the way?" Nick said. "If they want to put minders with us, maybe we can minimize the Israeli presence."
"That might be doable," Elizabeth said.
"Do you want me to talk to Friedman?" Selena asked.
"How long would it take to get ready?" Elizabeth said.
"Not long. An exploratory expedition doesn't require a full team with equipment, like you'd need for a dig. "
"Okay. Go ahead and give him a call."
"I'll go downstairs and do it now."
CHAPTER 6
Selena had Friedman on the phone. She told him what was written on the scroll.
"This is hard to believe," he said. "You are sure of the translation?"
"Yes. It's accurate."
"The implications are staggering."
"How would you like to go looking for the tomb?" Selena said. "Perhaps mount an expedition?"
"Are you serious? I'd like nothing better, but I don't have the funding for that."
"You don't need to worry about money. I can arrange funding, whatever is needed. I wasn't thinking of a full-blown expedition at the moment. More like an initial exploration. Your expertise will help."
"What about the authorities? If we do find something, we'd need permission to do any digging or to remove anything that we find."
Selena thought about how much to tell him. Friedman didn't know she worked for Elizabeth, or anything about the Project.
"There won't be any problem with the authorities. I have excellent connections in the Middle East. Besides, all we're doing is looking. If we need to set up an archaeological dig, there's plenty of time for that. For now, let's keep it simple. Just us and some people I know who can act as protection if we need it."
"You think we might need protection?"
"Absolutely," Selena said. "That part of the world isn't safe right now. There are jihadists in the Egyptian Sinai and Jordan. Sometimes they cross into Israel and cause trouble. Beersheba and the immediate area should be safe enough, but we may end up far out in the desert. The scroll does talk about the Wilderness of Zin and following in the footsteps of Moses."
"I see your point," Friedman said. "How soon do you want to leave?"
"As soon as possible. I can arrange private transportation and supplies. We can pick you up in New York."
"It sounds as though you've done this before."
"I have, although not quite like this. My uncle left me money and I like to travel."
It was true, as far as it went. Friedman didn't need to know that travel for Selena usually meant dropping in from twenty thousand feet on people who wanted to kill her.
"I can be ready in two days," Friedman said.
"Wonderful, Alan. I'll get things ready on this end and expect to see you soon."
"I want to take Miriam with us. She'll be invaluable for note taking and making sure things go smoothly for us."
"Miriam?"
"My personal assistant."