Baldwin’s eyebrows knit together. “What are you saying?”
“They have the scroll we took from the Vatican. We had no choice.”
“Scroll?” Baldwin said, clearly unaware of the clue.
“Yeah,” Tommy said. “They took it from us before we could take a look at it and see where to go next.”
Baldwin let the information sink in. “If they get to the sword, all will be lost.”
Sean raised a mischievous eyebrow. “Well, what my friend said wasn’t entirely true.”
Every eye in the room locked on Sean for what he had to say.
“I went ahead and took a peek at it while we were in the Vatican Library.”
“You what?” Tommy said.
His parents and June stood up, moving closer to the group to hear better.
“Yeah, so while I was behind the sculpture, I went ahead and took a glance at the scroll. I know what was on it.”
“And?” Adriana asked.
“There was a circle. It had some unique markings on it. I think it might represent the Round Table of King Arthur.”
Tommy and the others waited for more.
“That’s kind of vague. Was there anything else?” he asked. “I mean, that’s great to maybe have a connection to the Knights of the Round Table, but that doesn’t exactly tell us where to look.”
“No,” Sean said. “It doesn’t. But it also had something else.”
Everyone in the room leaned in closer.
“Just below the circle was written Deuteronomy 34:1.”
No one was able to connect the dots, not even the men from the Brotherhood.
Sean was surprised that no one else knew the verse. “Seriously, none of you know what that verse says?”
Adriana shrugged. “Doesn’t ring a bell.”
Sean sighed. “It’s the chapter that talks about the death of Moses and where he was buried. It’s the place where Joshua’s story as Israel’s leader begins. And it’s the place where the sword is hidden.”
The answer hit Tommy suddenly. “Oh my goodness,” he gasped. “It’s on Mount Nebo.”
“Exactly. And if we want to beat the North Koreans there, we need to hurry.”
“Hold on,” Baldwin said, stepping between the two. “Your journey ends here. We cannot let you go any farther.”
“Look, B,” Sean said. “Mind if I call you B?” Baldwin frowned, caught off guard. Before he could contest Sean’s pet name for him, the American continued. “We’ve come a long way to get to this point. Especially Tommy’s parents. We’ve earned the right to see this through, whether you want us to or not.”
“And besides,” Tommy said, “if it weren’t for us, you wouldn’t know where to go next.”
“If it weren’t for you, we wouldn’t be in this predicament. The North Koreans wouldn’t have a map that leads them straight to the sword.”
“Fair point,” Sean said. “However, I’m noticing you’re light a few guys. That means you’re going to need all the help you can get.”
“We are highly skilled in the arts of combat, so forgive me for saying that you will only get in the way.”
“I beg to differ, pal. You know what it is? I think you’re scared.”
“Scared?”
“Yeah. I think you’re afraid that we may get to the place where the sacred sword is hidden and find nothing. Then all these years of… whatever it is you all do would have been for naught. And that just eats you up inside. What would you do next if you didn’t have the sword to protect?”
It was unclear whether or not Sean hit a nerve with his comment, but Baldwin grew oddly silent.
“Look,” Tommy said. “We all want the same thing: The sword needs to be kept safe and out of the hands of bad guys. We’re not looking for it so we can sell it or do something else with it, although it would be an important historical piece for pretty much any museum in the world. We seriously just want to preserve something that is clearly a priceless relic from ancient times.”
Baldwin took several deep breaths in through his nose as he considered the offer. “You’re suggesting we work together, that we all go to Jordan together to stop the North Koreans from getting the sword?”
“Yes,” Sean and Tommy said simultaneously.
“And if we find it, what will you do with it?”
Sean glanced at his friend, who answered. “We will do with it whatever you say.” Tommy looked over his shoulder at his parents. “If you want to hide it, fine. If you want us to take it to a lab to be researched, we’ll do that. At this point, I think we just want to know if it’s real or not. Honest. And if us helping you can keep it out of the hands of evil men, that’s what we want to do.”
Baldwin contemplated Tommy’s remarks for a moment. He glanced over at the guy with the bandage on his head. The man nodded.
“Very well,” Baldwin said. “What exactly do you have in mind?”
Tommy looked at Sean for the answer.
“No plan yet. First things first. We need to get to Jordan.”
Chapter 33
The small convoy of SUVs rolled down the desert road at the base of Mount Nebo. Sean stared out the window at the passing countryside of rocky hills smattered with a few short trees here and there.
Getting Baldwin to agree to work with them had been easy enough once Sean revealed the sword’s location — which was a fairly large assumption. The Bible verse certainly suggested that there was something to find at the top of Mount Nebo. Whether or not it was the actual sword remained to be seen.
Helen and Mac had to return to France to continue overseeing the operations there, though they’d wanted to come along. With everyone else already going to Jordan, it would have just been too many people, which the McElroys understood.
One thing was fairly certain. The North Koreans would likely be there, which would mean trouble.
Luckily, Sean and the others had them greatly outnumbered. The trick would be making sure no one got hurt.
There was a possibility, however small, that the North Koreans didn’t understand the meaning of the Bible verse on the scroll. Sean doubted it. They’d been smart enough to get this far, even if they had been leaning on Tommy’s parents.
Sean looked back in the rearview mirror at the SUV directly behind them. Tommy, his parents, and June got their own vehicle when arriving in Jordan. Sean thought it better that they ride together to give them a chance to catch up.
What a heavy thing to think about. Sean couldn’t imagine how Tommy was feeling. The emotions going through his mind must have been like a tornado, an earthquake, and a hurricane all rolled into one. Spending the better part of twenty years thinking his parents were dead only to find out they were still alive would have shaken anyone.
It certainly had roiled Sean’s emotions.
“What are you thinking about?” Adriana asked from the passenger seat. She’d been watching him for the last half hour.
“Oh, me? Nothing. Just… thinking.”
She intensified her gaze at him, which told him she knew he was lying.
Sean sighed. “That obvious, huh?”
“Yep.”
“It’s just… I hope Tommy’s okay. That’s a lot to take in, you know? Meeting his parents again for the first time since we were kids. I just hope he’s okay.”
“I thought that’s what was on your mind.” She turned her head and looked out at the passing desert hills as the caravan of SUVs turned onto the narrow road leading up the mountain. “Tommy will be fine, Sean. It will take some adjustment, probably for a long while, but this is a chance for him to reconnect and make up for lost time.”
“Yeah,” Sean said with a nod. “Although I have to admit, I wish they would have stayed in a hotel or something. I don’t like the idea of bringing them to a gunfight. The North Koreans are still out there somewhere. Odds are, we’re going to bump into them again. I’d hate to get his parents back just to have something bad happen to them again.”