Turcotte opened his eyes, his eyebrows arched in weary question. “Come with me,” Che Lu said. “Something important has happened.”
He closed his eyes. “I don’t care about Aspasia’s Shadow. About Easter Island. Mars. Qian-Ling. Any of it.”
“Please.”
Turcotte turned on his side away from her.
“Stop it!” Che Lu’s voice was like a whip. “You are not that important.” Her words stung. Turcotte swung his feet down to the ground. “What’s going on?”
“Come with me.”
Turcotte obeyed. They went down the corridor to the elevator. As it lifted, Turcotte flashed back to the elevator in Mount Sinai. What if he had chosen to go up instead of down? If he had been the first to arrive at the bouncer hangar? Could he have stopped Aspasia’s Shadow? Saved Lisa? Recovered the Grail? Should he have shot Yakov first as soon as he saw him pointing the gun?
He was jarred when the elevator came to a halt. Che Lu walked directly across the massive hangar, passing bouncers, out into the bright Nevada sunlight.
He wasn’t aware where they were going until Che Lu swung a door on a hangar open and the cold air hit his face along with a nauseating medical smell. A hulking figure filled the doorway. Yakov grabbed him by both shoulders, his hands squeezing so hard the pain was intense, startling Turcotte out of his fugue.
“You have to see!” Yakov’s voice boomed in Turcotte’s head. “You have to see!” He spun Turcotte about.
Duncan was sitting up on the autopsy table.
Turcotte blinked, knowing he was delusional. But the scene was the same. She was sitting, wearing a blood-soaked robe. Her eyes were open. Her head turned toward Turcotte.
“Mike.” She raised her arms. “Come here.” Turcotte surprised himself by hesitating. “Who are you?”
A line furrowed the skin on her forehead. “Mike?” In the back of the room Professor Mualama was watching this miraculous scene, his dark eyes on Duncan, a slow trickle of blood coming out of his ear. “Who are you?” Turcotte ignored everything but the woman in front of him.
Whatever she was about to say was interrupted by Major Quinn’s announcement. “Aspasia’s Shadow’s bouncer just went under the Easter Island shield. With the Grail.”