“The legendary City of Gold? It exists?” Hannah asked.
“No one knows. The last great change, like the next prophecy we are looking to fulfill, took place in 1949 when an earthquake ravaged Cuzco, Peru. A golden Incan temple was unearthed by an act of the gods, so to speak. But it’s not the gold we are after as much as the prophecy.”
“What does it say?” Hannah asked.
“The end of the world,” he replied bluntly, leaving most of the present party a little breathless. “When the next prophecy comes to pass, the Americas will unite and The Children of the Sun will flourish as brothers. All modern evils will fall to ruin and mankind will enter a new state of existence. They return to the old ways before men were enslaved by technology and greed.”
“Very noble and selfless of you lads,” Sam remarked.
“But it is!” Vincent insisted. “Do not ridicule the possibilities, particularly the reversal of the destruction prevalent in the world right now! We need a renewal. We need this world to end. My God, have you not noticed that our race of beings have gone insane? The whole world, the Great Mother, and all our natural resources are now ruled by mad gods. It’s not about nobility, Sam. It is about common bloody sense!”
“I agree,” Purdue said.
Vincent scoffed. “Isn’t that a crock of shit! A billionaire who is fueled by greed, a grave robber who takes scepters from the bones of great kings? You? You want the mercenary powers to fall and reduce you to a meager man like the rest of us? Bullshit, David.”
“You don’t know me, my friend,” Purdue smirked. “I gather relics to shield their immaculate power from being pissed away by evil men. My vaults and that which I donate to international museums that I help fund, are sanctuaries for the old kings you refer to.” Purdue wet his gullet with the last pool of wine at the bottom of his glass and looked Vincent in the eye. “As long as I have these artifacts in my keeping, they are out of the hands of imps who wish to conquer the world with ancient magic to consolidate modern slavery.”
“And who might these imps be?” Vincent asked, sounding rather intrigued.
“Madmen, following the redundant dogmas of a hellhound from the Second World War, Vincent,” Purdue clarified with conviction. “Giants of finance, information technology, religion, politics… they are everywhere. Sam can attest to this. You might think I am greedy because I am wealthy, but never forget that there are many creeds of men and you cannot link a man’s material possessions to the substance of his soul.”
“Sounds to me like we are on the same page,” Sam grunted, sitting back and making himself comfortable. One of Vincent’s men came in and looked like he almost stood attention for the news he was bringing. “Sir, the radar is dark now.”
“Say what?” Sam asked.
Vincent grinned and said, “Gracias, Cortez.” He looked at his guests. “It looks like the Coast Guard and the search parties have finally left the site of our wreck, people. Now, I can drop you at Golfo de Almería, the closest to our current bearings. But I do not entirely trust you.”
“I can do you no harm, Captain,” Hannah stated. “Let me get off, please. I will find my way back home.”
“Me too,” Peter requested. “I think I’ve had enough excitement to anchor my career for a long while.”
Vincent shrugged. He knew these two were in no position to compromise his pursuits in the Alboran Sea. He excused himself to check on the radar readings he was alerted to. While he was absent, Peter approached Purdue and Sam, keeping his style casual, but his voice low. “Mr. Purdue, if you choose to stay onboard this vessel, do you want me to let anyone know that you and Mr. Cleave are alive and well?”
“That is swell of you, Peter,” Sam whispered, “but the formalities following such an ordeal might get in our way. What say you, Purdue?”
“Do you have your camera equipment with you? Or did it perish with the chopper?” Purdue asked him quickly.
“Nope, it’s in a protective case I brought with me. But it’s down in the sleeping quarters. Why?” Sam reported.
Purdue paused. “Sam is correct, Peter. If the authorities found out that we had survived, insurance claims would have to be lodged and accident reports and emergency procedures logged, all that. We need more time to see this thing through.”
“Aye, I’m with you,” Sam nodded.
“Maybe we should get Nina in on this,” Purdue suggested.
“Christ, Purdue, can’t you let her have a normal life for more than three months at a time?” Sam growled softly, throwing his hands up. “Give her a break.”
“Sam, we don’t know what that relic says. She can help us,” Purdue reasoned.
“No,” Sam persisted. “Leave her alone. You don’t have to know what the relic says. Let’s just see what we get and I’ll do a report on it, plain and simple.”
“Sir,” Hannah chipped in, “you don’t have to pursue this suicide mission with these blokes, you know?”
“I know, my dear,” Purdue answered. “But you know what Jeff and I returned with, right?” He was referring to the doubloon he retrieved while investigating the heap of bones his scanner located. “I just have to know why there are so many corpses on board and get Nina to carbon date whatever we discover.”
“Vincent is not going to like that,” Hannah replied.
“He doesn’t have to know,” Sam said. “Once we know what happened to the bodies down there, we’ll know if it is worth chasing after.”
“Couldn’t have said it better myself,” Purdue declared. “I just want to sate my curiosity under the guise of assistance. It will keep Vincent from killing us.” He smiled mischievously. “And if it turns out to be nothing, we’ll contact my people in Edinburgh.”
Sam looked surprised, since all their cell phones had ended up in the saline void after the collision. “Never fear,” Purdue whispered. “I have my tablet on me, just in case.”
Hannah shook her head and smiled. “Okay, but if I don’t see an exposé on the telly within the next two weeks I’m reporting this vessel.”
Purdue felt comfortable with Hannah’s intentions. “You do that, my dear.” He looked preoccupied, as he often did when his mental wheels refused to slow down. “I am all for this Inca prophecy, but I must confess, I would love to find out if El Dorado is real.”
19
The First Quest
After bidding Hannah and Peter farewell at the port of Almería, the Cóndor and her crew bore back toward the east to return to the site of the gruesome collision hoping to resume the excursion that been had interrupted. It had been several days since reports of the crash had been broadcast on news channels all across the globe. By now it was old news that a billionaire and a journalist had perished in a maritime disaster off the coast of Spain. The heat wave had subsided somewhat over land, and on the Mediterranean Sea the squalls had grown more frequent, making the prospective dive dangerous for the explorers.
Purdue and Sam enjoyed a less threatening form of hospitality from Vincent and his crew since the skipper of the Cóndor had been offered a deal. An accord was established, fixed by contract, saying that Purdue was to fund all the Cóndor’s endeavors pertaining to what was mutually referred to now as the ‘Grave Dive’. Since the curious aspect of the wreck discovery was not what treasures it held in its bowels, but the peculiar presence of human remains, Purdue opted to buy his way into a partnership with Vincent Nazquez for the benefit of Vincent’s prophetic passion and his own curiosity.