"Did he happen to mention how he knew we were looking in Ethiopia?" Elizabeth asked.
"He did not," Rice said. "By the way, what are we doing there?"
"Based on a map we found in Saudi Arabia, I used the Onyx GPR satellite system to search for the tomb of Solomon in Ethiopia. As you know, sir, that system is highly classified. The only people who are supposed to know about Ethiopia are myself and my team. If the Israeli ambassador knew we were there, security for Onyx has been compromised."
"Wonderful. I'm sure the Pentagon will be happy to hear it."
"Yes, sir."
"What is the status of your operation, Director?"
"My team is currently on the ground in Ethiopia. They've found a location that may be the tomb. If the body of Solomon or anything from the Temple is there, they'll find it."
"When will you know?"
"They are underground and out of contact. They should be checking in soon."
"Very well. I want to know immediately if they find anything. Or if they don't."
"Yes, sir."
"Elizabeth, this is a delicate situation, as I'm sure you understand. It's imperative that anything found is kept safe. Your team has a habit of blowing things up. I don't want that to happen here."
"Yes, sir, I understand."
Rice changed the subject. "I was sorry to hear about Ms. Willits and her loss. Please convey my wishes for her quick recovery."
"I'll do that, sir."
"Keep me informed, Director."
"Yes, Mister President."
Rice ended the call.
Elizabeth considered what Rice had said. How had the Israelis discovered the team was in Ethiopia? At least this time it wasn't her responsibility. It was an issue for the Pentagon's DIA security watchdogs.
Israeli involvement complicated things. She wouldn't put it past them to send a team of their own to Ethiopia. She'd give Nick a heads up when he was back on the surface.
Elizabeth got up and went over to the coffee set up. The pot was empty. Usually Stephanie made sure there was some on hand, ready to fuel the next hour of insanity. She was as addicted to coffee as Elizabeth, but Joe Eggleston seemed to exist on energy drinks from cans with bright colored graphics on them.
Elizabeth changed the filter, refilled it, replenished the water and turned the machine on. She waited for the coffee to brew and thought about the team. She missed Stephanie. Steph was much more than a deputy, she was a close friend. Really, the only friend Elizabeth had. Losing the baby was a terrible thing to have happen. The doctors had told her she could have another. It was poor consolation. At least she had Lucas to help her through it.
Having Lamont back was a relief, even if it turned out to be temporary. She was feeling optimistic about Sergeant Ramirez. So far he was working out just fine. It was strange to have a new face in the family, for that's what it was.
Her family.
CHAPTER 47
They walked through the doorway of the hidden room and into the past. The beams from their lights danced over a row of wooden chests piled along one wall. At the back of the room stood an altar with an elaborate Coptic cross of gold and precious stones, flanked by tall candlesticks of gold. In front of the altar were two white marble boxes, each about three feet long by two high. The walls were painted with scenes from the Old Testament. The yellow gold and jewels of the cross gleamed in their lights.
"Wow," Diego said.
"It's a shrine. Those marble chests are ossuaries." Selena shone her light across them. "There's writing on them. It should tell us who's inside."
"What are they for?" Diego asked.
"Bones."
"Like a coffin?"
"Sort of. Back then they buried the body in a temporary grave until it decomposed. Then they put the bones in chests like these. You can fit several people into one of these. It took up less space that way. No need for a sprawling cemetery using up good farmland."
"Not the kind of job I'd like. Collecting bones."
Selena knelt down by one of the chests. She traced her fingers along the writing.
Nick squatted down next to her. "What does it say?"
"This is Biblical Aramaic, an old form. It's a quotation from the Old Testament, from the Song of Solomon."
I am black but comely, O daughters of Jerusalem, as the tents of Kedar, as the curtains of Solomon.
She looked at him, eyes wide. "I think the Queen of Sheba is in here."
"How do you know where the quotation is from?"
"My uncle made sure I was familiar with the Bible. It wasn't hard, I loved the stories. It's got everything. Romance, adventure, war, sex, betrayal, you name it. Not to mention plenty of food for thought."
She turned to the other chest. Nick waited as she worked through the Aramaic in her mind.
"It's another quotation, although it's a little different from what I remember. It's from Kings."
As the Lord spoke unto David, my father, did I build a house unto his name.
"David is supposed to have been Solomon's father," she said. "This inscription is as much proof as anyone is ever likely to find that he was. That's enough to get everybody excited. According to the Old Testament, God told David that his son would build a house for Him. That would be the First Temple, the one destroyed by the Babylonians."
"Then Solomon is in there?"
"It would seem so. What's left of him, anyway."
While they were looking at the ossuaries, Diego went to one of the wooden trunks and pried loose the primitive lock holding it closed. He lifted the lid.
"Whoa," he said. "Wait till you see this."
They gathered around him. The chest was full of gold coins. Selena picked one up. She studied the face and writing stamped upon it.
"That's Herod Antipas. He ordered the death of John the Baptist and was king when Christ was crucified."
"Different from the other guy?" Diego asked.
"Yes. There were several kings named Herod back then."
"What's this?"
Ronnie had pried open another, larger trunk. It contained a structure of gold that looked like a small house with two doors. The doors were closed.
"I think that's a Torah Ark," Selena said. "There's probably a Torah scroll inside. Don't open it."
"Why not?"
"Well, because. This comes out of Judaism's holiest site. Only a Rabbi is supposed to open it and we should honor that. If that holds the Torah scroll from the Temple, the Israelis are going to be ecstatic when they get this back."
"If they get it back," Nick said.
"Why wouldn't they?"
"It's as much political as it is religious. Rice might decide to use it in the big game. It's a powerful bargaining chip."
"You think he'd keep it from the Israelis?"
"I don't know. That's not my call. When politics gets involved what's right tends to go out the window. Even Rice has to answer to people who don't always make good decisions."
"Are we going to take any of this with us?" Lamont asked.
"I don't think so. That ark is made of solid gold and heavy. I don't see us carrying it or any of these chests down those steps even if we wanted to. It's amazing someone managed to get all this gold up here."
"What do you want to do with it?"
"Leave it right where it is, along with everything else. We found what we were looking for. Now we go home and let somebody else worry about it."
"I know you're right but I don't like it," Selena said. She gestured at the ossuaries. "We should make sure there are actually bones inside before we go."
"Good idea. Give me a hand, guys."
They lifted the heavy lid covering Solomon's ossuary and rested it against the wall. Inside were the bones of a single skeleton. The empty eye sockets of the skull seemed to look at them. A small, wooden box made of cedar lay next to the bones. Nick reached down and lifted it out. He opened the box. Inside was a large gold ring with a raised design of the six pointed star with writing around it. He took it out and shone his light on it.