CHAPTER 13

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We rose shortly after 10, showered and got dressed, we ate a small breakfast, packed and got ready for our second trip to fifth mile road.

He grumbled about the tin can and how they didn't serve grits in European countries, all the way to the second destination, I was lost in thought as to what the key was used for.

When we arrived, we parked the car and decided to walk as the road seemed like it was cobbled here and there, making it hard to drive down, plus we didn't think because it was so old they would let the car on it.

As we walked down the what i considered to be a lane not a road, we passed what looked to be old army turrets, we didn't know which one belonged to the Atticus family, so we walked around and in each one, looking in the grounds for cemeteries and churches.

Eventually we finally found what we were looking for out back of one of the turrets was a broken down church with a cemetery out back, we wondered around looking at each grave site, taking sporadic pictures, to make it look like we were tourists, and not looking for something in particular.

Eventually we found the Atticus family tomb, I was walking around the back, looking for a way in other than the front doors on the crypt, as usually around that time, stone masons would build a secondary shaft so they could get out, if something went wrong, when I noticed a rose garden, it seemed out of place here, it seemed to be some sort of rose garden maze, so I informed hunter, and we decided, to have a look and see where it went.

It took us 15 minutes to find the centre, there was a stone slab, old and covered in moss here and there and an angel standing guard over it.

"What do you think?", I asked hunter.

He walked around it and said, "I'm not sure this is what were looking for, it just looks like they put a sculpture and stone lab for aesthetics in the maze".

"I'm not so sure, why didn't they put a sundial here, like other roman gardens have", that was when the sun shone through the clouds and something behind the moss twinkled and caught my eye, I crouched down in front of it and wiped the moss and dirt from the front, revealing an inscription on a gold plate.

"Hunter come here and look at this", I said.

Ad Ad

Laudo

Qui

Nec Uvit

Ut

Custodi

Tutum

Vita

Et

Mortem

"Its the same on the scroll, that has to mean were in the right place right", said hunter who was peering over my shoulder.

"It most certainly does, come help me move more of the moss", I asked.

We worked quickly to remove it, together, but as soon as I wiped around the plate , to the right of it was a, what looked to be a key hole.

"Lets see if the key fits", I said.

Hunter got the key put it in the hole and turned the key, suddenly the earth and the slab and angel seem to shake a little, then some thing happened behind the angel , we quickly made our way to the back of it, and saw that the stone at the base was now open revealing, 2 large Egyptian style books and a scroll.

We quickly looked at each other both nodding in agreement, hunter then grabbed his back and shoved in the books, they looked quite heavy, and he put the scroll in mine. He put his figure up to his lips, signalling we should be quiet, as we could here someone talking in the distant, after the voices died down, hunter said.

"I say we run as fast as we can back to the car".

"Agreed, but the key, we need that key", I whispered.

"You run, ill get the key and be right behind you", he whispered back.

"One , two, three, GO" whispered hunter and I took off, he grabbed the key, struggling to get it out, but was hot on my heels a moment later, we ran as fast as we could, like we were kids steeling from a candy store, we jumped into the car and screeched out to the road, we decided to go to a different hotel and check out our booty, just in case anyone was looking for us, they would go back to the hotel we had just been at, so getting somewhere new was paramount.

"This room is better , I think", said hunter.

"Yes, it seems larger, look, this one even has a balcony and a fires escape, it case someone should come looking for us", I replied.

"Way to be upbeat , babe, but I told you no one followed us here, I thought someone was, then I zigged and zagged a little and lost them, they are not gonna find us here", said hunter.

"You never know, in the world of antiquities, you never know who's watching", I replied.

"Your safe baby, I'm here, don't worry, you go wash up, ill order some sandwiches then we will look at what we got , okay", said hunter as he grabbed my shoulders turned me and lightly pushed me towards the bathroom.

After a quick face wash and wiped under my arms, i used the toilet and went back out, to wait on hunter to do the same, he was back seconds later, we sat and waited nervously for the sandwiches to arrive, I imagined all kids of scenarios where Malcom delivered the sandwiches and shot us both and took the booty, or some secret organisation, but was surprised when the old women who had checked us in, brought them.

We ate it silence, staring at each other both taking sporadic looks at the back packs from the corner of our eyes, smiling then continuing to eat.

No sooner had we finished our last bites we jumped up and grabbed our back packs ,we giggled like the kids we used to be laughing as I brought out the scroll and hunter brought out the books.

"Arrrrh spoils", we say at the same time.

Mean while back at our old hotel, someone was dialling a number.

"Hello", the man asked.

"Sir, we followed them to the cemetery and we kind of lost them for a bit, then we found them in the rose garden maze, but were gone when we arrived, there we found a slab with and inscription on the front, I'm sending you the data now, Stephens found an opening at the back of a angel sculpture, but it was empty, looks like what ever they found, they took with them, we followed them back to the hotel, but lost them half way there, when we arrived the hotel was swarming with the local police, some guy had been shot, a business man, who had just taken the room they were in".

"I see", said the man.

"We will call around and see if they have moved to a different hotel, but there are a lot, might take all night", the other man said.

"Well, keep me updated", said the man, and ended the call.

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