Chapter Nineteen

"Gone?" Frank repeated, coming to stand next to Nancy. "But how—?"

Nancy was about to step up to the case when she felt some resistance at her waist. She tipped her penlight down and noted she had come into contact with the velvet rope. Quickly disengaging it from its stand, she let it drop to the floor and went up to the now vacant glass box. She was aware that Frank and Joe had followed her.

"May I see your light, Nancy?" Frank asked. She handed it over to him, and he made a sweep of the glass case, training the light in one of the bottom corners. "There's a lock here," he said. "But it's unlocked."

"It hasn't been smashed?" Nancy questioned. She leaned closer to Frank. "You're right."

"An inside job," Joe said confidently.

"But who would…?" Frank's voice faded.

"The same guy who was trying to steal it yesterday?" Joe put in.

The three detectives looked at one another in the gloom. Nancy reached down and took back her penlight from Frank's fingers, and then shone her light at the people in proximity of the glass case. Unfortunately, she couldn't make out their features all that clearly.

"What do we do now?" Joe asked. "Someone here has taken the Tajal Ut. Should we seal off the entrance and search everyone?"

Nancy frowned. "I think the person has already taken off. I thought I heard a door closing. C'mon!" She moved away from the display case and headed toward the back wall. Starting in one corner, she scanned the wall as quickly as she could, and was surprised when she eventually came to the other corner without spotting a door. Retracing her steps, she paused in front of the large screen that had been showing the photo of the Mexican cave. She slid her hand underneath, catching an edge, and was rewarded when she spotted a metal door hidden beneath. She tried the knob and gave a frustrated grunt. "It's locked."

"Locked?" Joe repeated. He lifted the screen and tried the door. "It is."

"Do you have your lock pick in your purse?" Frank asked in an amused voice.

"I do, actually," Nancy replied. She gave the light to Joe and rifled through her purse, producing her trusty lock pick between her thumb and index finger. She was about to insert the instrument in the lock when the light wavered violently. "Hold it still, Joe. I can't see."

"What's going on here?" a gruff voice asked.

Nancy looked up to see a security guard with a flashlight pushing aside Joe to peer behind the screen. "The Tajal Ut has been stolen," Nancy said quickly. "We think the thief may have exited this way."

"What?" the guard bellowed. "Get away from there."

"But—"

The guard shouldered her out of the way and tried the door. "It's locked."

"I know," Nancy said in an exasperated voice. "It's probably an inside job—"

"I'll take it from here," the guard said authoritatively. "Why don't you three head back?" His voice left no room for discussion.

Shrugging, Nancy pulled away from the door and made her way to the front. Another guard was there with a flashlight, directing the partygoers toward the exit. Nancy glanced around and noticed that Alex was gingerly coming toward her with his crutches. She held back, the Hardys joining her, until Alex joined them.

"Did you find anything?" he asked as they made their way outside.

Nancy shook her head, distracted. She could see lights on in the History building next door. The blackout seemed to be solely centered around the Frasier Building. "Nope," she said in answer to Alex's question.

"The thief is long gone," Joe explained. "He was familiar with the building, though. Probably the same guy from last night."

Nancy just barely registered Joe's comments. A sudden thought came to her in a rush. "Wait a sec, guys," she called over her shoulder as she faced the building once more. Making a swift decision, she headed back the way she came, passing through the Frasier's imposing columns again. She searched the building's inner vestibule for a moment before switching on her light. After a few seconds, she found what she was looking for.

"Nancy?" It was Frank, who joined her presently. He stared at what her penlight was illuminating. "The building plaque. 'A generous donation by the Miller Foundation'," he read. "What's so special about this?"

"Hopefully something," Nancy said, deliberately vague, and let Frank guide her back outside.

Alex was speaking with Professor Ramirez, who looked utterly dejected. "First my research, and now this! I swear, Muyaxche must be cursed!" He grumbled a bit more, and then the professor bid the four of them goodnight, heading off toward the main campus.

"This is being handled rather poorly," Joe said. "I mean, shouldn't someone be questioning us, or something? Or telling us to wait until the police gets here?" As if on cue, Nancy heard the whine of approaching police sirens.

The three detectives dutifully waited until they gave their statements to the police, hoping to get word about the back room and if the Tajal Ut had been found. Unfortunately, the police refused to divulge anything, and so, unable to help any further, the group decided to take their leave.

"You know, I wish I had gotten a better look at that statue," Alex said to them with a current of disappointment under his voice. "There was something not quite right about it…" He trailed off, looking at the pulsing lights of a nearby cruiser. "If I had a picture, I'm sure I could pinpoint what's bothering me."

Nancy noticed that Frank and Joe were exchanging a glance. "We have a picture," Frank said finally. "Several, actually."

"Really?" Nancy was impressed. "How did you…?"

Frank removed his tie clip and handed it to her. Nancy was suddenly struck by a frisson of awareness that sped through her as his fingers brushed hers. It was the second time in the last half-an-hour that their hands had touched. Nancy pushed aside her feelings and focused on what Frank was saying. "It's a camera."

"It's so small," she marveled, holding it carefully. "Is there a flash drive in it?"

Frank shook his head. "It actually downloads to the computer in our van." He took the clip back from her. "Would you like to see it?"

The Hardys' van was parked at the Palisades. Both she and Alex made the trek from the Frasier Building to their vehicle a slow one, what with her heels and his crutches. Eventually they made it into the parking lot where the brothers directed Nancy to a dark van.

"Welcome to our humble abode," Joe said cheerfully, opening the back doors and gesturing toward the dimly lit interior of the van.

Nancy accepted his outstretched arm as she pulled herself up, cursing her heels again under her breath. She ran her eyes over the contents of the van, acknowledging that she'd only seen vehicles outfitted in such a manner when she'd worked with the police—and once with the FBI. Along one side, a makeshift bench held two softly glowing flatscreen monitors with what she assumed was the hard drive underneath, its LED lights blinking unobtrusively. A host of other technological gadgets abounded—high quality headphones, a low profile printer, a small satellite dish, a router, two keyboards, countless cables. Nancy was not exactly a slouch when it came to computers, but beyond the usual web browsers, word processing programs, and a common operating system, she was lost.

On the other side of the van, Nancy noticed a narrow cot that was folded up against the metal interior. "Humble abode, indeed," she commented. "Do you guys sleep in here?"

"On occasion," Joe replied. "It comes in handy on such things like stakeouts."

"And times when the van breaks down miles from civilization," Frank put in with a meaningful glance at his brother. Joe, for his part, only smiled brightly, but Nancy felt the teasing undercurrent between the two of them. She was startled by the sudden pang of envy that welled up inside. The bond the brothers shared was obviously powerful, and Nancy could only imagine what it would be like to share a passion for detective work with a sibling. Sure, she had Bess and George, and Ned, but while they were all supportive, it wasn't quite the same as having an equal partner.

Alex joined her inside, leaving his crutches outside. He was leaning against Joe for support while Frank sat in front of the computer and began powering up his dormant equipment. He had loosened his tie and rolled up the sleeves of his shirt, the picture of casual elegance. "Here," he said after a moment, his fingers seemingly flying over the keys. "I've been dying to try out this new program."

"He really has," Joe confirmed. "It's all he talks about. I think maybe he even dreams about it."

Frank swatted his brother on the shoulder without looking up from the screen. "OK, here are the photos I took of the Tajal Ut." As he spoke, Nancy noticed seven or eight photos flash up on the screen, all offering differing points of view of the statue. Alex bent closer to the monitor, fascinated. "I deliberately shot these in such a fashion," Frank explained vaguely. "They're all taken at approximately the same distance at the same angle. Now watch." A few keystrokes later, and a program progress bar flashed quickly before the final product was revealed.

Nancy let out a little gasp, and gripped Frank's upper arm gently, feeling his warmth through the fabric of his shirt. "Wow. You've recreated the statue in three dimensions."

In response, Frank dragged the mouse across the screen and the statue turned accordingly. "The ultimate panorama."

Alex whistled under his breath. "It's like CGI," he murmured.

Frank nodded. "It's based on the same software. This program is similar to that used in Hollywood blockbusters, except that I don't have a big enough server to load more than—"

"Frank," Joe interrupted with frown of impatience. "I'm sure that's very interesting, but let's focus on the task at hand. Do you see anything unusual about the statue, Alex?"

"Hmmm," he grunted. He studied the image as Frank manipulated the angle to display the various sides. "Wait, I think I see something. Can you zoom in?"

"Yeah, but only to a certain resolution. After that, there's not enough data for the individual pixels. I need a newer CPU to support that kind of detail."

"Can you zoom in on this part?" Alex asked, pointing to part where the statue's body joined its base. Frank selected a few options from several drop down menus, and suddenly the base came into sharp relief. Alex frowned, narrowing his eyes, and then he straightened suddenly. "Look at that!"

Nancy leaned closer to Frank's shoulder, peering at the spot Alex had pointed out. Frank, too, gave a scrutinizing look at the area, and Nancy knew he had reached the same conclusion when he gave a little start. "Is that a chip in the paint?" Nancy asked.

Alex nodded. "It looks like it," he confirmed.

"But I thought Henry King said the body is supposed to made of solid gold," Frank pointed out.

"That's what he said," Alex agreed, shaking his head. "But this looks like it's got a coat of paint over a bronze interior." He paused dramatically as the three of them looked at him questioningly. "There's no doubt about it. The statue is a fake."