Chapter 28: "You always do."

Vincent waited patiently in the ante-room. He knew his employer was a busy man, but he also knew de Molay trusted his judgement. If Vincent was here without an appointment, de Molay would know it was for a good reason. Nevertheless, a flicker of worry wavered in Vincent's mind. There would come a time when all the secrets of Solomon Zond's life and work would have to be told, at least to those in the team. Their group had not always been so small or so close. Others had come and gone. Maggie had been there at the start, but even she had taken some years away from the team. After Paris, many had left, finding the work too dangerous for their liking. It was one thing for their Professor to endanger his own life, but not theirs. To them it had been just another job, not worth getting killed over. Only Calvin and Maggie had remained. Juliet, of course, had been employed to take over Nikko's education, but had stepped into the breach left by the departure of Lena and the others, already knowing more of the truth behind their search than most. He had stayed. If the job hadn't been dangerous, there would have been no need for him there in the first place. That had left just six of them, each with slightly more or less knowledge of the whole story than the others, but enough in each case to keep them there despite the danger. Together, they had faced so many things, but it had only served to draw them closer. They were surely close enough now that the whole truth could be safely shared.

A bell tinkled and Vincent rose. He would report his news first, then ask his questions. Only once he was satisfied he knew the whole of the truth would he suggest sharing it with the rest of the team.

XXXX

Nikko hadn't moved. From his first step through the door of the fourth floor lab, his feet had been rooted to the spot, only his eyes moving forward to explore. Much of what he saw was new to him, but enough items sparked the familiar threads of memory that he could make a guess where it all came from.

"This was all Mom's, wasn't it?" Zond junior breathed. He swallowed and his face hardened. "Dad, I thought we agreed…"

"This had to be kept secret," Zond senior cut in, hardly eager to rehash that old fight. "Dorna cannot know this exists. They think all of it was destroyed. The world thinks it was lost and never found. Even Maggie doesn't know we've got it here. Only Vincent and us, and our benefactor."

"Wait: so mystery dude gets to know but not Maggie, Cal or Juliet?"

"It was only with our benefactor's intel that Vincent and I were able to recover what Dorna stole, and we made sure they would think the whole catalogue destroyed."

Nikko strolled further into the room. Lined up on plain metal shelves like evidence in the depths of a police station, some under covers, some propped up to be perused without the need for touch, were sketches, descriptions, photographs, casts and copies, and even in some cases the originals.

"Mom's lost artifact catalogue," murmured Nikko. He paused by a detailed pencil sketch of a broken stela. "I forgot how good an artist she was."

"We don't have all the pieces," sighed Solomon. "Most went to museums or our benefactor after she had finished working with them. They have since disappeared. Well, the museum ones anyway. I asked about the others, but he always steered the conversation away from them or just flatly refused to answer."

"And that didn't worry you?" Nikko blinked, shooting a sharp glance at his father. "Mom's pieces disappearing from museums didn't scream Dorna to you?"

"Of course it did," Solomon sighed. "You don't think we checked? Vincent and I chased down a paper trail a mile long before we even thought to check with our benefactor. When we did he assured us that the items were safe. I… We assumed that meant they had also made their way into his care, but there's no way he'll ever tell us definitively, one way or the other."

Nikko reached the large table in the centre of the room where his father awaited him. Laid out on it was a huge world map. Pins already marked most, if not all, of Haley's finds. At first glance, all Nikko saw was a riot of multicoloured map pins, but then he spotted the key, and the colours began to make sense. Blue pins marked isolated items that had turned up after being randomly discovered by a non-archaeologist. Red marked temples. Orange marked burial grounds. Yellow marked villages. Green marked private collections. Each pyramid had a small piece of ribbon tied around its pin. Every item linked to their nameless benefactor was marked with a black dot on the top of its pin. Nikko picked up one of the tied-on tags that linked the pin to the catalogue: the code on it was alpha-numeric. He recognised it as one his father still used. Number for the expedition, followed by the date on which the artifact was found, followed by a letter or two identifying the item itself.

Nikko stepped back, surveying the story of his mother's archaeological life played out in pins and paper. He frowned.

"Dad," Nikko wavered.

In an instant, Solomon was at his side. "What do you see?"

Nikko waved a hand in the direction of the map. "Some of these points. I know them – I mean, I think I know them – but they're not right."

XXXX

Cal glanced over at Juliet, his hands pausing in their work. The scroll transcription was nearly complete, but in all the time they had been working on it, she had barely said a word.

"You okay?" Cal murmured, watching her face.

Juliet didn't look up. "Just tired," she replied. "Didn't sleep too well."

Cal glanced down at the meticulous copying and transcribing she was focussed on. Staring at Juliet's hands, he chose his words with care. "I don't think you should try to spy on Tony."

Now Juliet did look up. The glare she turned on him was full of weary irritation. "Cal, we settled this. We need to know if…"

"Do we though?" Calvin cut her off. "With all that's happened since, do we really need to know? This is way more important than we thought and then there's Nikko's stuff and his mom's legend that Tony knows nothing about…"

"Isn't that all the more reason to find out if Dorna has a hand in this?" Juliet countered. "Every time we find a piece of the legend they're there. Sometimes they're around when we find a chunk of the Ring, but not always. When they are, though, it's got something to do with the legend too. They went after the crystal skulls, but not the Wheel of Dharma. Antarctica, Paris, but not Alaska! Sure they were around when we found the Elm Island tablet and had it translated, but that turned out to have part of the legend on it! Why would they go after the legend but not the Ring?"

"But the legend is about the Ring," shrugged Cal. "Maybe they think if they focus on finding just the legend, while we look for both, and other stuff besides, they'll find the rest of the Ring before we do, then steal our pieces."

"Why not just wait until we've found the lot and take it from us then?" Juliet pointed out. "Why bother going to the trouble of finding slivers of the legend if we're already doing the work anyway?

"Maybe they don't want us getting hold of all of it," argued Cal, gesturing in the direction of the door and thus the archives. "We know the more pieces we assemble the more powerful Nikko becomes."

"Do we?"

"It was only after we brought the Horus Wheel back from Alaska that he started moving things further away from him."

"Coincidence," replied Juliet, shaking her head, "not proof. Besides: I still think we're missing something. I still think there's a reason they're after the legend. What's in it other than the Ring?"

"I…" Cal paused and scrutinised Juliet's face. It was her expression that had stopped him. It said plainly and clearly that she knew what they had missed, and that she was patiently waiting to see if he would spot it too. He had been given all the hints he was going to get. He cast his mind back, hearing the isolated pieces of the legend echo around his head, each meeting up in turn with their point in the complete version Professor Zond had read out that morning. There was something.

Finally, the penny dropped. "We need to talk to the professor!" Cal blurted, getting halfway to his feet before Juliet dragged him back down to his chair.

"No," she said calmly, smiling now that she had won her point, "we need to finish this transcription and translation, then go tell Professor Zond."

XXXX

De Molay pursed his lips in thought. He had listened attentively to Vincent's news. He had received clear answers to his queries. There was no doubt in his mind that he now knew everything Vincent did on the subject of the Zond family. His eyes strayed to the bookcase. Nobody knew of his knowledge of the legend, nor the existence, hidden in plain sight, of a written copy of the original tale. From the sounds of things, many details had been blurred by time and re-telling, many deliberately changed to suit it for a child's bedside, but it was still largely the same story. Some landmarks may be difficult to pinpoint with the version the Zonds now held, but not impossible. Not if what he suspected of the boy were true. Both the security of the original and of himself depended upon Dorna's ignorance of their true state. The former they thought destroyed, the latter they thought a loyal comrade. It was imperative that they continue in this belief for as long as possible. He tapped his desk with one finger, in a slow, steady beat. His eyes narrowed. He nodded.

"There is, I feel, no need to upset the status quo at the present moment," declared de Molay, coming to the decision even as he spoke it. "At least as it pertains to my person. My part in matters has remained secret for good reason, and it is by maintaining that secrecy that I have survived these many years. I do agree, however, that the truth of your mission should be made clear to the Zonds, both father and son. From there, I leave it in the hands of yourself and the Zonds as to how much you tell the others. My name and status as a member of Dorna must remain known only to you, Vincent. As much as you may trust the rest of your team, you and I both know well the force that can be brought to bear on one when someone you care for is in the clutches of your enemy, be they friend, lover or family."

Vincent sighed and bowed his head in agreement. Dorna would use any means necessary to achieve their ends, as he knew to his cost.

"Keep me informed, Vincent, as always," ordered de Molay, signalling their interview was at an end. "Let me know if work on Haley's legend stalls for any reason. I may be able to remove some stumbling blocks."

"Then you do know more that you have yet told me of this?" Vincent accused softly, not yet rising from his chair.

"That is unavoidable, my friend," sighed de Molay, leaning back. "To inform you of all I know on the subject would take several lifetimes. If, however, I can match my extensive knowledge to the comparatively small gaps you need filling, I will endeavour to do so."

It was, Vincent knew, as good as he was going to get. He nodded, rose, and turned to the door. His hand was rising to the handle when de Molay called his name. He let the hand fall and turned to face his employer.

"I would very much like to see an accurate copy of Haley's legend," he mused, as if in thought rather than directly to Vincent. Even de Molay's eyes were fixed on the other side of the room instead of on his co-conspirator. "Not the transcribed version, the original. A photograph would be best, if the item itself cannot be brought my way."

"I'll do my best," replied Vincent, bowing just a little.

"You always do," de Molay answered, though his eyes never left the bookcase across the room. "You always do."