Chapter 2

Ben and Abigail slipped into the building through one of the side entrances. Pulling out their flashlights, they kept the beams on the floor only a few feet ahead so they wouldn't attract anyone's attention. Having mapped out the museum the day before, they quickly and quietly made their way down the dark hallways. With the occasional heads up from Riley, they managed to avoid the patrolling guards. During the discreet questioning of yesterdays unsuspecting floor staff, Abigail had discovered that what they were searching for was being stored away in the basement.

**FLASHBACK**

Abigail walked across the parking lot behind the National Achieves building. After a long day, she was on her way to her car when she overheard two of her coworkers talking.

"Hey, did you hear? Apparently that shipment of artifacts was almost hijacked last night. You know, the one coming up from South America."

"Again?! That's the second time! What's the big deal anyway? I heard it's just a bunch of junk and old books."

"Man, I don't know. Desperate times sure bring out the nutjobs huh?"

"Probably, but I'll tell you one thing. If it was all solid gold, then I'd guarantee that the two of us would be out there too!" Both men laughed as they walked to their vehicles.

Abigail stood, key in hand. She too had read about the first hijacking attempt a few days ago, but hadn't given it much thought. All she knew was that some artifacts were going to be displayed at a museum in southern Washington D.C. Now she was curious.

When she got home, the first thing Abigail did was hop on her computer in search of the article. Skimming the results, she didn't have to look far; she didn't even have to leave the front page. The link was the third from the top. She found that the article didn't give much information on the crime itself or the perpetrators, but it did give some background on the cargo.

An early 19th century explorer by the name of Christopher Isaac had traveled down to South America to survey the exotic landscape. He travelled with seven other men and lived in the foreign forests for months. Legends claimed that his group had made contact with a native tribe. After becoming allies, Isaac and his men basked in their riches. Of course no one knew the truth because they were never seen or heard from again.

Just as she finished reading the article, Abigail's cell phone rang. Looking down, she recognized Ben's number. She immediately answered and told Ben what she had found.

Once Abigail finished, Ben agreed that it could be something worth looking into. After making a quick call to Riley, the three of them stayed up all night formulating a plan.

**END FLASHBACK**

Ghosting through a door at the end of the east wing, Ben and Abigail ignored the 'off limits' sign as they came upon an unlit flight of stairs.

"You know, we could just wait until it's put on display," Abigail remarked. "I know we can't risk giving whoever was trying to steal it another chance, but the place is already on high alert. There has to be an easier way that wouldn't result in a possible felony. Something more…"

"Legal?" Ben couldn't hold back a smirk. "Now, where would be the fun in that?"

Riley watched as Abigail and Ben advanced out of the camera's view and ventured deeper and deeper into the basement. His eyes then turned to scan the other camera feeds.

Movement on Camera 12 caught his attention. A security guard was making his rounds down a corridor.

Camera 12? Wait…

He was immediately drawn to the sound of approaching footsteps. Camera 12 was in his hallway! Riley scrambled to shut his laptop without making a sound. He reflexively pushed himself as far back into the closet as possible. Seconds later, the footsteps paused and a light was shown through the crack underneath the door. Holding his breath, Riley was sure that the guard could hear his heart threatening to break through his ribcage. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the light disappeared and the footsteps continued down the hall until they disappeared.

Once he was sure that he wasn't going to keel over from a heart attack, Riley sighed and reopened his laptop. He almost wished he was down in the basement with Ben.

Riley's eyes widened as he took in the sight of the flashing screen.

"Uh oh."

Reaching the foot of the stairs, Ben and Abigail were faced with a maze of crates and boxes. After sharing a look, Abigail took the right side of the room while Ben took the left.

Not ten minutes into their search, Ben heard Abigail call, "I think I found something! Over here!"

Rushing to her side, he came to a halt in front of a large wooden crate. By the looks of it, the crate was new. There was no layer of dust covering it like the others and it was placed closer to the entrance.

Retrieving a crowbar from his bag, Ben quickly pried open the lid, careful to do as little damage as possible and leave no evidence of them being there.

Once the lid had been removed, they began to rummage through the contents. At first glance, the items didn't seem to be that important, but someone had gone to pretty serious lengths to get their hands on something. The crate contained rusted pots and pans, worn clothes and bedding, tattered maps, compasses and old navigation equipment, and other travel necessities. Ben and Abigail were more so focused on the books. Most of them were full of more maps and traveling guides, but it was amongst a small collection of story books that Ben found a journal.

Opening the cover, he motioned for Abigail to shine her flashlight onto the first page. Although the writing was faded and slightly smudged, they could just make out the words.

Christopher Isaac

Excited smiles spread across their faces. Something told Ben that the information they were looking for was hiding somewhere in its pages. Their moment of joy was interrupted by the sudden flashing of lights and shrieking of alarms.

Sounding slightly panicked, Riley's voice came through their radios.

"Uh, guys? We have a problem."