Cassie nudged Griffin as they climbed. “Erik would go nuts if he could see this.”
The scrivener treated her to a puzzled glance until he noticed a gang of monkeys hanging from nearby trees and railings to watch their approach.
“Guard your valuables, Rou,” he cautioned. “One of our associates came to grief in India during an altercation with furry bandits much like these.”
Rou smiled and nodded politely, not understanding the joke.
Their climb ended at a square doorway chiseled out of the surrounding rock and reinforced by massive wooden beams. A sign above the lintel announced this to be the entrance to Gemu Goddess Cave. Once past the threshold, they were greeted by the sight of thousands of stalactites suspended above their heads. Colored lights had been positioned to reflect upwards, highlighting the cavern icicles like so many crystal chandeliers.
“This cave is huge!” Cassie exclaimed in wonder.
“And so deep.” Rou pointed off into the darkness beyond the entrance.
“Oh, dear.” The scrivener sounded dismayed. “Given the scale of this cavern, our search will take hours.” He glanced cautiously toward the doorway to detect any activity outside, but all was quiet.
“Wait a minute.” Cassie held up her hand. “I’m picking up a vibe. The Minoans have been here for sure!” She closed her eyes briefly to get a sense of which direction held the strongest pull. “There!” She pointed off to the right. Heading without hesitation toward the side wall, she placed her palm flat against a spot about six feet off the ground. “Anybody got a flashlight?”
Rou dove into her backpack and produced one.
“Aim the beam at the wall where my hand is,” Cassie instructed.
Rou’s flashlight revealed a flower emblem chiseled into the rock.
“The Minoan lily,” Griffin whispered in awe. “In spite of all our false starts and wrong turns, we actually found it.”
“Finding the lily is only half the battle,” the pythia cautioned. “Now we have to find the thing it’s pointing to.”
Griffin dug a torch out of his pack and joined Rou in searching the area near the chiseled symbol.
Cassie had moved out of the range of their lights, allowing her hand to trail along the wall. “Uh oh!”
“What!” Griffin sent his beam in the direction of the pythia’s voice. He gave an involuntary gasp. His light revealed a niche hollowed into the rock wall. A thin layer of stone must once have concealed the cavity, but it had been shattered. The niche was empty. “I’m beginning to wish this retrieval had been a repeat of Kailash after all. At least we’d have something to show for it! As it is...” the scrivener trailed off despondently.
At that moment, a scuffling sound could be heard emerging from the depths of the cave. All three of them froze.
“You’re breaking up.” A woman’s voice echoed, coming closer. “Can you hear me now?”
She walked into the range of their flashlights—an attractive Asian woman in her late-30s with high cheekbones suggesting Tibetan ancestry. Her long black hair was styled with artfully chopped bangs and side fringes. She was dressed in skinny jeans, knee high boots with stiletto heels and a leather jacket. A hand-dyed gauze scarf was knotted casually around her neck, and a designer messenger bag hung from her shoulder.
Holding up her cell phone by way of explanation, she shook it for emphasis. In a perfect American accent, she remarked, “Don’t you just hate that? I swear I can’t keep a signal in this place to save my life.” She pocketed the phone and held out her hand toward Cassie, causing a diamond tennis bracelet to flash in the dim light. “Hi, my name’s Elle.”
Concluding she was a tourist who’d wandered off the beaten path and gotten lost, the pythia smiled nervously. “Nice to meet you. Is Elle a Chinese name?”
The woman gave a snort of derision. “No, but it’s the name I would have chosen if anybody had bothered to ask me.”
Cassie returned the handshake. “I’m—”
Elle cut her off. “I know who you are.” She gave a slight smile. “Let me rephrase that. I know what you are.”
Cassie’s eyes grew wide with alarm. “But—”
Elle continued. “And I know why you’re here.”
Tensely, the scrivener asked,” Did the Nephilim send you? Do you have the artifact?”
To everyone’s surprise, Elle laughed. Her eyes raked Griffin from top to bottom. “Well, hello there.” She stepped forward. “What’s your name?”
Cassie blocked the move. “He’s with me. He’s my partner.”
“Is he now?” The smile never left Elle’s face. “For business or pleasure?”
The pythia was struck speechless by the question.
Never missing a beat, Elle forged ahead. “Business it is then.” She reached around Cassie to take Griffin’s hand. “Nice to meet you, whoever you are.”
“I’m... er... ahem. That is... My name is... um... Griffin.” He returned the handshake.
“You sure about that?” Elle teased.
“Yes, quite.”
Rou had sunk into the shadows along the wall, trying to remain invisible.
Her tactic apparently failed because without even glancing in the girl’s direction, Elle asked, “Is she with you?”
“Yes, of course,” Griffin affirmed. “This is Rou. She’s our guide.”
The girl folded her arms across her chest in a refusal to shake hands.
“I get that a lot around here,” Elle observed dryly.
“You still didn’t answer Griffin’s question.” Cassie’s tone was insistent. “How do you know about the artifact?”
The woman paused a moment to consider the question. “That’s a long story, children.” She wandered over to an outcropping of rock and hopped up to take a
