“That was thoughtful,” Alma admitted grudgingly. “My truck is right outside.”
They exited the hotel to find a dust-covered late-model SUV pulled up to the curb.
Cassie dumped her now-empty coffee cup into a waste bin and walked up to the right front door.
Alma paused beside her, a puzzled expression on her face. “Did you want to drive? It’s alright with me if you do.”
The pythia squinted at her blankly until she noticed a steering wheel on what should be the passenger side. “Oh, I’m sorry. I forgot about right-hand drive here.” She scampered around to the other side of the vehicle.
Alma unlocked the doors and slid behind the wheel. Cassie claimed the seat beside her while the two men climbed into the back.
As the scout maneuvered them deftly through city traffic, the pythia studied the town whizzing past her window. She’d read a bit about the area when they arrived. Darwin was a young city of bright colors and modern high rises. Unlike many of the towns she’d visited in her travels, it had no architectural history. As the capital of the Northern Territory, it was the region’s largest population center. However, that population only consisted of 136,000 inhabitants. Its extreme northern location meant that Darwin was geographically closer to the capitals of several other countries in the South Pacific than it was to its own capital of Sydney.
Alma’s voice interrupted the pythia’s reverie. “It’s a long drive to Arnhem Land. About three hours. That’s why we needed to get an early start if we want to make it back before sunset.”
Daniel sat forward. “I’m sorry, but I didn’t think to ask about the specifics of our destination. What exactly is Arnhem Land?”
“One of the most beautiful landscapes in all of Australia,” Alma said over her shoulder. “Of course, I might be biased. The whole region is owned by local tribes, so outsiders need a permit to visit. I’ve already arranged all that. Lucky you’re here in the dry season. The rest of the year, the rivers are too high to cross. There’s no way in but to fly.”
“Sounds like a real frontier,” Cassie observed.
“You can drive for hours without meeting another soul,” the scout agreed wistfully.
They lapsed into silence while Alma navigated them through the last of the suburbs. These dwindled to the occasional lone house and then none at all. Eventually, their guide slowed the vehicle when they approached a sign reading “Kakadu National Park.”
“Kakadu merits a trip of its own, but we’ll just see it in passing since the Arnhem Highway cuts right through the park.” Alma sped up once more. “Kakadu has a very interesting eco-system. You’ll find everything here from wetlands to rivers to waterfalls to cliffs to forests. Not to mention the wildlife.” She slowed briefly and peered through the trees to the right of the car. “There. Do you see it? It’s a brumbie.”
They all craned their necks to look where she was pointing.
“It might help if we knew what a brumbie is,” Cassie said.
“Oh, sorry. A brumbie is a feral horse. You’ll find them all over the Top End.”
“Like a wild mustang,” the pythia offered.
“Yes, that’s right. Can you see it now?”
Cassie spied a swift white form darting through the trees a quarter mile off. “There it is. Guys?”
Griffin and Daniel both shook their heads.
Alma accelerated again. As she drove, she pointed out rock formations, roads leading off to various scenic features of the park, and the occasional rare bird species.
“This is all very interesting,” Daniel said, “But I still don’t know why we’re going to Arnhem Land today. What’s there that we need to see?”
“Injalak Hill,” Griffin replied. “It’s one of the oldest rock art sites in the world. The hill has been used for millennia as a shelter and traditional ceremonial center.”
“It’s also where we might find a Minoan lily,” Cassie said. She cringed inwardly at the lie. Maddie had suggested they concoct a story to lure Daniel to Australia. Hopefully, this detour would give the team at the vault a head-start in finding the real location of the Sage Stone.
The scrivener elaborated. “We came across an obscure reference in a field agent’s journal dating from a hundred years ago. The journal made mention of a curious lily carving at Injalak Hill which didn’t fit the local rock painting at all.”
“I’ve scoured that hill over the course of a lifetime, and I’ve never seen a lily carving there.” Alma’s tone was doubtful.
Cassie winced. Maddie had instructed them not to involve Alma in the hoax. They weren’t just conning Daniel. They were lying to one of their own agents as well. Even though the chatelaine believed it was safer to keep Alma out of the loop, the whole scenario didn’t sit well with Cassie. She stifled her own misgivings and responded to the scout’s comment with another lie. “That’s where I come in. Maybe my pythia senses can find that elusive lily.”
“So, you use divination to locate artifacts,” Daniel observed in a low voice. During their lengthy plane ride, Griffin had already briefed him as to a pythia’s function. “The Nephilim would consider your practices to be demonic.”
“Rubbish!” Alma gave a snort of derision. “Psychometry is a gift of the goddess.”
“We’ve been quite successful in locating the other Minoan relics by using Cassie’s special talent,” the scrivener pointed out. “If not, we wouldn’t be in possession of the labrys key now; you would.”
Daniel shrugged. “I don’t necessarily follow all the beliefs of my people. I’m willing to keep an open mind.” Apparently sensing that he had offended the rest of the group with his thoughtless remark, the scion lapsed into silence.
They traveled without incident for another half hour while Alma gave a running commentary on the features of the park. Then, mid-sentence and without warning, she slapped on the brakes.
The men in the back seat lurched forward. Cassie braced her arms against the dashboard.
“What is it?” Griffin asked in alarm.
“Let’s just sit here for
