'In front of all these people?' Pitt asked, smiling.
'I want to see if you're armed or wired for sound.'
Pitt pulled his turtleneck above his shoulders and lowered the denims to his ankles. There was no sign of a bidden mutter or gun on his body or inside his boots. 'Satisfied?'
Topiltzm nodded. He waved the gun toward the shaft entrance. 'You lead, I'D follow.'
'Mind if I carry the dummy inside? The weapons he's holding are real artifacts.'
'You can leave them just inside the entrance.' Then turned and waved a signal to his advisers that all was safe.
Pitt adjusted his clothing, removed the weapons from the mannequin and entered the shaft.
The roof was slightly less than two meters high, and Pitt had to duck under the support beams as he walked. He deposited the spear and sword, but kept the shield, placing it over his head as if to ward off falling rock.
knowing the shield was as useless as a sheet of cardboard against rounds from a .357-magnum handgun, Topiltzin made no protest.
The shaft sloped sharply down for twelve meters and then leveled off.
The passage was lit by a stnug of lights that hung from the beams. The Army Engineers had cut the walls and floor almost perfectly flat so the going was easy. The only discomfort was the stuffy air and the dust that rose in swirls from their footsteps.
'Are you'receiving sound and picture, Mr. President?'
asked General Chandler
'Yes, General,' answered the President. 'Their conversation is coming in quite clear, but they walked out of camera range when they entered the tunnel.'
'We'll pick them up again in the casket chamber, where we have another concealed camera.'
'How is Pitt wired?' asked Martin Brogan.
'The microphone and transmitter are inserted in the front seam of the old shield.'
'Is he armed?'
'We don't believe so.'
All those in the Situation Room became silent as their eyes moved to a second monitor that was displaying the excavated chamber under Gongora Hill. The camera was focused on a gold coffin raised in the center of the chamber.
But not all eyes were on the second monitor. One pair had not left the first.
'Who was that?' Nichols blurted.
Brogan's eyes narrowed. 'Who do you mean?'
Nichols pointed at the monitor whose camera was still aimed at the underground entrance of the hill. 'A shadow passed in front of the camera and moved into the tunnel.'
'I didn't see anything,' said General Metcalf.
'I saw it too,' the President agreed. He leaned toward the microphone sitting on the table in front of him. 'General Chandler?'
'Mr. President,' the General replied swiftly.
'Dale Nichols swears he saw someone enter the tunnel after Pitt and Topiltzin.'
'One of my aides thought he caught someone too.'
'So I'm not seeing things,' Nichols sighed.
'Do you have any idea who it might be?'
'Whoever it was,' Chandler said, alarm showing on his face, 'he wasn't one of ours.'
'I see that you limp,' said Capesterre.
'A little memento of your brother's mad scheme to murder President Hasan and Hala K l.'
Capesterre gave Pitt a questioning look but he did not pursue the subject. His mind was taken up with keeping an eye on Pitt's every move while staying alert for the least sign of in trigue.
A little farther on the tunnel broadened into a circular gallery. Pitt slowed and came to a stop in front of a coffin supported on four legs that were carved in what looked like erect Chinese dragons. The entire work gleamed gold under the overhead lights. A stack of Roman legionary weapons leaned against one wall.
'Alexander the Great,' Pitt announced. 'The art and scrolls are stored in an adjoining chamber.'
Capesterre moved closer in awe. He hesitantly reached out and touched the top of the casket. Then suddenly, he jerked his hand back and spun to face Pitt, his face a mask of rage.
'A trick!' he shouted, his voice echoing through the tunnels. 'This is no two-thousand-year-old coffin. The paint isn't dry. ' 'The Greeks were very advanced-'
'Shut up!' Capesterre's right sleeve fell away, exposing the revolver.
'No more smart talk, Mister Pitt-Where is the treasure?'
'Give me a break,' Pitt begged. 'We haven't hit the main depository chamber yet.' He began to edge away from the coffin, feigning fear. He backed up until his shoulders touched the wall holding the ancient swords and spears. His eyes darted to the casket as if expecting its resident to sit up.
