Treasure of Khan

filled with sand, which had blasted through the pilots' windows when the plane crashed.

'It would take the better part of a day to excavate that,' Giordino said, looking over Pitt's shoulder.

'Maybe on our next visit,' Pitt replied. He had little doubt that the bones of the pilots would be found preserved beneath the heavy layer of sand.

The two men made their way back down the fuselage and climbed out the side door into the bright sunshine. Noyon was pacing back and forth nervously but stopped and smiled with relief when Pitt and Giordino exited the craft. Giordino held the yellow wooden box up for Noyon to see, then gingerly pried off the lid. Inside were the bronze tube and the tightly rolled cheetah skin, in the same pristine condition as when discovered by Hunt.

'Not exactly the crown jewels,' he said, eyeing the contents with minor disappointment. Holding the bronze tube up toward the sun, he saw that there was nothing inside.

'This ought to tell us something,' Pitt said, holding open the notebook. He flipped open the cover and read the title page aloud. 'Excavations at Shang-tu. Commencing May 15, 1937. Field Diary of Dr.

Leigh Hunt, Expedition Leader.'

'Read on,' Giordino said. 'I'm dying to know if the cheetah skin was destined as a footstool in Dr.

Hunt's library or as a pillow for his mistress's boudoir.'

'My friends, we must be on our way if we are to catch the bus to the monastery,' Noyon interrupted.

'The mystery will have to wait,' Pitt said. He slipped the diary into his shirt pocket, then walked over and closed the Fokker's side door.

'How about our friends inside?' Giordino asked.

'I'll call Dr. Sarghov when we make it back to Ulaanbaatar. He should know who to contact in the Mongolian government to ensure a proper excavation is carried out. We owe it to Dr. Hunt to see that a professional retrieval is made of the artifacts he gave his life for.'

'As well as see that he and the pilots are given a proper burial.'

Pitt scooped a pile of sand in front of the airplane door to keep it sealed while Giordino stuffed the wooden box into a leather saddlebag. Then they remounted the horses that Noyon had held, settling in to the uncomfortable wooden saddles.

'You sure there weren't any down pillows inside those rear crates?' Giordino asked with a wince.

Pitt just shook his head with a smile. As they trotted toward the village, he turned and gazed a last time at the dusty remains of the old plane and wondered what secrets Hunt's diary would reveal.

An hour's ride took them to the diminutive settlement of Senj. The village, such that it was, would be found on few maps, as it was nothing more than a few gers crowded around a small watering hole. The spring flowed year-round, offering permanent sustenance for the resident herders and their flocks who otherwise would be forced to migrate several times a year in chase of fertile grasslands. As was the usual case in the rural countryside, the camels and horses milling about the village greatly outnumbered the human residents.

Noyon led Pitt and Giordino to a ger flying an orange banner, where they tied the horses to a staked rope. Several small children were busy playing chase with one another nearby, stopping for a moment to ogle the strange men before resuming their game. Climbing off his horse, Giordino swayed like a drunken sailor, his legs and rear aching from the hard saddle.

'Next time, I think I'll try the camel and take my chances with the humps.'

Pitt was equally sore and glad to be standing on his feet.

'A season with the herd and you'll be riding like an arat,' Noyon said, referring to the local horsemen.

'A season in that saddle and I'd be ready for traction,' Giordino grumbled.

An elderly resident of the village spotted the men and hobbled over on a game leg, speaking rapidly to the boy.

'This is Otgonbayar,' said Noyon. 'He invites you to visit his ger and enjoy a bowl of airag.'

The low whine of a truck echoed off the surrounding hills, then a small faded green bus crested a ridge and turned toward the village, trailing a cloud of dust. Noyon looked toward the approaching vehicle, then shook his head.

'I'm afraid our bus has arrived,' he said.

'Please tell Otgonbayar that we appreciate his invitation but will have to join him another time,' Pitt said.

He walked over to the old man and shook his hand. The old man nodded and smiled in understanding, exposing a pair of toothless gums.

With a loud squeal of its brakes, the bus ground to a stop and the driver tapped the horn. The playing children ceased their rough-housing and marched single file to the bus, hopping inside after its accordion side door swung open.

'Come on,' Noyon said, leading Pitt and Giordino aboard.

The 1980s-era Russian-built bus, a KAvZ model 3976, was a forgotten relic of the Soviet Army. Like many vehicles that ended up in Mongolia, it had been passed along from the old guardian state long after its useful life had been reached. With faded paint, cracked windows, and bald tires, it showed nearly every one of the quarter- million miles that had been placed on her. Yet like an old boxer who refuses to quit, the beaten hulk was patched up and sent back onto the road for another round.

Climbing up the steps after Noyon, Pitt was surprised to find the bus driver was an older Anglo man. He smiled at Pitt through a white beard, his ice-blue eyes sparkling with mirth.

'Hi, boys,' he said to Pitt and Giordino. 'Noyon tells me that you're from the States. Me, too. Grab a seat and we'll be on our way.'

The bus held twenty passengers and was nearly full after scooping up kids from three neighboring encampments. Pitt noticed the seat behind the driver was occupied by a black-and-tan dachshund, stretched out on its side in a deep sleep. The seat opposite the aisle was empty, so he plopped down there, Giordino sliding in beside him. The driver closed the door and quickly wheeled out of the village.

Driving clear of the working herd, he mashed the accelerator down as he shifted through the gears. With a shrill whine from its engine, the old bus soon crept up to fifty miles per hour as it bounced over the hard desert surface.

'Bulangiin Monastery ain't exactly a destination resort,' the driver said, looking at Pitt and Giordino in the rectangular mirror mounted above his visor. 'You boys on one of those horseback adventure tours of the Gobi?'

'You could say that,' Pitt replied, 'though I hope we're done with the horseback portion of the tour. We are just looking to return to Ulaanbaatar at this point.'

'Not a problem. A supply truck from U.B. will be at the monastery tomorrow. If you don't mind spending the night with a cadre of high-rolling monks, then you can hitch a ride on the truck in the morning.'

'That would be fine with us,' Pitt said as the bus lurched over a rut. He watched in amusement as the dachshund flew into the air, then landed back on the seat, without raising an eyelid.

'If you don't mind me asking, what are you doing out here in these parts?' Giordino asked.

'Oh, I'm helping a private archaeological foundation from the States that is helping rebuild the Buddhist monasteries. Prior to the communist takeover of Mongolia in 1921, there were over seven hundred monasteries in the country. Nearly all of them were ransacked and burned in the 1930s during a devastating purge by the government. Thousands of monks disappeared in the annihilation, either executed on the spot or shipped off to Siberian work camps to die in captivity. Those not murdered were forced to renounce their religion, though many continued to worship in secrecy.'

'Must be difficult for them to start anew with their church relics and holy scripts long since destroyed.'

'A surprising number of ancient texts and monastery artifacts were buried by alert monks in advance of the purge. Important relics are turning up every day as some of the old monasteries reopen. The locals are finally becoming comfortable that the government abuses of the past are not going to recur.'

'How did you get from laying bricks to driving a school bus?' Giordino asked.

'You have to wear a lot of hats out in the boondocks,' the driver laughed. 'The group I'm helping with isn't simply a bunch of archaeologists but also includes carpenters, educators, and historians. Part of our agreement with rebuilding the monasteries is that we also establish schoolrooms for the local children.