Zeb had been grateful for the time alone with Sister Chantal. She had no desire to go down those dark stairs into the fetid bowels of the ziggurat and she wanted to quiz the nun on the forsaken city. 'What will they find down there?' she asked.'Gold.''How do you know?''Because I do.''How? Have you been here before?' Zeb's frustration was growing. 'Why can't you ever just give a straight answer?''Because whatever I say won't change what you believe. What does it matter how I know anything? You now know that water from Father Orlando's garden once flowed here. You and Ross have seen the fountain, the carvings of the story and the plants from the Voynich. You have seen proof proof of the garden's existence, and once the others have found the gold we can leave them and go in search of it. That's all that matters.' of the garden's existence, and once the others have found the gold we can leave them and go in search of it. That's all that matters.''How close is it from here?''A few days' walk.''You're sure it's still there?'A look of fear crossed the nun's features. 'It must must be.' be.'Zeb was studying the carved image of the dried-up fountain. 'But what if-'She was silenced by a m.u.f.fled scream and a gunshot that issued from the darkened stairs. She stood up and pulled Sister Chantal to her feet. Another scream. Sister Chantal walked to the stairs and Zeb followed her. As she looked down into the gloom, a black shape leapt, snarling, at the nun, slashing with its claws, throwing her to the floor. Then Ross appeared and fired a shot into the air. The huge cat darted for the doorway and disappeared outside.As Zeb rushed to Sister Chantal, Ross ran to the exit, raised the rifle and fired into the fading light.'You get it?' Zeb called.'It was too fast.' He ran back to help Zeb prop Sister Chantal against the wall. Blood flowed from a cut on her cheek and she had a large contusion on her forehead. Her right shoulder bore two shallow slashes where claws had torn her cotton shirt but, luckily, her shredded backpack had taken the brunt of the attack.'What the h.e.l.l was that?' said Zeb.'A melanistic jaguar.''A what?''A black-pigmented jaguar. A panther.'He sounded distracted and Zeb stared up at him. 'There's blood all over your face. You okay?''It's not mine,' Ross said, in a monotone. He was holding Sister Chantal's wrist. 'She's out cold and her pulse is weak.'Zeb helped him lay her on her back, then loosened her collar. 'We'd better get Nigel.'When she turned, a dazed Mendoza and an ashen-faced Hackett were walking up the stairs, carrying Juarez between them.This wasn't how it was supposed to happen. As Hackett tried to staunch Juarez's bleeding, he knew his friend was close to death, and that he was powerless to prevent it. As he opened Juarez's shirt to examine the wounds in his throat and chest, he thought of all the times over the last three years they had sat together on the Discovery Discovery, drinking Cusquena beer and talking about their dreams.Juarez had been born in a remote Amazonian village close to the Ecuadorian border but had always longed to see Europe and North America. Hackett had promised that when he returned to London, having found fame and fortune in the Amazon, he would take Juarez with him. Only last night, asleep in his hammock, Hackett had dreamt of lecturing to the Royal Geographical Society. As the great and good applauded, the beautiful Zeb Quinn who no longer mocked his idiosyncrasies but understood, admired and desired desired him stood at his side. him stood at his side.But now his friend would never leave the jungle to live his dreams and, although Hackett had discovered his lost city and its gold, his own dreams of glory seemed hollow too.Juarez gripped his arm and tried to speak. 'I'm not scared,' he rasped. 'I'm not a coward.''I know, my friend,' said Hackett.'No, you're not,' Mendoza concurred. 'You're the bravest man I ever met. You saved my life.'Juarez gripped Hackett's arm tighter, a smile playing on his lips. Finally his face relaxed. Hackett closed his eyelids and laid him on the floor. 'He's gone.''I'm sorry,' said Ross.'So am I,' said Hackett. Zeb was kneeling over Sister Chantal, tears in her eyes. As he watched, she put a hand to her mouth.'What do we do now?' asked Mendoza.Hackett sighed. 'I don't know.'Ross laid a hand on his shoulder. 'Nigel, there's nothing more you can do for Juarez. Why don't you attend to Sister Chantal while Osvaldo and I bury our friend? Then we'll build a fire.'Hackett nodded numbly. 'I want him buried deep,' he said fiercely. 'I don't want any animals getting to him.''We'll make sure of it, senor,' said Mendoza. 'I'll say a prayer, and we'll put a stone on top of the grave.'Hackett hesitated a little longer, then relinquished his friend to them and moved to examine Sister Chantal.'How is she?' said Zeb.Hackett checked Sister Chantal's cuts, contusion and breathing. 'She's concussed, but she appears to be breathing regularly. Her cuts are superficial and the b.u.mp on her head looks nastier than it is.' He reached for his medical bag. 'I'll check her blood pressure, then we'll make her comfortable and let her rest.''It'll be dark soon,' said Ross. 'I vote we spend the night on the flat top of this pyramid. We can build a fire there and it should be easier to keep away any more unwelcome visitors. If you guys can get Sister Chantal and our baggage to the top, Osvaldo and I'll look after Juarez.'

46

'You want some strong painkillers for your wrist?' asked Mendoza, popping a tablet into his mouth.'No, thanks,' said Ross, welcoming the pain as he helped Mendoza lower Juarez's body into the hole they had dug in the soft earth behind the pyramid. It distracted him from the gathering dusk and from what they were doing. In burying Juarez he felt as if he was burying a part of himself. He had come here to save Lauren but already his quest had cost four lives: those of the three bandits who had tried to hijack them and now Juarez. As he shovelled earth into the grave, he thought of the strange carvings at the base of the ziggurat and felt a little consoled.He was close now to either realizing his dream of saving Lauren, or confirming his worst fear that this trek into the jungle had been a waste of precious time and lives. Sister Chantal claimed that from here they could reach the garden and be back in a week, and had seemed confident of doing so without a guide without Juarez. Depending on how quickly they returned to civilization he could be back in the States in two or three weeks with whatever he found in the garden. His main concern now was the enigmatic Sister Chantal, the key to interpreting the final directions.Mendoza coughed. 'I still can't believe what Juarez did for me.'He was a brave and selfless man,' said Ross.'But I'd thought he was a coward.''We are what we do,' said Ross, almost to himself. 'His last act defined him.'Mendoza patted the earth with his hand. 'This man will go to heaven.''I won't argue with you on that one.'After filling in the hole, they dragged a slab from the plaza, placed it over the mound, and Mendoza a.s.sembled a small pile of stones to mark the grave. Then they called to the others. Hackett came down, then he and Mendoza said simple prayers, while Zeb watched over Sister Chantal.Later, they made a fire on the flat top of the ziggurat and prepared food. No one was hungry but they went through the motions, picking at their tinned beans and meat stew.'How's Sister Chantal?' Ross asked.'She's stirred a couple of times, but she's still out of it,' Hackett replied. 'Her blood pressure's okay, though. I think she just needs rest.'Zeb was sitting by the baggage, frantically rooting through Sister Chantal's shredded pack. 'You okay, Zeb?' Ross called to her.Zeb's eyes were bright and red-rimmed from crying. 'No,' she said quietly. 'I'm not.' She held up a pile of shredded, bloodstained paper, then Father Orlando's notebook, what was left of it. 'The backpack saved Sister Chantal's life but the notebook was in it. The jaguar tore it to pieces.'Ross felt sick. 'Show me.'The cruel irony was that the first pages were still legible and the last mismatched section had survived virtually untouched. It was only the middle of the book, the end pages of the first section the crucial final directions to the garden that had been obliterated. He took the torn pages from Zeb and knew immediately they couldn't be salvaged. He thought again of the strange plants carved at the base of the ziggurat and the story of the fountain. The metallic taste of disappointment flooded his mouth. The carved images had encouraged him earlier, but now they taunted him. Just when he was beginning to believe in Father Orlando's garden, just when he was getting close, it was to be denied him. 'The last directions are gone.''So?' said Hackett. 'We don't need them any more.''We do,' said Zeb. 'They were the most critical.''But this is it. This lost city is what we were looking for.' Hackett paused. 'Isn't it?''No,' said Ross. 'It's not.''What are you saying? Finding this place was a bonus? What's going on?'Ross looked at Sister Chantal in her sleeping-bag. 'I don't know if it was a fluke or not but this isn't where Father Orlando's directions lead,' he said. 'In fact, he made no mention of this place in any of his writings.''But this is one of the biggest archaeological discoveries in history,' Hackett expostulated. 'Not just in South America, but the entire world. How can it not be where his directions lead? What could possibly be more important than this?''Or more valuable?' demanded Mendoza.Zeb pulled some photocopied sheets out of her backpack and pa.s.sed them to Hackett, then summarized the story in the Voynich. 'We're looking for a garden where plants like this grow.''You came all this way, into the largest rainforest in the world, to find a garden garden?' said Hackett.'Yes.'Hackett studied the photocopies. 'These plants are like the ones on the carvings here.''Exactly,' said Ross. 'Which means we're probably close.'Hackett frowned, trying to understand. 'The garden must be pretty special.''That's what we're hoping,' said Zeb. 'Father Orlando called it the Garden of G.o.d.''How is it special?' asked Mendoza.Ross kept his eyes focused on Hackett. 'We're hoping it has healing properties, as in the Voynich story.''Healing properties?' Hackett snorted. Ross recognized his own initial scepticism in the doctor's face. Hackett stared into the fire. 'Let me guess, you think the plants are somehow linked to the water from the fountain here. You think the spring once came from this miraculous garden.''It fits,' said Ross. 'The spring could have been fed via an underground stream, which flowed from the garden and then got blocked. Perhaps the people were dependent on the water, or whatever was in it, and became sick when it dried up.'Hackett was shaking his head.'You think the garden is close to here?' said Mendoza, clearly intrigued.'Yes,' said Ross.'If it exists,' said Hackett, 'what do we do about this place and the gold? Which, by the way, does does exist.' exist.''The gold will wait for us,' said Mendoza. He gave a decisive nod. 'I'm coming with you, Ross.''You don't have to. It'll be dangerous. According to the story, all the surviving conquistadors died in the garden. Only Father Orlando survived to tell the tale.'Mendoza laughed. 'If it's safe enough for an old nun, a man with a broken wrist and a young woman, it's safe enough for me. I'm coming.''Hang on,' said Hackett. 'This is madness. We've already lost Juarez in finding this place. Why put anyone else at risk looking for some mythic Shangri-La?''None of you has to come with me,' said Ross. 'I'm sorry about Juarez, I really am, but finding this garden was the reason I came here.''And you, Zeb?' demanded Hackett. 'You're committed to finding it, too?''Yes.''Then I've no choice but to go too, I suppose,' said Hackett, and gave a weary sigh. 'The garden sounds like a load of guff, but we should stay together.' He looked at Zeb. 'If it's dangerous you'll need someone to take care of you.'For the first time that evening Zeb smiled. 'Someone like you, Nigel?'Hackett bristled. 'Someone exactly exactly like me someone careful and cautious. I'm not losing anyone else on this trip.' like me someone careful and cautious. I'm not losing anyone else on this trip.''This discussion is academic, anyway,' Ross said quietly. He held up Father Orlando's damaged notebook. 'The crucial section, containing the final directions to the garden, is unreadable.''Can't you remember any of them?' said Mendoza.'All I can remember is one of the last landmarks, something called La Sonrisa del Dios, the Smile of G.o.d. After that I think we find ourselves in a cave system. But I've no idea how to find La Sonrisa del Dios, whatever it is.' He turned to Zeb. 'How about you?''I remember it being a good three days' walk from La Barba Verde to La Sonrisa del Dios, with only the stars to guide us. But I've no idea which stars.''So, what are you saying?' said Hackett. 'We're stuffed?''Yes.' Ross was suddenly desperate to get away from the cursed city. 'That's exactly what I'm saying.'That night on the ancient ziggurat, sitting under the stars surrounded by the ruins of a civilization that had been dead for more than a thousand years, was the loneliest Ross could remember.While the others slept by the fire he kept watch, Juarez's rifle cradled in his lap. Despite his exhaustion, he knew he wouldn't sleep. It wasn't his aching wrist that kept him awake but the suffocating feeling of time crushing him. He thought of Lauren in the States and of the life growing inside her womb. In a few weeks it would be six months, two-thirds of the way through the pregnancy. In another three months it would be due. These next weeks were critical, and yet they seemed insignificant against the centuries of history that surrounded him.Turning away from the crackling fire, he stared into the humid, enveloping dark, wishing he could believe in some merciful higher power. Tomorrow he would leave this forsaken place, go home and accept whatever happened. His great quest was over.

47

Ross woke with a start. A pearlescent moon still hung in the sky, but, when he looked over the lost city to the horizon, a soft glow told him dawn was imminent. He couldn't remember falling asleep but he felt alert and fresh. He also felt compelled to act.He stood up, stepped round the sleeping Hackett and Mendoza, pa.s.sed Zeb's still form and knelt beside Sister Chantal. He shook her gently until she opened her eyes.'Wake up,' he murmured. 'We've got to go.''Where?' She touched the bruise on her head, dazed, disoriented and frightened.He kept his voice soft but firm. 'You get up now and take us to Father Orlando's garden, or we turn back and go home.'She reached out her hand. 'Where's the notebook?''It's ruined. There are no more directions. It's up to you now. You say you're the Keeper, that you've been to the garden before. Now's the time to prove it.''What about the others?''They'll be with us.''But they can't-''I don't care about secrecy any more. Your plan to use this place to distract them didn't work. Juarez is dead.'Her eyes widened. 'Juarez is dead?''The jaguar that attacked you killed him. We're in the middle of nowhere literally and there are two choices. We go on to the garden together or we go home. We're depending on you. Lauren's depending on you.''All the directions are destroyed?'He handed her the notebook. 'See for yourself.'She rubbed her head, thinking. 'The others can come only if they vow to tell no one of the garden and to take nothing from it.''They'll make that promise.''There might be one other way to find the garden, but I need a compa.s.s.''Here's mine.' He reached into his pocket. 'I doubt it'll work, though. There's some strange magnetic field here. The GPS is out and our watches have stopped.''Give it to me.'He glanced at it, then at the rising sun. Wherever the needle was pointing, it sure as h.e.l.l wasn't magnetic north. 'Like I said, it's not working.'She took it, sat up and smiled. 'Follow the needle.''What do you mean?''Follow the needle. It should lead us to the garden.'He took the compa.s.s from her. Normally when a compa.s.s wasn't working correctly the needle became erratic. This one wasn't. It pointed firmly in one direction. It wasn't north but it was steady. His pulse quickened. Was the interference coming not from the ore-riddled ridge they had pa.s.sed through but from the garden or the source? 'You sure this will lead us there?'She nodded, eyes sparkling.'Good.' Ross hardly dared to believe they were continuing the quest. 'In that case, I'll wake the others.'Within an hour they were ready to leave. They climbed the path out of the valley to the high shelf above, then turned in the direction of the compa.s.s needle. As they were about to re-enter dense jungle, Ross looked back. From this elevation, the valley again seemed lush but unremarkable, its secret concealed beneath the vegetation. He strained to glimpse the ziggurat to no avail.Then he caught a glint of light, the reflection of the sun on metal or gla.s.s, coming from the high shelf near the ridge. He wondered what it could be, then pushed it from his mind and followed the others into the jungle.Father General Leonardo Torino lowered his binoculars and squinted in the early-morning sunlight. For the first time since Iquitos he could see Ross Kelly and the others. It took all his self-control to prevent the relief showing on his face.'How did you know they would be here, Father General?' said Fleischer. 'We found their trail in the jungle but how did-''I told you, Feldwebel, we're on a sacred mission. The Lord is guiding us.' Torino fixed him with his most intense stare. 'Did you doubt me?' Fleischer and his men bowed their heads and crossed themselves. Torino raised his binoculars and focused on the spot where he'd seen Kelly. 'However, the Lord may need our help from here, Feldwebel. We must follow our quarry and not lose them in the jungle.''I understand, Father General.' He pointed to one of his men, a shorter, muscular man with thick eyebrows and a jagged scar on his right cheek. 'Weber, keep close, but make sure you aren't seen. Leave a trail for us to follow. If your pack's too heavy, share its weight with Petersen and Gerber.''It's fine, sir. I can move fast enough to track them.''Good.' Fleischer reached into his pack, pulled out a pair of basic two-way radios and handed one to Weber. They switched them on and both crackled into life, unaffected by whatever force had stopped their watches. 'Keep us informed.'As Torino and the others watched Weber hurry along the high shelf after Kelly's party, not one noticed the lost city in the valley below, slumbering beneath its blanket of green.

48

Juarez was in their thoughts as they hacked their way through the steaming jungle over the next two and a half days. They missed his alert presence and nimble ability to thread a path through the densest forest. Even the immaculate Hackett was dishevelled. They slept by night, suspended above the forest floor in hammocks, sheltered beneath tarpaulins to keep out the rain. By day, they moved at a slow but determined pace, oblivious of any trail they left.Ross lost count of the exotic creatures they encountered: golden-pelted monkeys, brilliantly coloured snakes, spiders the size of a man's hand. He was sure some must have been uncla.s.sified species. When he thought of the strange plants and animals he had seen since entering the Amazon, how commonplace the bizarre had become, Falcon's garden, with its exotic flora and fauna, seemed less and less inconceivable.On the third day another ridge blocked their path. It was concave and topped with tooth-white rocks. Immediately Ross knew it must be the one other landmark he remembered from the notebook, La Sonrisa del Dios, the Smile of G.o.d.It occurred to him then that the garden was protected by a number of concentric circles of high rock, like ripples when a stone is dropped into a pond. They had pa.s.sed through the first via the fierce waterfall of El Velo de la Luz and the second by La Barba Verde. As Ross gazed at La Sonrisa del Dios, adrenalin surged through him. Was this the final barrier protecting Father Orlando's mythical garden?As if reading his mind, Hackett asked, 'Are we almost there?''Yes,' Sister Chantal said. 'The cave system that leads to the garden cuts through the ridge beneath those white rocks.'Ross checked his GPS again, hoping to determine his exact location, but two words filled the screen: Signal Error.The sun was setting and, though Ross and Sister Chantal wanted to press on, the others decided to rest and tackle the caves in the morning. Ross feared his racing mind would keep him awake, but when he collapsed on to his hammock he fell instantly into a deep, dreamless sleep.Only Sister Chantal did not sleep that night. Clutching her crucifix she lay awake in the dark, listening to the sounds of the forest, waiting for dawn to break. Though she was consumed by fatigue, and her body ached, she couldn't relax. Not yet. She burnt with the need to reach the end of her long journey. She yearned to finish her ordeal, fulfil her promise and reap her elusive reward.

49

The next morning, Ross, Zeb, Hackett and Mendoza followed Sister Chantal to the cliff beneath the white rocks of La Sonrisa del Dios. She led them to a vertical fissure crowned with a natural arch and, one by one, they squeezed through the opening until they found themselves in La Catedral, the cathedral-like cave described in the Voynich. Shafts of sunlight illuminated the vast s.p.a.ce and Ross saw dozens of small openings hundreds of feet above their heads, which shone like stars among the stalact.i.tes on the soaring vault of the roof. The shafts of sunlight picked out glittering, gilded veins in the rock walls.'Gold,' said Mendoza, with greedy eyes.Ross studied a vein. 'It looks like gold but I'm afraid it's pyrites, fool's gold.''Whatever it is, this is the band of gold that Father Orlando and the conquistadors followed to the garden,' said Sister Chantal. 'We must follow it, too.'They had entered the vast cave on what amounted to a mezzanine level. Its ceiling, with the star-like apertures, rose above, and its floor was over an abrupt edge to their right, many feet below. A Boeing 747 could have parked in it with ease. h.e.l.l, a fleet of them could land and take off in it, Ross thought. The air was surprisingly hot, and tainted with a foul smell, which worsened as they went deeper. Ammonia made his eyes water and Hackett, sucking at his inhaler, was scrabbling in his medical bag for a surgical mask.Deeper into the cave, the ground sloped down and the pa.s.sage became narrower until they were walking in single file along a ledge. Now Ross could see the source of the overpowering stench. Over the abyss to his right there was a conical mountain of bat droppings. At least forty feet across and easily as tall, it rose from the floor below to its peak, a few feet from where they were standing. A rustling, clicking sound came from the mound and its dark surface was constantly moving. Every inch was beaded with writhing c.o.c.kroaches, feeding on the waste. Zeb covered her face. The sight was almost worse than the smell, and Ross put his hand over his mouth to stop himself retching. Above the surgical mask Hackett's eyes showed his disgust. For a man who hated anything remotely dirty or sucio sucio this was a nightmare. this was a nightmare.In the darker corners of the ceiling, Ross spotted thousands of bats hanging from the rock. He dreaded the possibility of their waking suddenly and overwhelming them as they fled the cave in their thousands. He pointed upwards to warn the others, who instinctively pushed themselves closer to the wall, putting as much distance as they could between them and the edge.The danger, however, came from below.Hackett saw the sandy-coloured snake first, wriggling along the ledge, trying to evade them, but Zeb almost stepped on it. It reared and struck her thick walking boot. As it prepared to strike again Hackett kicked it away, inadvertently towards Mendoza, who jumped out of its path and lost his footing. Trying to regain his balance, he fell on then rolled off the ledge. He scrabbled frantically for a handhold on the sharp rock but gained only a momentary grip before he dropped into the seething mound of filth. He sank fast. c.o.c.kroaches covered his boots and lower leg, then swarmed up his body.By the time Ross was on his knees and holding out his good hand, Mendoza was up to his neck in bat faeces. As his head sank below the c.o.c.kroaches, he stared up at Ross, lips sealed, eyes wide with terror. Ross hung further over the ledge but couldn't reach his flailing right hand. Then an arm circled his waist and a rope tightened over his shirt.'You're okay,' said Hackett. 'Zeb and I've got you.'Eyes watering, nostrils stinging, Ross edged over till his face was inches from the filth and grabbed Mendoza's hand just as it disappeared. Mendoza's other hand reached for him and the sudden weight almost yanked his face into the mire. 'Pull me up!' he shouted.His arm jerked so hard that Ross had to use his broken wrist to avoid dislocating his shoulder. Gritting his teeth against the pain, he felt the rope tighten round his waist and drag him up. Gradually, Mendoza emerged, and when his head cleared the surface he breathed out and gasped.As they dragged him on to the ledge, Sister Chantal sprayed him with insect repellent. Lying there, he writhed like a madman, knocking Hackett's gla.s.ses and medical bag into the filth. His panic only abated after Hackett patted down his clothes, scattering the remaining c.o.c.kroaches. As Mendoza recovered his composure and changed his clothes, Ross watched Hackett's medical bag and spectacles sinking beneath the seething c.o.c.kroaches. He also saw the snake, writhing in its death throes. After a few seconds the mound had consumed it.Zeb patted Hackett's shoulder. He was rubbing his hands as if to erase any trace of the c.o.c.kroaches he had brushed off Mendoza. 'Thanks for kicking the snake away from me.' She gestured to his usually clean, pressed trousers and grinned. 'You should regard this as aversion therapy.'Hackett smiled thinly. 'I've lost my gla.s.ses. I'm almost blind without them.''I can't believe a man like you doesn't have a spare set,' said Zeb.'I do,' Hackett said. He pointed at the mound. 'It was in my medical bag.'Mendoza stood up and helped Ross to his feet. 'That's the second time someone's saved my life. How's your wrist?'Like my hand's coming off, he thought. 'It's fine,' he said.They continued along the pyrites seams, descending until they reached another vast chamber, not as wide or as long as before but taller, illuminated by a single, distant opening above. A Manhattan skysc.r.a.per could have stood in that cavern and not protruded from the hole.'Look,' said Hackett.Ross's heart skipped a beat. A few yards from where they were standing, half concealed by stones, corroded but still recognizable, lay a metal helmet of the same peaked design used by the Spanish conquistadors, and a pewter goblet.'Surely they can't be from Falcon's quest,' said Zeb, as Hackett picked up the goblet, rubbed it clean and put it into his backpack.The heat was oppressive now and Ross could see a causeway of black pumice stepping-stones ahead, leading across a chasm through which a stream of molten lava flowed: the river of fire mentioned in the Voynich. Beyond, they would encounter an unwelcoming network of dank, dark, dripping caves.They were now at the threshold of the garden, and for the first time since he had embarked on his quest, Ross allowed himself to believe that Falcon and Sister Chantal had been telling the truth. He might indeed find something remarkable and miraculous here to help Lauren.'These are the last obstacles,' said Sister Chantal. 'Beyond the river of fire lie caves of burning rain and poisonous gas, but if we follow the veins of gold we will reach the garden.' She paused, glanced at Ross, then focused on the others. 'Remember your vows. Tell no one of this place and take nothing from it.' She looked at each in turn, only moving on when they nodded.Hackett didn't look happy. 'Mountains of bat s.h.i.t, c.o.c.kroaches, rivers of fire, burning rain, poisonous gas. I hope this garden of yours is worth it. Good G.o.d, it's like one of those old adventure stories.'Ross put on his sungla.s.ses. 'There's only one way to find out.' He pointed to the causeway. 'I'm going to cross that. Then I'm going to hold my breath, cover my skin and eyes, and rush through those caves, following the pyrites to the other side. When you follow me, you mustn't breathe the air or let the liquid dripping off the ceiling touch your skin or eyes. It's basically concentrated sulphuric acid.' He put on his waterproof and pulled up the hood, leaving as little skin exposed as possible, then walked to the causeway. 'You guys ready?'Sister Chantal smiled.'You, Zeb?'Zeb nodded, eyes bright. 'Yep.'Mendoza stepped forward to join them but Hackett hung back.Ross's heart was beating fast. He couldn't remember the last time he had felt so excited. He realized then that this was no longer just about saving Lauren and their child. His pa.s.sion for geology, stifled for so long by Big Oil, had reawakened. He called to Hackett, 'What are you waiting for? Want to discover what drove a priest to write the most mysterious ma.n.u.script in the world? Want to see a place even more amazing and magical than your precious Eldorado?' He began to walk across the causeway, heat wafting up to him from the lava. 'If you do, follow me.'

PART THREE.

The Garden of G.o.d

50

After he'd crossed the causeway, Ross checked that the others were following him, then turned on his torch, took one last breath, grasped Sister Chantal's hand and led her, with Zeb, through the dripping caves. Even with the sungla.s.ses his eyes watered. A drop from the acidic ceiling touched his right hand and he felt it burn before he rubbed it off with the opposite sleeve. This was the burning rain described in the Voynich. That, and the toxic smell of brimstone, or sulphur a substance a.s.sociated with the Devil had made Orlando Falcon fear he had entered the portals of h.e.l.l.Right now, Ross sympathized with him.Holding his breath, he glanced round the system of toxic subterranean caves and pa.s.sageways. From the heat under his feet, and the river of fire behind them, he guessed there was magma beneath. He felt as he had in the caves of Cueva de Villa Luz in southern Mexico, as though he had gone back billions of years to when the young Earth was a toxic incubator for the most primitive forms of life. Even here there was life: he could see small extremophiles feeding off the sulphurous walls.Following the gilt seams, he dragged Sister Chantal and Zeb through the labyrinth for so many seconds that he feared they would not find their way out before they had to breathe.Then the pyrites stopped. All he could see ahead of him was solid wall. A dead end.Sister Chantal's face was pale, her eyes bloodshot. She looked on the verge of death. Was this where they would die?Then she smiled.She took his torch and Zeb's, and, with her own, switched them off. In the sudden darkness, needing to breathe, he felt close to panic. Then a hand gripped his elbow, turning him. In the darkness, uncorrupted by torchbeams, he discerned a faint vertical line of light down the right-hand side of the apparently solid wall. He moved closer and saw that two separate walls ran parallel to each other, a thin gap between them forming a pa.s.sageway. He moved into it and walked towards the light.Outside, he gulped fresh air. When his eyes grew accustomed to the glare he saw he was in a place unlike any he had seen before. Where the air in the caves had been poisonous, it was now sweet, fresh and perfumed. If the toxic caves were h.e.l.l, this was Heaven on Earth. He turned to Sister Chantal, but before he could say anything, she nodded.'Yes,' she said, with an ecstatic smile. 'This is the garden.'Ross stood at one end of a deep elliptical basin, more than a thousand yards long and many hundreds wide, completely enclosed by a funnel of rock so deep that the sun's rays barely reached its verdant floor. He seemed to be inside a huge eye, the pupil a perfectly circular lake in the centre. At the far end, where the ground was higher, he could see another cave. A stream flowed from it to feed the limpid lake. The clear water had a green glow, as though fireflies were swimming in it.Around the lake gra.s.ses were growing, with trees and exotic plants unlike anything in the jungle they had just walked through unlike anything he had ever seen in nature.'Look, Ross.' Zeb held open her photocopied pages of the Voynich with the ill.u.s.trations, then waved at the trees, flowers and plants around them. 'They're just like in the book, and the descriptions of this place are spot-on.' She pointed to the far cave. 'That must lead to the forbidden caves Falcon wrote about, where the nymphs lived.'And where the conquistadors died, thought Ross. To his left, at the base of the cliff, he saw a pile of perfectly spherical rocks, and more half-formed spheres emerging from the cliff. They reminded him of the Moeraki boulders on New Zealand's South Island. But it was the plants and the glowing water that captivated him.And the air.It had a subtle fragrance and taste, a delicious blend of floral, vanilla and citrus notes that was sweet yet not cloying.The others were equally enraptured. Sister Chantal bent down beside the lake, cupped her hands in the water and drank, her face radiating joy. If she had been a cat she would have purred. Ross noticed that the water in her cupped palms contained microscopic glowing particles, similar to those he had spied in her leather pouch when they had first met.Suddenly an eerie sound filled the air, like a choir singing. There were no discernible words or phrases, just a series of almost mechanically perfect notes. Beautiful yet soulless, it came from the cave at the end of the garden and made the hairs stand up on the back of his neck. The sound stopped as abruptly as it had started.'What was that?' he said.Sister Chantal laid a hand on his arm. 'Wait, Ross,' she said. 'The caves at the far end of the garden, no one must go into them without me.'Hackett rubbed his eyes. 'Why not?' he said.'Because I'm the Keeper,' she said.'The what?' said Mendoza.'Just do as she says,' Ross told them.'What is this place?' said Hackett.Sister Chantal placed a finger over her lips. 'No more questions. It'll be dark soon.' She knelt by the lake, filled her cupped hands with the phosph.o.r.escent water and proffered it to them. 'Drink from the stream and the lake. Eat fruit from the trees. Get some sleep. You may see small creatures in the garden but they're harmless. Just don't go into the caves. Tomorrow everything will become clearer.' She smiled at Ross. 'Much clearer.'She walked away from them to a raised area with a neat mound of small stones. Ross watched her kneel beside it to pray. He wanted to ask her more questions, but he knew better than to intrude now. Like the others, he knelt and drank from the lake. The water had a distinctive sodium taste that reminded him of a French mineral water he had never liked: Badoit. He ate strange fruit from the trees, which tasted better. Their flavours were familiar but hard to place like packaged mixed-fruit juices. In one fruit, the size of an apple, he thought he could taste pomegranate, pa.s.sion fruit and cherry.As dusk closed the eye of the garden, he realized he was exhausted. He didn't bother with the hammock or the mosquito net, just rolled out his sleeping-bag on the soft gra.s.s and lay down. The others did the same, as if they understood that they were safe.Before he closed his eyes he looked once more into the dark, still lake and saw countless stars reflected in it. Then he noticed that the night sky at the top of the funnel was cloudy. The bright spots in the water were shards of crystal lying at the bottom, their luminosity revealed by the darkness of the night. Their beauty filled his mind with more questions. Then, mercifully, he slept.Sister Chantal slept better than she could remember. Curled up beside the mound of stones, away from the others, she dreamt that she was free.Released from her vow.Recompensed for her sacrifice.Reunited with the one she had lost.She woke once during the night, when everyone was asleep, and wandered to the lake. As she drank she indulged her vanity for the first time since she had made her vow and inspected her reflection in the water. What she saw saddened her. Where once the face had been young, beautiful and full of hope, it was now old and spent.Would he still care how she looked? The thought made her smile, and joy surfaced through the sadness. Her wait had been so long, but the hardest part was over. Soon she could surrender her burden and rejoin him.She sighed. 'Soon,' she whispered, as she returned to her sleeping-bag. 'Soon.'

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The next morning Osvaldo Mendoza woke first. He staggered to his feet and went to a corner of the garden, concealed by bushes. Before he had opened his fly, he realized that the constant pain in his head had gone. When he stopped peeing he noticed something even more remarkable. Something that made him stand rock-still for more than a minute, stunned. He fell to his knees and prayed.Ross woke during a dream he couldn't remember, except that it had involved Lauren and made him happy for the first time in weeks. He didn't want to wake, but Hackett was shaking him.'Wake up, Ross.'He blinked. 'Why? What's going on?''You've got to see this place. It's amazing.'Ross rolled over. Why, when he was having the best sleep in ages, had Hackett chosen this moment to get overexcited? 'I know it's amazing. I'm here. I can see it.''But, Ross, I I can see it, too.' can see it, too.''Nigel, what the h.e.l.l are you talking about?''Give me your hand.' Hackett grabbed at his broken wrist but instinctively Ross s.n.a.t.c.hed it away. 'Give me your hand,' Hackett insisted. 'Trust me.' He began unwrapping the expertly applied bandage. 'How does it feel?''Okay.'Hackett squeezed his wrist. 'How does that feel?''Like I said, okay. Now leave me alone.''It shouldn't feel okay. What I just did should have made you scream.' He paused a beat. 'If your wrist was still broken.'Ross sat up and looked at his hand. The swelling and bruising had gone. So had the stiffness and pain. 'Perhaps it wasn't broken.''It was a cla.s.sic break and it's healed months before it should have done. It's not just you. I've had dodgy eyesight since childhood. Now it's perfect. Cured overnight. Twenty-twenty vision. And I haven't used these since I got here.' He took his ventilator and antihistamine pills out of his pocket. Then he took two deep breaths. 'Listen to that. Clear as a bell. With all these flowers my allergies should be having a field day, but my chest and sinuses have never been so clear.'Hackett pointed to Mendoza, who was sitting by the lake, legs crossed, eyes closed, hands clasped as if in prayer. 'Osvaldo's having some kind of spiritual experience. Keeps crossing himself and muttering thanks. Since Iquitos the guy's been holding his head in pain and chewing painkillers like they're sweets. Not your bog-standard aspirin either, but prescription-strength codeine, which is an opiate, the same family as morphine. Kept telling me he was okay whenever I quizzed him, but he's obviously been in a lot of pain. This morning I woke up and found him crying. Imagine that a man like him him crying! When I asked him what was wrong he said there was nothing wrong with him. He was fine. crying! When I asked him what was wrong he said there was nothing wrong with him. He was fine. Really Really fine. Keeps calling it a miracle.' fine. Keeps calling it a miracle.'Hackett swept his hand round the garden. 'It must be something in the water we drank or the fruit we ate. G.o.d, I wish Juarez had made it here. This place is incredible.' He reached for his backpack. 'This is pretty amazing too.' He took out the pewter goblet he had picked up yesterday and handed it to Ross. 'Look inside.''I can see a watch.''It's mine. I left it in there last night. Look at it.' Ross peered at the face. The second hand was moving slowly and erratically, but it was moving. 'Now take it out,' said Hackett. Ross did so and the second hand stopped. He dropped the watch back in and it started again. 'Isn't that weird?'Ross took off his Tag Heuer and placed it in the goblet. Its second hand also came back to life sluggishly. He studied the goblet. 'Old pewter like this has a high tin and lead content. My guess is the tin's high magnetic permeability and the lead's radioactivity-shielding properties give some protection against whatever forces stopped it.'Ross replaced his watch and flexed his bad wrist. No trace of the excruciating pain he had felt yesterday after he'd pulled Mendoza from the mound of bat droppings. He remembered the pa.s.sage in the Voynich: the conquistadors had arrived with broken bones and been cured. A shiver ran through him.Zeb walked over to them. She was barefoot, in jeans and a red T-shirt with Gaia has feelings too Gaia has feelings too emblazoned across her small b.r.e.a.s.t.s. Her red hair was dishevelled and her face creased with sleep, but otherwise she looked fresh and rested. 'There's something wrong with my eyes,' she said, squinting behind her thick lenses. emblazoned across her small b.r.e.a.s.t.s. Her red hair was dishevelled and her face creased with sleep, but otherwise she looked fresh and rested. 'There's something wrong with my eyes,' she said, squinting behind her thick lenses.'No, there isn't,' said Hackett, smiling. He took off her gla.s.ses. 'You just don't need these now.'She blinked and her eyes opened wide. 'That's incredible!''Isn't it?' agreed Hackett, laughing. 'b.l.o.o.d.y incredible.'Ross left them to marvel and washed his face in the lake. He studied the particles in the water but they were too small to tell him anything. Then he peered down, trying to detect the crystals he had spotted last night. In the daylight, however, they were invisible. He got to his feet and walked round the garden. He saw a small lizard scamper on its hind legs towards a copse. It was vaguely familiar and then he remembered a drawing in the Voynich of what he had supposed was a dragon. How deceptive scale could be.In the early morning the garden seemed even more magical than it had bathed in yesterday's late-afternoon light. There was a cool dampness in the air and a thin mist hung over the lake, partially shrouding the far cave and the stream flowing from it. He guessed that the sun's rays would burn off the mist when they eventually reached into the garden. He watched Zeb and Hackett go to Mendoza and sit down beside him, sharing their wonder and amazement.Ross didn't join them. He needed answers. He walked round the garden, studying the cliff walls. The rock wasn't soft like the limestone prevalent in these parts. It was harder and impermeable, almost certainly volcanic. He guessed that it formed a bowl within which the garden sat, surrounded by magma, a ring of fire, sealing it off from the outside world. But it hadn't always been sealed. If his theory was correct there had been a time, billions of years ago, when this place had leaked its life force into a then barren planet, seeding all that was to follow. Then the ring of fire had closed, the bowl of volcanic rock had cooled and hardened, locking everything within. The last leak had been sealed off a thousand years ago, when the spring in the lost city had dried up.As he wandered round the perimeter, large oval sunflowers and huge bulbous artichoke-like blooms reminded him of South Africa's proteus flower. He saw dog-like creatures in the undergrowth and odd insects, all recognizable from the Voynich. He imagined Orlando Falcon lying in his cell, mentally retracing the steps he himself was now taking, drawing their likenesses in his ma.n.u.script. What struck Ross most, though, was not how different everything was from the outside world but how similar. Even though the plants and creatures in this basin had evolved independently of anything outside, it appeared that evolution had arrived at similar solutions: petals, seeds, leaves, eyes, legs. He hadn't yet seen anything completely alien. Especially when he considered the creatures and plants he had discovered on his journey through the Amazon.He looked back to the mound of stones where Sister Chantal had slept but she wasn't there. A moment later he spotted her standing by the stream at the far end of the lake, near the entrance to the forbidden caves.Sister Chantal looked different. She wore sandals and a white blouse over a white skirt, and she had undone her hair so it fell below her shoulders. The early-morning light lent her an ethereal air and she seemed younger, stronger. Her wrinkles hadn't disappeared and her hair was still streaked with grey, but the contusion on her head and the surface wounds from the jaguar attack had gone. Also, the weariness had left her eyes and her translucent skin glowed. A small bag was slung over her left shoulder. As he approached, she took his hand. 'Your wrist's better.'He clenched his fist. 'It's fine. That's what I want to ask you about. And about Lauren.''Come,' she said. 'Let me explain a few things.' She pointed to the stream and the lake. 'As you've discovered, the water and any produce from the plants in the garden will not only rebalance and refresh the body, but heal any ailments.'He thought of Lauren's broken neck. 'Heal anything?''Most things, it would appear.' She touched her face and smiled sadly. 'The one thing it can't do is make us younger. It can slow, even halt, the ageing process, but not reverse it.''Can it cure Lauren?''Of course. That's why I brought you here.' She spoke with such confidence that Ross had to blink back tears.'So what do I do? Take her a bottle of the lake water or some fruit?'She shook her head. 'I tried that once but when the water or plants are taken from the garden they lose their power. No living thing here can survive outside. The fruit rots and the water goes stagnant. I don't know why. It's as though everything has become so dependent on this place that it must die immediately it leaves. But creatures like us, who have evolved to survive outside its...o...b..t, are revitalized here. However, we can only gain the benefits by drinking the water or eating the produce in the garden.''So I have to bring Lauren here?'She smiled. 'No. There's another way.' She pointed behind her to the dark opening whence the stream came. 'Come, I'll show you.'She took his hand and led him into the forbidden caves.

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As Ross followed Sister Chantal along the stream to the forbidden caves trepidation must have shown on his face.'The antechamber's harmless,' she said. 'The forbidden, dangerous part lies beyond.'The first thing he noticed was a faint smell: a musky, damp, mustard-seed aroma like the aftermath of s.e.x. The s.p.a.ce was high and deep. The cave floor rose in steps as he entered, culminating in a high ledge, behind which an ascending tunnel disappeared into the heart of the surrounding rock. The stream that fed the lake flowed down the tunnel to a small waterfall, which dropped from the ledge, forming two pools, then eddied into the garden. Inside the tunnel, alongside the rushing stream, there was a path wide enough for two men. When Ross looked closely he saw that it was made up of glittering crystals. In fact, the whole tunnel was encrusted with them.He could see all this from the entrance because the interior of the antechamber was bathed in an ethereal glow, which emanated from deep within the tunnel, amplified by the crystals and the stream. The path emitted its own glittering phosph.o.r.escence, presenting an irresistible temptation to enter the tunnel and discover the source of the strange light. A potentially deadly temptation, Ross remembered, from a pa.s.sage in Lauren's translation of the Voynich:Though the conquistadors could not communicate directly with the Eves, the scholar priest understood that it was forbidden to enter their Eves, the scholar priest understood that it was forbidden to enter their cave. For many days they rested after their gruelling journey and cave. For many days they rested after their gruelling journey and enjoyed the beautiful garden. But soon, like all idle men, they grew enjoyed the beautiful garden. But soon, like all idle men, they grew curious and greedy, wondering what could be in the cave. It must be curious and greedy, wondering what could be in the cave. It must be valuable, they reasoned. Gold. valuable, they reasoned. Gold.The scholar priest counselled them to obey their hosts but the captain was a proud man who obeyed only his king. That night the was a proud man who obeyed only his king. That night the conquistadors ventured into the cave. They found the Eves bathing in conquistadors ventured into the cave. They found the Eves bathing in pools, filled by water flowing from a vaulted tunnel in the raised back pools, filled by water flowing from a vaulted tunnel in the raised back of the cave. As well as water, light issued from deep within the tunnel of the cave. As well as water, light issued from deep within the tunnel bathing everything in a golden glow. Alongside the rushing stream, a bathing everything in a golden glow. Alongside the rushing stream, a path climbed and twisted into the rock. It appeared to be encrusted with path climbed and twisted into the rock. It appeared to be encrusted with diamonds, which sparkled in the light. Convinced that its source must diamonds, which sparkled in the light. Convinced that its source must be a vast treasure trove, the conquistadors were drawn to it like moths be a vast treasure trove, the conquistadors were drawn to it like moths to a flame. to a flame.When they approached, the Eves emitted a high-pitched wailing and blocked their path. The scholar priest begged the men not to enter. But blocked their path. The scholar priest begged the men not to enter. But they pushed him and the Eves aside and began their ascent. The scholar they pushed him and the Eves aside and began their ascent. The scholar priest watched each of them disappear into the tunnel and for many priest watched each of them disappear into the tunnel and for many minutes nothing happened. minutes nothing happened.Then the screaming started.And the stream turned red with their blood.Twenty-one men entered the tunnel, all the surviving members of the original troop. Not one came down. Every conquistador died. The original troop. Not one came down. Every conquistador died. The scholar priest understood then that the Eves had not been protecting scholar priest understood then that the Eves had not been protecting whatever was in the tunnel from their greed but the conquistadors from whatever was in the tunnel from their greed but the conquistadors from whatever was in the tunnel. After witnessing the horrors of that night, whatever was in the tunnel. After witnessing the horrors of that night, he concluded that only man could turn Heaven into h.e.l.l. he concluded that only man could turn Heaven into h.e.l.l.The tunnel of blood also featured in the last pages of Falcon's notebook: the translation of the Voynich's astrological section that Lauren had not yet unravelled. According to this section, Falcon later went up the tunnel himself and discovered 'el origen' the source, what Torino called the 'radix'. Ross took the damaged notebook from his backpack and studied the relevant pages, but apart from a typically cryptic reference to something called El arbol de la Vida y de la Muerte, the Tree of Life and Death, they told him little. He pulled out his compa.s.s and watched the needle rotate furiously, then point up the tunnel.'What's up there?' he asked.'I don't know. Only Father Orlando lived to see el origen el origen.''But in his notebook he doesn't explain what it is. Only that it's the power behind the garden, is incredibly beautiful and the path leading to it is dangerous.' Ross was burning to know more but something moved in his peripheral vision. He shifted his focus and saw that the glowing tunnel was not the only remarkable thing in the cave.In the far recesses, white shapes moved in the shadows. He stepped closer and saw a creature staring back at him, a biped, about four feet high with translucent alabaster-white skin. It had two arms, a distended belly and two mounds on its chest, with no nipples. Its face was round with large, attractive eyes, a small nose and a wide mouth. On top of its head there was a cl.u.s.ter of strandlike growths, entwined with flowers. The creature seemed as fascinated by Ross as he was by it.'Father Orlando was many things,' Sister Chantal said quietly, 'but, as you can see, he was no artist.'It was one of the Voynich's nymphs one of Orlando Falcon's Eves though it looked nothing like Ross had expected. He had heard of sailors mistaking manatees for mermaids, and this, perhaps, explained why Orlando Falcon had depicted the creature as a female human.Similar creatures were emerging from the shadows now, but his eyes were drawn to writhing, serpentine growths on the ceiling and walls at the back of the cave. The tubular tentacle structures appeared to grow from the rock like thick vines. Grotesquely beautiful, with veins that throbbed like blood vessels, they seemed a strange blend of plant and animal. The tentacles ended in variously shaped pods. Ross glimpsed some nymphs reclining in them while others straddled the vines. They seemed to have a strange symbiotic relationship with each other.'What are they?' he asked. 'Those tubular growths?''Like the Eves, they've been here since Father Orlando discovered the garden. They run through much of the cave.' She retrieved a torch from her bag, switched it on and led him towards the far recesses of the antechamber. The s.p.a.ce was even deeper than it appeared from the entrance and led to a warren of other caves and tunnels deep within the rock. As they approached, the nymphs either melted into the tunnels or hissed threateningly. Sister Chantal held up her crucifix and began to hum a two-note refrain. Immediately the nymphs became less agitated and copied the sound. When she stopped they appeared calmer, accepting their presence. She left the crucifix hanging outside her blouse. 'It rea.s.sures them,' she said.In the beam of Sister Chantal's torch the tubular tentacles seemed to be everywhere, like ducting in the bas.e.m.e.nt of a large building. He followed a number of thicker ones down a pa.s.sage to the right where the air felt warmer until he saw a fiery red glow ahead.'Careful, Ross.'Suddenly he was. .h.i.t by a wall of heat, and stopped where the tunnel ended in an abrupt ledge. Magma boiled many feet below. A thin, broken rock bridge led across it to more dark caves.'In Father Orlando's time that bridge was wider and unbroken,' said Sister Chantal. 'He claimed it was another way out of the garden, that it led to the other side of the ridge that surrounds this place.'You'd have to be pretty desperate to take that exit, thought Ross. It made the poisonous caves through which they had come seem like a walk in the park.Sister Chantal turned. 'Let's go back to the antechamber. I want to show you something really really impressive.' impressive.'When they reached it five nymphs were bathing in the pool directly beneath the small waterfall. Wherever he looked, he saw pages of the Voynich come alive.[image][image]Sister Chantal led him on to the ledge towards the tunnel and bent down by the stream. She put her cupped hand into the rushing water, as if it was a gold prospector's pan, then brought it out and displayed it to Ross. 'This is what we've come for. This is what can cure Lauren.'

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Her hand was full of small, luminous, crystalline rock particles, larger than the microscopic ones in the water he had drunk from the lake but smaller than the shards he had seen last night. She moved her hand and the crystals sparkled many colours. 'These are the only things I allow myself to take out of the garden, but these crystals are too small. Any power they have will dissipate once we leave. They need to be of a certain size to retain their potency. You can grind them down when you're outside but the crystal's got to be big enough to start with.''Where can I get a large enough one? From the bottom of the lake?''No. Those are smaller than they look. Something to do with the magnifying effect of all that water.' She reached into the stream again and picked up a large shard, which had broken off from the lattice of crystal encrusting the tunnel. She handed it to him.He looked at it, mesmerized. It was beautiful, part opaque, part clear, and glowed as he turned it in his hand. He imagined he could feel its power. 'You're sure this will cure Lauren?'She hesitated for the briefest moment, glanced up the tunnel, then said, 'Yes. So long as you keep it whole until you need to use it, it should retain much of its potency.''I'd love to a.n.a.lyse it.'She smiled guiltily. 'Though my main concern is to fulfil my vow, a few years ago I had a sample a.n.a.lysed blind by a lab in Geneva. I was desperate to be relieved of my responsibility. I wanted them to synthesize it, take the pressure off the garden and off me.''What did they find?''The laboratory report claimed it was unusually, but not dangerously, radioactive and contained every key amino acid building block necessary for life including phosphorus, which was relatively rare. But they found nothing else unusual, certainly no hint of its ability to heal. They replicated it exactly, creating an identical clone of its const.i.tuent ingredients, but it had none of the original's power. Whatever spark makes the combined const.i.tuent parts heal in the way you've all experienced is beyond their instruments.' She pointed at the crystal in Ross's hand. 'But that should work. Take it home, grind up a good quant.i.ty, mix it into a drink and feed it to Lauren. I like it in tea with condensed milk.' She smiled. 'But I have a sweet tooth.''You've used this stuff?'She clutched her crucifix. 'It's been my lifeline. How do you think I've maintained my vigil for so long? So very very long.' long.'Now, looking into her eyes, unguarded for the first time since they'd met, he saw her pain and loneliness laid bare. Suddenly he understood the depth of her dedication to the garden, and the extent of her sacrifice. A tremor ran through him. 'There haven't been any other Keepers before you, have there?' he said.'No. Only me. I was the novice nun who cared for Orlando Falcon. I was the accomplice who hid his Devil's book. It was I he charged with reclaiming his possessions, including his notebook, and protecting his garden.''But why?''Why?''Why did you help him? Why did you make your vow?''Because I fell in love with him. I loved him more than the Church. I loved him more than life.' A small shake of the head. 'I loved him more than the release of death death. When he made me vow to protect his garden until someone deciphered his ma.n.u.script and proved themselves worthy to take over his legacy, I had no idea how long I would have to wait.' She patted the crucifix. 'He gave me this cross and told me that whenever my burden seemed too great I would always find salvation in it.' She paused, as if lost in thought. 'Before they burnt him at the stake he also made a vow to me.''What was it?''That he would wait for me.' A small smile played on her lips.'He said, "For you I will wait for ever." ' She pointed out to the garden, to the mound of stones. 'His remains are buried there. I brought his ashes from Rome. One day, soon, I hope, our waiting will be over and we will be reunited.''You were there when he died?'She looked away. 'I watched.'He studied her once beautiful face. 'You've lived for more than four and a half centuries?''I've existed existed for that long, yes. It hasn't always felt like living.' for that long, yes. It hasn't always felt like living.''But that's impossible!' he gasped.She laughed. It was a humourless sound. 'Feel your healed wrist. Look at the crystal in your hand. Then tell me it's impossible.''But how did you live? How did you support yourself for so long?''Father Orlando came from a wealthy Castilian family. When he died he left me a sizeable amount, which kept me going for some years. Then I stumbled on the lost city and its gold, some of which I invested over a long long period of time. Money is the least of my worries.' period of time. Money is the least of my worries.'He remembered that some of the gold ingots in the ziggurat had been missing. 'But what about the authorities, your pa.s.sport, your ident.i.ty?''Remaining a nun has helped. Sister Chantal is a given official name. My Catholic order bestowed it on me when I was seventeen. I chose to keep it and over the long years it's now become who I am. But throughout my life I've had numerous legal ident.i.ties all borrowed from children I treated in hospices. When they died, their names lived on in me. I've held various pa.s.sports, French, Italian, British but not yet American.' A smile. 'Your country's still young only half as old as I am.'He remembered the six dates scratched on El Halo, each about seventy years apart. 'You returned here at regular intervals, to refresh yourself and replenish your supplies, before a.s.suming another ident.i.ty, another life, in a different part of the world.'She nodded. 'I aged so slowly that I had to keep moving to avoid drawing attention to myself. So far, I think I've already lived six life spans, six three score years and ten. As well as checking on the garden, I returned here to replenish my supplies of the crystal so I could continue my vigil. As I said, the crystals slow my ageing but they can't reverse it. I sometimes wonder if I'd stayed here the whole time whether I would have stopped ageing and stayed for ever young. But I needed to be in the world to do my duty and fulfil my vow. I had to keep track of Father Orlando's ma.n.u.script as it travelled across Europe, returned to Italy and finally ended up in America to discover if anyone had deciphered it. And, for my own sanity, I had to do good in the real world.'She patted Ross's arm. 'Anyway, I'm now in my seventh lifespan. The last, I hope. I've done all I can. You have the means to cure your wife. Once you've done so, I can pa.s.s on my burden to her. My vow will have been fulfilled. We both have what we wanted. We should leave tomorrow.''Tomorrow?'She tapped the crystal in Ross's hand. 'We need to get this to your wife as soon as possible.''You're sure sure it'll cure her?' it'll cure her?'Again she hesitated and looked back at the glowing tunnel. 'I'm as sure as I can be. Over the years, apart from two recent exceptions, I've only used its powers to slow my ageing and restore my health, but I'm confident it will cure your wife. The last few granules I gave her had an effect.''It was negligible negligible.'She frowned. 'Have faith, Ross. This crystal will be enough.' She pointed to the tunnel. 'The only way to guarantee guarantee a cure would be to take a sample of the source itself, which Father Orlando believed had limitless power. But getting to it is impossible.' a cure would be to take a sample of the source itself, which Father Orlando believed had limitless power. But getting to it is impossible.''Father Orlando went up and survived.''I don't know how, though. Anyway, it's irrelevant. What you're holding will be enough to save Lauren and your unborn child. Come, Ross,' she said, leading him back into the light of the garden. 'Let's return to the others and tell them we're leaving.'As Ross clasped the crystal he knew he should feel grateful. But as his eyes strayed back to the tunnel, doubt nagged at him.

54

That nightHackett shook his head at Sister Chantal. 'Do you know how many expeditions the big pharmaceutical companies have sent into the jungles of the world, looking for plants with healing properties? Hundreds. Thousands. They've found a few things but never a real breakthrough. Nothing like this. This place is incredible. It's got everything. It's a comprehensive medicine cabinet. It's our duty to share it with the world.'Sister Chantal shook her head. 'Nothing living here can survive outside. The water and the plants are useless. More importantly, you all made a vow before you came. You promised never to speak of this place or to take anything from it.''But it's too amazing to be kept secret.''You made a vow and vows must be kept.''And I'll keep it. It's just that as a doctor-' Sister Chantal's pa.s.sion flared. 'You can't equivocate with a vow. A vow is black and white. There's never a plausible excuse or justifiable reason to break it. You either keep a vow or break it. There's no middle ground. A vow is for ever.'The sun had set and they were sitting round a small fire towards the top of the eye. They had had dinner and were now drinking