The Crystal's Curse Read Online Free Page A

same, empty. He decided that once they labeled and packed all the artifacts for shipping back to the Smithsonian, he would backfill the village and cave, and then send the crew home. There wasn’t much else they could do. He didn’t want to backfill the recess room yet. He and Maria would need access to the glyphs to continue their research.
    Ricardo and Maria returned just before dark. They joined Sam still working in the artifact tent. Sitting down next to him at the long table, Ricardo said, “We didn’t find any trace of Joshua. No one in the village has seen him. The villagers claimed there haven’t been any bandits in the area either.”
    Maria held up the phone. “No messages. I guess I don’t have to ask you if you had any luck finding another entrance.”
    Sam shook his head.
    Ricardo said, “We did run into one stranger, a blond guy named Erik Johansen, who arrived in the village just yesterday. I don’t think he had anything to do with Joshua’s disappearance. From what locals said, he arrived out of nowhere, alone. He asked questions about any strangers. When I talked to him, he claimed to be an archeologist attached to the British Museum, here to check out the area for future research. Did you ever hear of him?”
    Sam thought about it. “No, his name’s not familiar and I am pretty sure I know most of their field archeologists. Did he see the sketches?”
    “Yes, he butted in when we were trying to show them to one of the elders. This Erik guy said he had run across similar ones before and was all set to come back with us. It was all I could do to get him to wait. I explained Joshua was missing and we weren’t prepared to have visitors right now. I told him you’d get in touch with him to discuss the glyphs in a few days if he was still here. He was real pushy. It wouldn’t surprise me if he showed up anyway.” Ricardo leaned back in the chair and stretched.
    “That’s all we need,” grumbled Sam. “Some amateur trying to make a name for himself.” He pushed aside the papers he had been working on.
    Maria looked exhausted. She rubbed her eyes. “One of the locals told Rick about an old medicine man that lives in the next village who knows all the old stories. We asked an elder who knows him if the medicine man would be willing to talk to us. He said he’d ask and to check back with him in a couple of days.”
    “Do you think this Erik Johansen really has seen these glyphs before?” Sam asked.
    Ricardo shook his head, “It’s hard to say. His eyes lit up when he saw the sketches, but whether that was recognition or something else, I couldn‘t tell. When I asked what he could tell me about them, he was cagey. Said he had to see the original carvings to be sure. I know how anxious you are to get information to help us translate the glyphs, but I can’t really explain . . . Sam, I think it would be better if you met him in the village. I’d like to get your take on him before we share anything.” Ricardo looked discouraged that he had so little information for him.
    Sam put his hand on Ricardo‘s shoulder. “Thanks Rick, I trust your instincts.” He put his arm around Maria. “Let’s go get some dinner and I’ll bring you up to date on what I’ve been thinking.” They all got up and went into the mess tent.
    After dinner, Sam explained about sending the crew home in a few days.
    Ricardo insisted that he would stay, too. “I’ve gotten really fond of that kid; I’m not leaving until we get him back. Besides, you’ll need me to translate if we get a chance to talk to that medicine man while we’re waiting. Also, I think we should keep a couple of the locals to stand guard duty.”
    “Thanks Rick. That means a lot. I think you’re right about the guards. You decide who you think will work out best.”
    Maria looked at Sam. “What now? We just wait around hoping Joshua will show up? I don’t think I can do that.”
    “No. We need to translate those glyphs. Rick, what do