The Forbidden Temple (Closed for pink_silk_glove)

[Dirtydave1974]

A soft warm breeze caressed the pink petals of the flower sitting on the windowsill. The shape of a young woman stirred beneath the covers of a single bed, but did not wake. It was shortly after 2am. The house was silent.
No one saw the shadow that slipped through the window and into the room.
Jake froze moments before knocking the vase filled with Fuzzy Pink Gesneriad. Holding his breath he moved the flower vase to the opposite side of the windowsill. With a cheeky grin he congratulated himself on his own stealthiness before pulling himself up and into the room.
He landed as quietly as he could and stared at the sleeping figure beneath the covers. The only other sound in the room was her soft breathing. Slowly, carefully he unlatched her backpack and rummaged through the contents searching for his prize.
The first thing his fingers latched onto was a set of purple panties. Not what he was looking for, but after a moments consideration he pocketed them anyway. His hand returned to the bag and after a bit more searching, he pulled out a long roll of parchment.
At last, the map to the Lost Temple of Peruda il Huitaca was his. Legend had it that a forgotten tribe used to worship at the temple, leaving offerings of gold, rubies and diamonds to their goddess. A prize that was later buried deep beneath the grounds.
For two decades adventurers and explorers, grave diggers and treasure hunters had searched for the lost temple. Few returned. None had found it. Most thought it was a myth. Scholars didn’t even recognise Peruda il Huitaca as deity. She was an enigma. A variation on the goddess of love that no one really believed in.
But Jake believed. Two months earlier, an archaeologist had uncovered a map that was said to lead to the Lost temple. But the archaeologist died before he could verify the map. So it found its way into his daughter’s hands. She had vowed to continue her fathers quest. A pity the map was now Jake’s. And soon, so would be the treasure.
He straightened long enough to catch a glimpse of his own hard and handsome face, red hair and broad chest in the mirror. He gave his reflection a wink and a cheeky grin before climbing back out the window. Unfortunately, he wasn’t quite as careful as he had been upon entry and the flower vase tipped over and fell out the window.
“Shit,” he whispered to himself before diving out the window moments before the vase smashed on the ground.
A light in the room he’d just exited turned on. But by the time the dark figure inside had moved to the window, he was long gone.
***

Several days later, Jake Speed entered a dingy bar that smelled of cigarette smoke and stale alcohol. He’d secure the services of one of the very best explorers in this section of the South America. No one knew the jungle like Doctor Kellerman.
He strutted up to the bar and gave the slim red headed waitress a flirtatious wink. “Hey hot stuff, I’m looking for a Doctor Kellerman.” The waitress rolled her eyes before pointed to a corner of the bar where a figure sat in shadows nursing a wine. “Much obliged,” Jake said and sauntered toward the table.
“Doctor Kellerman, I presume."

 

[pink_silk_glove]

She could tell that it was him when he walked in. Not only was he white, he was a ginger, so he stuck out like a sore thumb on a hand with the other four digits amputated. When he flirted with the unimpressed barkeep, she knew that she disliked him already. Priscilla sipped her brandy as he sauntered her way.

He'd emailed her. He had claimed that he was starting an expedition but would not reveal details. Of course Priscilla was not going to agree to anything until she had checked him out, so she googled and made a couple of calls about Mr Speed. His credentials weren't all that impressive, but they seemed legit, so she agreed to meet with him but on her terms and on her territory. El Conquistador was the a tavern in Iquitos on the Amazon deep in the low jungle of Peru. The locals knew her there and most of them were friendlies.

"Doctor Kellerman, I presume," he greeted her as if he were being clever.

"Mr Speed," she returned his salutation with a cold nod and gestured to the empty chair opposite her. His physique seemed fit enough for trekking. Of course one never knew until one actually got out into the bush. He looked young too but that was common with gingers, certainly younger than her own forty years. "I would suggest that you carry yourself with less braggadocio," she offered in her South African accent. "You'll be less conspicuous." Her slowly darkening hair was dyed back to its blonde birth color and was cropped neatly short. She ran her fingertips through the sweep of her bangs. "Of course I'm not the one with secrets to protect. The fact that you've told me scant little so far means that you indeed have something to hide." Priscilla gauged him with her smoky blue eyes.

 

[Dirtydave1974]

Jake froze in place and gaped at the dirty blonde sitting so confidently at the table across from him. He'd always had a weakness for the opposite sex, but something about this woman captured his attention in a way that few females did. There was just something about her.

"I would suggest that you carry yourself with less braggadocio," she said, voice lilting with a South African accent. "You'll be less conspicuous. Of course I'm not the one with secrets to protect. The fact that you've told me scant little so far means that you indeed have something to hide."

There was something mildly condescending to her tone that snapped him out of his stupor. She was all business this one with little interest in niceties.

He took a seat where she had indicated and leaned back in the chair until he took up as much room as possible. "I've never been a shrinking violet," he replied with a lopsided grin." With a face like this, I tend to stand out in the crowd no matter what I do. Why not enjoy it?"

He leaned on his elbow with his hand free palm facing away from her. "Besides, I have always found that when people's attention is focused on bright and beautiful things they often fail to see…" he flicked his wrist, and a business card appeared out of thin air, "all sorts of things."

Jake placed the business card face down. His eyes remained fixed on Doctor Kellerman, looking her up and down, making no effort to hide the fact that he was checking her out.

"To be honest with you, when we chatted via email, I thought you were a man. So this is something of a surprise for me, too. I think you and I are going to have a lot of fun." He glanced around the El Conquistador conspiratorially and slid the business card across the table. "How would you like to be rich? I found a map to this." He turned the business card over so that she could read the words: "Paixão stone."

Jake shifted his chair around the table until his leg was brushing against hers. "It is hidden behind the ninth gate of inside the Temple of Peruda il Huitaca," he whispered. "The entrance is three days ride from here, hidden inside a set of caves. It is worth over a hundred million dollars and is supposedly not the only treasure hidden inside the temple. They say that nobody knows more about that temple than you do, and I'm the only one who has a map."

With a flick of his wrist, the business card disappeared again. Jake leaned back, that lopsided smile returning, brown eyes glinting the greed and excitement.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

As he made his pitch, Priscilla became increasingly more nonplussed - and then his eyes went to her chest. The corners of her mouth turned downward.

"To be honest with you, when we chatted via email, I thought you were a man. So this is something of a surprise for me, too. I think you and I are going to have a lot of fun."

If he thought that she was a man, he clearly didn't do his homework. If he had been specifically looking for her, it would have been based on her reputation. He must have picked her out on a whim. On top of that, he was looking for a happy jaunt into the jungle. The Peruvian Amazon was the last place anyone would want to take a holiday. He should wait until he saw the size of the bugs. There was absolutely nothing professional about Mr Speed whatsoever.

Then he did the unthinkable and shuffled himself around to her side of the table to press knees. Firmly, she stuck her jaw out and glanced towards a black man with a round head and shoulders similarly built as Jake's. He approached the table and stood over it with a stern look.

"If you would be so kind as to stay on your side of the table," he instructed in another South African accent. His tone was soft but his expression and body language was insistent.

"Jake Speed, meet Undeleke," she introduced her protecting sidekick. Then she got back to business.

"I know nothing of this temple," Priscilla only half-lied. She knew about it. She knew it's lore. Of course no one knew what lay inside it. Many regarded it as ancient fiction, fairy tales. The Temple of Peruda, the unofficial Jivaro diety of passion, lust, fertility - a sex goddess - a hyper-hormoned juvenile man's wet dream porno. The Jivaroan people themselves in ancient times were a warlike culture that thrived on death. Such a temple, should it exist, would be laced with traps.

"Save the sleight of hand," she suggested. "It's three days from here, you're sure? If you know where it is then why do you need me?" Pausing to lift her brandy to her lips once more, she savored before continuing. "Anyone can write a legend on the back of a card. So far you're all talk and bravado, nothing more. Why don't you get back to me when you have something real to show me?"

 

[Dirtydave1974]

"If you would be so kind as to stay on your side of the table," a deep baritone voice said. The newcomer was massive. His muscles had muscles, and while his voice was gentle, he shared that same uncompromising no-nonsense air as Doctor Kellerman.

"Jake Speed, meet Undeleke."

"A pleasure," Jake said, eyes locking with Undeleke. His tone was soft, but his expression and body language said - "Make me."

But then Jake noticed the good doctor's non-too-subtle reaction based on the physical contact of their legs. He'd been so excited at meeting her he hadn't seen.

He glanced about the room, noting that more than one of the Patrons was watching the little confrontation with growing interest—too much attention, or rather, too much of the wrong kind of attention.

"Save the sleight of hand. It's three days from here, you're sure? If you know where it is, then why do you need me? Anyone can write a legend on the back of a card. So far, you're all talk and bravado, nothing more. Why don't you get back to me when you have something real to show me?"

"Let me at least wine you and dine you before you decide not to go all the way with me," Jake said loudly with a forced laugh.

He stood breaking physical contact with the woman but leaned down to speak softly near her ear. "Oh honey, what I got is as real as it gets. As you have just proven, this is not the place to bring that sort of map too. All sorts of eyes, ears, and mobile devices. I'm willing to show you a portion of the map now."

He noted Undeleke taking a step toward them, his hands forming into fists, eyes promising violence. Jake's continued proximity to Kellerman was bothering the man.

Jake stepped away and said in a louder voice for the benefit of the onlookers. "But you know threes a crowd, and I'd prefer to do that somewhere a little more intimate. "

"Of course, if you're not interested, feel free to go, and I'll find someone else that wants to share my fun. Baxter, Cowell, or Balthizare are all just a phone call away."

Rumour had it that Balthizare and Kellerman were fierce rivals that hated each other. Jake wasn't across precisely why, but their long-standing feud was infamous in certain circles. It was a low blow to invoke the unscrupulous explorer's name, but Jake needed Kellerman.

The truth was, she hadn't been his first choice. Jake also had something of a history with Baxter, and both Cowell and Balthizare had been allied with the archaeologist Anders whose daughter Jake had stolen the map from. So Kellerman was the only one left. The one he knew the least about.

He took several steps away and then said in a calmer and more serious voice over his shoulder. "If I could do this alone, I would. It might not look like it, but I know my limitations."

 

[pink_silk_glove]

Priscilla winced at his breath so close to her ear before cloddishly making a scene.

"But you know three's a crowd, and I'd prefer to do that somewhere a little more intimate. Of course, if you're not interested, feel free to go, and I'll find someone else that wants to share my fun. Baxter, Cowell, or Balthizare are all just a phone call away."

"Call them," she called his bluff, although she did bristle at the sound of their names. "They're not researchers. They're pirates. Thieves." It was true, and Balthizare in particular was the worst of the lot. He'd been barred from Venezuela Honduras Trinidad and Guyana, was wanted in Colombia and wouldn't dare set foot in Mozambique nor Laos again. The last that she had heard he was stealing hidden World War II gold from a cave in the Philippines. In the meantime, Mr Speed continued to grandstand.

"If I could do this alone, I would. It might not look like it, but I know my limitations."

"How could you not? They're glaring," she quipped and then finished off her brandy. He was walking away and she was prepared to let this charlatan do just that, but if he indeed had a map to ancient treasure, it was best that she would see it before any of the others, and if it were a fake then it would settle everything very quickly. "Wait," she called out and waved him back to the table.

 

[Dirtydave1974]

"Call them," she said, defiantly. "They're not researchers. They're pirates. Thieves."
He was fucked. He was thankful that he faced away from Doctor Kellerman. Her words were like a knife, and he was sure that all the blood just rushed out of his face.

He was going to have to do this alone, and he wasn't sure he could. It would take him weeks of wandering the jungle with the map. Maybe even months without an expert to decipher the key parts that he didn't understand.

But what choice did he have? If Ander's daughter had managed to make a copy or capture a digital image of the map before he stole it, the treasure was lost to him.
"If I could do this alone, I would. It might not look like it, but I know my limitations."

"How could you not? They're glaring," she quipped
Undeleke caught his eye. White teeth flashing against his dark skin as the big man grinned mockingly at him. The man was enjoying seeing Jake humiliated in front of everyone. The barmaid, too, failed to suppress a smirk. Jake glared at them and stormed toward the door. Fuck them all. He'd do it himself.

"Wait," Kellerman called out.

He froze. A glance over his shoulder revealed that she was waving him back to the table. He stared back, barely believing his eyes. Finally, he took a breath and steadied his nerves and temper.

Based on their conversation so far, Jake didn't want to spend an extended period in the jungle with this woman. She had no sense of humor and a stick so far up her ass it was amazing that she could sit down. But there were sections of the map that he needed deciphering. He couldn't do that. There was no way around it. He needed her.

A week of pain in the jungle to reach his goals was worth it. He could endure that. He could play nice-ish for that.

Slowly he shook his head. His voice turned serious. "No, like I just said, not here. Walk with me to the markets. We'll talk on the way."

He exited the dingy bar and paused outside the door. While waiting to see if the Doctor would join him, he spotted a young girl with black hair and dark skin, maybe nine years old, squatting at the corner of the white building.
Her eyes were hidden beneath a brown hessian rag. In her hands she cradled a small, dirty bowl that was empty.

Jake crossed to the girl, pulling out his wallet. He slipped ten soles into the girl's dirty hands and wrapped her fingers around the note. She nodded her head in thanks.

He turned back toward the entrance.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

"No, like I just said, not here. Walk with me to the markets. We'll talk on the way."

Mr Speed exited the bar, the daylight encroaching upon the dark walls as he pulled the door open and then faded in retreat as it closed behind him. With a sigh, Priscilla gestured to Undeleke and rose from the table. Placing payment on the bar as she passed, she too pulled the door to squint into the daylight. When her eyes finally opened, Jake was straightening himself up and the little girl carefully tucked away her alms with a smile.

"Mr Speed," she began, her tone much more conciliatory than previously. She cocked her head to the side to coax him her way, then gave Undeleke a nod to afford them some space. She lowered her voice. "Look, I'm not being a bitch for the sake of it," she sighed. "Archaeological treasure hunts are a very dangerous business. You can never be too careful. Not only are there competing researchers, there are bandits and tomb robbers, local tribes and warlords." The doctor ran her fingertips through her hair again. Her body was long and lean with sturdy hips and thighs in grey cotton pants and her chest not large but substantial enough to give shape to her loose beige tank. The skin of her cheeks, nose, shoulders and arms was ruddy from the outdoors. "Both of us are obvious foreigners here in a largely lawless land, and in my case I'm a woman. If I knew you better, we could walk to the market alone but since I don't, Piers here," she nodded back to Undeleke, indicating his first name, "will have to follow at ten paces or so." She paused a moment to take the sunglasses hanging from the front of her top and don them to shade her smoky eyes. "The other way is that you can show me in my hotel room with Piers just outside the door. He doesn't have to know what we're looking at, but he does need to ensure my well-being. And you're welcome to bring your own protection of course. Fair is fair." Priscilla folded her arms across her tummy and leaned a shoulder against the building awaiting his decision.

 

[Dirtydave1974]

The doctor was standing by the door watching him. Ordinarily, he might have a taken a moment to admire her bronzed body. Each limb was lean and muscular from spending so much time in rugged environments. He might have checked out her shapely legs, hidden beneath the grey cotton pants, or stared at the swell of her chest against the tank top she wore.

But his ego was still bruised from the bar. So instead, he sniffed and approached to within earshot when she beckoned to him.

"Look, I'm not being a bitch for the sake of it," she sighed. "Archaeological treasure hunts are a very dangerous business. You can never be too careful. Not only are there competing researchers, there are bandits and tomb robbers, local tribes and warlords."

Jake crossed his arms and listened. He, of course, knew the dangers of her profession. The world was full of assholes, thieves, and cutthroats, and he'd met his fair share researching this particular treasure.
He might not have a lot of field time, but he was familiar with the seedier side of this business.

"Both of us are obvious foreigners here in a largely lawless land, and in my case, I'm a woman. If I knew you better, we could walk to the market alone, but since I don't, Piers here," she nodded back to Undeleke, "will have to follow at ten paces or so."

"Fifteen is fine," Jake said petulantly. It was a petty thing to say, but his bruised ego didn't care.

She placed her sunglasses on, which made her look mysterious and exotic. But Jake dismissed the thought. She was a beauty but did she have what he needed to get rich.

"The other way is that you can show me in my hotel room with Piers just outside the door. He doesn't have to know what we're looking at, but he does need to ensure my well-being. And you're welcome to bring your own protection of course. Fair is fair."

Jake waved his hand dismissively at the suggestion. "No need for Hotel rooms. The truth is I don't know if I can trust you yet. In my experience, women can be just as deadly as men. More so, circumstances permitting. How do I know your man isn't going to shoot me in the back and the two of you steal away my prize? I'm taking a leap of faith. Hoping you will, too."

Jake pulled out his phone and adjusted the screen to display his recent photos. Each picture showed a small section of the map. Specifically, they show three landmarks: A picture of three rocks; the image of a monkey; and Three wavy lines that could have been a stream.

Next to each were scribed strange markings in a language that Jake could not read, but if the rumors were true, she could. If the rumors were true, then this script was unique to the tribe that once worshipped at the temple.

He led the way toward the market, expecting her to follow. He admired the two or three-story white shops and homes lined up on either side of the crude street. Jake made a point of not touching the doctor or walking too close. Undeleke dutifully fell into place fifteen feet behind them, and Jake was quite happy for the man to stay there. He didn't want to give him an excuse to close the distance. Jake smiled back at him as she scrolled through the photos, but the tall black man did not smile back.

For a time, he remained silent to allow her room to examine each in detail. As they approached the market, he finally spoke.

"The map has several landmarks that guide us toward the temple," he explained. "Without knowing what the landmarks are, the map will get us to the area, but not the caves where the temple is hidden. There are five landmarks in total, of which I've shown you three. Unfortunately, I can't decipher the language, which is where you come in. It's why I can't go alone."

They entered the marketplace, a rainbow of red, pink, green, yellow, and blue products. Everything from bags, dresses, ponchos, rugs, and jewelry to fruits, spices, and vegetables were stacked beneath small wood and straw market stalls. Each stall was manned by a short brown-skinned local who started shouting at the foreigners as soon as they stepped foot into the marketplace. The smell of food stuff and spices filled the air and Jake smiled for the first time since they'd left the bar.

Jake found a fruit vendor and started looking through apricots as Kellerman continued to examine the photos.

"These images are just a sample, of course." He said over the shouting. "Not enough to piece the map together, but sufficient to verify the map's authenticity and your own skills. "

 

[pink_silk_glove]

"The truth is I don't know if I can trust you yet. In my experience, women can be just as deadly as men."

Did he really think that when she had remarked that she was a woman that it meant that she was in no way a danger? She only meant that she was more vulnerable, not so much to him but to any crooked person on the wild streets of a South American jungle town. A white girl alone down here could be kidnapped and sold to a slave brothel. Besides, she had offered for him to bring his own muscle.

"You're the one travelling through Peru alone," Priscilla noted.

He countered with his phone. They started walking. The pictures were certainly interesting. Most Andean tribes did not have much writing (although the Incas had a fully developed system) but certain symbols were often commonly shared. The wavy lines meant a spring. The three rocks probably meant three rocks. The monkey could have been anything.

"The map has several landmarks that guide us toward the temple. Without knowing what the landmarks are, the map will get us to the area, but not the caves where the temple is hidden."

Jake was checking out the fruit and Priscilla couldn't figure out if he was genuinely interested in a snack or if he was just trying to look busy. The rest of the markings in the photos looked like stuff that she could compare to her texts and probably decipher something.

"These images are just a sample, of course. Not enough to piece the map together, but sufficient to verify the map's authenticity and your own skills."

"This is hardly enough to verify it's authenticity," Priscilla almost laughed. She wasn't lying. "But it is enough to get this into the lab." Turning their backs to the sunlight as to not glare the screen, she drew close and showed him. "This is a spring," she explained, indicating the wavy lines. "And these I can cross reference to my texts and probably decipher most of this if not all. It looks familiar," she said of the ancient symbols. "The biggest thing is that there is nothing about an actual temple on this map. If you believe that it does then maybe the symbols explain that, or the missing parts that you won't show me. I suppose that depends on where or how you got your hands on it." She handed back his phone and put her sunglasses on. "And whoever made this map is almost certainly not the one who built whatever it points to. Priests and shamans make these type of shrines and if they hide them then they don't make maps that might unhide them. They just keep the secret among the shamans and pass it on by generation. So it means that whoever made this map probably already found your temple and there's a good chance that your treasure is long stolen." Peering up above the frames of her shades, her focus moved past Jake over his shoulder where Undeleke was across the street chatting with a magazine vendor and periodically scratching his sideburn. That was the signal.

"Act natural. Don't flinch," she said. "We're being watched."

 

[Dirtydave1974]

"This is hardly enough to verify it's authenticity," Kellerman smirked. "But it is enough to get this into the lab."

Lab? No. No. No. They needed to go now. The last thing he wanted was more people looking at his map. Finding the clues to his treasure.

If they went to a lab there would be tests and more tests, and referral to different scientists, and while all this was happening they would be running out of time.
Suddenly she was next to him, standing almost shoulder to shoulder and he was struck by the smell of her. He found his eyes darting involuntarily from his phone to her cleavage which was barely visible from where she was standing. Fortunately, she didn’t appear to notice.

"This is a spring. And these I can cross reference to my texts and probably decipher most of this if not all. It looks familiar," she said pointing at each symbol on the phone.

Damn, he'd assumed she would just be able to read the inscribed text. But she had to consult with a book? If he'd known he could just use a book he would have done it himself. If he had the book of course.

Unless she was trying to trick him out of the treasure? He didn’t think so. She was such a straight arrow, that sort of deception didn’t seem her style. She appeared genuinely interested in what she was seeing. Interested in the marking for their own sake.

"The biggest thing is that there is nothing about an actual temple on this map. If you believe that it does then maybe the symbols explain that, or the missing parts that you won't show me. I suppose that depends on where or how you got your hands on it." She handed back his phone and put her sunglasses on. "And whoever made this map is almost certainly not the one who built whatever it points to. Priests and shamans make these type of shrines and if they hide them then they don't make maps that might unhide them. They just keep the secret among the shamans and pass it on by generation. So it means that whoever made this map probably already found your temple and there's a good chance that your treasure is long stolen."

Jake smiled. “You would think that, but I know for a fact that it is still there,” he said cryptically.

"Act natural. Don't flinch," she said, her voice low and urgent. "We're being watched."

Jake cursed. “Balthizar! He found me.”

Jake ground his teeth together for several seconds. He didn’t like this. Didn’t want to do this one little bit. But if Balthizar was here then he had a copy of the map, they were out of time. Probably brought the girl with him. The competition was here, and it wasn’t about to spend days in a lab.

“Split up,” he told Kellerman, “I’ll meet you at seven tonight in your lab with the map. You will verify the authenticity, and if you agree it is legitimate we leave first thing in the morning. Fifty-fifty split.“

When she started to argue, he held up his hand. “I’ll see you tonight.”

Then he turned and stormed off into the market. His red hair sticking out like a sore thumb, completely undermining his attempt to Batman away. Priscilla would notice the man who had been watching after them follow after him.

**
Later that night…

Jake laid the map out onto the laboratory table. His face set into a scowl, and he kept glancing at the window fixed into the pale wall of the room. He could tell by the look on her face that she had questions.

“Yes, Balthzar is involved,” he snapped. More angry at himself than at her. “Must have somehow gotten his hands on a copy of the map. He thinks it belongs to him. His grandfather led the last expedition to the Temple, but they failed to get in. Lost the map and returned sick with some sort of fever. It drove him mad. But the old man kept going on and on about the treasure. How he had to return. He never did though. They locked him up.

“Anyway, Bathizar was seen leaving the village two hours ago,” he informed her. “No prizes for guessing where he is heading. The race just started and we are losing. I’ve already arranged for provisions and equipment to be sent to my hotel. Do what you have to do, but hurry. “

Restless Jake paced back and forth, snatching glances out the window or keeping his eyes fixed on Kellerman as she worked. As she did his eyes caught sight of plaque embedded in the wall. Priscilla Kellerman. Ok, so she was a Priscilla, good to know.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

This Mr Speed was a terribly impatient man. On top of that he was doing a very poor job of trying to bully her into helping him. Priscilla concluded that he was a criminal just like Balthizar and the others, someone who just wanted to rob a tomb for quick riches. She had more than second thoughts about heading off into the jungle with him. Even his insistence that the treasure was still there - he knew 'for a fact' - was such a lie. If he knew it was there he would have taken it already. Not only was he full of shit, he was terribly unprofessional, breaking off their meeting and telling her when to meet in her own lab. What an arsehole! The doctor smirked when she sent him a reply email, telling him that he'd need the address, and that he was damn lucky that she quite miraculously actually had access to the only spectrometer between Lima and Medellin. 'Fifty-fifty split,' he had blurted. His negotiation skills were appalling. Everything about Jake Speed was shady as hell. She had the mind to tell him to go find someone else for his schemes, but the thought of some thief possibly stealing this legend abhorred her. In the end it was quite clear that he needed her far more than she needed him, so she decided that (if the map checked out) she would be in, and took solace in the fact that they would be doing things her way because he would be lost without her.

So there it was, the map spread out before her on the work bench in the lab. It was scrolled horizontally with a brown ink smudged and blurred in most places on paper, so it was definitely European made as opposed to native. Perhaps it was old but it was not ancient. It was very large, which Priscilla found odd. With her gloved hands, she took out a tape and measured it to be 117 by 67½ centimeters.

"According to research of the legend, the Temple of Peruda il Huitaca was built somewhere between 1500 and 2500 years ago, depending on opinions," Priscilla began to explain while keeping her eyes downward and taking in the details. "This map - if it's not a forgery - can't be more than 300 or so years old, probably less, so obviously it was made by someone who had found what they believed was the hidden spot, and not the original creators, despite these native symbols." The map was not at all in pristine condition. The edges were hacked and torn and the scrolling had not been well protected, if at all, causing thick vertical folds that curled the page so that the corners needed to be pinned down with magnets. The parchment itself was brown and splotch-stained and the ink had permeated outwards from its original strokes in reddish-brown in several spots.

"Anyway, Balthizar was seen leaving the village two hours ago."

"By whom?" she dismissed still without lifting her eyes from the map. "Don't pressure me. It won't work. Besides, I highly doubt that Balthizar knows where he might be going anyways. If he has you followed it's almost certainly because he can't translate this thing himself. He's burned too many bridges."

Scanning the document for an appropriate sample, she spotted a tear in one of the folds where there was no ink. It would be better to take from the middle than the edges so with a scalpel, the doctor carefully removed less than a square inch of paper, pinched it with tweezers and dropped it into a small clear ziplock bag. Then she looked up at Jake with a grin to gauge his possible expression as she vandalized his map.

"Since you're in a hurry," she said and promptly led him out the door and down the hall. "Normally I take a bunch of pictures first, but this part might take 24 hours although I suspect that it won't take much more than twelve," she explained as she walked. "Manuel, thanks for coming in late and on short notice," she turned her attention to the assistant as she pushed open the door to the back room. "Jake Speed - Dr Manuel Moralez," she introduced them. Manuel was a cheerful-faced and heavy set man somewhere in his thirties with bushy dark hair. Priscilla imagined Jake squirming at the involvement of another person as she handed over the sample for testing, but of course the little scrap of parchment would not reveal anything to Manuel as to Mr Speed's supposed prize.

"Si si, no problem," agreed Manuel.

"Good. The spectrometer should give us a carbon date by noon tomorrow," she concluded as Manuel set himself to work at the precision machine that occupied most of his desk. Then she led Jake back down to the front lab. She fetched a microscope from the shelf on the wall, lifted the magnet from one of the corners of the map and slid it under the lens. Priscilla adjusted the dials as she peered into the eyepiece.

"Iron gall ink," she said as if listing off points from a ledger. "That's why the brown splotches are there. The iron rusts with moisture and spreads out," she explained. "No one uses that these days, but very common 150 years ago and older. This was done with a fountain pen. That doesn't mean that it's not a forgery but the amount of rust is a decent sign that this was indeed inked decades ago." She straightened up and looked him in the eye.

"Well the spectrometer will tell us everything but I think at this stage we have something legitimate," she said as she folded her arms across her chest. "Of course the map details a rather small area of land and has no scale so there's no telling really where this is so I'll need to take some pictures."

 

[Dirtydave1974]

Jake knew that Kellerman was a Doctor but didn't know exactly her field of study. But he was beginning to suspect she had studied more than one class in how to be an insufferable know it all.

She obviously took him for an idiot or an incompetent. Every time he said something, it was always met with skepticism, dismissed as soon as the words were out of his mouth, or ignored. They had gotten off on the wrong foot, and now she seemed to think she was running things. The woman had turned distrust into an art form. He was having severe second thoughts about aligning himself with her.

"By whom?" she said, staring intently at the map. "Don't pressure me. It won't work. Besides, I highly doubt that Balthazar knows where he might be going anyways. If he has you followed, it's almost certainly because he can't translate this thing himself. He's burned too many bridges."

"I'm not pressuring you. I'm trying to tell you that we don't have much time. Yes, they were following me, but they don't need me to translate the map. They already have everything they need."

Jake pulled out his phone and started scrolling through his search history. She didn't wait for him. Her every movement was methodical and unhurried but efficient. She was in her element and coordinated each activity within her lab with the deft skill of a conductor in front of an orchestra.

She cut a section off the map, and he lost interest in what was on his phone. He felt something clench inside his pants, and a strangled cry escaped his lips. She placed a small square of the parchment inside a plastic bag and shot him a mocking smile.

Was she doing this on purpose?

"Since you're in a hurry," she said, a smug smile on her lips as she led him out the door and down the hall. He hurried after her, still struggling with the web browser on his phone. "Normally I take a bunch of pictures first, but this part might take 24 hours although I suspect that it won't take much more than twelve. Manuel, thanks for coming in late and on short notice," she turned her attention to some new guy.

Disorientated, Jake spun in a circle, unable to keep up with the Doctor's pace as she swept through the lab from one activity to the next. He felt like he was trapped in some strange whirlwind.

"Jake Speed - Dr Manuel Moralez," she introduced them.

"Um… yeah… hey… what's up."

"Si si, no problem," Manuel said, pretty much ignoring Jake.

"Good. The spectrometer should give us a carbon date by noon tomorrow," Kellerman said and was off again with him chasing after her. Finally, he found what he'd been looking for.

He placed his phone on the desk in front of Kellerman. On the screen was displayed a newspaper article. The headline read:

Treasure Hunter spotted in Iquitos.

While it was written in Spanish, Jake didn't think he needed to use the auto-translate.

Local Police were alarmed to learn that notorious treasure hunter Albus Balthazar was seen leaving the local town of Iquitos earlier today. In Peru, Balthazar is wanted for stealing multiple indigenous artifacts from archaeological sites and selling them on the black market.
While it is unknown why Mr. Balthizar was in Iquitos, he was seen leaving with Donald Baxter, a foremost expert in Ancient Peruvian folklore, language, and antiquities. Also seen accompanying the group was Alisha Anders, daughter of famed archaeologist Martin Anders who died last month.
Police are concerned that the group has uncovered some Peruvian artifacts of cultural significance. Authorities fear that Balthazar may steal this National treasure to sell on the black market or destroy it and sell the components of raw gold or precious gems. Anyone with further information should contact the authorities on…

And there was a phone number provided.

Jake waited until she had finished reading. It took all his self-control to keep his voice cool and reasonable. But inside, he felt like a volcano about to erupt with frustration and impatience. "As you already know, Balthazar has a reputation for being a ruthless cut-throat. He's gotten where he is today based on greed, bullying, and betrayal. But from what I hear, Baxter is the real deal." Jake pointed at the map. "When it comes to this shit, he is as good as you, and some people say he is better. If they have a copy of this map, Baxter had a week to study it. He has translated it. "

She seemed to take the information in, and her face became unreadable.
"Of course, the map details a rather small area of land and has no scale so there's no telling really where this is so I'll need to take some pictures."

"That I can help with," Jake said. This he had on hand in his phone. He switched to his photos, and the first waiting was an aerial photograph on the jungle. In the bottom left corner were the lights from a town. "This is Iquitos," he pointed to the town, then his finger moved to the nearby spot on the photo. "This hook in the river corresponds to this here on the map.

Like you said, there is no marking of scale, which is why the landmarks are needed. But this river here is our starting point. If you can translate the landmarks' markings, we can establish a second reference point, possibly a third. When we cross-reference that with the photo and existing maps of the area, it should provide us with both scale and precision."

He softened slightly. He realized their problem was that Kellerman was starting from scratch. But to be fair, that wasn't her fault. She wasn't to know that Jake had already seen Baxter running all these tests and more. He couldn't tell her that Balthazar had instructed him to do the very thing he'd told Doctor Kellerman just now. It was too difficult to explain the real reason he'd stolen the map from Balthazar and Alisha Anders. But any hope he had of stopping Balthazar from finding the temple by stealing the map before it was translated died when he read the news article.

"You said you had a book that would translate these markings, didn't you? I'm not trying to bully you. They are ahead of us, and they know where they are going." His voice was deadly serious. "I'm begging you… we need to beat him to that temple. If we don't…" he swallowed and trailed off, leaving the thought hanging. "We can't let him win. Please, I know the markings are the clue to unlocking the map. What do they say?"

 

[pink_silk_glove]

The article displayed on his phone and Priscilla read the Spanish.

"He's not a very good thief if the press are already on him," she dismissed and looked back at the map. "Besides, I have a better number to call. As soon as this is authenticated."

"As you already know, Balthazar has a reputation for being a ruthless cut-throat ... When it comes to this shit, he is as good as you, and some people say he is better."

"He's not bad but he's not better," she said, rather miffed at the notion. "Plus, he doesn't have the Peruvian government on his side," she added as Jake switched his phone to a new image.

"This is Iquitos. This hook in the river corresponds to this here on the map."

There are a thousand river bends on a hundred different rivers out there," the doctor remarked with a subtle shake of the head. "The Paixão stone is a Jivoran legend," she emphasized, pronouncing it he-VO-ran, correctly as the locals did. "The Jivoran territory starts a good 200 miles west of here by flight, longer by riverboat. If Balthazar and Baxter are looking here," she pointed at his river bend, "I would most certainly say they're barking up a totally wrong tree. They're not in the right province," she smirked.

"I'm begging you ... we need to beat him to that temple. If we don't ... We can't let him win. Please, I know the markings are the clue to unlocking the map. What do they say?"

"Oh, stop begging," she admonished him. "It's unmanly." Then she walked over to the wall cabinet, unlocked it with a key, took out a camera and some sort of stand apparatus and returned to the map. "And so fucking impatient," she said quietly as she unfolded the stand and assembled it, extending the arms and tightening the fasteners. "You're less professional than Balthazar himself. You'll get us killed in the jungle." The stand formed a large frame over the map, it's feet magnetically fastening to the table, with a gantry across the top where she mounted the camera and fastened it into the bracket. Then she made some adjustments and by turning a knob the gantry smoothly moved to the left edge. She checked the framing on the viewer and then tapped the photo. "The first symbol on that main line at the bottom says 'beware' I know that much," she remarked still focused on her work. She turned the knob with precision, hovering the camera about a foot above the map, gliding it halfway across and tapped another photo. "Let me take the photos, then the computer will tell us what it says," she explained as she moved the camera over towards the right edge and tapped again. "My textbook is digital," she said. "Baxter's isn't. Well, it's online so he can read it, but he doesn't have the recognition software. He'd have to translate it manually."

After taking the pictures, Priscilla moved to the computer station, got comfortable in the chair and plugged the camera in to upload the images. There were six of them and with an editor, she took a few minutes to carefully align them, using transparency to overlap the edges as close to perfect as possible. When it was completed, there was one huge high detail digital image of the map. She saved the file to the hard drive and then opening her encrypted emailer, she attached it and sent it to herself and to Jake.

"There you go," she said. "Now you should never lose it." Next she opened her AtlasPro software and clicked a few options. Opening the digital treasure map, a progress bar inched across the screen for about twenty seconds and then placed nodes over the image of the map. Priscilla deleted a bunch of the nodes, basically the ones over the symbols, and then selected a few more. Once she was satisfied with the selections, she hit the start button. "Okay, that'll take about an hour, maybe less."

Opening the image editor again, she selected the band of symbols across the bottom and copied the rectangle. Then she did the same with the three landmarks.

"English and all European languages are written with a phonetic alphabet. Jivoran however is pictoral, like Chinese, although different combinations can sometimes change the meanings, so it's not enough to just know the symbols," she explained as the symbols popped up in the text. "This one is 'beware'," she pointed out on the screen. A list of translations showed up in the sidepane. Many were absurd like beware - encased (in) sleep - sex, beware - encased (in) dream (of) lust, beware - trapped - curse - vagina, beware - tomb (of) sleep - embrace. The words in parentheses were due to the absence of conjunctions and prepositions in the ancient writing. The one at the top made the most sense.

beware - protected (by) trance (of) sex

"Well, Peruda is a sex and fertility Goddess after all," Priscilla shrugged. Then she brought up the first landmark symbol. The first translation was monkey. The second was trickster and the third was thief. "All of those could mean Balthazar, hmm?" she joked. With the second landmark symbol the translations listed as spring, waterfall, cascade, rapid(s). "Water, but moving water, not still water," she remarked. "It shouldn't mean river, as the word for river is the same as blood," she explained. "The Jivoran regard the river as a blood vessel, both in appearance and as a source of life." The final pictoral of three rocks did not translate. "That one is not in the database," she shook her head. "Given that this map is drawn almost certainly by a European hand, it would make sense that it's not a Jivoran symbol. However it does seem strange that the rest of the symbols are."

 

[Dirtydave1974]

"The Jivoran territory starts a good 200 miles west of here by flight, longer by riverboat. If Balthazar and Baxter are looking here," she pointed at his river bend, "I would most certainly say they're barking up a totally wrong tree. They're not in the right province," she smirked.

“Or maybe, they know something you don’t,” Jake retorted. “If Baxter is as good as you, there is no way he would make a mistake that big.” Jake shook his head. She seemed awfully sure of herself for a woman that hadn’t even started to look at the content of the map.

…

"Oh, stop begging," she admonished him. "It's unmanly."

Jake raised his eyebrows and chuckled. “Unmanly? Honey, trust me when I say that if you saw what I was packing in these pants, you would be the one doing the begging. “


"You're less professional than Balthazar himself. You'll get us killed in the jungle."

“Woah,” Jake said holding up his hands, and his cocky half smile disappeared. “I’m not the one insulting a potential business partner every chance they get. So maybe you shouldn’t be throwing the word professional around quite so much.
“Balthazar is a fucking pig. You can attack my manhood if you want. If you want to imply that I’m an idiot, fine. But compare me to that arsehole again, and we are done.” He didn’t raise his voice, but each word was as cold and hard as ice, leaving no illusion that any witty retort or insult on this matter would not be tolerated.

He stepped away and watched her carry the map to a table with a camera fixed above. She went to work, and while he remained a bit pissed at her, he had to begrudgingly admit, she was impressive. Efficient, methodical, focused, hard-working, and had a nice arse. She was clearly in her element and seemed to revel in the order and control she held over the environment. He wondered how she would deal with being in situations where she wasn’t in control. He suspected not well.

So much of his life, his survival, relied on being in the moment. Leveraging whatever opportunity was in front of him. Sure, success had eluded him so far in life, and Priscilla certainly wasn’t the first to look down at him. He might not have their brains, but they didn’t see what he saw. They were so often focused on their machines, tool, processes or their plans that when shit went south they couldn’t deal. Being in the moment allowed him to adapt and change. Seeing the things that he hadn’t expected and having the agility to use it before it was gone.

This partnership thing wasn’t going well, and he was willing to accept his part of the failure. He’d rushed things. Made a bad first impression. He had to give her time to realise he was the real deal. Yes, she needed more time, but not too much. The race was on, whether she wanted to admit it or not.

Lost in his own thoughts and watching her work, he could feel the tension of their recent conflict ease away. If he could get her on side, they could beat Balthizar. He knew it.

He realised she was talking again.

"The first symbol on that main line at the bottom says 'beware' I know that much," she explained.

"My textbook is digital. Baxter's isn't. Well, it's online so he can read it, but he doesn't have the recognition software. He'd have to translate it manually."

"English and all European languages are written with a phonetic alphabet. Jivoran however is pictoral, like Chinese, although different combinations can sometimes change the meanings, so it's not enough to just know the symbols."

Jake didn’t look at the screen. He kept his attention focused on Priscilla as something scratched at the edge of his mind. He tilted his head to one side.
“You know, if I didn’t know better, I’d almost think you were trying to impress me with how smart you are. Interesting.”

He smiled cockily and returned his attention back to what she had been looking at.

sex,
dream
lust,
curse
vagina,
embrace.

beware - protected (by) trance (of) sex
They shared a look. "Well, Peruda is a sex and fertility Goddess after all," Priscilla said with a shrug. Was that a hint of red on her cheeks?

“You sure this is looking at translation software and not your internet browsing history?” he asked, chuckling at his own joke.

But then, she started going through the landmarks. Jake shifted. At last, they were getting somewhere.
Finally, the first landmark symbol appeared. The first translation was monkey. The second was trickster and the third was thief.

That was it? Monkey, trickster, thief? That told him exactly fuck all. He had placed so much faith in the idea that the symbols would lead him to a new landmark. Something that could be used to triangulate the location of the temple.

"Given that this map is drawn almost certainly by a European hand, it would make sense that it's not a Jivoran symbol. However it does seem strange that the rest of the symbols are."

It had always struck Jake as strange that a European would use Jivoran symbol. He’d assumed Natives had written it, but Priscilla seemed certain. It was… unsettling. His eyes flicked back to the words curse and trance and he shivered involuntarily.

There was certainly a mystery behind the map’s origin. But, Jake had always been far more interested in where the map would lead him, rather than the document himself. He stood straight and stared straight ahead.

As he stood trying to puzzle this out, his eyes fell on Dr Manuel Moralez who was still busy working across the room. The good doctor’s desk was piled high with books, maps, scientific equipment and all manner of computer devices. But behind him were several photos.
One such photo caught his eye and Jake quietly crossed the room while Doctor Kellerman studied the screen in front of her.

The photos appeared to be from a jungle expedition. He noted that Doctor Kellerman, Dr Moralez and Undeleke were in several along with some other people. Each were standing in the centre of a circle of monkey statues outside a small ruin of a village.

As he drew closer a second photo caught his attention. A young woman was posing in the second photo with three rocks in the background. This photo was unremarkable, but right next to it was the same woman with the rocks shot from a different perspective. In this perspective the three boulders had been lined up so that together they appeared to look like an erect penis. The woman in the photo stood in the foreground with her tongue out, so it appeared that she was licking the tip of the rock cock.

Goddess of sex and fertility….huh?

“Where is this?” he asked Moralez.

“Si, that was expedition. That is the circle of the tricksters. Three years ago we went into the jungle. Very successful trip. Photo’s are amusing, yes?”

“Yeah. But where is it exactly?”

But before Moralez could answer, Priscilla was talking again.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

"You know, if I didn't know better, I'd almost think you were trying to impress me with how smart you are. Interesting."

"I'm just being the expert that you came for," she remarked, not looking up from her work.

"You sure this is looking at translation software and not your internet browsing history?"

'In your wet dreams,' Priscilla thought to herself but bit her tongue. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of the banter. The same went for his remarks about his own package. As if she even cared. Priscilla just took a deep breath and brushed it off. Besides, there was too much of that distracting from the focus of the task at hand. She was doing them both a favor.

At that point Jake had seemed bored, or at least listless, left out of the process. In that regard, Priscilla supposed that she didn't blame him. He wandered the room for something to catch his attention. Satisfied that she'd entered all the data and had the system up and running, she leaned back and stretched. Her eyes hurt. The evening meeting had extended the day and she'd left her contacts in for far too long. Standing and retrieving her bag from the cabinet, she left to the small bathroom across the hall. She took her time. The software would be busy for several minutes matching all the possible locales to the nodes on the treasure map and there was a lot of jungle to cover. If the map had a scale it would probably only take ten minutes and be done by now, but since it didn't it would probably take another half hour. She freshened up, removing her contacts and washing her face. Staring for too many hours at computer screens over the years had left Priscilla nearsighted. She donned her rectangular microframes with rounded corners and focused her smoky blue eyes on her reflection in the mirror. She had turned forty back in the spring. The beginnings of laugh lines were forming into her cheeks. Her darkening eyebrows gave away the blonde dye that hid the slowly greying hair.

Priscilla returned to the lab to see Jake and Manuel admiring the pictures of the Circle of Tricksters expedition. She could only roll her eyes at Jake's interest in that little English harlot Hattie who had tagged along on an exchange program from Weymouth that year as she posed lewdly with the stones for the photos.

"Of course you'd like that one," she couldn't help but blurt. "She was trouble on that trip," she added with disdain. Priscilla looked to Jake through her new lenses and then back at the photos with a sudden double-take. "Oh my God," she whispered in quiet shock. Quickly, she turned back to the work table, looked hard at the three stone landmark and then back up at the photos on the wall. Darting back to the computer, the progress bar was still at eighty-four perfect. She opened a new browser tab, went to google earth and zoomed in on northern Peru.

"Right there," she said confidently as she pointed to a spot on the map, deep in the lowlands jungle but not too far from the mountains. "That's where those photos were taken."

"Si, On the Marañon River," added Manuel.

"About 400 kilometers from here by air. Closer to 600 by riverboat," she estimated. "If the software points this out, this is it," she claimed as her fingertip tapped the screen. Hell, a fertility Goddess, an andesite penis, that was the spot regardless, but she wasn't about to say that out loud. Her heart thudded at the thought that three years ago she had been atop the lost Temple of Peruda il Huitaca and hadn't a clue! The AtlasPro progress bar inched up to ninety-one percent. Her knee bounced in anticipation. Now she was the impatient one.

 

[Dirtydave1974]

When he turned back she was wearing glasses, and the change took him by surprise. She looked… hot. Like a naughty librarian.
Then her eyes were locked onto the photo’s he’d just been looking at, and he knew she’d seen what he had. She returned to her work table, and started pouring over maps. All at once, any other thought were banished from his mind.

"Right there," she pointed to a spot on the map. "That's where those photos were taken."

"Si, On the Marañon River," added Manuel.
“The river on my map connects to the Maranon. That’s it. That’s why Balthizar went there. He plans on using the river to get him to the temple. It will provide passage straight to it. He just needs to know where to get off.”
Immediately he started thinking. If they traveled by air they could get ahead, but only for a time. Once they crossed into the jungle it would be slow going. If only…
"If the software points this out, this is it," she tapped the screen.
Jake moved up behind her leaning on the back rest of her chair and waited. His eyes locked onto the computer screen and he waited and prayed.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

"The river on my map connects to the Marañon. That’s it. That’s why Balthizar went there. He plans on using the river to get him to the temple. It will provide passage straight to it. He just needs to know where to get off."

Priscilla felt Jake's weight press upon the back of her chair and urge it forward. Her focus on the screen and the task at hand distracted her from the invasiveness of it.

"The Marañon is a big river," she remarked. Priscilla sighed heavily as the software would still take another five minutes, give or take. Finally she stood.

"Anyone for tea?" she asked the room. Tea was often how she relaxed. Moving to the side counter she poured a flask of water from the sink and sparked up the jet boil camp stove. "Fastest way to boil." she winked. In a minute-and-a-half the water was jumping. Priscilla turned off the flame, dunked a teabag into the flask and let it bob until the water turned golden brown.

The computer blee-deeped. The software process had completed. Priscilla put the tea down and rushed back to her seat. Hovering over the first set of co-ordinates in the list, the spot on the map lit up bright red.

"That's it," she hissed excitedly and turned to face Jake, the flash of excitement in her hazy blue eyes. After a moment, she turned back to her desk and pulled out her phone. "I need to make some calls," she said as she began to dial. "As soon as the spectrometer is done in the morning, we gotta hit the trail." The tea was forgotten.

 

[Dirtydave1974]

With a blee-deep, the computer reached its conclusion. Priscilla leaped back into her chair, and they both leaned forward as the scanned image of the map refreshed. A bright red dot flashed over the point they'd already identified on the map.

"That's it," Priscilla cried, giddy as a schoolgirl. Her hazy blue eyes shone beneath her glasses.

"I guess that means I'm smarter than your computer," Jake joked cockily, holding his hand up for a solid high five.

He stared at the red dot on the map in awe. Priscilla had been right. It was nowhere near where he'd thought it would be. Although he'd jested about identifying the location before the computer, at best, he'd been guessing. His observation could have just as easily been wrong, leaving him searching the jungle in the wrong spot for days. Nevertheless, Priscilla was the one who'd given them the certainty that this was it – the location of Peruda il Huitaca.

But the question was, what now? Balthazar was ahead of them. If they could catch up, their best effort would have them both reach the temple simultaneously. If there was one thing that Jake feared more than Balthazar beating them to the treasure, it was coming face to face with the man himself.

An event that was becoming increasingly more likely, and he could feel a flutter of fear dance within his stomach.

"I need to make some calls," Priscilla stood and crossed the laboratory. She spoke on the phone in a calm voice for several minutes. At that time, Jake noticed that he'd received a text.

It was Yanet, his pilot. "Hey, sexy. The plane is fuelled and ready to go if you still need it. But I need to know either way because Ralph has another group looking to charter a flight. You have until 9 am tomorrow to let me know. Sorry, but cash is cash.

His thumb danced over the screen as he replied to the text. "Hey, kid. Come on, when have I ever let you down? (Don't answer that). Found what I'm looking for. There is an 87.25% chance I will need the plane, so tell Ralph to keep his hands off my stuff.

Seconds later, Yanet replied, "Your stuff? My plane my rules. I've half a mind to take MY plane up tomorrow for a joy ride to show you both who is boss. I need 100% certainty. That means $$$$$.

Jake chuckled. "You are such a brat. =)"

"But that's why you love me…" she wrote back. He didn't love her, of course, but they had a fun routine of flirting and teasing each other.

With a chuckle, Jake pocketed his phone and turned back to see Priscilla had finished her conversation. Using Yanet to get to the temple seemed the best option for them, but it depended on what Priscilla and her team needed.

"What is our next move?" he asked. "I just spoke to my pilot. We can fly tomorrow, but if you have other plans, I need to let them know."

 

[pink_silk_glove]

She didn't want to encourage his cockiness but at that stage Priscilla felt some need to acknowledge him. He was the one to notice the photos in her own lab after all. Reluctantly, she tapped her fingertips to his palm for his high five.

Wandering about the room with her phone to her ear, Priscilla talked to the walls as she slowly paced, left arm across her belly supporting her right elbow. After a couple of minutes she changed hands, putting the phone to her other ear. "Yes, tomorrow ... Assemble the team, yes ... Just to the account ... We don't need the whole thing right away, just enough to get going ... By noon tomorrow. I'd love to leave at the crack of dawn but we do have to wait for the spectrometer ... Just tell me that it's all lined up. You can hit send the moment we get the result ... We are in a bit of a race ..." Priscilla peered over Jake's way with a nod at the mention of the word 'race'.

"What is our next move?"

"I just got off the phone with Guillermo. He will call me back with the confirmations," she said as she sat herself back at the computer. "I'll go through my checklists and we will pack." Moving the mouse over the other coordinates in the list, the corresponding dots lit up on the map. Some were in the same vicinity as the phallic stones, still others were remotely flung.

"What are the probabilities that Balthizar knows that this spot," she said as she pointed at their golden destination on the screen, "is that spot?" she asked rhetorically as she swivelled to gesture to the picture frames. "Right about zero." Balthizar didn't have much experience in Peru, only a couple of il-advised treks. Of course there was the chance that he'd come in contact with someone who actually knew about the 'dick stones' as some in the know had affectionately dubbed them. They weren't terribly well-known, but she had to admit that it was at least a possibility. Just looking at the photos raised the excitement in her chest to overflowing even if outwardly she did her best to stay calm. Priscilla reached for her tea and sipped. It was lukewarm already.

"We're in good shape," she assured Jake. "We will have the Peruvian government backing us, and on the lookout to catch Balthizar," she noted. "It's a big jungle. He could be hard to find, but if the papers are already onto him he might not last long. Lima doesn't like him after his escapades down in Llallawa a few years ago. They chased him across the border into Bolivia. Ever since, he's been wanted here and can't use the airports. He has to sneak in over land. I would imagine through the bush." She stared down at her silent phone and it's anonymous dark screen, her knee bouncing rapidly in anticipation of the return call, betraying her impatience. "And if he actually does luck his way into finding us, we can just report him," she added, conveniently omitting the fact that communications deep in the jungle would hardly be instantaneous and neither would any response of authority.

A new email notification popped up on the bottom of her computer screen and a moment later her phone blipped the same. She picked up the phone, scrolled and silently read, her face slowly shifting into concern. Then the phone rang.

"Yes? ... I saw it, yes ... What do you mean only four? ... Come on, you know that the standard is twelve ... Not even eight?" Then there was a long pause. "Speed ... S-P-E-E-D ... American ... Of course I checked him out ... There's not a lot, no but it still checks out." Again, at that moment she glanced up at Jake from her chair. "Well you know how it is. If you don't find anything, the helpers get paid and I get to live rent-free in the bush for a few weeks. If we do find something, the whole thing pays for itself a hundred times over." Guillermo gave his side of things and when he was done Priscilla could only sigh. "Well if it's four, we're still going, but get us more ... All right ... Adios." She hung up and took a deep breath as she placed the phone back on the desk before her.

"It's all set," she told Jake as she swivelled to face him again. "That is to say, as soon as I send the spectrometer results to Lima, the money goes into the account. Funding for four people."

 

[Dirtydave1974]

"What are the probabilities that Balthazar knows that this spot," she said as she pointed at their golden destination on the screen, "is that spot?" she asked rhetorically as she swivelled to gesture to the picture frames. "Right about zero."

Jake shifted uncomfortably. He didn't share Priscilla's optimism that Balthazar was that ignorant. The man had spent weeks and months studying maps and lore. They had been at it for just over an hour. It seemed unlikely that he would go into the jungle without a good idea of where he was going.

"It doesn't matter. Let's assume Balthazar is already there. Like you said, it's a race, so we better start running."

With a nod, Priscilla jumped onto her phone again. He texted Yanet to indicate they were good to go.

"It's all set," she told Jake as she swiveled to face him again. "That is to say, as soon as I send the spectrometer results to Lima, the money goes into the account. Funding for four people."

"Finally," Jake said with a smile.

Each of them separated to prepare for the trip. As Jake gathered the map, he remembered something else he'd acquired from Balthazar before he left. A small brown booklet that was written in a different language. He'd never had much use for it, but Priscilla might be interested. Who knows, she may even be able to decipher it.

She'd already left to get her specto-whatsamecallit, so he left the book on her desk with a note. "Present for you. Maybe you can decipher this. J."

*****
THE NEXT DAY.

The jungle was hot, sticky, full of insects, and Jake hated it. The humidity left his entire body covered in a perpetual film of sweat. Moving through the thick brush and steep hills left him winded and begging Priscilla, Undeleke and Yanet for frequent breaks.

"Come on, slowpoke," Yanet encouraged him with a dazzling smile.

The Mexican-born twenty-six-year-old was rocking a crop top over her bountiful bosom and a tight pair of denim shorts that hugged her round ass.

When she wasn't fixing or flying planes, Yanet spent most of her time at the gym, so she handled the hike with a degree of ease that bordered on annoying. Still, her 38-24-38 figure was easy on the eye. There were worse people to travel with. Jake shot a glance toward Priscilla.

Jake had known Yanet since they were kids, and there was an ease between them that Jake quite enjoyed.

"Shut up," he said grumpily.

Yanet fell back until she was walking beside him. "We can slow down if you need us to. After all, we can't all be Lara Crofting this jungle."

"Lara Croft?" Jake said with a laugh. "More like Dora the Explorer."

"Dora the Explorer doesn't have these," Yanet laughed, placing her hands on her crop top and giving her 34D breasts a lift to emphasize them.

"Yeah, because big boobs are going to be what helps us beat Balthazar to the prize. At least Dora had a map, had a map, had a map."

"From memory, she also had a monkey sidekick."

"Are you saying I'm the monkey?"

"I am," Yanet said, flashing that winning smile of hers.

"That's fair," Jake said out of breath.

Priscilla led them through a particularly thick collection of foliage, and this time it was Jake's turn to help Yanet. It took them almost an hour to fight their way to the river less than half a mile away.

"So, what is her deal?" Yanet asked, pointing toward Priscilla, who was leading them toward the riverbank. "I don't think she likes me very much."
"She doesn't like me very much either. So I wouldn't lose any sleep over it."

"She's cute, though."

Jake laughed. "If you want to seduce her, be my guest."

Yanet's eyes fixed straight ahead, and for a long moment, she refused to meet his gaze. "I have eyes for someone else." Her voice was soft and sad. Maybe a little wistful. Before Jake could quiz her on it, she shook her head. "Besides, I thought she was more your type. You like the brainy girls."

"Not all of them. Priscilla seems the type who is married to her work. I doubt she remembers how to kiss."

"You're being mean."

Jake shrugged. Maybe he was. It didn't matter. He doubted very much that Priscilla cared what he thought about anything, including her. This was an arrangement of convenience. Once they found the treasure hidden in the temple, he would never have to talk to Ms know-it-all ever again.

They followed the riverbank for a few more miles. It was easier going here, and they made good time. Eventually, Undeleke fell back to join them and indicated that they would be setting up camp.

Jake couldn't help but notice the way Undeleke was checking Yanet out. He spoke directly to her as though Jake were not even there. He even offered her some of his water, but she declined, indicating that she had her own. Jake couldn't tell if she was interested in Undeleke. He was a big guy, and girls go for that. However, she had said she had eyes for someone else. Jake wondered who that might be.

As they made camp, a light mist began to creep through the bushes and between the trees.

"How much further do you think?" he asked Priscilla as he helped Undeleke build the campfire.

 

[pink_silk_glove]

The four of them trudged through the bush, one pair ahead and the other trailing behind. There was a path but it had been largely overgrown, requiring some machete work here and there. Priscilla was used to it and of course Piers was quite adept at this sort of thing so as the lead pair they carved the trail, taking turns as they went. The air was muggy but at least they were shaded by the rainforest canopy for the majority of the way. Jake and his Mexican pilot friend weren't really prepared. Yanet actually was fit enough and did all right but she still wasn't dressed appropriately leaving exposed midriff and legs for scrapes and welts from twigs and nettles. Still, she didn't seem to mind even the occasional bug bite. Priscilla supposed that she had grown up in a similar environment and was used to it all. Jake on the other hand, struggled to keep up. His lack of conditioning was to be expected and was something that she could actually put up with at least for a while, but what really tested her patience was his attitude. When they had landed at the airstrip near a place called San Isidro and unloaded their gear, Priscilla and Piers were already outfitted in light breathable shell pants and long sleeves, caps and sunglasses, with gloves for the jungle bush and lightweight moisture repellent boots, while Jake seemed to think that it was going to be a day hike in rural Illinois and largely brushed off their concerns. He hadn't brought the right clothing for starters, and didn't care for the smell of the lotion that they were slathering onto their necks and faces and around their wrists. He also didn't take their advice to trim down his pack. Priscilla was hauling thirty pounds, not including water. That was her strict limit (in fact she had indeed gone slightly over by packing the little booklet that Jake had left on her desk), while Piers and his sturdier frame was comfortable with forty, but not much more than about forty-two, knowing that every pound past your limit feels like double. The first days of a jungle trek were the toughest as the body acclimatized and the weight was its heaviest before any of the food was eaten. Even as they ventured downhill, Jake was learning that his knees were taking the brunt of his pack lest he allow himself to tumble down the slope.

At the water's edge they could see across to the other side, at least a quarter-mile away, the thick green foliage billowing impossibly upwards, giving them an idea of what they had been amidst themselves. The clearing that they were in was only there due to the large rock outcropping that they stood upon, about twenty feet above the swirling current. A local rickety fishboat slowly trawled past, its diesel engine throbbing in the distance and sending thin dark puffs of smoke skyward to be carried off in the light breeze as the front clouds encroached upon the blue, reminding them that even this deep into the Peruvian jungle, one never knew when civilization would creep in. There was a trail, a decent one, heading west from there upstream, which Priscilla recalled traversing before. Once Jake and Yanet caught up, they started off again. It was a wildlife trail, probably carved by goats or llama and widened by the local Incas, and strayed from and returned to the riverbank several times over undulating terrain as the trek continued. Still Priscilla and Piers kept better pace than the other two, although Priscilla figured that the girl could have stayed with them if not for accommodating Jake's frequent stalls. Ascending a rise into a small area that was half bush, half meadow, she and Piers agreed that it was a good spot on high ground to make camp before darkness set in. The sky was overcast now but the air was still muggy hot. If they got a downpour, at least it would keep the winged bugs down, even if not the crawlers.

"How much further do you think?"

"Other side of the next ridge," she nodded in a westerly direction (although all around them looked the same - thick trees) as she doffed her baby blue cap darkened by the damp ring of perspiration, and wiped the sweat from her brow with the cuff of her yellow crew neck shirt. Then she fluffed up her stringy hair with her fingers and replaced the hat. It was this type of work that had her preferring to keep a short haircut. "If we leave early, we'll find the stones by noonish or so," she offered. "Then we can plan from there." The mist had risen up from the river below. This itself was not unusual except for the time of day. It was something that normally happened at daybreak, especially since they weren't at a particularly high altitude.

The two men had dug out a small pit for the fire and soon had it going with some dry sticks while Piers began cutting up some deadfall into small logs for future fuel with his pocket cable saw. Meanwhile Priscilla had pitched her tiny bivy tent, cocoon shaped in canary yellow nylon and laid out a thin blanket on its floor. Like her shirt, that fit her figure trimly but not tight with the black stripes running up the sleeves accenting her already rather lanky limbs, the color was chosen so that it could be spotted easily from the air should they become stranded and required rescue. Then she took out her folding plastic bucket, her small cooking pot and a dry food packet.

"Anyone need help getting set up?" she asked, her eyes darting between the newbies Jake and Yanet.

 

[Dirtydave1974]

Yanet placed both her hands on her hips and spun in a slow circle taking in their surroundings. A blissful smile formed on her plump lips. “It is kind of beautiful here.”

“Yes,” Jake replied, ”in a home to millions of creatures that want to eat you kind of way.” He slapped his neck and killed a mosquito that had been feeding on his blood.

Yanet reached into her pack and began applying a foul-smelling repellent on her scratched arms, legs and then across her neckline. “Get my back?” she asked him, her eyes wide and innocent.

Jake hurt all over from the days hike. His pack weighed a tonne. The very idea of moving from the leaf cover where he’d collapsed drove imaginary daggers of pain into his already weakened limbs. With a groan he climbed to his feet and rubbed some ointment onto his hand.

Yanet gathered her hair and pulled it over her shoulder and across her chest, exposing the bronzed skin on the nape of her neck and back. Jake lathered her back up slipping his hand beneath the straps of her shirt to reach her shoulders.

After she thanked him, Jake went to help Undeleke set up a firepit. Undeleke had a good eye for wood and Jake was ashamed to say he did most of the work positioning rocks and clearing any unwanted kindling. The man seemed to have endless well of energy. Jake felt like his legs were going to collapse beneath him.

By the time they were finished, Priscilla had set up her tent.

"Anyone need help getting set up?" she asked.

“Please,” Yanet said giving her a wave.

“I’m on it,” Undeleke interrupted and was already at Yanet’s side before Priscilla could take a half step forward. It seemed the big man had taken a shine to the young pilot. Jake stifled a laugh and returned to his pack.

Priscilla shot Jake a questioning look, indicating she was willing to help him, but he waved her away. He had this. He knew how to pitch a tent. Although, he’d better get things moving before they lost day-light. With a shrug Priscilla disappeared into her tent with the small brown book Jake had gifted her the day before.

Jake laid out his tent near some trees, leaving his poles and pegs on a small rock. He studied his arrangement critically. This wasn’t right. He was facing up hill which meant that if it rained he would end up soaked. He turned the tent East, hoping the Sun would wake him at first light.

As he worked, his mind wandered. He was excited to finally reach the rocks. But the boat they’d spotted earlier worried him. Had that been Balthazar? Had he already penetrated inside the temple and stolen away her treasure? Maybe they were too late.

Jake finished adjusting the position of the tent and returned to the rock where he’d left the poles and pegs. Except they were gone.

“Ha, ha, guys very funny,” Jake said, assuming that one of the others was playing a joke on him. But then he heard movement in the trees above. Several shadows, monkeys, deftly leapt from the branches of one tree to the next with his tent poles in their paws. “Mother F-… You bring that back! Get down you little thieves!" He shouted, which immediately cause the monkeys to scatter in all directions, carrying his pegs and poles with them. Jake chased after them into the forest. His tired legs trampling bushes and tripping on hidden vines across the uneven earth.

He managed to keep an eye on two for a short time, and one of the monkeys dropped the larger of his tent poles, but within minutes it was clear that the rest had scattered to the four winds. Worse, night was creeping in and the mist about his feet was growing thicker.

The last thing he wanted to do would be to get lost in the misty jungle during night. Picking up his one recovered tent pole he trudged back to the others who’d all been shouting his name, and trying to figure out where he'd run off to and why. Grumpily, he explained what had happened to the others, ignoring Yanet’s giggling at his misfortune.

“Idiot,” she mocked him.

“Thanks,” he muttered glumly. “It’s going to be a long night.”

“Hmm,” she said, going a little red in the face. “Maybe we can... I’m sure.. we’ll think of something.”

Undeleke started a fire, and Priscilla had them gather their packs together to ensure the monkeys didn’t mess with their food. They ate in awkward silence for several long moments.

“So, Priscilla,” Yanet said, glancing across the campfire, “tell me about yourself, but none of the boring work stuff. Are you married, boyfriend, girlfriend?”

 

[pink_silk_glove]

"It is kind of beautiful here."

"Very beautiful," Priscilla hinted a warm smile as she gazed up at the surrounding canopy. She loved the rainforest, the teeming green as it were, thriving in direct defiance of human greed and destruction. Jake meanwhile was too preoccupied with the locals nipping at his neck while Yanet was applying ointment from a tube.

"Get my back?"

Priscilla rolled her eyes to herself at the Latina's fake expression of innocence. Then when she had offered assistance with camp, Piers beat her to it. Even in the midst of deep nowhere the curvy Mexican pixie drew a crowd. She left the group to it and retreated into her tent.

After taking the first few minutes to do some stretching to keep herself from tightening up too badly, it was time to check out Jake's present. She had flipped through it when she had first found it, but it was very difficult to read as it was largely in Spanish but not completely. Additionally it was hand written in ink that faded and smudged in penmanship that was far from regal. The text was intermingled with symbols that were likely (or at least meant to be) Jivoran. Propping her head on her camp roll, Priscilla began her painstaking translation with a pencil and notepad of her own.

The Tale of Ariane

Page 1

In the days of dreams when the great tribes hunted in the jungle and scaled the mountains, there lived a woman named Ariane. Ariane was the sole beloved daughter of the Quemara tribe. She was their pride. All of the elders the hunters and the farmers held her very dear for she was the future for their tribe.

Quemara was not a tribe that Priscilla was familiar with. It was either an ancient people long gone or more likely a name chosen by the story teller who was also giving Spanish names for the seemingly indigenous characters.

However, it is told that one loved her more than any other and his name was Renzo. Renzo guarded Ariane with jealousy and where she went, Renzo would be her shadow.

Now, the Quemara tribe farmed land using the old ways. Every four years they would burn the fields to allow for fresh growth. It is known that the Quemara were favored by the Goddess Peruda il Huitaca whose love for her people would bless the Earth to produce the sweetest fruit and most abundant crops.

At the time, the High Priestess of Peruda il Huitaca was Brigida whose duty it was to bestow the Goddess' blessing upon her people, but Brigida had a darkness in her heart and the power that the Goddess had given her corrupted her soul. She had turned away from the true path of serving her people, and instead chosen to become a base creature of wanton pleasure.

The story was really sounding like a fairy tale myth. The day was waning and so Priscilla took out her penlight to continue.

Brigida demanded that the neighbouring tribes surrender their young men and women to serve at the temple. There, Brigida would use them for her own carnal satisfaction. For once they arrived at her temple they fell under her spell and the temple became a place of orgies and hedonism, but Brigida’s appetites were great, and she quickly grew bored of each new play thing and would summon more and more to her halls.

Now it was sounding more like a porn fantasy and had the ink on the page not look old and brown and intricate she would have thought Jake to have made it all up himself. She flipped to the inside covers, both front and back for any information or clues as to the origins of the work but found none. She continued.

Thus the elders were dismayed when Brigida summoned Ariane to the temple where she would be forced to serve the High Priestess until the end of her days. However, they dared not defy her, for while no more children from Quemara would be born to hunt in the forest and climb the mountains, the people were hungry and desperate to receive the Goddess' blessings.

Sarcastically, Priscilla thought it a perfect explanation for why the tribe no longer existed.

So it was that they sent their beloved daughter to the Shrine of Peruda il Huitaca, but although he did not have an invite, Renzo travelled by her side.

When she emerged it was dark. The fire was going in a proper pit. In the flickers, Jake's tent didn't look right and he explained the amusing reason. Once again Priscilla could only roll her eyes at Yanet's flirtatious offer to share accommodations. Certain that Jake would accept, Priscilla contemplated earplugs for the night but then smirked to herself when imagining that after the exhausting day that he'd had, he would pass out on her.

"So Priscilla, tell me about yourself, but none of the boring work stuff. Are you married, boyfriend, girlfriend?"

She'd been caught off guard, almost as if cornered. Apparently the attention of the men wasn't enough. Gathering her thoughts, Priscilla offered.

"I was married once. That was years ago" she shrugged dismissively. "He was a footballer. I used to be a distance runner. That's how we met." Priscilla paused for a bite of her stew and swallowed. "It was a mistake."

"He cheated on you," Yanet cut to the chase. Priscilla cut her a sideways glance for a moment, then relented.

"Yes," she confirmed. "He was on the road a lot with the Botswanan National team. Then once Ipswich called it was off to Europe for months on his own," she explained, casually slapped some bug from her shoulder and took a drink from her water flask. "Pfft, and didn't seem to mind," she added.

"He was a futboler," said Yanet in warm consolation. "They're all like that." Priscilla chuckled quietly. They were connecting. She didn't want to connect with Yanet but it was happening anyways. Begrudgingly, she had to give her credit for understanding things, relationships, or at least men in general, although she would never admit it.

 

[Dirtydave1974]

Jake stared intently at Priscilla. “I’m sorry you had to go through that. Having someone cheat on you…” he looked away into the mist covered jungle. “It makes it difficult to trust again.”

Jake noticed the other three looking at him. Suddenly feeling self conscious he shifted on the rock he’d found himself on. “Yeah, I’ve been cheated on. Not a wife, but we’d been together for a year. She was studying at the University and slept with her professor. It went on for months before I found out. Anyway…”

An awkward silence fell over the group. Neither Piers nor Yanet decided to share. Maybe they’d never been cheated on. As the night settled in the jungle sounds from around them grew quieter. Particularly the birds. Even the insects seemed to thin out, which was odd considering the time of night.

The mist had gotten thicker to the point that it was becoming increasingly difficult to see outside of their small clearing. It was a relief after the heat and humidity of the day. It made the surrounding air feel almost comfortable, and promised an easy evening of rest.

The group finished their meal and after awhile made small talk until Yanet interjected, turning to Priscilla.

“So, this temple. What can we expect tomorrow? When we get there, I mean. Is it true there is some sort of curse?” Yanet shivered.