Contract with God aka The Moses Expedition

34

AL MUDAWWARA DESERT, JORDAN

Friday, 14 July 2006. 2:33 a.m.

The first part of the plan was to wake up on time. So far so good. From that moment on, everything was a disaster.

Andrea had put the wristwatch between her alarm clock and her head, with the alarm set for 2:30 in the morning. She would meet with Fowler at quadrant 14B, where she had been working when she told the priest about seeing the man on the cliff. All that the reporter knew was that the priest needed her help in order to neutralise Dekker’s frequency scanner. Fowler hadn’t told her how he planned to do this.

To make sure she would show up on time, Fowler had given her his wristwatch since her own didn’t have an alarm. It was a rough black MTM Special Ops with a Velcro wristband that seemed almost as old as Andrea herself. On the back of the watch was the inscription: That others may live.

‘That others may live.’ What kind of person wears a watch like this? Not a priest, of course. Priests wear twenty-euro watches, at best a cheap Lotus with an imitation leather strap. Nothing with as much character as this, Andrea thought before falling asleep. When the alarm sounded, she was careful to turn it off straight away and take the watch with her. Fowler had made it clear what would happen to her if she lost it. Besides which, the face had a small LED light that would make it easier to get through the canyon without tripping over one of the quadrant strings and cracking her head open on a rock.

While she searched for her clothes, Andrea listened to see if the alarm had woken anyone up. Kyra Larsen’s snores eased the reporter’s mind but she decided to wait until she got outside to put on her boots. Creeping towards the door, her customary clumsiness came into play and she dropped the watch.

The young reporter tried to control her nerves and recall the layout of the infirmary. At the far end were two stretchers, a table and the medical instruments cabinet. The three roommates slept near the entrance on their mattresses and sleeping bags. Andrea in the middle, Larsen to her left, Harel to her right.

Using Kyra’s snores to orient herself, she began searching the floor. She felt the edge of her own mattress. A little further on she touched one of Larsen’s discarded socks. She made a face and rubbed her hand on the seat of her trousers. She continued over her own mattress. A little further. That must be Harel’s mattress.

It was empty.

Surprised, Andrea took the lighter out of her pocket and flicked it on, obscuring the flame by placing her body between it and Larsen. Harel was nowhere in the infirmary. Fowler had told her not to let Harel know what they were planning to do.

The reporter didn’t have time to give the matter further thought, so she picked up the watch, which she found lying between the mattresses, and went out of the tent. The camp was as still as a tomb. Andrea was glad that the infirmary was near the north-west wall of the canyon, so she would avoid anyone on their way to or from the toilets.

I’m sure that’s where Harel is. I can’t understand why we can’t tell her what we’re doing if she already knows about the priest’s satellite telephone. Those two are up to something strange.

A moment later the professor’s air horn went off. Andrea froze, fear tearing at her like a trapped animal. At first she thought that Forrester had discovered what she was up to, until she realised that the sound was coming from some distance away. The horn was muffled but it echoed faintly through the canyon.

There were two blasts and then it stopped.

Then it began again and didn’t stop.

It’s a distress signal. I’d bet my life on it.

Andrea wasn’t sure who to call on. With Harel nowhere in sight and Fowler waiting for her at 14B, her best option was Tommy Eichberg. The service personnel tent was the closest to her now and with the help of the watch’s light, Andrea found the tent’s zipper and burst inside.

‘Tommy, Tommy, are you here?’

Half a dozen heads looked up from their sleeping bags.

‘For God’s sake, it’s two in the morning,’ said a dishevelled Brian Hanley, rubbing his eyes.

‘Get up, Tommy. I think the professor is in trouble.’

Tommy was already climbing out of his sleeping bag.

‘What’s going on?’

‘It’s the professor’s horn. It hasn’t stopped.’

‘I don’t hear anything.’

‘Come with me. I think he’s in the canyon.’

‘Just a minute.’

‘What are you waiting for, Hanukkah?’

‘No, I’m waiting for you to turn around. I’m naked.’

Andrea went out of the tent mumbling an apology. Outside the horn was still going but each successive blast was weaker. The compressed air was running out.

Tommy joined her, followed by the rest of the men in the tent.

‘Go and check in the professor’s tent, Robert,’ Tommy said, pointing at the skinny drill operator. ‘And you, Brian, go and alert the soldiers.’

This last order wasn’t necessary. Dekker, Maloney, Torres and Jackson were already approaching, not fully dressed but with their machine guns at the ready.

‘What the fuck is going on?’ Dekker said. He had a walkie-talkie in his huge hand. ‘My guys say there’s someone raising hell at the end of the canyon.’

‘Ms Otero thinks the professor is in trouble,’ Tommy said. ‘Where are your lookouts?’

‘That sector’s at a blind angle. Waaka is looking for a better position.’

‘Good evening. What’s going on? Mr Kayn is trying to sleep,’ Jacob Russell said as he approached the group. He wore cinnamon-coloured silk pyjamas and his hair was slightly tousled. ‘I thought that-’

Dekker interrupted him with a gesture. The walkie-talkie crackled and Waaka’s flat voice came over the speaker.

‘Colonel, I can see Forrester and a body on the ground. Over.’

‘What’s the professor doing, Nest One?’

‘He’s leaning over the body. Over.’

‘Copy, Nest One. Remain at your position and cover us. Nests Two and Three, maximum alert. If a mouse farts, I want to know about it.’

Dekker broke off communication and proceeded to give further orders. In the few moments that he had been in contact with Waaka, the entire camp had roused itself. Tommy Eichberg lit one of the powerful halogen floodlights, throwing huge shadows against the canyon walls.

Meanwhile Andrea stood slightly apart from the circle of people crowding around Dekker. Over his shoulder she could see Fowler walking behind the infirmary, completely dressed. He looked around and then went over to stand behind the reporter.

‘Don’t say anything. We’ll talk later.’

‘Where’s Harel?’

Fowler looked at Andrea and arched his eyebrows.

He has no idea.

Suddenly a suspicion occurred to Andrea and she turned towards Dekker, but Fowler grabbed her arm and held her back. After exchanging a few words with Russell, the huge South African had made a decision. He left Maloney in charge of the camp and together with Torres and Jackson headed for quadrant 22K.

‘Let me go, Father! He said there was a body.’ Andrea said, trying to free herself.

‘Wait.’

‘It could be her.’

‘Hold on.’

In the meantime Russell had raised his arms and was addressing the group.

‘Please, please. We’re all very agitated, but running around from one place to another isn’t going to help anyone. Take a look around you, and tell me if there’s anyone missing. Mr Eichberg? And Brian?’

‘He’s dealing with the generator. It’s low on fuel.’

‘Mr Pappas?’

‘Everyone’s here except Stowe Erling, sir,’ said Pappas nervously, his voice cracking with the strain. ‘He was going over quadrant 22K again. The headings on the data were wrong.’

‘Dr Harel?’

‘Dr Harel isn’t here,’ said Kyra Larsen.

‘She’s not? Does anyone have an idea where she might be?’ said a surprised Russell.

‘Where who might be?’ said a voice behind Andrea. The reporter turned, relief etched across her face. Harel was standing behind her, her eyes bloodshot, dressed only in boots and a long red shirt. ‘You’ll have to excuse me, but I took a sleeping pill and I’m still a little groggy. What happened?’

While Russell was getting the doctor up to speed, Andrea confronted mixed emotions. Although she was relieved that Harel was all right, she couldn’t understand where the doctor could have been all this time or why she had lied.

And I’m not the only one, Andrea thought, watching her other tent-mate. Kyra Larsen hadn’t taken her eyes off Harel. She suspects the doctor of something. I’m sure she noticed that she wasn’t in her bed a few minutes ago. If looks were laser beams, Doc would have a hole in her back the size of a small pizza.