The Atlantis Stone

CHAPTER 48

Nick hired a guide who introduced himself as Gamal. The original way into the great pyramid was blocked by stone. The current entrance dated from the ninth century CE. It was called the robbers' tunnel and opened onto the descending passage. They followed Gamal downward until they came to a junction with another tunnel that turned up at an angle.

Gamal's English was good.

"This is the ascending passage," he said. "It leads to the Grand Gallery, the Queen's chamber and the King's Chamber."

"What happens if we continue down?" Selena asked with an innocent expression.

"That leads to the subterranean chamber."

"I'd like to see that," she said.

"There is little to see down there," Gamal said. "Perhaps there will be time later. Come, this way."

They climbed until they came to a level passage that led to the Queen's Chamber. All the while the guide kept up his memorized commentary. The Queen's Chamber was large, empty. A tall, stepped niche that looked like an open chimney rose to a high peaked ceiling made of large slabs of stone. Modern electric lighting lit the limestone walls.

Gamal stood in front of the niche. "A statue of the dead Pharaoh once stood here," he said. His voice was mechanical. "Traces of offerings were found. You can see where at one time there was an altar in front of the niche. The entrance to the chamber was hidden."

They left the Queen's Chamber and went back to the ascending passage. They followed it upward through the Grand Gallery to the King's Chamber. Ronnie and Lamont lagged behind as the guide droned on.

"Does this guy ever shut up?" Lamont asked.

"Nope."

"Maybe we could bribe him."

"Think of it as an education," Ronnie said.

They entered the King's Chamber. Gamal pointed out various features. Ventilation shafts let cool air into the room and kept the temperature at a steady 68°. The only thing in the room was a large, broken sarcophagus of plain granite thought to have held the pharaoh's remains. Surveillance cameras were mounted near the ceiling.

"There's something sad about this," Selena said, "all these empty rooms and passageways."

"We must go back now," Gamal said.

"Not before we see the subterranean chamber," Selena said.

"This will require a small increase in my fee."

"That's not a problem," Nick said. "We appreciate your excellent services."

Gamal preened at the complement.

"Come then."

They descended to the junction with the ascending passage and continued past it toward the subterranean chamber. The passage was lit with a string of electric lights. Nick watched for any sign of the hidden entrance. By the time they reached the bottom, he'd seen nothing to tell him where it was.

The subterranean chamber was no more than a rough grotto hewn out of bedrock under the pyramid. A pit at the back was sealed off with a metal fence.

"Man, this is creepy," Lamont said. "I can feel all that stone over us. If that roof gave way we'd be crushed flat."

"It's not going to fall on you," Nick said.

"It looks like it was never finished," Ronnie said. "Everything else is. I wonder why?"

"It's one of the mysteries of the pyramid," Selena said. "There are a lot of those. People argue about what things were for. Some people think the pyramid was really an observatory but that's not popular with the Egyptologists. Anything that goes against the idea it was a tomb is ignored."

"There are many mysteries about the pyramid," the guide said. He looked at his watch, a large, cheap model with a plastic strap. "It is getting late. We must go before the entrance closes."

They followed him out into the late afternoon sunlight. The heat struck them as they emerged from the cool interior of the pyramid.

Nick took Selena aside. "Talk to him. Make up a story about why we want to be inside at night. Offer him whatever he wants."

Selena went over to Gamal and began speaking with him in Arabic. He looked shocked that she could speak his language. At first he shook his head, no. Nick saw Selena press money into Gamal's hand. After a few more minutes Selena came back. The guide walked away.

"He will meet us at ten this evening. He says the guard likes to have coffee in his shack about that time. Gamal will open the gate for us. After that, we're on our own and the gate will be locked. We'll be stuck inside until the complex opens in the morning. He warned me that strange things have happened to people who stayed in the pyramid overnight."

"I could see he didn't want to do it," Nick said. "What did you tell him to make him change his mind?"

"I told him we'd made a bet before we left home that we could spend a night in the pyramid. He understood that. If I'd said anything else, it wouldn't have worked. Also a hundred dollars American helped."

"Did you see any sign of that passage on the way down?"

"Maybe. I saw some discoloration on the wall. There wasn't time to stop and examine it."

"There'll be plenty of time tonight," Nick said.