The Gates of Hell

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

Up the narrow passage they ran, urged on by the acts of violence that may be happening in the world above them and by the malicious intentions of the man who crept through the subterranean dark before them.

A roughly formed archway admitted them to the next cavern. Again glow sticks illuminated part of the huge space, both fresh and slowly fading, but Drake quickly fired two amber flares against the far wall.

The space before them was stunning. The walkways were shaped like a trident. The main shaft was made up of a walkway wide enough to accommodate three men abreast. It finished at the far wall in another exit archway. Branching off the main shaft and making up the other two tines of the trident were two more walkways, only these ones were much narrower, little more than ledges. These ledges ended up against the broad curve of the cavern wall.

The spaces between the paths of the trident crawled with deep, treacherous darkness. When Komodo dropped a stone into the nearest absence of light, they never heard it strike bottom.

Carefully, they inched their way forward. Tension made their shoulders go rigid and their nerves begin to fray. Drake felt a thin sliver of sweat slide the length of his spine, itching all the way down. Every set of eyes in the company flicked around and searched every shadow, every nook and cranny, until Ben finally found his voice.

“Wait,” he said faintly, then cleared his throat and shouted, “Wait.”

“What is it?” Drake froze with a foot still in the air.

“We should check Cook’s logs first, just in case.”

“You pick your bloody times.”

Karin spoke up. “They called this one Greed, the second deadly sin. The demon associated with greed is Mammon, one of the seven princes of hell. He was referred to in Milton’s Paradise Lost, and has even been called Hell’s Ambassador to England.”

Drake stared at her. “That’s not funny.”

“It’s not meant to be. It’s something I once read and retained. The only clue Hawksworth gives here is the sentence: Opposite Greed sits Charity. Let the next man have what you desire.”

Drake considered the cold, damp cavern. “There’s not much I desire in here, ‘cept a Krispy Kremes maybe.”

“It’s a straight run to the exit.” Komodo stopped one of his men from pushing by. “Nothing’s ever that easy. Hey! What the fuck, man—”

Drake turned to see the Delta man push Komodo aside and walk right past his commanding officer.

“Wallis! Get your ass in line, soldier.”

Drake noticed the man’s eyes as he approached. Glazed. Fixed on a point off to the right. Drake followed his gaze.

And saw the niches immediately. Funny how he hadn’t noticed them before. At the end of the right-hand tine, where it ended against the cavern wall, Drake now saw three deep niches had been carved into the black rock. Inside each niche something sparkled. Something precious made of gold and sapphires and emeralds. The object caught the weak and diffused light that flickered about the cavern and returned it tenfold. It was like staring into the heart of a shiny disco-ball made of ten-carat diamonds.

Karin whispered, “There’s an empty one on the other side.”

Drake felt the pull of the promised wealth. The harder he looked, the clearer the objects became and the more he wanted them. It took a moment for Karin’s comment to sink in, but when it did, he beheld the empty niche with both jealousy and trepidation. Had some fortunate soul dared the ledge and walked away with a prize? Or had he been clutching it when he plunged screaming into the incalculable depths below?

One way to find out.

Drake put one foot in front of the other and then stopped himself. Damn. The lure across the ledges was strong. But his pursuit of Kovalenko held a stronger attraction. He snapped back to reality, wondering how a set of lights could be so mesmerizing. At that moment, Komodo jogged past him and Drake reached out to stop him.

But the Delta team commander just fell on his own colleague and wrestled him to the ground. Drake turned to see the rest of the team on their knees, rubbing their eyes or generally avoiding the enticements. Ben and Karin stood spellbound, but Karin’s quick brain soon wrenched itself free.

She turned quickly to her brother. “You okay? Ben?”

Drake considered the young lad’s eyes. “We could be in trouble. It’s the same glazed look he gets when Taylor Momsen walks on stage.”

Karin shook her head. “Boys,” she muttered and slapped her brother hard.

Ben blinked and brought a hand up to his cheek. “Ow!”

“Are you okay?”

“No I’m bloody not! You just nearly broke my jaw.”

“Stop being a pussy. Tell Mum and Dad next time they call.”

“Too damn right I will. Why the hell did you hit me anyway?”

Drake shook his shoulder as Komodo lifted his man bodily off the floor and hurled him back into line. “Rookie.”

Karin watched admiringly.

Drake said, “Don’t you remember? The pretty lights? They almost had you, mate.”

“I remember…” Ben’s eyes suddenly snapped back to the rock wall and its cunning niches. “Oh, wow, what a rush. Gold and diamonds and riches. I remember that.”

Drake saw the sparkling objects begin to reassert their pull. “Let’s move,” he said. “Double time. I see what this cave does, and the faster we get through it, the better.”

He moved off at pace, keeping an arm around Ben’s shoulder and nodding at Karin. Komodo followed soundlessly, watching his men closely as they passed close by the ledges that stretched out to either side.

As they passed closer to the niches, Drake risked a quick look. A small chalice-shaped object stood in each niche, its surface encrusted with precious stones. But that alone wasn’t enough to make the spectacular light show that so drew the eye. Behind each chalice the rough walls of the niches themselves had been lined with row upon row of rubies, emeralds, sapphires, diamonds and countless other gemstones and jewels.

The chalices might be worth a fortune, but the niches themselves were of inestimable value.

Drake paused as he neared the exit archway. Cold breezes tugged at him from left and right. The whole place reeked of ancient mystery and hidden secrets. Water trickled somewhere, just a small stream, but enough to augment the immensity of the cavern system they were exploring.

Drake gave everyone the once over. The trap had been overcome. He turned to walk through the exit archway.

And a voice yelled, “Stop!”

Instantly, he froze. His faith in the shout and his instinct born of old SAS training saved his life. His right foot barely touched the thin wire, but any more pressure would release the booby trap.

This time Kovalenko hadn’t left a sniper. He’d judged correctly that the group behind him would be hauling ass through the chamber of Greed. The trip wire led to a concealed M18 Claymore Mine, the one that bore the famous legend Front Toward Enemy.

The front was aimed toward Drake and would’ve blasted him apart with steel ball bearings along with Ben and Karin if Komodo hadn’t shouted the warning.

Drake dropped and quickly disarmed the device. He passed it along to Komodo. “Many thanks, mate. Keep it handy and we’ll shove it up Kovalenko’s arse later.”