The Temple Mount Code

20

Known affectionately as ‘Big Mike,’ Turghunjun had been a smallish teenager with an insatiable curiosity the last time Lourds had seen him. Over the last fourteen years, Big Mike had grown into his nickname. Lourds had trouble gripping the younger man’s large hand, and was swallowed up when Big Mike wrapped him in a bear hug and lifted him from the ground.

‘You’ve gotten big, Big Mike.’ Once he was returned to the ground, Lourds felt a little dizzy after being squeezed so hard.

‘You’ve gotten small, Professor Thomas.’ Big Mike grinned happily. ‘But it’s okay. Your hat still makes you look tall.’

‘Thanks. I suppose you heard about the discovery, found out I was involved, and decided to come see me.’

Big Mike shook his shaggy head. ‘Not really. That’s a long climb to make even for an old friend.’

Lourds had also helped fund Big Mike’s college, but he didn’t say anything about that. However, he was a little hurt by the Uighur man’s honesty.

‘So, if you didn’t come here to see me, then why did you come?’

‘To see you.’

‘I don’t understand.’

‘Ziya asked me to give you a message from Professor Lev.’

‘All right.’

‘In private.’ Big Mike looked around. ‘There are too many ears here.’

‘Sure. I’ve got private quarters. I’ve also got cold beer.’

Big Mike sat awkwardly in one of the canvas chairs Lourds had borrowed from one of the media teams. He sipped the bottle of Mongozo Lourds had given him, which he’d paid one of the supply teams to bring. Lourds had been pleasantly surprised to find the African beer brewed from bananas. He’d only had it a few times before.

‘How is Lev?’ Lourds uncapped his own bottle and took a sip. It was cold and clean and hit the spot.

‘Ziya says he was doing good. They didn’t talk long.’

‘I haven’t heard from him in over a year, I guess.’ Lourds was surprised that so much time had passed. If people weren’t in his everyday life, he tended to let an awful lot of time pass before he contacted them. It came with staying busy. Thankfully, most of Lourds’s friends and associates led busy lives as well and understood. ‘What are you doing these days?’

Big Mike shrugged. ‘I guide people up and down the mountain, do some writing for magazines and documentaries on the side, and raise my kids.’

‘Kids?’

‘Yep. Two of them. Girls.’ Big Mike smiled ruefully. ‘At home I swim in an ocean of estrogen. I get breaks between guide assignments, but I’m always ready to go back into the mountains.’

Lourds laughed at the young man. ‘Your English is fantastic.’

‘I studied hard at university, and my wife makes it a rule that only English is spoken at home. She’s British, and she’s a pediatrician.’

‘And living in the Tarim Basin?’

‘Can you believe it?’

‘No. You’re a most fortunate young man.’

‘I know. Really, I do. So … I don’t suppose you’ve found a woman to make an honest man of you yet?’

‘My work is my life, Big Mike. You know that from the time I spent with you.’

‘I remember. First man up in the morning and the last one to stop telling stories at night.’ Big Mike smiled. ‘I don’t know if you were aware of it, but all the village kids were in awe of you.’

‘They were bored, and I was someone different.’

‘So was Professor Lev. They gravitated toward you, though.’

Feeling slightly embarrassed, Lourds changed the subject. ‘Let’s see this message Lev sent.’

Big Mike handed over an envelope that contained a single piece of paper. Lourds opened the paper and read the printout.

‘Professor Thomas, is there a joke you’d care to share?’

Lourds glanced at Big Mike. ‘There’s no joke. Why would you think there was a joke?’

‘You were rolling your eyes like there was something funny.’

‘Oh — no. Probably my eyes are just tired from being down here.’ Lourds kept reading.

When he’d finished the note, Lourds read it again, wishing Lev had been more forthcoming. Then again, if Lev really was on to something that big, he’d be playing his cards close to his vest.

‘Professor Thomas?’

Lourds looked up at Big Mike.

The young man looked troubled. ‘Is something wrong?’

‘No. I don’t suppose you know what Lev is working on, do you?’

Big Mike shook his head.

Lourds drained his beer and stood. ‘I guess there’s only one way to find out.’

The telephone rang and rang. At first, no one answered. Lourds stood outside the temple on a nearby hill where the satellite phone’s reception was better. He’d borrowed a boost from one of the media groups streaming live feeds back to their parent company.

Cold and uneasy, Lourds listened to the phone ring. He tucked his free hand up under his arm and stared out over the frozen landscape. Just as he was certain the line was about to go to the answering service, a woman answered.

‘Hello?’

‘My name is Thomas Lourds. I’m a friend and associate of Professor Lev Strauss. I’m trying to get in touch with him, and this is the only number I have.’

‘Of course. I’m afraid Lev isn’t here right now.’ The woman’s voice was cold and efficient, reminding Lourds of some of the secretaries at Harvard.

‘I can call back. Do you know when you’ll be expecting him?’

‘I can’t say at the moment.’

Well, scratch the efficiency. The secretaries and office managers at Harvard would have known exactly where their charges were and when they could expect them to return.

‘Can I leave a number? Lev can call me at his convenience.’

‘Of course.’ Dutifully, the woman wrote Thomas’s contact number down.