The Solomon Curse

They didn’t have to wait long. Lazlo emerged, sopping but excited, from the waterfall’s edge.

“There’s a cave, all right. Come on, then,” he said.

“Any crates?” Remi asked.

“I didn’t do anything besides confirm that the cave’s there.”

Lazlo disappeared behind the waterfall and Remi followed him, glad her backpack was waterproof. Sam was next and Leonid last, a frown of distaste tugging the corners of his mouth as the water doused him.

They found themselves standing before a narrow gap five feet wide. The roar of the falls was amplified by the acoustics in the entry, making the sound almost unbearable. Remi unzipped her backpack and extracted two flashlights and Sam did the same, handing his to Leonid and Lazlo before taking one of Remi’s. “Lead on, Brita

Lazlo turned to face the darkness and switched on his light, then took the first steps into the opening.

The narrow entry quickly widened and the floor sloped upward. Their flashlight beams played across the walls, and Lazlo was walking toward another gap at the far end when Sam grabbed his arm.

“Freeze.”

Lazlo did, and Sam pushed past him and crouched down, eyeing the floor. He directed his light at the wall, where there was a small cavity, and crept toward it while retrieving a Swiss Army knife from his back pocket.

“What is it?” Lazlo said.

“Booby trap. Probably no longer works, but no point in pushing our luck, right?”

“Can you disarm it?” Remi asked.

“Looks like a simple trip wire—so, yes. I just want to make sure there’s no spring that will detonate it if we cut the wire.” He paused, shining his light into the tight space, and then snipped the wire with a snap.

“Seems like we’re on the right track,” Leonid said.

Lazlo’s right eye twitched, and he brushed droplets from his brow with the back of his arm. “Good catch, old chap. I didn’t see it.”

“Maybe I should take point from here, just in case?” Sam suggested. Nobody objected, so he moved ahead to the opening directly in front of them. He stopped at the threshold and shined his light all around the rock edge, checking for more traps, and then turned to his companions. “There are a bunch of crates in there covered with dust and rot. We need to be careful, though, because any of the crates might be wired to blow. Don’t touch anything,” he warned. “And watch the floor. There might be more trip wires.”

“Brilliant,” Lazlo murmured.

“Let me do a quick recon while you stay out here,” Sam said, and, without waiting, took several steps into the cave toward the crates, his flashlight beam roaming over every inch of floor.

When he’d satisfied himself that there was no danger, he returned to the gap and smiled at Remi. “Looks clear. Let’s go see what all the fuss is about.”

Remi nodded and joined him, trailed by Lazlo and Leonid.

A pile of at least fifty wooden crates, three feet by two feet by two, were piled in the center of the small grotto. Lazlo kneeled in front of the nearest and brushed away a layer of mold, then turned to Sam and Remi. “It’s kanji. Identifies the crates as property of the emperor. Bit cheeky, that . . .”

“How can we open some of these safely?” Leonid asked.

“Good question,” Sam said. “If we’re careful and on the lookout for pressure plates, spring-loads, and the like, we should be okay. We can work on a couple of them, but I’d like to get spotlights in here, as well as some specialists, before we try to open more than a few. The good news is, I can’t think of many booby traps that would still be operational years after the fact. But still, don’t touch anything, just in case they used a contact poison on the surfaces or the contents. Anything’s possible—I just don’t know enough about what was in use during the war to be certain.”

Remi pointed at a crate near the edge of the pile. “Let’s try this one.”

Sam moved to her and set his backpack down. After eyeing the crate, he handed Remi his flashlight and removed a crowbar from the bag and set it on the ground next to his machete.

“How are you going to do this?” Remi asked.

“I’m thinking I core a hole in the top rather than try to pry the lid off. Prying would be the obvious way of opening it, so that’s the way I’ll avoid.”

He went to work with the machete, scraping away the soft outer wood, and then grinding the harder i

“Well, what is it?” Leonid asked impatiently.

“Yes, do tell,” Lazlo said.

“Fabric,” Sam said, unfolding his knife again. “Looks like a sack.” He reached into the hole and sliced at the fabric, which crumbled to dust at his touch, and then pulled his arm back with a look of revulsion on his face. A large black spider was crawling up his forearm, raising its legs in menace as it neared his elbow. Remi swatted it away with the back of her hand and it scuttled off into the darkness as Lazlo jumped back. Sam’s eyes met hers. “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Sam took a deep breath and they both leaned over the hole again, their beams shining into the interior. They stayed that way for a few moments and then sat back. Leonid stepped closer. “Well?”

Remi shook her head and Sam shrugged. “Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. That’s how it goes.”

“What’s in it?” Lazlo demanded, drawing nearer.

Sam’s serious expression cracked and he gri

CHAPTER 54

Three days later, Fleming and a cadre of police ringed the area in front of the waterfall. Greg and Rob, having experience in demolitions from their Navy SEAL days, had been drafted to confirm the crates weren’t still booby-trapped from eons ago. Lazlo helped document the contents of each crate under the watchful eyes of Chief Fleming and a gemstone expert he’d brought in from Australia. In addition to the gold shaved off the temple walls, the treasure consisted of crudely formed gold icons and hundreds of pounds of raw gemstones.

Roadworking equipment had been brought in and had cleared access to the waterfall. Soon, police vans, two official government SUVs, and a fleet of media vehicles were parked in the clearing.

Sam and Remi stood beneath a makeshift fabric shelter that shielded them from the spray of the waterfall. Lazlo’s head poked out of the brush by the edge of the waterfall. He waved and made his way to the tent, wiping his brow and smiling in triumph. Leonid appeared a few moments later, trailing the Englishman.

“Sorry to interrupt, but I wanted to tell you that we opened three more crates and all have raw diamonds and rubies in them,” Lazlo said in a low voice to Sam as though he didn’t want Fleming to hear.

“Nice to know the hoard keeps growing,” said the chief with a big smile. He was standing behind Leonid and had caught every word.

“How’s your case against you-know-who coming?” Remi asked.

Fleming glanced around and leaned toward them. “There’s talk of a special tribunal. The scope of her crimes is so massive that nobody’s completely sure how to proceed. The Aussies have already put in an official request to charge her as an accomplice to the murder of the aid workers. And then we have all the families, who are demanding immediate justice. So everyone wants a piece.”

“Any chance she gets off on a technicality?” Sam asked.

“None at all. The only question is whether Solomon Island law can be changed to allow the death penalty for crimes against humanity. Apparently, that’s being discussed. Public opinion is crying for her head, so it could happen. Our people are shocked and angry.”