Juan Gómez-Jurado - Contract with God aka The Moses Expedition

‘That’s out of the question. You know what would happen if the Jordanian government-’

‘Will you two stop arguing!’ The professor had got up, the blanket hanging from his shoulders. His voice shook with anger. ‘One of my assistants is dead. I sent him here. Will you please stop blaming each other?’

Russell went silent. To Andrea’s surprise, so did Dekker, although he saved face by turning to Dr Harel.

‘Can you tell us anything else?’

‘I imagine he was killed up there and then he slid down the incline, given the rocks that came down with him.’

‘You imagine?’ Russell said, raising an eyebrow.

‘I’m sorry, but I’m not a forensic pathologist, just an ordinary physician who specialises in combat medicine. I’m certainly not qualified to analyse a crime scene. In any case, I don’t think you’re going to find footprints or any other clues with the mixture of sand and rock we have out here.’

‘Do you know if Erling had any enemies, Professor?’ said Dekker.

‘He didn’t get on with David Pappas. I was responsible for the rivalry between them.’

‘Did you ever see them argue?’

‘Many times, but they never came to blows.’ Forrester paused and then shook his finger in Dekker’s face. ‘Wait a minute. You’re not suggesting that one of my assistants did this, are you?’

Meanwhile, Andrea had been observing Stowe Erling’s body with a mixture of shock and disbelief. She wanted to walk over into the circle of lamps and pull on his ponytail to show that he wasn’t dead, that it was just a sick joke of the professor’s. She understood the gravity of the situation only when she saw the frail old man shaking his finger in the gigantic Dekker’s face. At that point the secret that she had been withholding for two days cracked like a dam from the pressure.

‘Mr Dekker.’

The South African turned to her, his expression clearly not friendly.

‘Ms Otero, Schopenhauer said that the first encounter with a face makes a lasting impression on us. For the time being I’ve had enough of your face – understood?’

‘I don’t even know why you’re here, nobody asked you to come,’ added Russell. ‘This story is not for publication. Go back to the camp.’

The reporter took a step back, but held the gaze of both the mercenary and the young executive. Ignoring Fowler’s advice, Andrea decided to spit it out.

‘I’m not leaving. It’s possible that this man’s death is my fault.’

Dekker came so close to her that Andrea could feel the dry heat from his skin.

‘Speak up.’

‘When we arrived at the canyon, I thought I saw someone on top of that cliff.’

‘What? And it didn’t occur to you to say anything?’

‘I didn’t give it much importance at the time. I’m sorry.’

‘Terrific, you’re sorry. That makes everything all right then. Fuck!’

Russell was shaking his head, amazed. Dekker scratched the scar on his face, trying to take in what he had just heard. Harel and the professor were looking at Andrea in disbelief. The only one who reacted was Kyra Larson, who pushed Forrester aside, rushed over to Andrea, and slapped her.

‘Bitch!’

Andrea was so stunned that she didn’t know what to do. Then, seeing the anguish on Kyra’s face, she understood and lowered her arms.

I’m sorry. Forgive me.

‘Bitch,’ the archaeologist repeated, throwing herself on Andrea and pummelling her face and chest. ‘You could have told everyone that we were being watched. Don’t you know what we’re looking for? Don’t you realise how it affects us all?’

Harel and Dekker grabbed Larsen by the arms and pulled her back.

‘He was my friend,’ she mumbled, moving away slightly.

At that moment David Pappas arrived at the scene. He had been running and sweat was pouring from him. It was obvious he had fallen at least once because there was sand on his face and glasses.

‘Professor! Professor Forrester!’

‘What is it, David?’

‘The data. Stowe’s data,’ Pappas said, bending over and leaning on his knees to catch his breath.

The professor made a dismissive gesture.

‘This isn’t the time, David. Your colleague is dead.’

‘But, Professor, you have to listen. The headings. I’ve fixed them.’

‘Very good, David. We’ll talk tomorrow.’

Then David Pappas did something he would never have done were it not for the tension of that night. Grabbing Forrester’s blanket, he jerked the old man around to face him.

‘You don’t understand. We have a peak. A 7911!’

At first Professor Forrester didn’t react, but then he spoke very slowly and deliberately, in such a low voice that David could hardly hear him.

‘How big?’

‘Huge, sir.’

The professor fell to his knees. Unable to speak, he leaned backward and forward in mute supplication.

‘What’s a 7911, David?’ asked Andrea.

‘Atomic weight 79. Position 11 on the periodic table,’ the young man said, his voice breaking. It was as if, in delivering his message, he had emptied himself. His eyes were on the corpse.

‘And that is…?’

‘Gold, Ms Otero. Stowe Erling had found the Ark of the Covenant.’

The Bible says: ‘And they shall make an Ark of shittim wood: two cubits and a half shall be the length thereof, and a cubit and a half the breadth thereof, and a cubit and a half the height thereof. And thou shalt overlay it with pure gold, within and without shalt thou overlay it, and thou shalt make upon it a crown of gold round about. And thou shalt cast four rings of gold for it, and put them in the four corners thereof; and two rings shall be in the one side of it, and two rings in the other side of it. And thou shalt make staves of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold. And thou shalt put the staves into the rings by the sides of the Ark, that the Ark may be borne with them.’

I’ll apply the measurements of the regular cubit. I know I’ll be criticised because few scholars do; they rely on the Egyptian cubit and the ‘sacred’ cubit, which are much more glamorous. But I’m right.

This is what we know for sure about the Ark:

• Year of construction: 1453 BC at the foot of Mount Sinai.

• 44 inches long

• 25 inches wide

• 25 inches high

• 84-gallon capacity

• 600 pounds in weight

There are people who would suggest that the weight of the Ark was greater, around 1,100 pounds. Additionally, there is an idiot who dared to insist that the Ark weighed more than a ton. That is crazy. And they call themselves experts. They love to add the weight of the Ark itself. Poor idiots. They don’t realise that gold, even though it is heavy, is too soft. The rings could not have supported such weight, nor would the wooden poles have been long enough for more than four men to carry it comfortably.

Gold is a very soft metal. Last year I saw a whole room covered in thin sheets of gold made from one good-sized coin, following methods dating back to the Bronze Age. The Jews were skilled crafts-men, and did not have great amounts of gold in the desert, nor would they have burdened themselves with such a great weight that they left themselves vulnerable to their enemies. No, they would have used a small amount of gold and created thin sheets of it to cover the wood. Shittim wood, or acacia, is a solid wood that could last centuries without being damaged, especially if it was covered by a thin layer of metal that did not rust and was indifferent to the effects of time. It was an object built for eternity. How could it be otherwise, since it was the Timeless One who gave the instructions?