Andy McDermott: The Tomb Of Hercules

“Actually,” said Chase, cutting in before Amoros could correct her, “Chinese family names traditionally come first . Am I right, Mr. Yuen?”

“You’re right,” said Yuen. He smiled at the mortified Nina. “Hey, don’t worry about it! I’m not gonna get your name wrong, though. I already know it.”

Nina blinked. “You do?”

“Dr. Nina Wilde, director of operations for the IHA. Historian, archaeologist, explorer…and discoverer,” he said, with meaning. “I’ve been reading all about you.” He shook her hand.

“Uh, thanks,” she managed to reply, completely thrown. “So what do you do, Mr. Yuen?”

Yuen smirked. “Call me Rich. ‘Cause I am!” He laughed loudly at his own joke. “I was in telecoms-still am, got satellites, phone companies, the biggest ISP in China-but I’ve been diversifying recently. Hell, why not, I can afford it! Got a microchip plant in Switzerland, and I even bought a diamond mine in Botswana off René here. Shoulda kept it, René, production’s gone through the roof! And here’s why I took an interest in diamonds.” He turned to the woman waiting silently behind him and took her left hand, raising it to reveal a huge diamond ring. “May I introduce my beautiful wife of the past six months, Sophia-Lady Blackwood.”

“Wife?” yelped Chase. Nina looked at him disapprovingly.

“Delighted to meet you all,” said Sophia, a distinct flatness to her cut-glass English accent.

Yuen introduced the others to her, stopping when he came to Chase. “I don’t think we’ve met before, Mr…”

“Chase. Eddie Chase.”

“Okay… Eddie. And this is my-”

“We’ve met.”

This time, it was Nina’s turn to let out a yelp. “What?”

For the first time, Sophia’s expression changed, a hesitant smile blooming as she lifted her right hand. “Hello, Eddie. It’s…been awhile.”

“Yes.” Chase didn’t return the smile, nor did he acknowledge her raised hand. After a moment she lowered it again, the smile withering to hurt disappointment. “Well, I see you’ve done all right for yourself.” He turned to Yuen. “Good luck with your marriage, Dick . Excuse me.” He turned for the door.

Sophia stepped forward, reaching out to touch the side of his jacket. He stopped, but didn’t look around. “Eddie, I…”

Chase remained still for a long moment, then strode away.

“Eddie!” said Nina, not sure what had just happened. Something about Chase had changed-his voice, even his stance-but she couldn’t pin down exactly what. “Where are you going?”

“For a piss,” he barked over his shoulder as he walked out.

Nina stared after him, cheeks flushing pink with humiliation. “I-I’m very, very sorry about that,” she stammered, taking a mouthful of champagne to calm herself.

Yuen shrugged. “Don’t worry about it, no harm done.” He turned to Sophia. Nina expected him to ask how she knew Chase, but instead he just said, “You okay?” She nodded. “Good. Anyway, Dr. Wilde-Nina?” Nina nodded. “I’m really glad to meet you. I’ve been fascinated by your work. I know there are some things you’ve found that the IHA wants to keep under wraps for now, but I’d love to know what ancient wonders you’re going to hunt for next!”

Nina hesitated before answering. As one of the numerous nonexecutive directors the IHA had taken on around the world, primarily to facilitate connections and grease the political wheels in places where a U.N.-backed archaeological survey might otherwise be regarded with suspicion, Yuen ought not to have been told exactly why the IHA had been established. The full details of the discovery of Atlantis were restricted to a relatively small number of people. On the other hand, he had certainly hinted that he knew about it…

She decided to play it safe and avoid any mention of Atlantis. Much as she wanted to unveil her discovery to the world, she knew she couldn’t until the IHA and the governments behind it were in agreement that the time was right. Revealing just how close over five billion people had come to being exterminated by a genetically engineered plague had the potential to cause a lot of problems.

However, her current project was almost infinitely less controversial. And in this case, when she did discover the truth of the supposed myth, she would be able to take full credit for it right away…

“Well, actually,” she said, “I’m looking for the Tomb of Hercules.”

Dalton raised an eyebrow. “As in the Greek mythological hero?”

“The same.”

“Pardon me for stating the obvious,” Dalton said, a slight tinge of sarcasm to his voice, “but if he’s mythological, how can he have a tomb?”

“As a matter of fact,” said Sophia, causing all the men to look at her almost as if surprised that she had a contribution to make, “many figures from Greek mythology have tombs. Whether there was ever anyone buried in them was immaterial to the Greeks-they were more like temples, places where they could pay tribute.”

“That’s right,” Nina said, feeling slightly upstaged. “You’re very well informed, Lady…do I call you Lady Blackwood, or…?”

“Just Sophia, please.”

“‘Lady’ is what we call her when we want to impress the rubes,” Yuen added smarmily. “You’d be amazed how much value that old Brit aristocracy thing can add to a deal. Main reason I married her!” He laughed again, in a way that suggested to Nina that he wasn’t entirely joking.

“Benefits of a classical education,” Sophia explained to Nina. Either she was untroubled by her husband’s boorishness, or she was well practiced at hiding her feelings. “But to be honest, my speciality is more in Latin than Greek. Please, you were saying about the Tomb of Hercules?”

“Right, okay.” Nina polished off her champagne, then waved her glass at a nearby waiter. He smoothly swept in and refilled it. “As Sophia said, many Greek mythological figures have tombs dedicated to them. Hercules-or Heracles, the original Greek form of the name-is actually quite unusual in that he doesn’t have a tomb. At least,” she added theatrically, “not one that’s been discovered.”

“And you think you’ve found it?” asked Yuen. The arrogant jokiness was suddenly gone, the question posed with intensity.

“Well…much as I’d like to say yes, I’m afraid I haven’t. Not yet. I’ve been piecing together clues for several months, but so far haven’t managed to pin down a location. Hopefully that’s going to change soon, though!”

“And where did you find these clues?”

Even through the champagne, Nina reminded herself to be discreet. “There were references in some ancient Greek parchments in the archives of… a private collector.” That the parchments contained Hermocrates , Plato’s lost work concerning Atlantis, and the “private collector” was actually a secret society willing to kill to prevent anyone from rediscovering the ancient civilization, were facts to keep to herself. “The IHA made a deal to examine the collection last year. Well, photos of them, anyway. Although I’m actually meeting a guy tomorrow to arrange a viewing of the original parchments.”

Yuen looked intrigued. “You think the originals will tell you something you can’t get from photos?”

Nina took another drink before replying. “Yes, definitely! That’s what archaeology’s all about-actually seeing things for real, not just looking at pictures. Going to a real site or having a physical object to work with, something you can hold in your hands, makes all the difference. You get to see things in a whole new light.”

Yuen nodded thoughtfully, and Corvus said, “But surely in your role as director of operations, you can’t have many opportunities for fieldwork?”