Temple

There I found Renco, nobly keeping his vigil. He must have been supremely fatigued, but he did not betray any such weariness. He just stared vigilantly out over the main street of the town, oblivious to the veil of rain that landed lightly on the crown of his head. I arrived at his side wordlessly and followed his gaze out over the village.

Aside from the rain, nothing moved.

Nay, nothing made a sound.

The eerie stillness of the village was haunting.

When he spoke, Renco didn't turn to face me. 'Vilcafor says he opened the temple in daylight. Then he sent five of his finest warriors into it to find Solon's treasure. They never returned. It was only with the onset of night that the rapas emerged from within the temple.'

'Are they out there now?' I inquired fearfully.

'I they are, then I have been unable to see them.'

I looked at Renco. His eyes were red and he had large bags beneath both of them.

'My friend,' I said gently, 'you must sleep. You have to retain your strength, especially if my countrymen find this town. Sleep now, I shall keep the vigil, and I shall wake you if I see anything.'

Renco nodded slowly. 'As usual, you are right, Alberto. Thank you.'

And with that he went inside and I found myself stand ing alone on the roof of the citadel, alone in the night.

Nothing stirred in the village below me.

It happened about an hour into my watch.

I had been watching the tiny wavelets of the river, glistening silver in the moonlight, when suddenly a small raft floated into view. I spied three figures standing on the deck of the small vessel, dark shadows in the night.

My blood ran cold.

Hernando's men…

I was about to run to get Renco when the raft pulled alongside the village's small wooden jetty and its passengers stepped up onto the wharf and I garnered a better look at them.

My shoulders sank with relief.

They were not conquistadors.

They were Incans.

A man—dressed in the traditional attire of an Incan warrior—and a woman with a small child, all of them covered against the rain by hoods and cloaks.

The three figures walked slowly up the main street, staring in awe at the carnage that littered the muddy road around them.

And then I saw it.

At first I thought it was just the shadow of a swaying branch cast onto the side of one of the huts that lined the street. But then the branch's shadow swayed away from the hut's wall and another shadow remained in its place.

I saw the dark outline of a large cat—saw the black feline head, the upturn of the nose, the tips of its high-pointed ears. Saw its mouth open in silent anticipation of the kill.

At first I couldn't believe its size. Whatever this animal was, it was enormous—

And then suddenly the animal was gone and all I saw was the hut's wall, bare and empty, illuminated by the moon's rays.

The three Incans were now about twenty paces from the citadel.

I whispered loudly to them in Quechuan. “Over here! Come quickly! Come quickly!'

At first they didn't seem to understand what I was saying.

And then the first animal stepped slowly out into the main street behind them.

'Run!” I called. 'They're behind you!'

The man of the group turned and saw the giant cat standing in the mud behind them.

The animal moved slowly, with precision and calculation.

It looked like a panther. A massive black panther. Cold yellow eyes looked down a tapered black snout—-eyes that stared with the unblinking coolness of the cat.

At that moment, a second animal joined the first and the two rapas stared intently at the small group before them.

Then they both lowered their heads and tensed their bodies like two tightly wound springs waiting to burst into action.

'Run!' I cried. “Run!”

The man and the woman broke into a run and hastened toward the citadel.

The two cats in the street leapt after them in pursuit.

I ran to the open doorway that led from the roof of the citadel down into the main body of the structure. 'Renco!

Someone! Anyone! Open the main door! There are people out there!'

I hastened back to the edge of the roof and arrived there just in time to see the woman reach the base of the citadel carrying the child in her arms. The man arrived right behind her.

The cats bounded down the street.

No-one downstairs had opened the door.

The woman looked up at me with frightened eyes—and for the shortest of moments I found myself entranced by her beauty. She was the most striking woman I had ever—

I made my decision.

I ripped my cloak from my body and, holding onto one end of it, hurled the other end out over the edge of the roof.

“Grab my cloak!' I called. 'I will pull you up!'

The man snatched the other end of my garment and handed it to the woman.

'Go!' he cried. 'Go!'

The woman took hold of my cloak and I pulled on it with all my strength, hauling her—and the child in her arms—up toward the roof of the citadel.