The Quest

Gann said, “By the look of this place, I’d say it has been abandoned for a very long time.”

Purcell wondered if this was where the black stone had come from to build the monastery. He assumed it was. Or had they done again what they were good at-making false assumptions, misinterpreting evidence, and tailoring the clues to fit their theories? Maybe not this time. Somewhere inside him, Purcell felt that they had arrived at the threshold of the black monastery.

They reached the opposite side of the quarry and began climbing the terraced rock. It was not a difficult climb, but they all realized they were weaker than they thought.

The black monolith was set back from the edge of the quarry, and they stood looking at it, and at the cross that they could now see had been deeply cut into the stone by a skilled stone carver. It wasn’t a Latin cross, Purcell noted, but a Coptic cross.

At the edge of the quarry, they could see freshly cleaved faces of obsidian, evidence that people had been here to cut small pieces of the stone.

Gann said, “I would guess that this is where the monks get their stone to carve their little doodads.”

Purcell agreed. “Better than chipping away at the monastery.”

Mercado had wandered off a few feet and said, “Look at this.”

They walked to where he was standing, and on the ground was evidence of campfires, and what looked like chicken bones, and eggshells.

It didn’t need to be said, but Gann said, “This could be where the Falashas meet the monks, and set up for the night before returning to Shoan.”

Everyone agreed with that deduction, and Purcell added, “Shoan then must be a day’s walk from here.” He also pointed out, “It took us five days to get here.”

Gann replied, “It appears we took the long route.” He added, “There is obviously a quick and direct route to Shoan. We’ll need to find that.”

“Right. Meanwhile, I think it’s safe to say that the black monastery is a one-day hike from this meeting place.”

Mercado asked, “But in which direction?”

Gann replied, “Probably not east, on the way back to Shoan. So perhaps north or south, or farther west.”

Vivian had walked off, and she called back to them, “West.”

They moved toward where she was standing on an elevation of rock. The area around the quarry was mostly treeless, covered with rock rubble from hundreds of years of quarrying, but surrounding the open area was thick jungle. To the west, where Vivian was looking, stood a dead cedar about a hundred feet away, and about forty feet in height. The towering trunk of the decay-resistant cedar had turned silver-gray, and all the branches had fallen, or been cut off, except for two that stretched out like arms, parallel to the ground, giving the tree the appearance of a giant cross.

Vivian said, “The tree.”

Purcell looked at the giant cedar, which could have been there, alive and dead, for hundreds of years.

Gann and Mercado were also staring at the towering tree, and Gann looked back at the monolith and said, “I believe we have two points in a straight line.”

Purcell had his compass out, and with his back to the monolith, and facing the tree, he took a compass reading. “A few degrees north of due west.”

Vivian said, “Now we need to find the stream.”

Purcell replied, “That should be the easiest thing we’ve done this week.” He said to Mercado, “Henry, get the champagne ready.”

Mercado smiled.

Purcell gave Vivian a hug, then Vivian hugged Henry, then Colonel Gann. The men shook hands all around.

Everyone’s spirits seemed to be revived, and they forgot their fatigue and jungle sores.

Purcell now noticed, about a hundred feet off to the north, a roofless hut built with scraps of the black rock. The hut sat among flowering bushes, and the branches of a tall gum tree hung over the abandoned structure.

Gann said, “A shelter for the nasty overseer, I would bet.”

They all walked toward the hut to check it out, and when they got within ten feet of it, a man suddenly appeared in the shadow of the open doorway and stepped quickly out of the hut, followed by another man, then three more.

Purcell counted five men, dressed in jungle fatigues, carrying AK-47 rifles, which were pointed at them.

Vivian let out a stifled scream and grabbed Purcell’s arm.

One of the soldiers shouted something in Amharic, and all the soldiers were pointing their automatic rifles at Gann, shouting, and gesturing for him to drop the Uzi.

Gann hesitated, and one of the soldiers fired a deafening burst of rounds over his head.

Gann let the Uzi fall to the ground.

Vivian pressed against Purcell.

Someone else appeared at the door of the hut, and General Getachu stepped out into the morning sunshine. With him was Princess Miriam, whom he pushed to the ground.

Getachu looked at Purcell, Mercado, Gann, and Vivian. “I have been waiting for you.”

Chapter 53

Frank Purcell drew a deep breath and tried to take stock of the situation, which didn’t need, he admitted, too much interpretation.