“Clear,” Hawk said.
“Luna, how we lookin’?” Cole asked.
She scanned the area. “One heat signature, near the entrance to the tomb.”
“I see him.” Viking was perched almost directly above him.
Thwip.
“All clear.” Luna scanned the area. “Still no sign of the eighth tango.”
Where the hell could he have gone?
If he was dead, the body would still emit a heat signature until it cooled to the ambient temperature. Even then, it could take anywhere from twelve to twenty-four hours for that to happen.
The guys slowly stood from where they’d been concealed.
“Viking, remain in position and keep your eyes open for more tangos,” Cole said. “Calliope, come down, and you and Eddie make sure our visitors are no longer a threat. Hawk, you’re with me to find that missing tango.”
They all acknowledged Cole’s orders and set about following them. He jogged over to meet Hawk, and they headed in the direction of where their mysterious tango disappeared.
Calliope scurried down the tree and helped Eddie secure the men on the ground with zip ties. Didn’t matter that every single one of them were dead.
“Nothing here.” Boone’s flashlight beam cut through the dust floating in the air of the narrow tunnel, and he swept it from one side to the other, then up and down and over the floor of the empty chamber. “Heading back.”
He jogged back in the direction he started.
“Same here.” The view from Lucas’s camera was nearly identical.
They stepped out of their tunnels and briefly appeared in each other’s cameras before moving to the remaining two tunnels.
“Wait,” Lucas stopped. “Did you hear that?”
Luna turned up the volume and strained to hear.
Boone and Lucas slowly and quietly moved around the circular space.
“There.” Boone pointed at one of the tunnels. “It’s coming from this one.”
They both entered the tunnel and started moving quickly and stealthily toward the sound, their flashlight beams pointed at the ground.
As they progressed deeper into the tunnel, Luna noticed a dim light coming from the far end. They extinguished their flashlights, the tunnel went dark, and they quieted their steps.
She could barely make out the sound of a man’s voice but couldn’t understand what he was saying.
Boone and Lucas closed the space to the opening and stood across from each other with their backs against the tunnel walls.
He held up three fingers.
Luna held her breath as he dropped them one at a time.
Three.
Two.
One.
Both men reacted at the same time and swung their rifles toward the noise.
