Before I could answer, Omar—one of the excavation team members—came sprinting toward us from the cluster of white tents that served as our living quarters and makeshift office.
“Mrs. James!” he shouted, breathless. “Come quick!”
My pulse jumped. “What is it?”
“Moon Lee is trying to reach you on the ham radio.”
“Moon Lee?” I exchanged a glance with Jack. “Why? What does he want?”
“Follow me.”
Omar turned on his heel, and I lumbered after him, Jack right at my side.
We ducked into the largest tent. Omar flung back the flap and guided me toward a battered wooden desk. On top sat a small, buzzing ham radio. He grabbed the black receiver and pressed the call button. “Mr. Moon Lee, I have Alina here. One moment.”
A burst of static hissed through the air like a warning.
Omar pressed the receiver closer. “Mr. Lee, can you repeat that? The connection isn’t clear.”
Impatient, I snatched the receiver from his hand. “I’m here!” I shouted into the mic.
Another wave of ear-splitting feedback screeched through the speaker. I winced as the harsh noise tore through my eardrums—then finally, I heard it.
Lee’s voice. Low. Gruff. Faint and crackling.
“...my ancestors... ancient artifact...la Cueva del Fuego...”
That was all I could make out. The rest dissolved into static.
“Lee, I can’t hear you!” I pressed the receiver tighter, as if force alone could cut through the static. “Say that again!”
The radio hissed like a serpent whispering through the dark.
Jack rushed to grab a chair, guiding me down just as another garbled wave of sound sputtered from the speaker. Through the distortion, a phrase pierced the noise like a knife?—
“Look for the dagger inLa Cueva del Fuego...”
My body tensed. A tremor ran through me.
I repeated, “So I’m supposed to look for a dagger in the Cave of Fire?”
The connection buzzed, then sharpened slightly.
“Yes, yes!” Lee’s voice was urgent. “Look inLa Cueva del Fuego. That is where you are to search!”
I surged to my feet, heart pounding. “Okay, okay! Thank you, Lee! Thank you!”
But before I could say more, the line erupted in a final burst of static, then silence. The connection was gone.
Still, one thing was clear?—
We had to findLa Cueva del Fuego. And we had to find the second dagger.
Outside the tent, the atmosphere had shifted. I could feel it—an electric chill in the air. Fragments of conversation drifted from the excavation team—“Solar eclipse...”… “Total darkness in a few hours.”
A shiver gripped me so violently, my teeth clacked together.
I spun toward Jack. “Is there going to be a solar eclipse today?”
