‘Eight months of looking at the things, and he’ll tell us . . . they’re made of stone. Thank you, that’ll be fifty grand plus expenses.’
‘Oh, he’s got way more to say than that,’ said Macy, the Englishman’s sarcasm fluttering past her unnoticed. ‘I should know. I had to make all his PowerPoint slides.’
‘Not enjoying your current assignment?’ Nina asked in an impish tone.
‘No, no, it’s fine!’ said Macy hurriedly, not wanting to seem ungrateful. ‘Just that I was hoping to do something a bit more fieldworky. With you.’
Nina patted one of the stacks of documents. ‘Funny, I was hoping to do some fieldwork too! But then some idiot tried to kill a bunch of world leaders, and we made a find that changes the face of archaeology, and, well, high-up people want to know about it. In triplicate.’
‘Maybe Bellfriar’s found something that’ll give you an excuse,’ Eddie suggested.
Nina looked hopefully at Macy, who tried unsuccessfully to hide an apologetic expression. ‘Anyway,’ said the young woman, ‘you can see for yourself. He’s with Mr Penrose and the others in the conference room.’
Nina took a quick bite from her sandwich before getting up from her desk. ‘What?’ she asked Eddie as she chewed. ‘I haven’t had lunch yet; I’m hungry. Come on.’
‘Do I have to?’
‘If I do, so do you.’ She shooed him from the office.
Macy led the way to the conference room. As well as Dr Donald Bellfriar, also present were several United Nations officials headed by Sebastian Penrose, who acted as liaison between the UN proper and its semi-independent cultural protection agency. ‘Ah, hello, Nina,’ said the bespectacled, officious Englishman.
‘Sebastian,’ Nina replied. ‘I didn’t expect so many people.’
‘Everyone loves a mystery,’ Penrose said. ‘I think they’re hoping Dr Bellfriar has the solution.’
Nina shared a knowing look with Macy. ‘We’ll find out soon enough.’
Everyone took their seats, Macy working a laptop and projector as the Oregonian geologist carefully smoothed his sweeping silver hair before addressing his audience. ‘Good afternoon, everyone. Before I start, I’d like to say how great it’s been to work with the IHA on this. I suppose that when archaeology can’t provide the answers, it’s time to call on the rock stars!’ He chuckled immodestly at his pun, which was received with appropriately stony silence. ‘ Rock stars? No? Anyway, thank you, Dr Wilde – and thank you, Miss Sharif, for all your assistance. And for being enjoyable company.’ Macy beamed.
‘He was probably enjoying the view more than the conversation,’ Eddie whispered to Nina.
‘Shush,’ she whispered back, although he had a point. While Macy had spent her internship modestly dressed by her standards, in the formal surroundings of the UN the beautiful Miamian’s predilection for tight designer clothing made her stand out like a bikini model in a Saudi mosque.
Bellfriar began his presentation proper, opening a case to reveal his subjects: a pair of small statues, crude human figures carved from an odd purple stone. The first had been found by Nina, Eddie and Macy inside the Pyramid of Osiris; the second, stored with stolen cultural treasures in a former Cold War bunker beneath the glacial ice of Greenland. He summarised the circumstances of each discovery before continuing: ‘Now, despite their best efforts, Interpol have so far been unable to find out where the second statue was stolen from, and since neither relic appears to be the product of any known ancient culture that would seem to be a dead end in the search for answers. Fortunately, other branches of science can provide a different perspective. Miss Sharif ?’
Macy tapped at the laptop, projecting the first slide on to the conference room’s screen. It showed the two statues placed side by side. ‘As you can see,’ said Bellfriar, ‘the statues are clearly part of a
‘Oh, he’s got way more to say than that,’ said Macy, the Englishman’s sarcasm fluttering past her unnoticed. ‘I should know. I had to make all his PowerPoint slides.’
‘Not enjoying your current assignment?’ Nina asked in an impish tone.
‘No, no, it’s fine!’ said Macy hurriedly, not wanting to seem ungrateful. ‘Just that I was hoping to do something a bit more fieldworky. With you.’
Nina patted one of the stacks of documents. ‘Funny, I was hoping to do some fieldwork too! But then some idiot tried to kill a bunch of world leaders, and we made a find that changes the face of archaeology, and, well, high-up people want to know about it. In triplicate.’
‘Maybe Bellfriar’s found something that’ll give you an excuse,’ Eddie suggested.
Nina looked hopefully at Macy, who tried unsuccessfully to hide an apologetic expression. ‘Anyway,’ said the young woman, ‘you can see for yourself. He’s with Mr Penrose and the others in the conference room.’
Nina took a quick bite from her sandwich before getting up from her desk. ‘What?’ she asked Eddie as she chewed. ‘I haven’t had lunch yet; I’m hungry. Come on.’
‘Do I have to?’
‘If I do, so do you.’ She shooed him from the office.
Macy led the way to the conference room. As well as Dr Donald Bellfriar, also present were several United Nations officials headed by Sebastian Penrose, who acted as liaison between the UN proper and its semi-independent cultural protection agency. ‘Ah, hello, Nina,’ said the bespectacled, officious Englishman.
‘Sebastian,’ Nina replied. ‘I didn’t expect so many people.’
‘Everyone loves a mystery,’ Penrose said. ‘I think they’re hoping Dr Bellfriar has the solution.’
Nina shared a knowing look with Macy. ‘We’ll find out soon enough.’
Everyone took their seats, Macy working a laptop and projector as the Oregonian geologist carefully smoothed his sweeping silver hair before addressing his audience. ‘Good afternoon, everyone. Before I start, I’d like to say how great it’s been to work with the IHA on this. I suppose that when archaeology can’t provide the answers, it’s time to call on the rock stars!’ He chuckled immodestly at his pun, which was received with appropriately stony silence. ‘ Rock stars? No? Anyway, thank you, Dr Wilde – and thank you, Miss Sharif, for all your assistance. And for being enjoyable company.’ Macy beamed.
‘He was probably enjoying the view more than the conversation,’ Eddie whispered to Nina.
‘Shush,’ she whispered back, although he had a point. While Macy had spent her internship modestly dressed by her standards, in the formal surroundings of the UN the beautiful Miamian’s predilection for tight designer clothing made her stand out like a bikini model in a Saudi mosque.
Bellfriar began his presentation proper, opening a case to reveal his subjects: a pair of small statues, crude human figures carved from an odd purple stone. The first had been found by Nina, Eddie and Macy inside the Pyramid of Osiris; the second, stored with stolen cultural treasures in a former Cold War bunker beneath the glacial ice of Greenland. He summarised the circumstances of each discovery before continuing: ‘Now, despite their best efforts, Interpol have so far been unable to find out where the second statue was stolen from, and since neither relic appears to be the product of any known ancient culture that would seem to be a dead end in the search for answers. Fortunately, other branches of science can provide a different perspective. Miss Sharif ?’
Macy tapped at the laptop, projecting the first slide on to the conference room’s screen. It showed the two statues placed side by side. ‘As you can see,’ said Bellfriar, ‘the statues are clearly part of a
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