The Forbidden Script (2 page)

A couple of hours pass when he is awakened by the sound of a door closing downstairs. He makes his way into the kitchen where his daughter Sally is unpacking her school bag on the table. Slowly creeping up on her, he touches her left shoulder. In an instant, she swings around with her fist flying, missing Jason’s chin by half an inch. Jason was prepared for the strike and quickly stepped back.

Sally shouts out, “dad! Next time I won’t miss and will knock you half way across the kitchen floor.”

She ran to her father hugging him, and asked, “how come your home at this time of the day?”

Jason kissed her on the forehead.

“I came to prepare a few things for tomorrow morning. Danny and I have a new case and have to leave for Mexico.”

As soon as he finished the word Mexico her eyes lit up.

“No way! You’re going to the Mayan site aren’t?”

He wraps an arm around her.

“Yes for a few days, that’s all. Now don’t go all hysterical. I promised one day I would take you there. But I will be on a case, and besides you have your studies and it’s not a safe place right now.”

Sally knew better than to question her father about the case. She gave him a smile and hugged him again.

“Okay, old man. You haven’t broken a promise to me yet.”

They spent the rest of the day looking at pictures of ancient sites, and searching the INTERNET about Chichen Itza and the Mayan civilization.

“Hey dad! Don’t forget to bring me a souvenir.”

She kissed her father Goodnight and headed up to her bedroom.

Doctor Tony Barrette, an anesthesiologist, was busy at work in the basement of his large old house. He has just collected two priceless artifacts which had cost him a very hefty sum. The heist was planned well by the thirty-seven-year-old anesthesiologist.  The Mexican authority’s would never know an American citizen had been involved in the stolen Mayan artifacts. The only thing bothering him was the two unexpected killings of two American workers. The men he hired for the job must have run into some trouble, giving them no choice but to eliminate them. They were very well paid for the job, no questions asked.

Tony thoroughly examined the Priceless goods, going over each item with intense precision. The first item was a golden statue of an underworld god. Only about five inches in height, the statue was sculptured out of solid granite and then dipped in pure liquefied gold. The face features were still remarkably visible, and the details were incredibly precise.

The other item was a solid bronze plaque measuring ten inches by six inches. Mayan hieroglyphs were visible in very small detail all over the plaque. He was quite familiar with Mayan history and had done some deep research on how to decipher hieroglyphs. Tony managed to translate the whole plaque from beginning to end. But the last line stops abruptly as if part of the writing was missing.

Frustrated with not being able to continue this amazing long-lost information which gave exact details on how the ancient Mayans summoned the underworld spirits, and how they communicated with them. He stood up in anger and accidentally dropped the bronze plaque on the floor.

       On impact, the plaque seemed to split into two pieces. Both the top and bottom ends came apart, revealing another smaller plaque hidden inside. He carefully picked it up and placed it on the table. Under the lens of his magnifying glass, he could see very tiny weird looking hieroglyphs. They were like nothing he had ever seen before, and could not decipher a single word. One thing he did know was if he could translate what is written, it would reveal the Mayans secret on how they not only summoned the spirits. But how they entered the underworld, opening a passageway into the realm of the dead. The dark land of fright, or in Mayan tongue Xibalba.

Jason woke early that morning to prepare a big breakfast for Sally. She loved scrambled eggs on toast, topped up with slices of bacon. He made himself a mug of strong coffee and poured Sally a glass of fresh orange juice.

Breakfast all set. He went upstairs to wake his daughter. Sally was a deep sleeper and could sleep through the worst of thunderstorms. As for Jason, a fly passing overhead was enough to wake him in an instant.

First, he knocked gently on her door. No answer. He tried again, and still no answer. He called out to her and was about to open the door when she stepped out from the bathroom just two doors down the hall.

Jason said. “You’re awake! That’s a first! I made you some breakfast before I leave.”

“Well, that’s what woke me…. The smell of bacon.”

She rushed passed him and ran downstairs to the kitchen.

They ate breakfast together and talked some more about Chichen Itza. After breakfast Jason gave her the usual parental lecture. His flight was scheduled to leave just before noon. Sally prepared herself for school. She kissed her father goodbye and hugged him as hard as she could.

Jason then loaded his luggage and drove to the office, where he was to meet up with Danny before leaving for the airport.

Danny was already there when he arrived. They checked out with chief Berks and took Danny’s car to the airport. Their flight was on time, and they went through security with a flash of their badges. The airport officials gave both of them weird expressions, as it seemed Danny was escorting some criminal. Jason noticed their looks, winking at them as he passed them by.

After a few hours in the air they landed in Cancun, the closest airport to Chichen Itza. On their arrival, they were met by a local guide, just as Matt had told them. Their guide was a short, skinny man going by the name of Andreas. Their guide escorted them to a Toyota pickup and began the long journey to the campsite near Osario.

The weather was quite hot but had a cool breeze blowing in from the west. Jason rode in front, feet on the dashboard, and with his Colt on his lap. Andreas kept his eye on the road and at the same time was also nervously keeping an eye on Jason and the gun he had. Danny saw the tension in Andreas face, beads of sweat rolling down his forehead.

Danny said, “it’s okay Andreas. Agent Mallock here is the person you would want with you if trouble arises. Don’t be taken back by his looks and behavior.”

Jason turned around. “Hey! What’s wrong with my looks and behavior?”

They drove for another hour, when Andreas took a left turn into the jungle. He slowly drove for another half hour over a bumpy road when finally he stopped, not able to go any further.

All three men stepped out of the vehicle and stretched their legs. Andreas went to the rear of the pick-up and put on a backpack he had brought with him. The sun was slowly disappearing and would be dark soon. In the other hand, he held a large flashlight, ready to use as soon as it got dark.

“The trail ends here. We continue on foot now,” he said.

Danny and Jason collected their gear and asked.

“How far is the campsite?”

The guide smiled.

“Oh…. maybe two miles or so,” he said, pointing his flashlight in the direction they will be heading.

Danny turned to Jason.

“I should have come in my damn hiking gear instead of this three hundred dollar suit.”

“Why do you think I never wear one? We’re mostly out in the field, not in an office behind a desk,” said Jason.

They caught up with Andreas, who was nearly out of sight. The jungle around them was thick with trees and bush. Andreas stopped, waiting for them to catch up, knowing the jungle was not a safe place to be after the sun went down.

Danny almost lost his footing a few times. But Jason kept a strong pace, only a few feet behind the guide. They had been walking for nearly forty minutes, when up ahead they could see the campsite fire flickering beyond the trees. Not wanting to startle the people at the site, Andreas called out to them from twenty yards away. Immediately two local workers came rushing in their direction with loaded shotguns. One of them fired a warning shot into the air. Jason was the first to react. He had his Colt aimed directly at one of the oncoming men. Jason was ready to shoot if they fired a shot in his direction. Even in darkness, Jason rarely misses his target. Some people swear he has the ability to see in total darkness.

Andreas frantically waves his arms, shouting out to the two men in their native tongue. Recognizing his voice, the two armed men wave them on in. Danny was relieved to see Andreas shaking hands with the two men. The guide then waved Danny and Jason to come forward and introduced them to his friends. Jason stepped forward and shook the hand of the person who fired the warning shot. He tightened his grip, forcing the man to his knees.

Towering over him, he said, “not many people tend to make it out alive after they fire a shot in my direction! Lucky you shot the other way.”

Danny intervened, calming Jason down, loosening his grip.

“Hey! Take it easy Jason. They’re just protecting the camp site.”

Jason pulled the man to his feet, then let go of his hand.

Andreas stepped forward.

“Come, I take you to Miss Helen now.”

They followed him another forty yards to one of the larger tents which were lit up from inside. They could clearly see the movement of someone inside. Jason and Danny could hear loud music coming from within the tent. Andreas asked them to wait where they were while he went inside to call Helen.

As she stepped out from the tent, Jason’s eyes opened wide.

“Wow! She’s prettier than I thought,” he said.

Helen went over to Danny and shook his hand.

“You must be agent Langley. Welcome to my camp site. I’m so glad you arrived. This place is not safe since the discovery. Looters will do anything to get their hands on something valuable. Where is agent Mallock?” She said, looking straight past Jason as he cleared his throat.

“Oh my god! I’m so sorry. I thought all FBI personnel wore a suit. Please forgive me,” said Helen, shaking Jason’s hand.

She offered them refreshments and invited them inside her tent, where all her equipment was set up. Jason held back for a while, observing the darkness of the jungle around the camp site. The place was rather large, having a total of seven tents. Helen’s tent was positioned about forty yards away from the others, which were all set up in a line. The camp fire was crackling away, and he could see the local workers gathered around, drinking and eating.

Jason counted four local workers and Andreas their guide. He ventured to the outer perimeter of the camp, wondering where the entrance to the newly discovered Mayan site was. It’s been quite a while since he has been inside an archaeological site. His memories went back to Egypt, where he first started out as an archaeologist. Maybe one day he and his daughter Sally would go abroad to Egypt to visit the pyramids. He smiled at the thought of her all excited, taking pictures of this and that.

Suddenly the sound of a twig cracking from beyond the trees brought him back from his thoughts. On instinct, he automatically drew his firearm peering into the dark jungle. He held firm, looking around, but could see no movement. After a few minutes, he relaxed.

Danny and professor Shireberg were heard talking in the background. He went back to the tent, tucking his gun inside his jeans. Jason interrupted their conversation.

“Miss Shireberg. One question, please. There is a total of seven tents, but I can only see four of your help force.”

Helen explained to Jason. “Well, after the killings of my two colleagues. Half of them left, afraid they will be next. They are very superstitious people. Some of them think it’s the doing of the gods. They think it’s their fault for disturbing their domain.”

“You okay, Jason? You look spooked!” asked Danny.

Jason looked back into the trees. “Thought I heard something beyond the trees,” he said.

Helen seemed to look worried.

“It’s most probably an animal. Most of the wildlife venture out at night looking for food,” said Helen. “Danny tells me your also an archaeologist. What made you change your career?” She looked up at Jason waiting for an answer, when she suddenly realized how good looking he is.

Jason gave her one of his best smiles. His perfect white teeth flashing in the dim light of the tent. Helen gazed into his sparkling green eyes, she could feel herself somewhat relaxed, even hypnotized by his stare.

Jason replied. “Well, somebody has to stop the theft of the world's ancient artifacts. I guess it was a calling I couldn't refuse.”

It was getting late, so Helen showed them to their tent that was prepared for them prior to their arrival.

“Well gentlemen. We better call it a night. Tomorrow I will take you to the site. Best we get an early start.” Said Helen.

They said Goodnight and settled down for the night.

In the early hours of the morning, Tony Barrette was on the phone with the very same people he had hired for the theft. This time he planned to capture one of the few people who can decipher any type of hieroglyph. He has arranged to kidnap professor Helen Shireberg.

The fee was high, and extremely difficult for the hired men to go back to the same place where they had killed the two Americans. Tony knew the risks, but it was the only way if he wanted total control of the underworld spirits.

He always felt from the time when he was a young boy that he had another sense besides our natural five senses. It first started when he was about five years old. He could feel another presence next to him. He would hear voices and feel their energy around him. Tony was not afraid of what he experienced as a child. He saw it as something special, like always having someone or something to talk to and guide him. His parents hardly noticed anything different about him. They dismissed it as an imaginary friend, which younger children makeup during their young age. As he grew older, he became more and more into his, you can say ‘gift.’ He sought out knowledge and information on how to control his thoughts and connections to the other side, and how to communicate with the spirits. Tony gained more and more knowledge as he grew older. Fine-tuning his extrasensory perception, interface with the dead or spirits in other dimensions. He can feel their thoughts and obtain mental impressions from the spirit world. Tony’s goal was to enter the other dimension, not only mentally but also physically. He has found out how to boost his spiritual powers by taking the energy from other living beings.

The plan has been set, and the two hired men were now on their way to do their job of kidnapping professor Shireberg.