“The ceiling has been purposefully darkened so visitors don’t see the steel supports. It’s for atmosphere.”

“Is that what it is?” Sana said. She reached the ancient cemetery level and allowed her lights to play across the dark entrances of the mausoleums.

Shawn rolled his eyes.

“This place is even eerier at night than during the day,” Sana remarked.

“Because the freaking lights are turned off, for shit’s sake,” Shawn growled.

“What was that noise?” Sana demanded with desperation.

“What noise?” Shawn questioned with near equal concern.

For a few moments of frozen panic they strained to hear sound—any sound. The silence was deafening.

“I don’t hear anything,” Shawn said finally. “What did you hear?”

“It sounded like a high-pitched voice.”

“Good grief! Now you’re imagining things.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure, but what I’m not sure is whether you can do this. We’re so close.”

“If you’re sure I didn’t hear anything, let’s finish this and get out of here.”

“Can you calm down?”

“I’ll try.”

“All right, let’s go, but stay close.”

Shawn led the way west in the direction of Peter’s tomb. Sana followed a step behind, avoiding glancing into the mausoleums as they passed their dark, foreboding entrances.

Suddenly, Shawn stopped, and Sana jolted into him.

“Sorry,” Sana said. “You have to let me know if you stop.”

“I’ll try to remember,” Shawn said as he pointed off to the left with his flashlight. “There’s the Roman sarcophagus I pointed out this afternoon. That’s where we’ll put our excavated debris. Do you think you will be able to bring it back here while I dig?”

“You mean by myself?”

Shawn silently counted to ten. “If I’m digging, of course it would be by yourself,” he said impatiently.

“We’ll see,” Sana said. The idea of wandering around in the necropolis alone was daunting, and hardly alluring. All she could hope was that somehow she’d adjust.

Shawn held his tongue. Instead, he continued on, rounding the southern tip of the red wall. Despite the climb, Sana stayed close. A few moments later, they were standing in the large chamber on the east side of Peter’s tomb complex near the original monument called the Tropaion of Peter. Shawn shined his flashlight down through one of the many glass panels of the deck, which had been built to allow modern-day tourists to see into the tomb’s interior.

“We’re almost there,” Shawn commented, his voice brimming with excitement. “We’ll soon be at the level of the floor of Peter’s tomb.”

“I’ll take your word for it,” Sana said. “Let’s get on with this.”

“Right!” Shawn agreed with alacrity. It was what he wanted to hear.