“And this is Commander Rueda,” said the voice. “I’ve been keeping this line clear for your call.”

“Thank you, Commander. We’re at the coordinates we gave you before we left home. As the Mayan codex indicated, what’s here is a large city with a temple complex. We’ve been watching a crew of around a hundred men clearing away dirt and vegetation as fast as they can. There are also armed guards. A little while ago, a helicopter landed with what looks like a film crew.”

“Are they doing anything criminal?”

“They’re uncovering the buildings with picks, mattocks, and shovels without much regard to the damage they do to what’s beneath. But I’d say that the main problem so far is the one we’ve told you about. The only way that Sarah Allersby could have found this place is if she has the stolen Mayan codex from the University of California, San Diego.”

“If I send a squad of men to that location, will they find anything to charge her with?”

“I think they’ll find notes that indicate where she learned the location, or even a photocopy of the codex page, which would prove it’s been in her possession,” Sam said. “Either way, maybe police can get the workers to excavate properly and not destroy what they’re uncovering.”

“All right. I’ll send a helicopter with soldiers to check on the excavation. That’s all I can promise.”

“That’s good enough for me. Thank you.” He handed Remi her phone.

Remi called Selma. “Hi, Selma. We’ve been to the site. Have you seen the pictures? You can tell David it’s as big as he thought. Sam just called the cops to come and take a look at the terrible job they’re doing on this dig. We’re hoping they’ll also find evidence that she used the map in the codex.”

“Don’t let the police forget that it could be in a computer or her phone, or it could be disguised as something else.”

“Don’t worry. It’s a fishing expedition, and we know fish don’t all look the same.”

“Good luck.”

“Thanks. We’re on our way back to the site.”

Sam and Remi moved up the trail again to the clearing. As they crouched in the brush, looking at what must have been the great plaza of the ancient Mayan city, they heard the distant chop of another helicopter. This one came from the south like the other, but its engine sounded different. The helicopter came straight in over the jungle, hovered above the center of the plaza, and then came down not far from the first helicopter.