buried himself in research on two subjects that were obviously related, but when I went through his notes and things, I could never figure out how. One of those was obviously labyrinths. He had been here, and he had been talking frequently to Dr. Cheney in New York.
“The other subject was alchemy.”
Welch nodded. “That’s perfect, yes. That makes sense.”
“Luka thought there was some connection between Midas and the great alchemists of history,” Sully put in.
“There may be,” Welch said. This time he looked almost nervous as he glanced around. Drake figured he was worried that the wrong people, overhearing him, might think there was treasure up for grabs at the dig and that could lead to theft and violence.
“Alchemy is impossible,” Jada said, her frustration showing. “Gold is what it is. It doesn’t start as something else.”
“You know that, and I know that,” Welch said. “But there have obviously been times in history when people believed in alchemy and some pretty charismatic individuals who claimed to be alchemists.”
“The trick was in having the gold to back it up,” Drake said.
“Exactly,” Sully agreed, scanning the restaurant, talking to them while at the same time acting as their sentry. “All of those guys—St. Germain, Fulcanelli, young Nathan’s friend Ostanes—their claims would never have been believed if they hadn’t had gold to show for their efforts. Enough to be amazing.”
Welch raised his eyebrows appreciatively. “It seems I won’t need to educate you all on the history of alchemy.”
“Back to Midas,” Sully prodded.
“And to the labyrinths,” Welch agreed. “On the tablets we’ve translated so far, there’s a story that establishes that the designer of the labyrinth of Sobek—obviously Daedalus, though he’s not named—paid the workers in gold and was said to have been able to transform stone into gold with a touch.”
Drake frowned. “Wait, it says Daedalus had the touch, not Midas—not the king?”
“Exactly,” Welch replied, smiling thinly. “It’s written that the designer had a great stockpile of gold at the center of the labyrinth, that the workers built from the inside out, and that they would have to go and see him to get paid. He never left the labyrinth, but he paid them their wages in gold.”
The archaeologist looked at Jada. “Your father helped me translate that tablet. He and I both believed this story referred to Daedalus. It went on to say that thieves attempted to steal from him constantly, even after the labyrinth had been completed. There are references to the Mistress of the Labyrinth and her honey and to a monster as well.”
“A monster?” Jada asked. “This is here in Egypt, not on Crete?”
“Yes,” Welch replied, clearly enjoying his revelations. “There are references to all three labyrinths having guardians. Monstrous men. Maybe scarred and certainly huge, but obviously not man-bulls like in the myth. It seems that Daedalus lived in the labyrinth here, and the mistress and the monster were also living inside it. But at some point, a group of builders banded together and attacked the cult of Sobek, killing many people and invading the labyrinth. The would-be thieves found no trace of gold or of Daedalus. Both had apparently vanished. Maybe when we figure out the location of the third labyrinth, we’ll solve that mystery, too.”
Jada started to ask him more, but then the waiter arrived with their dinner and the conversation halted while he served them. When he’d gone, Drake turned again to Welch.
“I can see why this would be like Christmas for you, Ian,” Drake said. “This dig has turned up more information about the ancient world than anything found in a century. You and your boss will have your careers made by this. You’ll write books and go on talk shows. You’ll be set. But as cool as a lot of this is—and believe me, to someone like me, it is extremely cool—I haven’t heard anything yet worth killing over.”
Welch shot Jada an apologetic look. “Whatever your father discovered, whatever connection he made that put him in danger, I have no idea what it is. And maybe it makes me a coward, but I confess I’m glad I don’t know.”
Sully slid his chair nearer to Welch. “Be careful, Dr. Welch. Cheney didn’t know, either—or at least your sister didn’t think Cheney knew whatever secret Luka had discovered. But Cheney’s still dead. You’ve gotta be on guard until we figure it all out.”
For the first time, Welch looked frightened. “But I don’t know the secret, either. If there is some kind of treasure and we