PROLOGUE

“What is the most cunning creature in the world? The one you never see or hear.”

 He raised his bloodied face from the fresh kill, the antelope forgotten as the voices filled his head. They called to him, a siren’s song, stroking every cell and fiber of his brain. Picking up his spear, he rose onto his knees, listening. He anxiously fingered the black stone hanging around his neck; its angled facets catching the light in a rainbow of colors. Fear twitched thick, knotted muscles as he aimed his mind toward the message he knew he must listen to and obey. He could hear Umbra, his grown son, in the next valley, and the other men of his village. They all froze, joining their thoughts to his; listening to the distant message.

Garagh, my father, do you hear? They call again, Umbra’s thoughts connected with Garagh’s mind, that was now filled with images alien to memory.

Yes, I hear, my son. It is stronger this time. We must answer, as we have been taught to do by the ancients. Call the others. We must go--- now, Garagh answered.

No resistance was possible, or given, as he rose onto trembling, muscular legs. Slinging the kill around his thick neck, Garagh scanned the horizon for the other hunters of the tribe, his dark, penetrating eyes protected from the fierce sun by a thick brow. He could hear their thoughts and feel their reactions, and he knew they were aware of his inner workings as well.

Come my brothers. We go to the camp. We must ready ourselves and our people for the journey. It is time…at last.

Aiming his resolute face toward the south, he took his first step into a journey that would    last 30,000 years and change the fate of mankind.

CHAPTER ONE

Dr. James Hay felt a river of sweat run down the valley of his wide, sunburned back. The deepening color of his skin highlighted the small triangular scar on his right shoulder. He ran his fingertips absently over the faint ridge while carefully inspecting the rocks scattered over the table before him.

Straightening with a groan, he rubbed his hands over the knots aching in the small of his back and lifted his eyes to gaze at the brilliant blue of an Australian summer sky. As a cool breeze swirled around his body like a playful puppy, shivers of delight ran though him in spite of the intense humid heat. A small, secret smile curved his lips. His stomach muscles tensed when the damp, sensual smell of the rainforest mixed with the perfume of orchids wafted into his nostrils. His body betrayed him…

It smells like her; primal, sensual, earthy.

The forbidden thought sent a jolt through him, his body responding in spite of a lifelong regime of iron control. He pulled in a ragged mouthful of the heavily scented air.

It’s been too long… way too long.

The undulating sensuality of palm fronds swaying in the wind brought back a memory of watching her dance, her body moving with grace and elegance against the man who had held her tightly against him. Passion swirled through his loins, building an unquenchable fire. A torrent of desire that flooded his mind and body. He closed his eyes and willed away the feelings, the mental images assaulting him from all directions. With a ragged breath, he turned toward the sound of soft footsteps approaching from behind. He turned. Please be….

The lone figure of Maggie Chin, an elegant Chinese girl of twenty-two and one of his postgraduate students, slowly made its way toward him. Like a cold shower, her approach served to snap him out of this useless reverie and reminded him that fantasies, by their very nature, cannot fill an empty life. He yanked his shirt off the branch he’d hung it on to dry out, slipped it on and took a deep, cleansing breath, dispelling the images he’d fought to bury since his trip to Washington.

Work is what I need. It’s always been there for me and it always will be. Besides, Samantha Louis doesn’t even know I'm alive and if she did, a woman like her wouldn’t want me. He used his tried and true mantra to rebury the past and get on with the present.

 He studied the site several volunteer students were working on with the diligence of ants. Their chatter and laughter echoed around the site, silencing the lorikeets, cockatoos and insects that normally dwelled there. The tangled, dripping vines of the rainforest almost obscured the view of the central site where a small knot of trusted people gathered. Each one worked feverishly on a facet of a towering, coal-black obelisk standing in the center of a perfectly round bare spot fired into the middle of the rainforest. Its smooth, geometrically cut surface reflected the sunlight beating upon it with all the brilliance of a perfect diamond. James stood on the outskirts of the site, away from the group, his hands resting on the carvings etched deeply into large fragments of the hard rock they’d found laid out in a perfect circle around the obelisk. Observing the high-energy activity of this elite group of volunteers, his body quivered with fatigue and suppressed excitement.

Part of it had to do with the unique object they’d found, but another part was due to the telephone call he'd made from his seedy hotel room two nights ago.

She is on her way to Australia. She’ll be here any moment. God, I wish she was coming here for me instead of the promise of a big story.

 In spite of the knowledge that she couldn't be interested in anything other than another literary award, the thrill of seeing her again sent another tremor through his body. They had only met once, at a gathering of science delegates in Washington, D.C. where he gave a talk as guest speaker. He vividly remembered talking to her briefly about his work investigating Australian mysteries; her genuine interest surprising him. He also remembered thinking how it would be easy to drown in the blue of her eyes and lose himself in her arms. The memory of Samantha’s lithe body encased in a flowing black velvet dress, her flaming auburn hair cascading down the soft bare flesh on her back remained etched in his mind. Samantha Louis, as he found out later, worked as a world-class freelance journalist. After hearing she’d won several major awards, he stopped paying attention, knowing she was out of his league.

When a family friend out walking in the bush discovered the obelisk, and he sent a photo and a map to the University, James knew the find would be an international media circus unless he moved fast to contain it before it became public knowledge. That’s when he decided to do a thorough background check on Samantha Louis. He liked what he saw and heard about her integrity and professionalism. Her honest and precise reporting motivated him to contact her when it became obvious he’d have to let the media in on his find. James needed her to report the truth, to keep out the rest of the sensation-seeking press with her clout and, more importantly to him, to protect the Aboriginal people he loved

He realized he stood there with a silly grin on his face and instantly pulled his thoughts back to the present situation. Maggie stood patiently waiting for him to notice her before speaking out. “Lost in another world huh?” She fingered her long, black braid and smiled up at him. The silken tropical print of her blouse whispered when the breeze caught it.

Her child-like voice, smooth porcelain features and tiny figure never ceased to stir up feelings of fatherly protectiveness inside him. But then, he felt that way about all his students. He grinned at her. “No, a new found world, Maggie. What’s up?”

She held out a neatly typed report. “You asked for the analysis data I did of the black rock found on the coast, remember? To compare this one to?” Her calm, patiently modulated tone, one used by very young people when dealing with older authority figures, made him chuckle.

"Right. Too much on my mind lately." His face split into a lazy lopsided smile. When she turned to go he added, " By the way, I don’t think I ever thanked you for dropping everything, including your PhD, to come and help us with this. I value your expertise with the analysis. Thanks, Maggie.”

She held up her tiny hand with an indulgent sigh. “I’ve told you before, Doctor, no thanks needed. This is a chance for me too. Anything that has to do with people’s beliefs and myths is just a part of the whole. Besides, I get tired of Oriental mythology. I wanted to see how other cultures fared in that department. Anything else I can do before I go help Ratana with the etchings?” She raised a perfectly shaped eyebrow at him.

“Well, thank you anyway. I’m sure your husband doesn’t appreciate your absence.” When she grinned, he ventured on. “Since you ask, would you indulge me and go see how Nathan and the others are doing down at the blockade?” He absent-mindedly swatted at another mosquito attracted to the sweat saturating his clothes.

While she quietly walked toward the dirt road leading into the clearing, he opened the report, briefly scanned it then looked up to search for his research assistant. “Ratana, where the hell are those computer readouts I asked for?” he bellowed over to the young Aboriginal woman kneeling at the base of the obelisk and taking notes.

From where he stood, her thick brown hair obscured her face, but her body language spoke volumes about Aboriginal pride. Her wide shoulders tensed then relaxed, before she replied, “Patience, Uncle. They’ll be here when they’re finished. Eddy’s gonna bring ‘em and you know how slow he is, so calm down.” She immediately dismissed him, absent-mindedly brushed dried red clay from her dark brown legs and returned to her work.

Grunting in frustration, he scanned the other students gathering information, hoping to spot Eddy at his usual pastime of harassing the female students when they bent over. James snorted with disgust at the image of Eddy’s small, piggy eyes devouring the sight of the young women’s bodies while they worked. He pushed the image out of his mind as he strode to a battered and ancient army tent used as a base office. He paused at the closed tent flap and listened. Issuing a low snarl of anger, he stepped inside. Eddy sat at the computer terminal, downloading files onto a computer disc. The young man’s frail-looking and bony body was bent towards the screen with intense concentration. The thick glasses he wore reflected the streams of file names moving down the screen. The slack-mouthed look of greed and evil malice shone from his pale face.

“What the hell are you doing?” James demanded when he looked over Eddy’s hunched shoulders and saw the data from the find streaming down the screen.

The young man’s skinny body jumped at the sharp whiplash in James’s voice. “Just backing up the files, Doctor Hay. That’s all.” The pallor of his face blended his small features in with the dull, yellowish tinge of his T-shirt. He stammered, squirmed and peered anxiously at the flap of the tent.

James leaned over Eddy’s shoulder and stared closely at the list of files copying onto the disk. He could feel his cheeks and neck suffusing with a red-hot flush of anger. He glared at Eddy’s frightened face. “Okay, Eddy. Who’s paying you for this? One of the newspaper guys or your uncle?”

“I can’t talk. He’ll kill me. I didn’t mean it, Doctor Hay. Please don’t hit me.” Eddy cringed back into the chair, his hands outstretched. His words degenerated into childish whimpers, sputtering and stuttering. Eddy jumped out of the chair and bolted out of the tent. James ejected the computer disk out of the drive and tucked it into the pocket of his khaki shorts. As he left the tent, Ratana headed in, almost bumping into him. “Hey, what’s going on? Eddy just flew past me like his tail was on fire,” she asked, concerned at the thunderous look on his face. “And, you look like you just caught a blowfly in the teeth.”

“He was copying our files. I’ll bet he intended to sell the disk to one of those newspaper vultures trying to get in here. I caught him in the act and he ran.” Running his fingers through the wet hair wildly capping his head, fought back the bile rising in his throat at the thought of a student, even one as unsavory as Eddy, selling his data to those who regularly ostracized his work. “It was bound to happen sooner or later, I suppose. Peter would give anything to discredit me. I know he forced that kid on me so he could use him in some way. I just hoped Eddy would prove me wrong.”

“Well, what’s done is done. I’ll make sure Nathan knows to keep him out from now on. At least you know he’ll bleed the reporters dry before he gives up what he’s stolen, if anything.” She laughed, deep and throaty.

"Well, I managed to catch him before he made off with the disk anyway." He fingered the blue plastic disk while he mentally counted the stack of them on his desk.

"And, if they choose to print what he claims to remember, we'll hit them with a lawsuit based on faulty information. I'll be Ally McBeal and you can be Bobby what's-his-name from that other solicitor program." Ratana roared with laughter at the image of herself trying to walk in clunky heels and a micro-miniskirt.

 He snorted, suppressing his own laughter. Forcing his face into a serious expression, he proclaimed, “They deserve it. Those people are like cockroaches, they just keep turning up no matter how hard you work to get rid of them.”

Ratana subsided into a disjointed series of chuckles. “Yeah, and you’ve always been so nice to them too. Seriously, James, this find is drawing reporters from all over the world. This Louis lady you contacted better get here soon. We can’t keep the rest of them out forever, you know. The only reason they’re not swarming over this place is because it’s a protected Aboriginal hunting ground but that won’t keep them out for long. What do you plan on doing when that happens, shoot them?” Her deep brown eyes studied the distress James knew his face revealed.

“If I thought for one minute it would help to let them in, I would. At first, excited about my finds, I was the first one to call them, wanting to share my work with the world. I found out real quick how idealistic that turned out to be.” He scowled and took a deep breath. “This is so much more than I’ve ever found before. Mick told me I’d have no choice this time. I have to cooperate if we’re to save it from the bureaucrats. Problem is, I don’t trust any of them. Maybe this American-lady journalist can find a way, I don’t know. I do know one thing, though, if Ms. Louis doesn’t show up soon, I don’t know what to do short of turning Nathan’s hotheaded native guards loose on them.”

He groaned and sat down on a stool beside the tent flap. Rubbing his eyes, he continued, “This is one of the greatest alien finds ever and we have to beat off the press, the government and the nutcases just to study it. Worse yet, my own boss at the University refuses to let the board know I’ve found anything worthwhile. If I go back down to Townsville to get the funding I need from the board, the bastards here will seize the obelisk and we’ll have nothing. It’s a no win situation, Ratana. I’ve waited years for something like this to happen and now it feels more like a disaster to me than a blessing.” He rubbed his eyes again. “God, I’m tired.”

 “Excuse me, Doctor Hay? Do you remember me? You called and invited me to come to do the story for you…,” Sam looked awkward as she stood in the doorway of the tent. She tugged at a sweat stained business suit and pulled a high heel out of the sticky clay, obviously feeling like a complete idiot. James could almost hear her ranting inside his head.

Damn those travel people! No one warned me about what was out here. Neither did that bloody photographer of mine. I’m gonna kill him when we get back to the hotel.

He had to admit she did a good job of being embarrassed while maintaining a professional pasted-on smile.

***

When the tall, wide-shouldered man she knew to be Doctor Hay, rose and turned at the sound of her voice, Sam’s mouth dried up. He looked just the way she remembered. The sheer raw masculinity of him seeped into her body like hot oil; it massaged her libido. She felt her body come alive under his amused stare.

He’s not handsome but, boy, there’s something about him that hits a woman like a ton of bricks! Sam thought as she took in his looks at a glance, comparing the way he looked now to the shy stranger in a tuxedo she’d met before. Tall, older, but still muscular; in top shape. Long legs, tanned, rugged…wow…his eyes. She felt her stomach knot up when those incredible gray eyes swept over her.

***

“Ah, Ms. Louis, you finally arrived.” James became aware of his voice; deep, sensual and vibrating with suppressed desire. Inwardly, he flinched and took a firm hold of his emotions. He took in her tall, athletic figure, superimposing his memory of her curves under a clinging dress onto the woman standing awkwardly in front of him now.

 He also saw the young, tall, handsome man standing behind her with a video camera on his shoulder. “Who the hell are you and how did you get past the guards at the roadblock? I don’t talk to reporters so please leave. Ms. Louis, you may come in.” He turned back to Ratana, immediately dismissing the cameraman as one more irritant to ignore.

“Doctor Hay, Marc is with me. If I’m doing the story, I need my cameraman.” Sam’s eyes flared with irritation at the preemptory tone James knew he fell back on when under stress. Deliberately, she reached out to pat her cameraman’s arm, clearly sending a message that she would refuse to cooperate without the young man. Marc smirked at James, but his eyes flashed antagonism.

James studied the two and his heart hit his shoes when his fantasies of her disintegrated instantly. The hollow feeling inside his chest sharpened into anger, but he looked deep into her eyes, responding to their fire against his will. The sight of a running figure behind her yanked him back to the moment. “Just a moment, Ms. Louis.”

Maggie trotted up, gasping for breath and holding her side. “Doctor Hay. Nathan says to get ready. There are some high-ranking military guys at the barrier. He says he can’t keep them out.”

He nodded at Maggie, whose look of anxiety and furtive glances at the computer reminded him about saving any of the data he may have overlooked. Ratana had already thought of it. She sat in front of the computer deleting files at a furious pace. “Ratana what would I do without you?" He lightly shook her shoulder then turned back to Maggie, her face a study in curiosity as she inspected Sam and her cameraman. "Maggie, get the guys to pack up what they have as soon as they can manage it. I don’t want anybody confiscating our findings.”

 “Will you please tell me what’s going on here?” Sam wiped beads of sweat off her forehead then stood with her fists on her hips, an insulted tone tingeing the question.

James held up a hand to stay her question while he continued to give Ratana instructions. “We have to get pictures of all the markings on the stone made pronto. Have whoever does them use the Polaroid and take them from different angles.” James deliberately kept talking, hoping to get his emotions in check before he faced her again.

God…she is beautiful but this isn’t the time or place.

The look on Ratana’s face told James he wasn’t fooling her, no matter how cold and professional he spoke to Sam. She responded to his orders with a smirk and a laugh in her voice. “Don’t worry about Nathan. He’ll hold them for as long as we need. However, that stone won’t wait and if the mobs are going to hit soon then we have to get as much as we can before they do.”

          James sent a tiny smile to Ratana, her knowing look boring into his thoughts. He took a deep breath and turned to Maggie, who stood quietly, but alertly, by the tent flap. “Maggie, go take some Polaroids of the obelisk; all sides, all angles. Bring them back and give them to either myself or Ratana.” Facing the young cameraman, the video cam still on his shoulder, he barked out, “You. Go with her and get some film of the artifact. When you’re finished, I expect you to give the film to Maggie and clear off.” When the man hesitated, looking at Sam for a nod, which she gave, James shouted, “Now!” Maggie turned and trotted away faster than she’d arrived, the cameraman hot on her heels.

Her fingers flying over the keyboard, Ratana spoke as if nothing out of the ordinary was happening. “You know, it’s eerie. The markings on that thing are so similar to the Aboriginal drawings at Split Rock it’s uncanny. The black rock it’s made from looks the same as the stone in the Black Mountain out by Cooktown. The only difference is, this baby is much harder. Robbie had to analyze it standing up. Nothing would cut it, not even his diamond tip drill. He’s kind of thrown by that, I think…”

          Her voice coiled in tightly held strands of self-control, Sam rounded on James. “Doctor Hay, if I remember correctly you are the one who called me. We spoke about my coming to do a legitimate story on what’s happening here. Remember? I’m assuming you wanted everything recorded? To do that I need my cameraman to have access to everything, and so do I. I need facts, information, pictures…you know, something to write about.”

James realized that his lack of common manners was pressuring her to be sarcastic and he could see her struggling to keep a leash on it, not wanting to start off on the wrong foot. The jumble of guilt and desire that flooded up within him threatened to give his feelings away. In response, his voice dropped to even colder tones.

 “Okay Ms. Louis, you may keep your companion, but keep him out of our way. I don’t want to be tripping over him every time I turn around.”

His stomach twisted when Sam forced a smile and nodded her head in agreement. “Agreed, Doctor Hay. Marc is a professional and will not interfere in any way. Now, about the information you’ve already gotten? And any pictures too?”

“Good. I’ll fill you in later. In the meantime, when he returns you can take him and look around…get a feel for things. Don’t touch anything though and keep out of the way.” He steeled his face with a stern look, in spite of feeling like he’d like to dive into the cool of her eyes and just keep on sinking.

“Doctor Hay, this is unprofessional. It’s…” Sam stood ramrod straight, her long fingers clenched so tightly the knuckles went white.

“That’s what you people do isn’t it? So go do it and leave me to my work, please.” Her presence distracted him far more than he could afford at the moment, and he knew it.

Sam stared at his face. James could see her debating whether or not to push the issue. He towered over her tall frame, intimidating her; obviously something she wasn’t used to from anyone when she flinched but defiantly stood her ground. Without further comment, she made a sound of deep disgust and with a final sweep of contemptuous eyes over the tent and over James and Ratana in the process, she stormed through the heavy vines surrounding the tent.

After she left, James’ shoulders slumped and he quietly eased down on a chair tucked next to the tent flap. “Why the hell did I treat her like that? Talk about being a cad.” He snorted, disgusted with himself. “I’m never that rude to people, much less to beautiful women.”

Ratana chuckled again. “You noticed, huh? It’s about time, Uncle. We always wondered why you never married.” She leaned back in her chair. “Besides, you’re not fooling me a bit. You’re rude to her because you know she’s the one who could finally get you to hang it up and get a real life.” She glanced at him under her lashes and smiled. “You’re like an old, set in his ways bachelor. You’re fighting giving up your freedom.”

He threw her a disgusted look and made a show out of ignoring her and her amateur psychology. When he tried to clear his mind, he found that he was too tired to worry about Sam, relationships or anything beyond his work. The obelisk took precedent. He steeled himself to brutally keep Sam out of his life and his heart, at least until he finished this work. Having decided that, he relaxed and awarded Ratana a smile. She frowned. “All joking aside, you look ragged, Uncle.”

James closed his eyes in an effort to escape for the moment. Deep fatigue and worry made James feel much older than his 47 years. He leaned back heavily into the sagging canvas chair, groaned and closed his eyes, determined to grab this short respite from the chaos he knew was coming.

Ratana’s voice brought his eyes back open. “James, all my life you’ve protected me, taught me and cared when others didn’t bother. Why haven’t you ever made a life for yourself? You’ve never told me why.”

He propped his chin on a hand and hesitated before answering. “When my parents died and I went to live with Mick, all I could think about was becoming a doctor. Then, when Mick taught me about our people, I knew I had to do something about the problems I saw all around me; something to help. When every avenue was blocked to me because of my mother, I realized the only way I could do that was to find proof of our right to be here; our right to claim the land.” He paused, staring unseeingly at the computer screen. “I never made time for a personal life before. No woman caught my eye, even though my cousins tried hard to parade every girl over twelve and under fifty in front of me.” He smiled a tired smile and poked her in the side. “Now, it’s in the hands of fate. I have other more important things to see to.” His gaze returned to the open tent flap where a mixture of computer disks and paper littered the desk then back to the clearing and the obelisk.

The exasperation in Ratana’s tone yanked James’ attention back to the conversation. “It’s clear you’re attracted to her and she to you. Get a life, Uncle. Give her a go.”

“Listen to you. Just a kid and giving me advice about my love life. What about you and Nathan? You’ve never told me about that either.” He hoped to get her off the subject of Samantha Louis.

She lowered her eyes and came as close as she could to blushing but she didn’t answer the question.

His weak smile almost reached his eyes. “That’s what I thought. Well, this isn’t the time to be sitting around talking about my personal life. We have to get this thing out of here and somewhere safe. How the hell can we do it? Maybe she can help if I let up and be nice.” He shrugged at his lame joke then ran his hands through his damp hair again. “I have to get back out there. Our fearless government has arrived and I’m not so sure they won’t arrest us.” He started to stand up. Ratana pushed him back down into the chair.

Squatting down beside him, Ratana reached up to grasp his hand. “You okay, James? You look more stressed than you should be over this thing. You’re letting them get to you before the fight has even started. That’s not like you. At the settlement, you used to teach us kids to always look for opportunities; to be more, reach out more than we were born to be or have. Here’s our chance and you fizz out on us. Or did this Sheila get to you? Have you finally met a woman who can get through that thick hide of yours?” Her deep brown eyes peered into his, assessing how well her jibes were working.

          He shot a disgusted sideways look told her, telling her that the old trick didn’t work anymore. “Can it, Ratana. I’m not passing on the opportunity and I’m not stressed over those damned reporters either, Ms Louis included. I’m just tired and I am worried Eddy may have taken something the government people will use against us. I want this thing secured before all the vultures, academic as well as military and government, get to it and ruin our chances of deciphering it.”

“ That can only mean that your old nemesis is on her way then; our illustrious Queensland MP herself. Don’t worry, we’ll be set up by the time she gets here. She won’t be laughing at our work this time. By the way, I got the rubbings of all the symbols for you. I hid them, and the fragments, in your car boot before anyone tries to lock us down and take away all we’ve collected. We have plenty of time to just talk for a change. So, tell me… what’s eating away at you? I’d like to help you for a change instead of the other way around.” An impish smile twitched her lips.

          In spite of her smile, James felt irritation this unaccustomed bombardment into his private feelings. He suppressed the feeling and deliberately smiled back at her.

          “Thanks, little sister, but I’m fine; really I am. I’m just out of fuel, I think. I didn’t sleep last night. I kept waking up and crawling out to stare at that stone. There’s something about it that seems familiar to me…Hell, I’m just getting too old for this anymore…and I know it’s just a matter of time before the military comes in here and grabs it all.”

          “That’s what you keep saying but maybe, this time, the Uni will back you up. Maybe…” The impish look left her face and was replaced with a deep frown when James didn’t respond.

          He reached down to scratch a mosquito bite on his thigh then sat back and looked hard at Ratana’s serious look. “Look, I know Peter Howard is on his own when it comes to shooting down my work. Thank God the University board is willing to give me time to prove my claims. It really pisses Peter off too. When this proves out, he’ll be out…finally. At least we’ll have something to work on when it happens, thanks to you.” He patted her hand then stood up, stretching his back. “Which reminds me. I have to call the bastard, much as I hate to talk to him. He’ll have to get somebody to cover my classes next week.”

          Ratana pointed to the cell phone sitting beside the computer in the tent. “You might as well get it over with.” She smirked as he rose from his chair and stepped into the tent to place the call. When he had dialed, she sat down in his vacated chair to wait.

           James heard the phone connect and waited with tense muscles for the confrontation he knew was sure to come. When Peter spoke, James let out his breath. “Hello Peter. It’s James Hay here. I’m calling from the site.” He knew he was speaking in stiff, clipped sentences but couldn’t stop himself. “Look, Peter, I’m on to something big here and I need you to find a replacement lecturer for my classes for the next few weeks.”

          Peter’s deep, lazy reply came through the line sounding like a tinny recording. “No way, Hay. You get your ass back here and fulfill your contract. That bullshit you chase can wait until you have a holiday coming.”

James could hear the glee in his voice and gritted his teeth. “Dammit, Peter, you know I can go to the board and bypass your authority. They gave me leave to pursue this and you know it. You may be the Chancellor but they hold the moneybag. Are you really going to force me to call them again? Besides, in spite of your determination to inject pettiness into our working relationship, I still believe in calling you as a professional courtesy.”

“Well, don’t bother, I don’t want or need a professional courtesy from you. One of these days I’m going to show you up for the crook and fraud you are, you know. Besides, you know that I can delay anything you want to do for so long that you might as well not do it to begin with.” This time, Peter did laugh. “So don’t give me any of your shit, Hay. I’m not in the mood for it.”

James felt anger, bitter and black, rising within and struggled to contain it. “Only a scientific idiot like you would be this blind to fact, Peter. And get this through that thick skull of yours, you may be able to make things hard on me but you can’t stop me. And while we’re on the subject, I caught your nephew, Eddy, trying to steal my data. I know you put him up to it. What I can’t figure out is why you want it when you think it’s worthless.” James allowed a sneer of contempt to saturate his words.

The pause on the end of the line delighted James. He could imagine Peter frantically trying to figure out some way to deny his nephew’s behavior. When Peter spoke, his voice was strained. “What my nephew does has nothing to do with me. I’m not interested in your fantasies or your make-believe data. You may have the board fooled into thinking your little trips have value but I know you’re only fleecing them out of the cost of a free trip for yourself and your primitive black friends.”

Before James could reply to his racist remark, Peter snapped, “Get back down here and arrange for your classes yourself. And don’t call me for anything again, Hay.” He slammed the phone down so hard it came through the line with a crack.

James laughed out loud, knowing he’d bettered Peter Howard for a change and feeling good about it. He strolled back outside and smiled down at Ratana who was acting like she hadn’t heard the entire conversation.

She was watching the activity in the clearing while casually braiding her hair. In a calm voice she asked, “What do you want to do about the site?” She snapped a band on the end of her hair and looked up at him. “And how soon do you want to leave?”

Distracted by the hum of people moving about, he muttered, “We have to protect it somehow.” His gaze shifted to the clearing. “How long do you think Mick and Nathan can keep the reporters and military out? Aboriginal rights only stretch so far. I don’t think Mick’s elder status will keep them out for long and Nathan’s young guards are way too over-zealous for comfort. The whole thing is waiting to go nuclear if we’re not careful here. Do you think we can hold them off for another day or two?” His eyes searched hers, knowing the answer before she spoke.

          Shaking her head she replied, “Not for that long. Nathan told me earlier that the military guys are only waiting because some government bigwig told them to hold back until she can get here from Cairns. When she does, they’ll be all over us like flies on a dead 'roo. I don’t think anything is going to stop them after that.”

          “It’s got to be Henson. She’s been waiting to use my research to invade the Aboriginal lands for a long time now and I think that asshole, my boss, is working with her. This is just what she’s been waiting for. I should walk away from this and let your grandfather handle it. Maybe then she’d back down.”

          “James, I don’t even want to hear you talk like that to me. You’ve never quit on anything when it was important. This is important. When Nathan and I needed someone at the settlement, you were there. Grandpa didn’t raise you for nothing, you know. You’re special…special to all of us who call you family and this is something you’ve worked hard for. You of all people know you can’t back down from the bloody vultures that want to steal the rest of our land. Now, old timer, get off your bum and let’s go see what we can find out about this alien stone we’ve been given."

Almost completely lost in thought, James almost missed the twinkle that leapt into Ratana’s eyes as she obviously decided to drop the other bomb on him, no doubt hoping to get him fired up again. " Oh, I almost forgot to tell you. Mick told me to tell you the elders of the clan will be here soon. They want to speak to you about this thing. He says it’s a message they’ve waited for and they seem to believe you’ve been chosen to understand it for our people. Anyway, he’ll talk to you when he gets here."

James decided to ignore her feeble attempts to get him riled. His lips twitched into a tiny smile then settled into a serious compressed line. He took a deep breath and ran long fingers through his already tousled and sweaty hair. "Thank God. I can use Mick's help right about now. What about the mob Nathan's boys are holding back?"

 "As for how long the guys can keep the mob off us, I have no idea, but I can tell you one thing. If anybody can manage it, Nathan can. Come on; let’s go get scientific. That always cheers you up. Take your stuffy teacher tie off, put your ‘Indiana Jones’ hat on and get your adventurer spirit in gear, Mate. It’s time for a new adventure.” She nudged him in the ribs, tossed his old, battered Digger hat at him and then moved off toward the clearing.

          When her tall, broad back was no longer visible through the undergrowth, James went back into the tent. Pulling the last computer disk out of the drive and putting it into his short’s pocket beside the first, he muttered, “Damn it, she’s right! I can’t lay down now and let the government take it away.” Staring at the computer, he continued, “I hope Eddy didn’t manage to get anything else out to those sharks. This is my chance to show that fat bastard at the University I’ve been right about Dreamtime and the mysteries happening here all along. Peter Howard will shit himself when Ms. Louis is finished and I hope he slips in it and falls on his fat ass when he does.”

          Cheered up by the mental image of the Vice Chancellor at the University sprawled in the middle of his own waste, he shut off the computer and headed back to the site. When he approached the clearing, the absolute quiet, in contrast to its former hum of activity, set off mental alarms. He could see the group of students and village volunteers standing and facing the stone in the middle of the circle. A group of soldiers stood frozen in place on the road leading into the site. They shifted nervously, obviously uncertain what to do in this situation. Their officer stood glaring at the elders with the look of someone who wished he could be somewhere else. The news people handled their cameras and tape recorders, taking their cue from the military but not liking it. Nathan and his friends stood beside the road, angry at their failure to stop the mob from gaining entrance. All of them remained motionless and silent. And all of them faced the stone.

Standing off to the side and partially under the vine screen, he saw Samantha Louis and her young sidekick filming the drama unfolding in the clearing. The look on her face reflected the mood of the crowd standing inside the clearing; a mixture of fear, awe and indecision. The deadly quiet bound all of them to each other and to the stone and to the people themselves. When James stepped out of the tangle of thick bush, he understood the reason for their silence.