Phantom Prospect - Alex Archer [41]
“Because he’s the only one who’s been convinced from the start that the Fantome was actually hauling captured booty back to Britain. Pretty much everyone else in the treasure-hunting community blows it off as a wild-goose chase. Hunter hasn’t.”
“And if he’s determined to bring it up, then that represents a problem for you guys.”
Sheila nodded. “Of course. Garin was never concerned about it before. As long as it stayed on the ocean floor, he was content to let it lie. But Hunter is not content to let that happen. So other steps had to be taken. I was told to insert and safeguard it.”
“From me?”
Sheila shook her head. “This isn’t about you, Annja.” Her eyes narrowed. “Besides, from what I hear, you’ve already got your hands full with another relic. I don’t think anyone’s eager to see your workload compounded.”
“You know?”
Sheila nodded. “Pretty much everything. Yep.”
Annja frowned. “And Garin was comfortable with that?”
“That’s beside the point,” Sheila said. “The real danger here is that this relic falls into the hands of the other party.”
“Who?”
“In time,” Sheila said. “For right now, let’s just say they are extremely dedicated to getting their hands on the relic first. We’ve already seen some of their attempts.”
“Not the engine room fire?”
Sheila nodded. “Just a slight distraction. If they’d wanted it, we’d all be dead right now.”
“Wonderful.” Annja frowned. “What is this thing and why do they want it?”
“It belonged to the same woman as your sword.”
“Joan of Arc?” Annja frowned. “What was it about her that prompted such attention?”
“Her single-minded devotion to God’s service. When she was burned at the stake, the sword wasn’t the only thing taken from her and believed to have been destroyed. When she was tied to the stake, they took the small crucifix from around her neck. Since they considered her a heretic, they said she wouldn’t be needing it.”
“So the crucifix is down there?”
Sheila nodded. “It was a gift from the French to Washington after his inauguration as the first president. The legend surrounding the necklace was whispered about in tight circles. Rumors of what it could do abounded but no one ever paid much attention to it. The necklace was to be kept safe and secured in the White House.”
“What’s it supposed to be able to do?”
Sheila looked at Annja. “Are you sure you want to hear this?”
“I’m here, aren’t I?”
“It supposedly renders the wearer immortal.”
Annja frowned. “Supposedly. You don’t know for sure?”
“Can you tell me exactly what that sword of your does or where it goes or even every one of its powers?”
“I wouldn’t even try to convince you of that,” Annja said. “It seems to have plenty of hidden assets I can’t understand.”
“Exactly,” Sheila said. “That’s the problem with the crucifix. We don’t really know how it works. It’s not like we could experiment with it. But the threat of what it can potentially do is enough to spur our intervention.”
Annja shook her head. “You want to keep this out of the hands of someone very powerful, I take it.”
Sheila stretched. “Can you imagine what would happen if an evil party got their hands on this? If they could figure out how to tap into the hidden properties of the necklace? I think we can both agree that the world is filled with people who really should not be allowed to ingest any more oxygen than absolutely necessary.”
“I’ve met my fair share of evil,” Annja admitted.
“Now imagine if they were invulnerable, even to your sword. If they could continue sowing discord and terror among the population.”
“They’d grow unchecked.” Annja nodded. “I can see the threat. But how do we stop it?”
“By getting the crucifix first.”
“That means going underwater,” Annja said. “I don’t think I need to bring up the danger that waits below the surface.”
Sheila nodded. “The shark is a problem.”
“A big one, near as I can tell,” Annja said. “I’m used to dealing with humans. Giant flesh-eating fish are something else entirely.”
“It’s going to have to be dealt with,” Sheila said. “We need that treasure brought up and the crucifix either safeguarded