ANTONIA WAS THE FIRST to reach the Chamber of Chaos, and she felt as if she had landed in her own tomb. Before her eyes, she saw a room with moldy walls and a perfectly rectangular ceiling.
A few seconds were enough for her to visually survey the entire area. Then she saw him, standing in a gap on the other side, as if he were a specter in a stone mausoleum. She stared at him, unsure of what to do or say's entry managed to restore her mobility, so she stood to one side, avoiding any contact with the young woman.
— Look who we have here! It's my old friend, the Master! — Sephy exclaimed, recognizing Monroe. — I see our paths have crossed again.
She pointed the gun at him, trying to avoid any unpleasant surprises. Umbert raised his arms slightly, implying with the gesture that he had nothing hidden in his hands, just the flashlight.
— I have to say, though, it's no pleasure to see you again... — He gave a forced smile. — I never believed you could pull this off.
— As you can see... I am relentless.
— You must be Dr. Sala, I suppose... — The architect looked at Antonia curiously. — I'd like to know what your position is.
She thought for a moment before answering. In reality, she wasn't on either side. She was a third party to the discord.
— At this moment, my position is as vulnerable as yours — she said sincerely, expressing this conclusion. — However, I hope to be fortunate enough to behold the Ark of the Covenant before I die.
— I don't think it will be possible — Monroe declared. — No sacrilegious person will ever see it. Never!
— You say that because you don't know me — Sephy added. — Very well! Enough chatter. Tell me where Greg and the others are. And don't tell me you're alone, because we've been following you since the Archaeological Museum.
Umbert's pupils shone with special intensity in the dimness of the room. In a way, it was a provocation, a challenge to death, but he didn't care. He knew his fate beforehand.
This was one of the sacrifices Balkis demanded: to clear his conscience by doing justice. He had to pay for the mistakes he had made.
— I'm not afraid of you — he told her seriously. — I know that sooner or later you'll feel the need to get me out of the way.
— Of course — the young German woman admitted. — I could never forgive what you did to Nina.
— It wasn't my fault, but rather your curiosity and ambition, Sephy. You knew that the lodge doesn't allow intrusion from anyone outside the brotherhood. Anyone who inquires about the secrets of the chamber will be silenced forever... Don't you remember the warning maxim?
— You're crazy — Sephy muttered, placing the pistol inches from Monroe's head.
The architect withstood the provocation with extraordinary composure.
— You have two options — he told her icily. — One, avenge the loss of your friend and return the way you came; the other is to break up with me and move on. If you choose the first, I'll think you're smart. If you choose the second, you can be sure that before the night is over, our souls will burn together in hell.
— So be it!
Without thinking, the German woman pulled the trigger, and the echo of the shot echoed through the chamber, repeatedly and loudly. Umbert's lifeless body fell to the ground in a final act of futility. He had been a victim of his own sentence. Sephy turned his face toward Antonia, who discovered, upon seeing that look, something she hadn't known until that moment: the girl was a compulsive psychopath, with a clear tendency toward sadism.
— I hate bragging — he said sarcastically, and began to laugh.
This confirmed the cryptographer's most sinister theory. Just as Umbert Monroe had promised them, the back wall of the canal was a stone swinging door, and it was ajar. Giovanna, always the first to do so, gently pushed it open with her hand. She was surprised to see how easily it swung open, and also surprised that no archaeologist had suspected the existence of that passage, which continued on for several meters, beneath the Great Pyramid.