Moti led them to it. A bearded monk took them inside. Derek babbled out the story of his search. The monk bowed his head.
“Please wait,” he said.
The monk went down a long, narrow passage. He turned a corner and was out of sight.
Derek’s heart was throbbing. Biff and his uncle were tense with hope.
Minutes passed. The shuffling of feet was heard. The monk was halfway back to the waiting group when another figure came into the passage. He was tall, gaunt, wasted by illness.
But there was a smile of happiness on his face.
Derek Zook raced down the passageway to meet his father.
* * * * * * * *
Biff, his uncle, Derek, and his father were sitting in the patio of the Sans Souci. Hummingbirds darted in and out of the bougainvillea which poured over the terrace. It was the afternoon of the day after Brom Zook had been found.
Brom Zook’s story was short. On the day he had mailed the letters and pearls to his son and to Charles Keene, he discovered he was being followed. He had thought it best to disappear into the hills until his claim could be filed and acted upon.