Excavation
Monday, August 20, 11:52 A.M.
Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, Maryland
Professor Henry Conklin's fingers trembled slightly as he unwrapped the final layer of blankets from around his frozen treasure. He held his breath. How had the fared after the three-thousand-mile trip from the Andes? Back in Peru, he had been so careful to pack and crate the frozen remains in dry ice for the trip to Baltimore, but during such a long journey anything could have gone wrong.
Henry ran a hand through his dark hair, now dusted with a generous amount of grey since passing his sixtieth birthday last year. He prayed his past three decades of research and fieldwork would pay off. He would not have a second chance. Transporting the mummy from South America had almost drained the last of his grant money. And nowadays any new fellowships or grants were awarded to researchers younger than he. He was becoming a dinosaur at Texas A&M. Though still fevered, he was now more coddled than taken seriously.
Still, his most recent discovery of the ruins of a small Incan village high in the Andes could change all that -- especially if it proved his own controversial theory.
He cautiously tugged free the final linen wrap. Fog from the thawing dry ice momentarily obscured his sight. He waved t ... read full excerpt from: Excavation ebook
