Words: 748
Jack Canyon had a long and lonely seventeen hour flight home from Cusco. He had spent seven hours before that in a funeral home getting Sophia a coffin so that he could transport her back to the States. Then he had to deal with customs for a few hours. The last twenty-four hours was hell for a torn up man who just lost his friend, his lover, his world. Why must one lose something to learn how much he appreciates it? How much he loves it? How much he misses it?
At Mr. Stone's museum, Jack was getting even more nervous as he moved up the front steps. He stopped at the front door. Memories flooded back from the time he stood at John Baxter's door with Emily in his arms. He sighed heavily as he looked down at his arms. Sophia was peaceful. Taking her from the van to the museum was no trouble at all, since there was no one to stop him. He wanted Mr. Stone to see his daughter. It was better than explaining it verbally. He wasn't even sure it he could.
The doors opened as he entered and made his way inside. He figured one thing about John and Emily was true now. They were finally happy. They were finally together in the afterlife. Heaven was a known fact to Jack ever since he had his run in with God two years ago. He looked down at Sophia Stone once more with regret on his face. Why couldn't he had tried to show her he loved her? He continued to beat himself up over it.
"Jack?" Mr. Stone asked as Jack entered his office and set Sophia on the couch against the wall. "Oh, no, Sophie!" He jumped out of his chair and moved to his deceased daughter's side. Tears filled his eyes and pain in his chest. "What happened, Jack?"
"We found her," Jack stated sadly. "The Spider Queen. Her city. The curse."
"Come on, Jack, there's no such thing as a curse," Stone argued.
"Sophia should be proof enough of that," Jack said as he wiped a single tear from his left eye. He threw Baxter's diary onto Stone's desk. "It's all there. How the curse killed the Conquistadores and sunk their ships. How the Spider Queen came to be. The Curse legacy. All of it."
"So, it's true?"
"John, Marissa, Clarissa, Sophia, and a very big gang of bandits down in the Amazon," Jack explained. "Not to mention the conquistadors, of course."
"Why?" He asked sadly.
Jack bit his lip for a moment and put his hand on Stone's shoulder. "She rushed Adriana, the gang leader, who was the Spider Queen reincarnated. She killed Soph."
Stone was still in the kneeling position.
"The Spider Queen originated from some disease that made the woman have dark evil eyes and fangs," Jack explained. "She left Machu Picchu, was able to arrange a city and civilization all her own from the remaining Incas and Moche. The Inca language changed through the years, so it was hard to read. When the Conquestadores finally found her lost city in the middle of the Amazon, they captured her and put her into a web."
"This is the Spider Queen legend?"
"Yeah, it tells of her life and how the curse came about. She. . . She swore to her gods that she would forever torment those who come to her temple." Jack dropped the pack off his back. "There are some treasures in here, some tablets with inscriptions. Jacarei was able to steal some. The entire story is here."
"Jack. . ." Stone said as he rose to his feet. "I think you should be the one who puts it all together. You're the only survivor of the expedition. You know what happened. You know the Spider Queen legend."
Jack nodded at the man. "I'll get started on it in the morning."
"No, Jack," Stone corrected the archaeologist. "Take the week off. This can wait."
"Mr. Stone, I'm going to go crazy sitting at home, alone, for a week."
Stone thought for a moment. "Then get started when you want. I'll handle all of Sophia's funeral arrangements."
"No, sir," Jack replied. "I'll do it." Jack picked up Sophia and headed out with her so that he could get her to the funeral home. Then he needed to rest. Tomorrow was going to be a long day of working on the Spider Queen relics and story for the public.
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