The Minoan Cipher (A Matinicus “Matt” Hawkins Adventure Book 2) Read Free Page A

king lifted the hood back onto his head and vanished into the shadows.
    The commander stared into the darkness until he became aware of the heat of the girl resting in his arms. He told the nanny to get into a supply wagon, then handed the girl up to her. With a heaviness in his heart, he ordered his men to move out.

PART III-FLIGHT
     
    The commander and his men marched under the stars, following a road that ran between rugged mountain ranges and across plains covered with agricultural fields. At dawn, he ordered the group to stop and rest in the shade of some hearty trees so his men could dine on bread, cheese and water.
    The march continued under the blistering sun and well into the evening. Spurring him on to even greater urgency were the pinpoints of light moving along the royal road from the direction of Knossos. His instincts told him that the high priestess had recovered from her drug daze and rallied her followers much faster than he’d expected. The commander had lived through many battles by thinking far ahead of the enemy. His orders from the king were what the high priestess would expect him to do, so he did what he had prepared for when he ordered his men to transport empty chests from the treasury along with the full.
    He split his men into two groups. One group would take some wagons and continue on to the coast. The nanny and the child would go with them. The commander led another contingent of men, horses and wagons onto a dry river bed through the rugged hills.
    When the commander caught up with the procession the next morning, the weary faces of his men were smeared with sweat and dirt. The string of horses they led no longer hauled wagons. The commander spurred his men along the coastal road which gradually rose, passed through a narrow gorge and descended a series of switchbacks to a small harbor.
    Tied up to a stone quay were four vessels. The largest, a cargo ship, had a narrow stern and an upturned prow carved into the head of a bird. The vessel had a graceful crescent profile. Towers at each end were designed to provide archers defending the ship with elevated battle stations.
    The wagons were wheeled up a gangway onto the ship. The bronze chests were slid down ramps into the hold. Stalls were set up on deck for a few horses while the rest were given to a nearby village. The chariot was taken apart and stored in the hold.
    The commander pondered the fate of the other vessels. Two were mid-sized trading craft. The last was less than a third the length of the great ship and its narrow white hull was painted with images of leaping blue dolphins. He recognized the king’s yacht which had been on its way back from a competition in Egypt. The yacht had stopped at the southern harbor and the crew headed north on foot after learning their home port had been destroyed.
    With its out-sized sail of red wool, and wave-cutting hull design, there was nothing on the water that could touch the yacht for speed. The commander ordered the yacht towed behind the ship. It would slow them, but he could never allow the king’s boat to fall into enemy hands.
    Dusk was settling. The wise course would be to torch the other vessels, but the commander hesitated. Every Minoan ship was precious. By the time he had reluctantly decided to destroy the ships, it was too late.
    Someone yelled and pointed to the hill overlooking the harbor. A light crested the ridge. Then another and another. The lights flowed down the road leading to the harbor, moving back and forth along the steep switchbacks.
    The commander ordered the captain to get underway. The crew cast off the dock lines and unfurled the sail. The pursuers swarmed along the quay. A hail of arrows from shore fell short of the departing vessel. In the light of the gathering torches, the commander saw a man wearing a plumed headdress. In his confusion, the commander thought that the king had succeeded in winning over the people.
    Then the man removed the feathered crown to