"Janis, could you drive me to my flat, please?" Lara said to the driver, a wiry brunette with Julia Ormond good looks. She was dressed similarly to her colleague in the other front seat, except she wore black Ray-Bans. Her suit jacket was unbuttoned as well. In addition to the handguns both ex-Secret Service bodyguards carried, there was a 9mm Hechler & Koch MP-5 submachinegun under the front passenger seat and a Benelli semiauto 12 ga. tactical shotgun behind a drop panel in the driver's door. They were better armed than any police car in New York.

"Sure thing, Miss Croft," Janis replied, turning right and merging into the traffic of 72nd Street. Lara's flat was only a few blocks from the museum. The traffic slowed to a crawl. Typical for this time of day.

Lara finished dialing the number and heard it ring on the other end. Just as the second ring began the phone was picked up. "Hello?" The cautious voice was that of an elderly gentleman.

"Dr. Rademacher. Hello. It's me, Lara Croft."

The voice of Dr. Charles Rademacher, Dean of Fordham University's Department of History, changed suddenly. "Lara! what a pleasant surprise to hear from you. How are you, dear girl?"

Lara smiled in return. She genuinely like the old man. He was a regular source of valuable research for her. "I am well, Doctor. In fact, I'm here in New York at the moment." She eyed the computer. It had finished booting up. Lara was running System 8.0.1, a special release she had gotten as a favor from a friend at Apple. She clicked on the Netscape icon and it started up.

"I have a request of you, Doctor." Lara continued. "I need to obtain some information regarding the Nitlacazal tribe of Ecuador. Familiar with them?"

"Yes, the name strikes a bell. Didn't they die out around 200 B.C.? Plague, I believe."

"I think so. I need to know something of their written alphabet. I have come across an artifact that bears some writings I can't quite identify and I think it may be of Nitlacatzal origin."

As Lara spoke the Netscape mail screen came up and her latest incoming messages began to download. Only a dozen or so, she noted.

"Really," Dr. Rademacher replied, intrigued. "Well, I would love to look at it. I'm sure we can dig up something on it. I can make a few calls. Meanwhile, Lara dear, you must join Elizabeth and me for dinner tonight."

"I would absolutely adore it!" Lara replied. "I'll bring the artifact with me."

"Seven o'clock, then?"

"Smashing. Goodbye, Doctor."

She placed the phone back in its cradle and turned her attention to her E-mail. She saw some mesages from her publisher, one from a university in England, and others from some of her friends. One message caught her attention. The subject line read: "IMMEDIATE RESPONSE" and the sender's address was "krj0722A@bragg.army.mil". Odd, she thought. Who from the American army would have discovered her private E-mail address and sent her a message? Lara clicked on it and the text opened in the message window. The message read:

     FROM: krj0722A@bragg.army.mil
       TO: lc@croft.org
  SUBJECT: IMMEDIATE RESPONSE

Miss Croft, please call (910) 553-2621 and ask for Major 
Ashton. This is very urgent.

There was no name at the bottom.

Their car finally cleared the traffic jam. Janis accellerated, turned left at Columbus Avenue and turned left again at 71st. She slowed at the parking entrance of Lara's building. The sleek black BMW slid into the dark entryway. Lara was puzzled by the message. "Jeff, what is bragg dot army dot mil anyway?"

Jeffrey O'Rourke, former agent of the U.S. Secret Service, turned around to face his employer. "Sounds like Fort Bragg, down in North Carolina. Big place. Been there a couple times."

"What could they possibly want with me?"

"Beats me, Miss Croft."

They stopped in front of the elevator. Jeff stepped out and opened Lara's door. Janis' head swiveled left to right, scanning for possible threats. Lara stepped out and follwed Jeff to the lobby door. As Janis moved the car to Lara's reserved spot, the pair walked into a waiting elevator.

"Already hearing great reviews of your lecture, Lara. There's talk of publishing a transcript of it in the Smithsonian Journal!" Jenny Harriman was excited. She greeted Lara with the news as they walked through the door of her penthouse apartment. Jenny was Lara's personal assistant. Her right hand, actually. Jenny kept Lara's schedule organized, kept the press away, generally did everything Lara didn't have time or inclination to do herself. Lara was pleased with the news.

"That's wonderful, Jenny. Make sure they don't use an unflattering photo of me, will you? Any other news?"

"There was a call for you from a Major Ashton of the U.S. Army. Said he'd call back. You thinking of joining up or something?" she joked. Lara chuckled lightly.

"And cut off all my hair? Not bloody likely. Did he say what he wanted?"

"Nope. Very curt to say the least."

Lara walked through the entryway into the living room. Her apartment was decorated with artwork and sculpture from nearly every civilization in history. There was a handsome collection of Pre-Columbian art in a King Edward oak display case on one wall, some Masai war masks and spears by the leather sofa, a jade teaset from the Ming dynasty and a solid gold statue of Kali on the glass coffee table. On the walls hung some amazing paintings, including a Van Gogh, a Manet and even a beautifully restored Rembrandt. There were also some rare Japanese prints and an ancient Tibetan scroll. The artifacts in this room alone were worth millions. The large windows gave a spectacular view of Central Park, casting the late afternoon light across the room. Lara removed her jacket and threw it on the sofa, slipped her pistol and holster from her belt and laid it on the coffe table then turned to the small kitchen to make some tea. O'Rourke took up a position by the door, as he always did while waiting for his partner to come up from the garage. Jenny followed her boss into the kitchen.

"I wonder why the Army would be calling you? Is it about your last trip? I know you spent time in D.C. answering questions about it," Jenny asked, retrieving a pair of teacups and saucers from the cupboard. Being an American, she normally drank her tea from a mug. But Lara would die of thirst before doing such a thing, so Jenny had to adopt the habit of using teacups and saucers. Lara opened a box of imported Darjeeling from the counter and put the water on to boil. She measured an amount of the black leaves into a silver tea ball and laid it next to the cups. The water would be ready in a few minutes. Lara sat at the small kitchen table and kicked off her shoes. She was a little tired after a long day surrounded by bookish intellectuals. Perhaps a late night workout, she thought.

"I don't think so, Jen," she replied. "Both the American and British security services asked all their questions. None of them really had any military nature, as fas as I know. By the by, did you confirm those reservations to Los Angeles on the fourth?"

"Sure did. You'll be flying first class on British Airways to LAX and will be staying at the Los Angeles Plaza Suites. The staff from the Institute will meet you at your hotel. Jeff and Janis will travel separately and will meet you at the airport." Lara was scheduled to speak at the Institute of Archaeology at UCLA next week. It was speaking engagements like this along with her book sales that funded her expeditions. Lara Croft was a white-hot item on the lecture circuit these days, what with her books and the articles in Newsweek, The Economist and the BBC interview. Everyone wanted to meet the beautiful auburn-haired adventuress. One of the national morning TV news shows had called her Indiana Jane. There was even a computer company who approached her about designing a game based on her adventures.

Just then the phone rang. Jenny picked it up. "Croft residence. Yes, Major, she's here. One moment please." She handed the phone to Lara mouthing the words 'that's him'. Lara took the cordless handset to her ear.

"Yes? Lara Croft here."

The voice on the other end had a clipped Texas drawl that rang like gunmetal. "Miss Croft, I'm Major Wayne Ashton, U.S. Army. I apologize for the directness of this call, but a situation has come up that requires your expertise. We'd like to ask you for assistance."

"Really," Lara replied, curious. "What could the Army want with me?" Janis had just entered the kitchen and was pouring herself a cup of coffee.

"Ma'am, have ever you heard of somethin' called the Emerald Eye?"

Lara felt goosebumps on her arms. The teakettle began whistling, but she didn't hear it. Jenny eyed her with concern.

"Ma'am?"

"Y-yes. Major. Yes, I've heard of it. Why"

"Well, ma'am, to put it directly, we need to get our hands on that thing in a big hurry, or some people are gonna die. Have you seen the news today?"

Lara frantically gestured to the TV in the corner. Jenny picked up the remote and turned it on.

"No, major, I've been occupied. What's going on?"

"Some tangos have taken down the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi. If they don't get this Emerald Eye, whatever it is, they're going to waste the hostages. I have been told it's some kind of ancient artifact. We looked for someone who was qualified to go get it. Short list of names. Yours was first. We've cleared you with the State Department and the Brits. When can you come down to Fort Bragg?"

Lara was even more confused. "'Tangos'?"

"Terrorists, ma'am. Some sort of religious cult. Fanatics. Very dangerous. We need you here ASAP, Miss Croft."

Lara glanced over to the television. It was on CNN. The graphic at the top of the screen read "Breaking Story: U.S. Embassy, Nairobi, Kenya." The picture was taken from some distance, waves of heat distorting the image. There was a walled compound in the African night. In front of the gate under the glare of floodlights lay two bodies. They had been shot. Blood ran down to the street. Jenny and the two bodyguards watched, frozen to the floor. Lara played for sport, never for stakes this high. This was something else altogether. And the Emerald Eye. Did it even exist? She thought on it for a split second. Her decision made itself. How could she turn this down?

"Major, I'll be there as soon as I can." His voiced changed. It had the unmistakable tone of command.

"We have a plane waiting at Newark. You can be here in two hours. Bring your gear."

The phone clicked. Lara laid it on the table and jumped up to go into her bedroom to change into her "work clothes".

"Janis, bring the car round please. We're going to Newark Airport. Jeff, pack my kit. Include everything. Jenny, cancel the flight to L.A. And cancel with Dr. Rademacher, please. I'm going to North Carolina."

CHAPTER THREE