Free The Crystal's Curse by Vicky de Leo

what we do know. We know for a fact that Joshua was here one minute and then apparently in Boston a few minutes later. We also know it happened while he was standing in the niche. Therefore, there has to be some correlation between the two.”
    Maria nodded. “We also know that the niche had been covered up for a long time, so whoever built it hasn’t been using it. Unfortunately that means it’s doubtful that anyone around here has the answers we need.”
    Sam leaned back and closed his eyes. “You know it’s still a fantastic find even if we never discover what the niche is or how it works.”
    “We could write it up that way and pretend that Joshua never left.” Even as Maria made the suggestion, she knew that Sam was not a stick-your-head-in-the-sand kind of guy. He could not ignore a puzzle and pretend it didn’t exist. Nor could he risk his reputation claiming to have found an ancient transporter without sufficient proof.
    Sam started the Jeep and drove back into camp. Once there, they sought out Ricardo to tell him what they’d found out.
    “So you really believe that Joshua was transported to Boston?” Ricardo asked.
    They both nodded.
    “He couldn’t have gotten there when he did in any other way,” Sam explained.
    “We didn’t find anything in any of the holes,” said Ricardo trying to understand.
    “The only explanation that I can think of is that whatever substance powers it, gets completely burned up in the process,” answered Sam.
    “You realize how really crazy this sounds. If I didn‘t know you better, I‘d think you both flipped out.” Ricardo said with a smile.
    Sam nodded. “Yes, I’m still trying to convince myself, and I saw him disappear. Obviously we can‘t tell anyone else. I still don’t see any reason to keep the crew. We might as well continue to shut down the site as we planned. I‘m just not sure what we should do then to find the answers we need.”
    “What do we tell the crew about Joshua?” Maria asked
    “We tell them that he called us from Boston and that he’s fine. We don’t elaborate,” answered Sam.
    “Maybe it’s time to talk to Erik Johansen about the glyphs he claims to have seen before,” mused Ricardo.
    “He’ll want to see them. But I don’t see what harm that can do now,” replied Sam.

 
    Chapter Seven
     
    When Sam and Maria called Joseph later that night, they consented for Joshua to start college. It would take them another couple of weeks to wrap up everything on the dig. Then they would come to see him before heading to Washington D.C. to begin work writing up their discovery. Joshua was elated. Thanks to his grandfather, not only did he now have a new wardrobe, but he’d also insisted on helping Joshua with tuition.
    It all happened so fast. The next day Maggie had his transcripts faxed to the office. Joseph made a call to the president of the university, who assured him that there would be no problem with Joshua’s transfer. He could register in the classes he had been taking online and begin attending class immediately. Registration papers were faxed to the office, filled out, and faxed back to the university. Maggie even had Joshua’s books sent over. Obviously, Joseph Carson was a much more important man than Joshua realized.
    In addition, his grandfather had arranged for Nathan to pick up Joshua on his first day to show him around the campus.
    “I‘m sorry my grandfather imposed on you. I could have found my way around,” Joshua apologized when Nathan picked him up.
    “I don’t mind. I don’t have a class until this afternoon,” replied Nathan. “By the way, what did you say to Frank the other night? He seemed upset. I thought I ought to warn you, he has a nasty temper.”
    “He got in my face telling me that Sara was his. I just said I enjoyed a challenge.”
    Nathan laughed. “Yeah, that would do it. Be careful. While you may be able to take on Frank, it would never be just him. He always brings along his buddies