Pursuit of the Patriarchs

Chapter 14

David had given them some disturbing information. Some of the Dead Sea scrolls that had never been made public revealed Jewish patriarchs had been sent to Lake Tana, Ethiopia. Apparently, at least according to the scrolls, before the Assyrians had the chance to invade the Northern Kingdom and scatter the lost ten tribes, religious leaders of all twelve tribes left for what had been a Jewish kingdom with their mummified patriarchs to keep them safe from the Assyrians.

It was too outlandish an idea to be taken seriously by anyone of importance in Jerusalem. The idea that Joseph's tomb didn't actually contain Joseph's mummified remains just couldn't be taken seriously by anyone.

Old maps of the ancient Jewish kingdom of Ethiopia pointed to the likelihood of where they went. If, and it was a big if, the patriarchs had actually been sent to safety before the invasion came, it was possible they were still there.

With David's help, they were put in contact with a few assets in Ethiopia who'd helped Mossad in the past without knowing they ever helped Mossad. A tour given by people familiar with Lake Tana was set up where they'd be led to any island they wished to see. Donna and Johnathon's covers were Cambridge doctoral students by the name of Rebecca Sampson and Samuel Rivers studying the ancient structures on the islands of Lake Tana. Their ages wouldn't be questioned, since they were both altered to appear young enough to fill the role.

Neither of them had ever been to Ethiopia, but was assured going to Lake Tana was safe. Whatever violence was happening in the country was well away from where they were going. The government cared about perception more than reality, when it came to hosting foreigners. They needed tourists to spend their money going to places like Lake Tana.

There were no hassles at the Bahir Dar Airport and already had a driver, Mekonnen, waiting for them with a green jeep who'd driven the route many times. University students heading to Lake Tana was common enough not to raise suspicions by Mekonnen or anyone else.

Mekonnen was dressed in a white dress shirt with blue jeans and durable boots. His mocha flesh seemed to glow beneath the hot Ethiopian sun. The unpleasant scents of the crowded city didn't seem to affect him in the least. He was all smiles from the moment they met him.

Mekonnen was happy Johnathon was able to translate, since his English was poor. He took pride in driving them around and pointing out everything. Something that would've been impossible without a common language. Donna wished she understood the strange language she never heard before, but enjoyed hearing.

Their concealed pistols were never discovered. They were hidden in their luggage using Donna's people to hide them from detectors. They found their driver to be a pleasant enough person who chatted away about the city he loved while they carefully assembled their weapons without drawing any attention to themselves. The roads were rough, but engine sounded good. To him, there were no smooth roads ever built. Every bump that caused them to hit their heads was taken in stride.

They had two guides waiting, Abeje and Hagos, who were university students at Bahir Dar who were from different villages close to Lake Tana. They all played on the various islands as boys and knew them better than anyone else in the city who played guide.

The plan was to meet with their guides at a small village with no official name about 5 miles from Lake Tana, where they would take over the driving. They already had a small speedboat ready to take them across Lake Tana to whichever islands they wished, but didn't trust any other driver not to damage their boat. Without it, they couldn't make the money needed from tourists.