Masked

VI.

Comic relief ahead, you've been warned.

--

"Hey. I think I might've found something."

Lara and I went rushing to Jonah, who was sitting on the floor in a pile of paperwork and old files. To make the process of finding valuable information easier, we split the documents up into three equal stacks. Lara and I had set ourselves each on one end of the wooden bureau while Jonah had fanned out all of his material on the floor.

"Here."

Jonah pulled up a map of what seemed to be Mexico and South America.

"Didn't the Maya settle there?"

"They did. But it seems that father didn't quite know where or even what to search for. Look."

Lara pointed to several regions, which her father had highlighted with a red circle. One of the markings stood out in particular, because Lord Croft had flagged it with a little question mark.

"That's Cozumel... Father always dreamed of going there one day. But why did he highlight it with a question mark?"

Jonah and I focused on the print for a few more seconds before he started talking.

"Not sure. But maybe this thing here can help, I found it wrapped up in the map. Take a look."

Jonah pulled up a sheet of paper that was folded into halves. From the looks of it, it must've laid there for a few years already. He carefully unfolded it.

"Woah. Seems like I found something important."

Lara leaned over to her friend to get a better look at the sheet.

"Found hint, must ask Dominguez about it", the brunette read aloud.

"Wait. Who's Dominguez? Isa, do you know something about him? ... Isa?"

But I didn't listen. I was concentrating on something else – a long forgotten memory that slowly found its way back into my mind. Suddenly, it hit me.

--

"Why is father still in his office?", little Isabelle asked her mother who was at the stove, stirring a not yet boiling goulash soup.

"Your father is working on something very important right now, sweetheart. We can't disturb him."

Isabelle jumped up from her seat.

"But I want to know!"

Isabelle's mother looked at her in an apologetic way.

"I'm afraid you're too young to understand. But maybe he'll tell you one day."

The little girl was just readying herself to put on her best pouty face to convince her mother to tell her what father was so busy with, but in that moment the door to the kitchen swung open to reveal Mr. Bennet. And he didn't look very pleased.

"Father!"

"Geoffrey! Are you finally done?"

Mr. Bennet rubbed his temples.

"I am done – but rather with that idiot called Dominguez than the actual work."

"Who's Dominguez?", asked their daughter.

"That absolute stubborn moron me and my friend agreed working with. The clues he worked out led us into a dead end once again. At this point – "

But before Mr. Bennet could speak further and possibly get angrier, Isabelle's mother stopped him.

"Geoffrey, not now – and not in front of our daughter. You can tell me what happened after dinner."