As Vincent was still reading the message, Amanda walked up behind him. Before she could ask anything, Vincent quickly composed himself.
"Amanda… Kevin's mother isn't well," he said calmly. "So he and Julie left to see her. Inform the others."
"Okay, sir."
"Don't call me 'sir,'" Vincent added. "Just use my name. I don't mind."
She hesitated. "Then… should I call you Leader?"
Vincent smiled faintly. "That's fine. Whatever you like."
Amanda walked away and repeated Vincent's explanation to the others without changing a word.
Outside, David stood silently, staring at Beula's room. The moment Amanda came toward him, he quickly stepped inside. Rebecca stood near the window, leaning forward to watch the outside world.
A jeep arrived at the entrance. A Mexican tour guide stepped out and closed the door behind him. Hearing the sound, Vincent and David came outside.
"Hello, sir. I think you are Mr. Vincent?" the man asked.
"Yes, I am Vincent," he replied. "But… I didn't call for you."
"No, sir. Mr. George sent me," the guide explained. "I was instructed to show you the places where the Mayans once lived."
"That's good," Vincent said. "Come in. There are books inside if you'd like to read. We'll be ready in twenty minutes."
"No problem, sir. Take your time."
Vincent was ready within five minutes. Once Beula came out, David followed immediately. Amanda went upstairs to call Rebecca, but Rebecca was already prepared. Soon, everyone gathered and stepped out together.
"What's your name?" Vincent asked as they walked toward the jeep.
"Sam, sir."
"Alright, Sam. Were you born and raised here?"
"Yes, sir. I lived in this town until my marriage."
As Sam spoke, he climbed into the driver's seat. Vincent opened the right-side door of the jeep.
The moment Beula noticed David approaching, she hurried inside and took a seat on the right. She pulled Amanda beside her by the hand. Understanding Beula's intention, Rebecca sat opposite them.
David entered the jeep as if none of this mattered. Everyone knew about the divorce proceedings, so no one commented.
"Where would you like to go, sir?" Sam asked. "Tikal, Calakmul, Caracol, Dos Pilas?"
"Take us wherever you think is best," Vincent replied.
Sam turned the jeep toward Tikal.
"There are still seventeen major places to explore," Sam explained. "The place we're heading to now is one of the four most important Mayan sites."
When they arrived, Sam stopped the jeep. Ancient Mayan structures stood before them. Vincent stepped forward immediately, and the others followed.
Vincent walked straight to a stone pillar. Lotus patterns were carved tightly from top to bottom, yet the symmetry was flawless. His eyes measured the engravings instinctively—2.3 below, 5.6 above.
On the nearby wall, serpents were etched in flowing patterns. Elephants were carved along the outer walls, almost as if welcoming visitors.
Inside the structure, Amanda explored room by room. In one chamber, she found a statue of Kukulkan, the Mayan god of knowledge. The Mayans had worshipped nearly 166 gods in total.
Outside, Rebecca introduced herself to local forest-dwelling tribes nearby.
David kept watching Vincent. Ever since they arrived, Vincent hadn't moved away from that pillar.
"What do you think, Vincent?" David asked. "Should we dig here using ground-penetrating scans?"
"No," Vincent replied. "This site has already been studied. Last year, a metal handle was found here."
"Was it used by the Mayans?"
"No. It belonged to the Sumerians—a door handle. Many tribes came here after the Mayans. If we dig now, we'll only find remains from later settlements."
He continued calmly.
"The Mayan civilization, believed to have emerged around 2600 BCE, began disappearing from the southern lowlands by the 9th century CE. It spread across present-day Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras… and by 950 CE, it vanished without a trace."
Vincent knew all this.
Yet despite years of research and endless facts, he stood there driven by nothing more than an uncertain hope—that somewhere in these ruins, the truth still waited to be uncovered.