The Characters

A most unlikely spy, Danielle had begun working as a typist at the British Embassy after finishing her college studies in 1938. But when she deciphered the intercepted German cable so quickly, Elliott immediately gave her an assignment as a volunteer intelligence officer.

A twenty-two-year-old fresh out of Oxford with a degree in Egyptology and Near Eastern History, Danielle had hoped to become an archaeologist, but the looming threat of a global war has changed all that.

Well versed in global politics and diplomacy, Danielle jumped at the opportunity to enjoy a secret life of adventure. With long chestnut hair, sapphire eyes, and a mischievous smile, she charmed the embassy staff and gotten Elliott’s attention right away.

With a particular flair for undercover work in colorful local attire, Danielle proves essential to Elliott’s plans to recover the ancient treasure map stolen by the Nazis from a prophet’s tomb near Babylon. Will she and Elliott return safely to Baghdad after their adventures? Will Danielle decipher the strange code in the mysterious treasure map?

A handsome Londoner with ocean blue eyes and a lanky, muscular frame, Elliott is the intelligence officer assigned to the British Embassy in Baghdad. Only thirty years old, he has advanced rapidly through the British security service known as MI6 and was transferred to this sensitive post less than one year before, in 1937.

Having studied foreign languages at the University of Edinburgh, Elliott is impressed with Danielle’s fluency in Arabic and Hebrew. With a talent for foreign languages himself, Elliott is conversant in Arabic, Farsi, and German, making this an ideal assignment for the intelligence service.

Seeking clues about the presence of a German archaeology team in the ruins of Babylon an hour’s drive south of Baghdad, Elliott is surprised when Danielle deciphers an encrypted German cable.

An an Assistant Legal Attaché for the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, Sam works abroad to solve international crimes in partnership with local law enforcement. Having arrived for his new assignment in London only one month before, he is eager to get started on his latest investigation.

Surprised to get an after-hours call summoning him to the British Museum, Sam arrives at the scene of the theft of an ancient treasure map known as the Copper Scroll. On loan from the Museum of Jordan for a temporary exhibition, this artifact lists the hiding places of vast quantities of gold, silver, and other treasures that have never been found.

Joining forces with the lovely reporter Rebecca Schreiber, whom he meets unexpectedly at the crime scene, Sam travels from London to Cairo and Babylon to Jerusalem, chasing leads to bring an organized antiquities smuggling ring to justice.

When Rebecca is kidnapped, Sam must use mysterious powers that he has long resisted and the protection of a secret knighthood that he discovers through an inherited journal originally kept by his great-grandmother Danielle Dawson, more than eighty years earlier.

Sam must learn the explosive truth needed to save Rebecca and, in the process, uncover the true meaning of the ancient treasure map.

An accomplished foreign correspondent in London for The Jerusalem Gazette, Rebecca has been working on a story involving the ties between corrupt land-permitting officials in Israel and an international antiquities smuggling ring. Having developed a strong relationship with the director of the British Museum while working on her investigation of a series of internal thefts from the museum, Rebecca is the first reporter to be notified of a major theft from a temporary exhibition.

The Copper Scroll has been stolen, and Rebecca has reasons to take this personally. Initially assigned to the Religion department at The Gazette when she began her career, she had worked on deciphering this artifact’s secrets as part of her story. When she arrives at the crime scene, she tells Sam that the Copper Scroll is not so mysterious after all. This treasure map was written in an ancient code, which only needs to be understood properly to decode the clues.

When they learn that a rogue corporate executive has ordered them surveilled by London mobsters, Rebecca and Sam travel to the Near East to investigate the Copper Scroll’s theft. Hoping to apprehend the suspects identified from clues at the crime scene,

Along the way, they develop a strong attraction to each other. Can they resist their feelings long enough to solve the mystery and stay ahead of the conspirators?

Steve is a technology entrepreneur who got to know Sam during their studies at Cornell University in New York. After obtaining an undergraduate degree in Ancient History and a master’s degree in Technology, Steve returned to his native Atlanta to begin his career as an entrepreneur.

Keeping in touch with Sam and their fellow student Leila Abadi, the three friends have made it a tradition to meet each summer for a foreign trip, enjoying climbing, water sports, and volunteer archaeology together.

When Steve and Leila learn that Sam has to cancel their summer trip to the Italian Alps due to a high-profile investigation of a theft from the British Museum, he proposes that the three friends meet at the first location on Sam’s itinerary—Egypt.

The three friends’ first trip to Egypt goes awry when assassins hired by an antiquities smuggling ring come after Sam. When Steve offers to help Sam with the technology needed to solve the mysteries of his investigation, the three friends join forces to help Sam solve the crime and apprehend the suspects.

A close friend of Sam and Steve from their college days, Leila works for a ballet company in New York City. With undergraduate degrees in Classics and Dance, she enjoys using her background in ancient culture and traditional dance to travel to performances around the world.

Excited to join Sam and Steve for their latest summer trip, Leila hardly minds that the destination has been changed from the Italian Alps to Egypt. Having grown up in a family with roots in the eastern Mediterranean, Leila is fluent in Arabic and Turkish.

When assassins come after Sam in Cairo, Leila uses her familiarity with the local language to help with a quick escape. When Sam’s new friend Rebecca joins the group, Leila helps everyone get to their next destination.