The three members of Vincent's team stepped inside the newly opened Mayan cave.
The moment Vincent entered, he froze in shock.
The earthquake itself had revealed the hidden path to the cave.
They were supposed to be in the U.S. by today…
I thought I would have to continue this research alone.
But now nature itself has shown me the way.
I cannot let this go.
With that thought, Vincent moved deeper inside.
Near the entrance, a stone pillar stood wrapped with countless talismans tied around it.
Driven by curiosity, David rushed ahead of Vincent.
The cave was massive—filled with numerous chambers branching in different directions.
As Amanda walked further in, she could clearly hear the sound of a waterfall flowing outside.
Because of the moisture, corn plants had grown inside the cave itself.
Some of the corns were fully grown—edible.
Beulah climbed toward an upper chamber.
The cave had been constructed in ancient architectural style, with rooms both above and below.
Amanda stood in awe, unable to believe what she was seeing.
David entered a lower chamber.
Inside, the Mayans had recreated their agricultural water-management system on a smaller scale—
a canal nearly 216 feet long, a 20-foot-high waterfall, and a system that carried water over 150 meters.
David stood stunned.
His entire perception of this research began to change.
Meanwhile, Vincent searched for what he truly wanted.
The Mayan Calendar must be here, he was certain.
Beulah opened the door to the upper chamber.
All the chamber doors in the cave were made of stone, designed to slide open easily.
At first glance, the room appeared empty—only rocks everywhere.
"Tch," Beulah muttered in disappointment and turned to leave.
Then—
her neurons fired.
She spun around, rushed back in, and stared closely.
Vincent, moving from chamber to chamber, suddenly received a call from George.
George was determined to bring Vincent's team back to the U.S. today.
Normally, Vincent hesitated before answering George's calls.
This time, he answered immediately.
George:
"Vincent, enough of Mexico. Return to the U.S. immediately.
An important assignment has come up. I've sent the details on WhatsApp."
Vincent:
"Okay, George. One second… I've sent you some photos on WhatsApp. Please check."
As Vincent spoke, he took photographs of the cave and sent them.
After seeing the photos, George never called back.
At the same time, Vincent's phone signal began to drop.
Beulah closely examined the rocks in the chamber.
Unlike the rest of the cave, these stones were brown in color.
Suspicious, she took a pocket knife from her bag and scraped the surface.
As she scraped—
a chocolate-like smell began to rise.
David was still in the lower chamber.
Beulah remained upstairs.
Vincent continued scanning every room.
Amanda quietly gathered corn and packed it into her bag.
She realized they would have to stay here overnight.
The earthquake had severely damaged the Caracol mountain.
Until the Mexican auxiliary forces or rescue teams arrived, they had no choice but to remain inside.
As Beulah descended the stairs, David emerged from the lower chamber.
Suddenly, courage came to David.
He stepped in front of her.
"What, David?" Beulah asked casually.
David:
"Don't you know why I came to Mexico, Beulah?"
Beulah steadied herself.
"Change that thought, David," she said coldly, turning away.
But David wouldn't let her go.
"I can't, Beulah. I can't live without you."
Beulah:
"Fine. I can't live with you either, David."
"Not for me… for our daughter.
If we separate, she won't be able to bear it."
Beulah's voice hardened.
"Anjalika isn't a child, David.
She'll understand. Don't try to blackmail me using her."
David was shaken.
Before he could finish speaking—
Beulah:
"You don't have to say anything.
This journey ends both our expedition—and our life journey together."
She walked away without waiting for his reply.
David stood there, shattered.
Nearby, Beulah noticed a Kukulkan statue and slowly circled it.
It was a statue built by Cheran for Pachama.
According to Mayan tradition, men who won a woman's heart would build towers in her memory.
At the top, they would place the statue of her favored deity.
Cheran had done the same—
building a tower inside the cave and installing Kukulkan, Pachama's chosen god.
It was his first gift of love to her.
Beulah walked back to David, kissed him without a word, and whispered:
"I can't live even a minute without you, David."
She walked away.
David stood frozen, unable to comprehend what had just happened.
Outside, at the base of the mountain, a boar statue hung by ropes, being slowly pulled upward.
Rebecca was driving toward the site.
Halfway up Caracol mountain, a landslide occurred.
In her urgency, Rebecca had not fastened her seatbelt or locked the doors.
The landslide struck her car violently.
The vehicle lost control and veered toward the cliff.
The door flew open.
Rebecca was thrown out.
The landslide dragged her along until she fell unconscious near the edge.
Moments later, the car plunged off the cliff—shattering into pieces.
Cracks began to form beneath the rock where Rebecca lay.
Inside the cave, Vincent examined Pachama's paintings—
painted in Mayan Blue.
But he found no clue.
5:00 PM
Beulah felt hunger rising.
David opened his bag instinctively—three burgers inside.
He gave two to Beulah and ate one.
Beulah split her burger and fed him anyway.
They smiled—but their hunger remained.
Amanda arrived carrying corn.
David gathered dry twigs.
Beulah lit the fire.
Six corns roasted over the flames.
Vincent desperately wanted to retrieve the Mayan Calendar today.
But hunger and exhaustion overcame him.
He sat beside them, watching the corn roast.
Elsewhere, Rebecca lay in critical condition.
Unaware, Amanda asked,
"Hasn't Rebecca arrived yet?"
David replied carefully,
"At least two days… given the earthquake damage."
They didn't know—
Rebecca would never arrive.
As David spoke, the rock beneath Rebecca finally gave way.
She fell—
182 feet down.
The Vincent team became four from five.
After eating, Vincent resumed his search for the Mayan Calendar.
Amanda followed him.
This left David and Beulah alone.
Together, they searched chamber by chamber.
Inside one room, balls were stacked everywhere—
rubber balls above, stone balls below.
The Mayans had first played with stone balls.
Later, they extracted latex from rubber trees to make rubber balls.
Beulah threw one against the wall.
It bounced back into her hands.
David's skin prickled.
Those rubber balls—
over 2,500 years old—
were still playable.
Vincent walked ahead, thoughts racing.
He had already searched every chamber.
Nothing.
Is there a hidden door?
Where else could it be?
As Vincent's team continued exploring the cave—
the boar statue outside had risen halfway.