The return home

of The Family Treasure Trove, bringing us close

ne: The Se

hanged. Knowledge was no longer hidden beneath floors and journals-it was now a living pulse, running

d help. R

ka introduced he

dants of tribes who once guarded powerful relics and knowledge across East Africa. They had no headquart

ey walked along the old riverbed. "Not everyone believed in hiding the tr

e they now?"

eplied. "But still wa

She wore a faded khaki jacket and a conch shell pendant. Her na

he said, her voice gravelly. "

oth with a complex weave of symbols. "Each knot," she said, "represe

Her family wasn

last active line. The others fell quie

wed hard. "

g, blackmailing, stealing. He believes the treasure can

, Lina cou

mask in her lap. It shimmered faintly i

her, wrappe

safe?" h

itated.

e not

"I am. But that doe

. "Then I wo

ning, the tr

ed her how to decode scrolls using star charts and wind patterns. Baraka helped her map the land a

rs came from neighboring villages-some on foot, others by motorbike or

oden horn. "When blown at the right time," he said

ened. "There ar

f seven. Each tied to an element: Earth, W

ga?" Lin

tembei said. "He alrea

ward. "Then we ca

ted the next relic: The Shell of Water-believed to lie hidden in an ancient well beneat

hat place has been

Sounds like our k

in secret, retrieve the Sh

g was simp

beat-up matatu that would take them to the coast. Zawadi

he whispered. "But rememb

out halfway up a muddy hill. They continued on foot, navigating overgrown path

reached Kilembwe,

s, tangled in vines and seaweed. Crabs scuttled over the

t," Amara

round. "I don'

p. "The well should

, Lina felt the air shift. The mask p

eard it-a song

orward, drawn

Baraka

ltar and knelt be

ere," s

t, they pr

rcular and narrow, des

down there," L

hind them. A cr

tur

of the shadows, flashlights in h

appeared last,

if I followed the roots... the

Chapt

Chapter Ten: The Descent into