The mysterious death of Dr. Hoyle a an archaeologist studying a culture that flourished thousands of years ago a arouses his brother, Jedas, suspicion. Although his only clues are the snapshot of a beautiful woman and a crystal of unusual properties, he decides to investigate. Arriving in Bolivia, he discovers that Dr. Hoyleas murder is connected to a place lost in the mist of legend, its exact location known to one man alone. A roller-coaster of events leads Jed Hoyle to a shaman who conceals his true identity under the guise of an old man. Custodian of the Secret Ways, the shaman is also Keeper of the Court of the Dead: a maze of chambers filled with the treasures of a long-vanished civilization. Using the crystal, Jed gains access to this secret place, where he and his companions are trapped by an ancient mechanism. Water and a relic hold the key to their escape.