Why did psychos believe that making empty promises would grant them compliance? He meant to kill me the moment he got what he wanted.
As Dove would say: Screw that noise.
“No time for games,” he hissed. He moved to my side and jerked me around, grabbing my chin. “I want the ambrosia.”
I stared at him, openmouthed. “Ambrosia? Seriously?”
His gaze narrowed and his grip tightened. Okay. So he was serious.
“Get away from her, Karn.” This edict was issued by Drake.
My captor was surrounded by vampires and werewolves. Apparently all the bad guys had been dispatched—save this one. I took a step back, but Karn followed, keeping the knife severely close to my eye. “Back, mongrel! Or I will kill her.”
Everyone believed the surety in his tone and honored the request. They didn’t go too far, but I was betting no one could get to me before he buried the knife in my face. Fear beat with wings of dread in my stomach. My heart pounded so hard I could hear the rush of the blood in my ears.
“Open it.” He grabbed my shoulder and spun me around.
I didn’t know how to open the pyramid. Okay, so maybe sticking my hand in the circle might work again. But I wasn’t going to do it. Not for that undead asshole.
“Look,” I said, “just stick your hand inside the circle.”
Karn squeezed my arm, and pain shot down my elbow. “Do you think I’m a fool?”
No. I thought he was crazy, and believe me, I know crazy. I pointed at the hole. “There was another one on the door we found. I stuck my hand inside, and boom! We have a pyramid.”
Karn moved the knife to my throat, pressing it against my carotid artery. “If you’re lying, you’ll gasp your last breath before they can get to you.”
Keeping the blade pressed into my flesh and his gaze on mine, he lifted his arm and shoved his hand into the gold circle.
“Your fate does not lie within,” said a male and a female voice blended together. “Seven days hence, only the chosen may enter.”
Then the pyramid disappeared.
No sound. No movement. No nothing. The damned thing just . . . vanished.
Karn released a string of violent Italian, and then I felt a swish of cold.
“He’s gone,” said Drake. He reached me first, and put his hands on my shoulders, studying my face. “Are you okay?”
“Are you kidding?”
“What did that mean?” asked Jessica. “Seven days hence . . . Jesus. Who are the chosen? Where the hell did it go?”
“The pyramid is coming back in a week . . . I think,” said Patrick as he joined his wife. “We’ll have to leave someone here to keep a watch out for its return. And as for the chosen . . . we know it’s not Karn.”
“I kinda have dibs on that pyramid,” I said.
“Sorry,” said Patrick, and he actually did seem to be sincerely apologetic, “but the vampires had dibs first. We appreciate all that you’ve done, Dr. Jameson.”
“But our services are no longer required?” asked Dove.
Drake offered us a grim smile. “At least you won’t remember anything when we’re through here.”
“Hard to forget this night,” I said.
I felt a hand on my shoulder, and turned. Eva’s kind gaze met mine. “You’ll forget most of it, if that’s any comfort.”
“Um, not really.”
I looked at Drake, saw that same regret gleaming in his eyes. “Till we meet again, Moira,” he said. Then he winked.
Chapter 6
Six days hence . . .
Dove leaned over my desk and dropped the book with a dramatic flourish. The hardback landed with a resounding thump and rattled the papers that littered the shiny wood surface. I looked at the title and sighed. “Vampires Are Real! by Theodora Monroe. Oh, Dove. You’re killing me.”
“The ushabtis had fangs.”
“Unfortunately, the crypt we found was empty.” I put my fingers near my mouth and mimicked fangs. “We’ll never know if the mummies came back to life . . . and sucked all the blood of the last archaeology team to discover their secret burial chambers.”
Dove ignored my sarcasm. “That crypt had a completely weird vibe. And what about the lack of wall reliefs?”
“Empty,” I repeated. “No sarcophagi. No mummies. We found no ritual offerings. No canopic jars. It’s likely that the crypt was never used.”
“Or it was cleared out to protect the mummies and their burial treasures.” She lifted a finger. “And that’s why we found ushabtis outside.”
“So the thieves and/or priests who cleared out the crypt—in theory—dropped some stuff on the way out?” I shrugged. “Anything’s possible.”