Gift of Fire (34 page)

“What the hell do you think you’re doing, Yarwood,” Jonas asked softly.

“I’ve decided we don’t need your name attached to this particular find, my friend. You’re a fraud, you see. I’m the one with real psychic talent around here, and finding the treasure is going to prove that once and for all. This is my project, and I’m the one who’s going to get the credit. When this is all over, people will be forced to admit that I’ve got psychic power. And with you and Verity mysteriously gone, there won’t be anyone left alive to tell them differently.”

Verity stared in shock at Preston Yarwood’s face for a long time before her eyes dropped to the gun in his hand.

Chapter Seventeen

Jonas contemplated the gun in Preston Yarwood’s hand. The man looked as though he knew exactly what he was doing with it.
The report says he
’
s dangerous,
Caitlin Evanger had said.

“There’s no treasure, Yarwood.” Jonas edged a few steps away
from Verity, making it more difficult for Yarwood to keep both of them covered with the weapon.

“Don’t try to bullshit me, Quarrel,” Yarwood said genially. “The treasure is here, I know it. I’ve had a psychic premonition of it all along.”

“Talk about bullshit,” Jonas muttered. “You’ve just got treasure fever.”

“I know it’s here,” Preston snapped. “I had sections of Hazelhurst’s diary translated, you see. Not all of it, but enough to know he was onto something. It’s here, I tell you. And I’ve heard enough this morning to convince me you’re close to the answer. So you’re going to take me with you when you unlock the secret.”

“I’m telling you, there is no treasure, Yarwood.”

Yarwood’s eyes flared angrily. “Don’t give me that. I know you’ve found something important. I heard enough in the lab at Vincent College to know you’re capable of it. That’s why I had you hired. You’re going to show me where the treasure is, goddammit. And you’re going to hurry up about it, too. Crump and Warwick will be back as soon as this storm passes. Come here, Verity.”

Jonas tensed, knowing what was going to happen next. “Leave her alone, Yarwood. I’ll cooperate. But I’m warning you, there’s nothing to find.”

“There’s something here. And you know where it is. You’re going to show me.
Come here, Verity.
Get over here now or I’ll start putting large holes in your bedmate.”

Verity took a reluctant step forward.

“Don’t get near him, Verity.” Jonas spoke quietly. “He wants to use you as a hostage.”

Yarwood smiled faintly. “You’re so right, Quarrel. And if she doesn’t get over here this instant, I’m going to put the first bullet through your arm. You’ll still be capable of leading me to the treasure without the use of one arm. You could do it without the use of either arm, in fact.” He raised the pistol.

“Stop it,” Verity snapped. She walked stiffly to stand in front of Yarwood.

“Dammit, Verity.” But it was too late and Jonas knew it. He watched in impotent fury as Yarwood grabbed Verity’s arm and pulled her close against his side. “Let her go, Yarwood. I told you, I’ll cooperate. I’ll show you what we’ve found, but I’m warning you, it isn’t much. Just an empty chest in a hidden room. Spencer was here ahead of us, Yarwood. Hell, there was probably someone else ahead of him. Maybe someone a century or two ago back in Italy. The treasure’s gone.”

“I don’t believe you. There’s the crystal,” Yarwood snapped, his gaze going hungrily to Verity’s hand. “It’s still here. I read enough of Hazelhurst’s diary to know that no one gets anything without the crystal. And you’ve got it, don’t you? Open your hand, Verity. Show it to me.”

Verity opened her palm and displayed the green crystal. “It won’t do you any good, Reston. You don’t know how to use it. None of us do.”

“We’ll find out, won’t we? Show me this hidden room you’ve found, Quarrel.”

“I’ve told you, there’s nothing in it, you stupid bastard.”

“Show me, or I’ll start putting bullets in the little lady.” Yarwood pushed the barrel of the gun against Verity’s throat.

“
No
.
Don’t hurt her, damn you. If you want to see the room, I’ll show it to you. But it won’t do you any good, there’s nothing in it.” Jonas wanted to kill Yarwood more than he’d wanted anything in his life. Verity said nothing. She just looked at Jonas with a calm trust that was shattering.

“Let’s go see this hidden room.” Yarwood yanked Verity a little closer.

Jonas thought about the stiletto lying amid the tangle of bones just inside the bedroom entrance. “This way,” he said quietly, leading the way toward the bedroom he had shared with Verity.

Yarwood followed, hustling Verity ahead of him. The end of the gun never wavered from her throat.

When Jonas pushed open the bedroom door, the gaping hole that marked the entrance to the hidden corridor was immediately evident. Yarwood stared at it in fascination.

“A hidden passage,” Yarwood whispered. “Where does it lead?”

“To the empty treasure room.” Jonas hooked a thumb in his belt. “Got any problems with claustrophobia, Yarwood? Because the passage is as narrow as virtue and darker than sin. It’s a long walk to the treasure room.”

“Don’t try to scare me, Quarrel.” There was a feverish excitement in Yarwood’s gaze now. “Just be sure you don’t try anything clever once we’re inside. I can kill Verity before you can do anything to me.”

Verity spoke up, her voice soft. “There’s a body inside, Preston.”

That jolted him slightly. “Whose?” he demanded.

“Hazelhurst’s, we think,” she said. “In the end he decided the treasure was cursed. Slade Spencer came to agree with him, I think. Maybe they were right. Neither one of them ever got to enjoy any of it.”

“Show me the room,” Yarwood ordered as he pushed her roughly toward the hole in the wall. “You first, Quarrel.”

Jonas obediently moved toward the entrance. He picked up the flashlight and his new jacket en route. He wasn’t going to have much time to scoop up the stiletto and hide it in his deep jacket pocket. He needed a distraction. “Let me kick Hazelhurst’s body out of the way, first. It makes Verity queasy.” He could only hope the prospect of having to step over a pile of old bones was making Yarwood queasy, too.

“Go ahead,” Yarwood said quickly. “Get it out of the way. Jesus. Did the old bastard really die in there?”

“Yeah. Hell of a place to croak, huh?” Jonas stepped into the entrance. He kept the flashlight aimed at the opposite corridor wall. The floor was in darkness except for the wedge of light that filtered in from the bedroom. He could just barely make out the tip of the stiletto among the scattered bones. Behind him Verity started talking rapidly, her voice tremulous. She had guessed what he was trying to do and was doing her part to distract Yarwood.

“It’s awful in there, Preston,” she said. “Hazelhurst’s bones are lying all over the floor. You can see the skull and everything. It’s easy to imagine how he must have been struggling to find the exit mechanism when he died. It’s enough to give you nightmares. I think he was right. I think he found the treasure and died from the curse that was put on it.”

“Shut up, you silly woman,” Yarwood said impatiently. But he stayed back with Verity while Jonas crouched down on the floor of the corridor. “Hurry up, Quarrel.”

“I’m hurrying, but it’s a mess in here.” Jonas silently thanked Verity for being willing to play the frightened, weak-kneed female. She was giving Yarwood a few second thoughts about rushing into the endless darkness of the corridor. Jonas decided he might as well add a few subtle suggestions of his own. “Got to be careful this door doesn’t close on us while we’re inside. Wouldn’t want to end up the same way Digby did. You want to grab that chair to prop it open, Yarwood?”

“Get the chair,” Yarwood said to Verity. “Go on, get it. Hurry.”

Verity made a production out of dragging the heaviest chair in the room across the floor. That was all the distraction Jonas needed. He reached down and rattled a few bones in the darkness. “Sorry, Digby, old pal,” he muttered. “You never did get much respect from the academic community, did you?” He palmed the stiletto and slipped it up under his sleeve.

Reality started to shimmer in a familiar way. Jonas fought the transition and quickly slid the lethally thin stiletto into his jacket pocket. Reality returned to normal as soon as he was no longer touching the stiletto. He would have to be careful not to touch it again until he was ready to use it. He didn’t need the added distraction of watching Hazelhurst’s murder over and over during the trek to the hidden room.

“Okay, looks like this is as good as it’s going to get.”

Jonas stood up and kicked one of Hazelhurst’s loafers out of the way.

“You finished?” Yarwood called, peering into the gloom. “Best I can do. If you’ve got a weak stomach, don’t look to the left as you come through the door.”

“Let me worry about my stomach,” Yarwood snapped. He prodded Verity through the entrance. The blackness of the corridor loomed ahead of him. It was then that Yarwood realized that the one who held the flashlight in this situation was as powerful as the one who held the gun. ‘‘Give Verity the light, Quarrel.”

Jonas swallowed an oath and put the flashlight in Verity’s hand. She looked up at him, her eyes wide. He saw far too much understanding in her gaze. She would try something reckless if he didn’t squelch the idea immediately. He knew it as surely as he knew that she had red hair.

But she wouldn’t be able to pull it off without getting hurt. Jonas was equally sure of that. Silently he shook his head, the movement barely perceptible. But he knew she got the message, because he saw the disappointment flare in her eyes. Jonas turned and started into the darkness.

“Not so fast, Quarrel.” Yarwood urged Verity ahead of him as he started down the corridor. “Stay within the light beam. I want to be able to see you at all times.”

“Don’t worry. I’ve got no particular desire to fall down the stairs.”

“What stairs?”

The ones up ahead. This corridor goes straight down to the bottom of the villa. It ends up on the same level as the torture chamber. Relax, Yarwood. We’ve got a long walk ahead of us.”

Verity griped the flashlight tightly and wondered frantically what Jonas was planning. She’d felt him retrieve the stiletto, and she knew he was up to something. She could sense it.

But he made no move, gave no signal as the three of them trooped down the narrow staircase and into the bottom level of the corridor. She finally realized that he was actually going to lead Yarwood to the room. Well, why not? There was nothing there to find.

But the warmth of her earrings against her skin and the chill of the green crystal in her pocket whispered another message. The closer they got to the hidden room, the stronger that message became. Verity was constantly aware of the gun pointed at her neck, but she was beginning to worry about other matters. The secrets in the vision were every bit as dangerous as the bullets in Yarwood’s gun. Verity had a feeling that Jonas had decided to try something risky in the hidden room.

They reached the end of the corridor. Jonas came to a halt in front of the stone wall that concealed the entrance to the hidden room.

“This is it, Yarwood.”

“Where? Show me, dammit. All I see is a blank wall.”

“Watch.” Jonas went to work on the mechanism. Yarwood stared in fascination as the wall began to creak and move. He was breathing heavily. Verity could feel the tension in him.

“Fucking hell,” Yarwood said in a tone of burning excitement.

The door swung open slowly, revealing the small, cold room behind it. Jonas walked through the entrance. Yarwood pushed Verity inside. Instinctively, Verity pointed the flashlight beam at the heavy black chest.

“I’ll be damned,” Yarwood said. “What’s inside?”

“I told you, Yarwood. There’s nothing inside.”

“There’s got to be something inside. It’s a chest. A treasure chest.”

“Take a look for yourself.” Jonas walked over to where the rusted sword hilt lay on the stone floor. He picked it up.

Verity sucked in her breath, realizing too late what Jonas had just done. He was going to access the vision. But why now?

The room was already twisting around her. Verity struggled to hang on to her awareness of what was happening in real time even as she was pulled into the psychic corridor.

The vision leaped into focus, sharper, stronger, and glowing more malevolently than it ever had before. The crystal in her pocket was radiating a fierce chill, and her earrings burned.

“Jonas?” she whispered, searching for him in the time tunnel. She knew where he was in real time. He was standing quietly, gazing at the chest. But in the psychic corridor she could speak to him and Yarwood wouldn’t hear a thing.

“The crystal may be the key,” Jonas said aloud to Yarwood. “But we haven’t figured out how to use it.”

Inside the psychic corridor he moved up behind Verity. “We need to be able to talk. If I had used the stiletto to get into the corridor, Yarwood would have noticed. He’s not paying any attention to this old scrap of metal.”

“Look at the way the image is starting to pulse. Jonas, I don’t like this.”

“You think I do? It’s our one chance. Yarwood isn’t going to let either of us walk out of here alive.”

Verity reached into her pocket and closed her hand around the crystal. Cold shot through her. The crystal sitting on the desk in the vision suddenly flared a brilliant, pulsating green. “Jonas, something’s going to happen.”

“Damn right. Just as soon as I get an opening. We need another distraction. In a few more seconds Yarwood is going to start to wonder why we’re all just standing around here staring at an empty treasure chest.”

“The two crystals are tuning to each other,” Verity said, as realization dawned. “I can feel it. Oh my God, Jonas, this isn’t what we want. It won’t do us any good. Everything’s going to come apart. This is dangerous.”

“Just hang on a second.”

Verity set her teeth against the cold. She could feel the vibrations of the two green crystals adjusting to each other, tuning in to each other through the peculiar form of time and space that existed in the psychic corridor.