“Damn you, Jared!” she shrieked in chorus with the engine’s roar as her Jeep tore up the road.
If the Sirona relic is still in its hiding spot, I’m getting rid of it
. She pulled into Sikes and Sounds and walked into the hub. Nothing short of pure astonishment appeared on Callie’s face. “Don’t ask me anything right now, Callie. Just tell me I can stay at your place for a little while.”
“Of course you can.” She pressed her pointer finger into Serena’s chest and frowned. “And you
will
tell me all about it later. Go to your office and lie down on your couch. You look like the ravens picked you over good.”
“That’s a great idea. Could have done without the visual, though. You know, I never got a chance to open up that damn envelope. Hell, it’s still outside.” Serena walked back to the Jeep and grabbed it. She brought it into her office, sank into her couch, and opened it up to find a letter inside.
Dear Ms. Sikes,
I sent some gentlemen over to your house for a visit today, but you weren’t there…. Pity…. Your brother stole something of mine, and I want it back. They took the liberty of looking around to save you the trouble, but couldn’t find it. Haven’t been able to find him either. Give them one or the other, I don’t care which. If you don’t, we may have to take more liberties, if you know what we mean. Tonight, midnight, have the statue or your brother on your doorstep. Or else.
Most sincerely,
C
Turning over the package, she saw no return address and the stamp hadn’t cleared the post office.
Well, doesn’t that top things off to perfection
? She didn’t think she could get to the relic before tomorrow, and as for her brother, well, she could forget that. She couldn’t tell the police a damn thing, because now she was certainly in possession of a stolen artifact.
Basically, I’m totally up shit’s creek without a paddle. And dear old bro’ has put me there.
Chapter Four
Mingus Mountain
Jerome, Arizona
Raphael loved hiking in the mountains. It fixed whatever ailed him. These days, he was desperate for the mountains to work their magic, but no such luck. He’d been hiking the Mingus, the supposed spiritual center of the valley, for almost a week now, and he felt no better than when he first began.
Six months ago he had healed thousands of angels and innocents in an epic war between Good and Evil. “We can never save them all.” He’d spoken those words to the Great Savior Mother, Emma. She’d fought tirelessly to save as many innocents as possible, and now that simple statement came to haunt him daily as he fought to reconcile his ineffectiveness at saving one of his own. He constantly thought of Seraphiel, a Brethren Warrior, who had been ruthlessly killed by Agremon, Satan’s henchman. He had tried to retrieve a stolen ritual knife meant to be used by Satan to sacrifice Emma’s daughter. Her sacrifice would have given Evil dominion over the world. No one at the time thought the Brethren could be killed. They were supposedly immortal, invincible. Surprise, surprise. Agremon had known the only way to kill them. Fortunately, the evil bastard had been killed, as well. Unfortunately, so had Raphael’s own faith in his boss.
And on that very same night, he couldn’t save the Great Savior Mother either. Only the Trinity succeeded in bringing Emma back from the brink of death. E.L. had always told him he was the strongest of all the Saviors. That long-held belief had been shot to hell. He’d been no good to anyone since that night six months ago. His powers to heal had fizzled out like a wet firecracker. He couldn’t save anyone worth a damn. Oh, he could heal people’s minor aches and pains, but his ability to save someone from death, what used to be his specialty, was totally gone.
So he hiked, meditated, and reached deep within, but to no avail.
E.L. might as well put me out to pasture
. Finding a good place to rest for a bit, he sat on a boulder to drink deeply from his canteen and poured the rest over his neck and shoulders. He bowed his head and shook it resignedly, knowing before he could call it quits for good that he had one last task to fulfill.
He had to find Jared Sikes’s sister and tell her the news of his death. Well, technically he had already found her. He knew where she worked and lived. She was simply never at either of those places, until a couple of weeks ago. She had resurfaced, and he needed to actually approach her. But he hedged. He pulled from his pocket the picture of Jared and his sister, the only thing not ravaged by maggots. It had been found in Jared’s wallet.
Poor idiot. He should’ve known better than to hook up with the likes of Agremon
.
He was immediately drawn to the woman in the picture, as he did every time he took the photo out. Something tugged on his heart…his soul. It gnawed at the deepest recesses of his mind. She was definitely a rare beauty, with golden spun curls that kissed her shoulders and trailed down her back. Her eyes, the color of sparkling emeralds, spoke of a maturity borne too soon out of necessity. And her bow-shaped lips promised secret pleasures.
It bothered him. He couldn’t remember ever reacting this way to a woman. Brethren typically didn’t get emotionally attached to anyone. It wasn’t recommended, given the nature of their jobs; protecting and saving mortals and fighting against evil put loved ones at risk. All he had to do was think of Michael, a Protector, and the brutal reminder of how devastating a loss can be quickly came to mind. Agremon had killed his first wife and unborn child just for the thrill of it. So most of them lived a solitary life, and Raphael had no problem with that.
What is it about Serena Sikes that’s getting to me
? He didn’t know and was afraid to find out. He dreaded meeting her face to face, while a distant part betrayed him by wanting it at the same time. He decided he would make that meeting happen tomorrow, after a short hike to Cathedral Rock. He’d meet her, tell her that her brother had been found dead and had been buried in the Goldfield Mountains. Then he’d get the hell out of there.
***
After having a glass of wine and telling Callie about the break-in, minus the part about the stolen relic and threatening letter, Serena yawned. Her adrenaline rush had long since passed, but she knew her life depended on her going back to her house. She had to move the Sirona statue to the front steps. But, her best friend couldn’t know. She didn’t want to get her mixed up in any of this mess.
“You know what? I think I’m gonna turn in now. It’s been a long day to say the least. Why don’t you head in, too? I know we have a full day’s worth of bookings tomorrow. Did I actually see your name on one of the tours?”
“Yes, you did. I know, when I first signed on to work with you I told you I hated doing them, but I figure I’m a team player. I’ll help you out as long as you need me, hon.” Callie rose from the couch and leaned over to kiss Serena on the cheek. “Oh, by the way, I have an extra key for you. It’s on the kitchen counter. The one on the penlight keychain is yours. Nighty-night!”
Perfect
! She couldn’t have planned that better herself. Now she wouldn’t be staggering around in the dark. She waited for silence from Callie’s bedroom. Just before midnight, she snuck out and drove back to her place, slowing down only when she got close enough to tell if the police were still there investigating. If they were, she’d simply turn around and sneak back in.
As luck would have it, the police were gone. She put her plan into action, knowing she was running a little late. She went to the dried-up well out back, fished out the statue, and put it on the steps of her house like the threatening letter said to do. Finally, she stepped back to leave. And her fortune ran out.
Chapter Five
Serena had backed into something hard and unyielding, with bad breath. Before she had a chance to scream, a thick hand came around to cover her mouth, while the other wrapped firmly around her waist. He dragged her back into the house and threw her onto the pile of trash she used to call her living room. She had no purchase to scramble and right herself and hardly any breath left, as her hard landing had knocked it clear out of her. Splinters of some unidentified piece of wreckage poked through her shirt to scratch her back. Plumes of fluff from a seat rose in the air. Dazed and in pain, she thought she saw a bear hovering over her, but it morphed into a burly man with a ski mask. He pounced on top of her, squeezing out the last pockets of air in her lungs. His arm drew back and a meaty fist clenched, preparing to pummel her face. And then, the thug growled as his eyes glowed a fiery red.
She closed her eyes and braced for brutality that never came. Instead a voice shouted out, “Are you a stupid ass or do you just play one on TV? We were told to get the statue, man. That’s all.”
“But she’s seen me, man. And you, too.”
“You freakin’ loser. We got masks on. Remember? She can’t tell anyone about us. Look at her, man. Look at her face….” Serena peeked out from under her lashes to see a second masked man holding the fisted arm of her attacker. “Isn’t she the spittin’ image of that thing on the stoop?”
“You know somethin’? You’re right. Get a load o’ that. She looks just like that goddess the doctor was going on and on about.” The man on top of her relaxed his arm and opened his fist, only to brush it roughly against her cheek. “And she’s a pretty one, too. You go snatch the statue and head to the car. I’ll be there in a couple of minutes. I might as well have some fun before we go, huh?”
Serena’s belly roiled with nausea while she worked up the nerve to scream bloody murder. She’d be damned if she ended up raped and possibly murdered over a blasted statue! As her chest expanded to scream, the attacker clamped his hand down on her mouth. “Oh no you don’t, pretty goddess. That won’t do,” he taunted.
“Yo! Let’s get out of here and tell the boss we got the statue, all right? We oughtta tell him about her, too. He might be interested in the likeness. He’s freakish like that, you know?”
Shifting to face his partner, the brute complained, “You ruin all the fun, you know that? You really do.” He then faced her, keeping his hand firmly planted on her face, and whispered, “Another time I guess. I have a feeling we’ll see each other again. Maybe the boss will want you, too. Heh, heh, heh.”
Her eyes widened at the implication, and she struggled to free herself from his grasp.
“Let’s go, man. We’ve been here too long already.”
Serena relaxed at the knowledge they were leaving her unharmed. But disgust quickly replaced the relief as his mouth landed on hers for a brutal kiss. His dry, scratchy lips abraded hers as he forced her lips open to worsen the assault by thrusting his tongue in her mouth. Just as quickly, he got up and ran out of the house with his buddy and the statue. Serena turned over and immediately retched. When she finished, a rancid taste remained. But even so, that was better than the taste of her attacker. As the thought of the assault kept cycling through her mind, she dry-heaved until she nearly passed out.
She lumbered over to the sink in the downstairs washroom to clean her face, and gargled an entire bottle of mouthwash before she could even think about regrouping and getting out of there.
What a disaster
! Completely spent, at least she’d come out of it alive. The creepy guys had the Sirona statue, and she was out of it. Now she just had to pick up the pieces and return to her normal life.
***
Serena quietly closed the door to Callie’s house behind her. As she tiptoed across the foyer toward her room, the lights flipped on, blinding her as she heard a sarcastic, “Gotcha.” She closed her eyes in frustration and leaned against the doorjamb to her bedroom.
“You want to tell me what you’ve been doing? Or do I have to beat it out of you?”
“I’ve had enough of that, thank you very much. I didn’t want you mixed up in all this.” She sighed and raked her hands through her hair before continuing wearily. “I guess now that it’s finally over, I can tell you. But you have to promise not to tell a soul. Honest. I’m serious, Callie.”
“Scout’s honor.” She crossed her heart, raised two fingers in the air, and gave her a solemn look. “Now, why don’t you get yourself ready for bed, for real this time, and then we’ll sit and have ourselves a little chat.”
She nodded and thanked God for Callie being in her life. As she told her friend about everything that had happened, she realized what a relief it was that someone knew all of the crap she’d been through. They fell asleep just in time to get a couple hours rest before a fully loaded day smacked them in the face.
***
According to the schedule, the day promised to be a brutal one, filled with back-to-back tours all day from sunrise to sunset. Everyone had been called in to work and, to Serena’s amazement, they all showed. Even she took on more tours than usual. At the moment, she waited on her group to show up for the Boynton Canyon vortex tour, but they were already twenty minutes late. She knew if they didn’t show up within the next few minutes, it would be too late. The phone rang.
“Sikes and Sounds of Sedona, how can I help you?” she heard Callie say cheerily. “Uh huh. Uh huh. Well, sir, let me check, but I think we’re booked for the entire day. If so, we can always arrange a tour for you tomorrow or any other day that suits you. Oh, you’re only here until tomorrow. Well again, let me check for you, sir. Hold on a moment.” Callie pushed the hold button and walked over to Serena, who’d been standing by the back door for some fresh air.
“Hey, Serena, we’ve got a request for a tour of Cathedral Rock. Your group looks like a no-show. Can you handle it? The guy on the phone said they could be here in five minutes.”
“Yeah, sure. That’ll fit into my schedule fine. Go ahead and write it in the master.” Serena’s Jeep had already been outfitted with water, snacks, and first aid kit, so she just had to wait. Again.