The Belial Ring (The Belial Series 3) (28 page)

J
ake stood with Henry in the entryway of the exhibit. A multitude of footprints dotted the ground. Placards along the wall explained about the site’s importance, and pictures documented the site’s reconstruction.

Jake paced past
the placards again. He had already read them. Twice. There was nothing here to hold his attention. Nothing, at least, that was more important than the woman in the next room. Time and again, he found his gaze straying back down the hall.

Henry leaned against the far wall, his legs crossed at the ankles, watching him.
“She’ll be all right, Jake. If there’s any danger, it will have to get through us first. Or Patrick and Victoria.”

“
I know. I just—hell, I don’t know. I just want to make sure she’s all right.”

Henry gave a deep chuckle.

“What?”

“
You. You are well and truly whipped. And it’s nice to see.”

Jake wanted to argue, but the truth was
, he probably was. And he didn’t care. He was happy. She made him happy. “Maybe I am.”

“
So do I have to see what kind of shape my tux is in?”

Jake raised an eyebrow.
Marrying Laney. It wasn’t the first time he’d thought of it.

A feeling of warmth spread through him at the idea.
Years ago, he never would have thought of himself as the marrying kind. And the idea of marriage still wasn’t something he thought of as being for him. Except if he was marrying Laney. Then he knew there was nothing he wanted more.

Jake smiled.
“Maybe.”

Henry straightened away from the wall.
“Laney.”

Jake whirled around.
“Did you find it? Are you all right?”

Laney walked
toward them, her shadow growing larger behind her. She stopped in front of the two of them, and held out her hand.

A small
, square metal ring lay there, with a jewel at each corner and two interlaced triangles adorning the face.

Henry smiled.
“Knew you could do it.”

Laney looked over at Jake.
He could see she was proud to have found the ring, but also afraid because it confirmed who she was.

He shrugged, keeping his voice nonchalant.
“That’s what all the fuss is about? It’s pretty ugly.”

Laney laughed
, and Jake saw some of the tension leave her shoulders. “I thought the same thing.”

“
All right, chosen one.” Jake offered her his arm. “Let’s blow this popsicle stand.”

She smiled.
“Absolutely.”

Jake grasped her hand, but inside he was shaken.
Through all this craziness, he had hoped Victoria was wrong. He had hoped Laney wasn’t the destined one, the ring bearer.

He wanted her safe, but how would he be able to keep her safe now?
             

CHAPTER 56

Johnson City, Tennessee

A
mar paced, waiting for the phone to ring.
Enough
. He grabbed his phone off the desk, punching in the numbers. His call was answered after the first ring.

Wind sounded in the background.
“Sir.”

“
Where are you? Have you reached the target?”

“
No, sir. We found the safe house, but they’d already left. We’re trailing behind them now.”

“
Where have they gone?”

“
According to our reports, they’re heading to Saqqara.”

Amar paused, picturing the ancient City of the Dead.
He didn’t doubt the intel. There were always hands stretched out who would happily sell their mother for a few coins. But Saqqara? Why there?

He pictured Djsoer
’s pyramid. It couldn’t be there, but the only other Saqqara site of any real relevance was—

He stood
up straight. “The Serapeum. They’re heading for the Serapeum.”

There was a pause on the phone.
“The Serapeum? Sir, I’m not sure I’m familiar—”

“
Oh for God’s sake, what do they teach you children in school these days? The Serapeum—the resting place for the Apis bulls. It’s an underground necropolis. The ring must be there.”

“
Why is that, sir?”

Amar rolled his eyes.
He needed to insist his people start reading. “Helen. She built it. She was a former ring bearer.”

“
Who is—”

“
Enough,” Amar barked, and the line went silent.

He stared out the window.
If they were in fact going to the Serapeum, there could be no doubt. Delaney McPhearson was the ring bearer. And that meant she was too dangerous. They could not let her learn how to use the ring.

“
How far from Saqqara are you?”

“
Only a few miles away, sir.”

Amar growled.
“They could already be at the tomb by now. If she gets that ring . . .”

“
I know, sir. What would you have us do?”

“
Drive faster.”

CHAPTER 57

L
aney placed the ring on the chain around her neck as she followed Henry to the exit. Since all of this started, a part of her had continued to believe that none of it was real. It was just a story—a story about someone else. And yet, the ring around her neck was very real. She couldn’t deny that.

Still,
that didn’t mean that it worked, her rational side countered. It could all just be a legend. Maybe Solomon had a couple of lucky breaks in trying to control the weather. Maybe he was a charlatan and only called for wind and rain when a storm was starting up.

And the control of the animals?
Her mind whispered. Maybe he just—

She shook her head.
She had nothing to explain that ability, if Solomon actually had it. Maybe he just had a really loyal dog and the stories grew from there.

Jake touched her on the shoulder.
“You all right?”

Laney gave him a small smile.
“Slightly overwhelmed.”

“
Anything change when you found it?”

She sighed.
“Not a thing. And I was expecting something. Maybe not a choir of angels, but a tingle or a feeling that told me it belonged to me. But it’s just an old ugly ring.”

“
Well, did you try it on?”

She shook her head.
“No. Not yet.”

“
Why not?”

She gave a little laugh.
“Why not? Jake, do you realize all the surreal things we’ve found out about in the last year? For all I know, when I put this ring on I’ll sprout wings, turn green, and start speaking in tongues.”

Jake laughed.
“Maybe. Or you could just shoot lightning bolts from your fingertips. That might actually come in handy.”

Laney wrapped her hand around his arm.
“I know my imagination is going into overdrive. But I think I’d like to try tapping into whatever power this thing has in a controlled environment.”

“
And you don’t think hiding in a three-thousand-year-old necropolis, while on the run from Fallen angels, is a controlled environment? You have some pretty high standards, girl.”

“
Well, a girl’s got to have standards.”

He wrapped an arm around her with a little squeeze.
“Standards and your own personal bodyguards. You have me and Henry to keep you safe and stay with you.”

“
At least there’s that.”

Jake stepped away as they reached the entrance.
“Ready?”

“
You go first,” she said.

He looked at her for a moment.
“Take your time.”

She nodded
, turning to look back down the necropolis. She knew she was stalling, but part of her knew that once she left the Serapeum, her life would be changed forever. She would be accepting her role as the ring bearer—and all that it entailed.

Laney rubbed the face of the ring.
“Okay, former me’s, any help you can give me would be greatly appreciated.”

No answer came to her
—not that she had really expected one. But a feeling of calm settled over her. She smiled, breathing deep. “Thank you,” she whispered, then turned and stepped out onto the sandy path.

Up ahead, she could see Henry and Jake had reached Patrick and Victoria.
They all waited for her. Above them, dawn had broken and the sky was a pale pink. Laney began the walk, feeling more confident as she neared them. When she came close, Jake reached back to take her hand.

The walls of packed sand on either side of them kept the City of the
Dead from her view. But Laney felt the city coming to life in the morning light, rather than being chased back to sleep. She could feel the history, the ghosts of those long dead.

And yet she wasn
’t afraid. Instead of the feeling of creepiness that she had felt before they went into the Serapeum, she now felt a sense of communion with those that had been here before. The feel of those from long ago almost gave her a sense of peace.

Patrick smiled over at her.
“Success?”

Laney gave a nod.
“Yes.”

Everyone seemed to realize that
that was all she wanted to say right now. They didn’t question her further.

Except for Jake
. “What’s the smile for?”

She linked arms with him.
“I don’t know. I just feel connected to this place now.”

Victoria gave her a nod
and a small smile. Laney smiled back.

Right now, she knew who she was
; what she was meant to do. Maybe it was the ring. Maybe it was her former selves. Maybe it was fate. But whatever it was, she was in this fight now. She grasped Jake’s hand.

They stepped out of the alleyway created by the packed sand.

“
All right, let’s get out to the airport,” Henry said. “I’ll feel better when we’re—”

The sound of a rifle cut through the morning air.
Jake yanked Laney back to the path, where she was hidden by the sand.

Laney slammed onto her back.
She quickly rolled to her side. “Jake, we need—”

The words died in her throat.

Jake stared at her, but his eyes saw nothing. A bullet hole pierced his forehead.

Fear, stronger than any she
’d ever felt, raced through her, chasing out any sense of purpose. She grabbed his shoulders while a part of her mind screamed that it was too late.

“
Jake? Jake!”

CHAPTER 58

P
atrick pushed Victoria to the ground as the shot rang out. Henry pulled them both back into the relative safety of the pathway. Bullets continued to chip away at the sand that kept them from the shooter’s view.

Laney
’s scream shook Patrick to his core. He got to his knees, staying low. Six feet away, Laney was crouched low over Jake, shaking him, trying to get him to respond.

Not Jake.
Dear God, not Jake
.

Patrick crawled over to her, his heart hammering in his chest.
The bullet hole in Jake’s forehead told the whole story. He was gone.

Patrick
’s breath left him and he struggled to get it back.

“
Jake!” Laney yelled, over and over again.

Patrick wrapped his arms around her from behind.

She looked over her shoulder at him, her mouth moving
, but no words coming out now. She shook like she was freezing, and tears streamed down her face.

Patrick felt the hole in his chest threaten to swallow him whole.
“I’m so sorry, sweetheart.”

Laney tried to push him off, but he held on.
She collapsed, sobbing into his arms, her heart breaking. Patrick’s own heart felt like it was going to break for her.

Next to him, Victoria grabbed Henry
’s arm. “Get her out of here.”