Guardians of Stone (The Relic Seekers) Read online

  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

  Text copyright © 2012 Anita Clenney

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without express written permission of the publisher.

  Published by Montlake Romance

  P.O. Box 400818

  Las Vegas, NV 89140

  ISBN-13: 9781612186542

  ISBN-10: 1612186548

  This book is dedicated to my agent, Christine Witthohn of Book Cents Literary Agency. I couldn’t have done this without you.

  CONTENTS

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  PROLOGUE

  “WHY CAN’T I go with you?” Kendall asked.

  Her father hesitated and then tucked the covers up to her chin, even though it was warm inside. “Not this time, pumpkin. It’s too dangerous.” He ruffled her hair, but his face was tense. “Besides, your aunt Edna wants to see you.”

  “What about Adam? Won’t it be too dangerous for him?”

  “He’s coming with you.”

  “OK.” Adam was her best friend. She trusted him more than anyone. If he was coming, it would be all right.

  Her father studied her for a minute, his forehead wrinkled. Seemed like it was wrinkled all the time now. Adam’s father’s was too. She and Adam didn’t know why, but they were both worried. Adam said he had a plan to figure out what was going on.

  “Go to sleep, pumpkin. Tomorrow you’ll see your aunt.” Her father dropped a kiss on her forehead. She really thought eleven was too old for good-night kisses, but tonight she didn’t mind. For some reason she felt jittery. Her father stopped at the door and looked back at Kendall. “Are you sure you don’t remember anything before you bumped your head and passed out?”

  An image of a castle flashed through her mind followed by a blinding light. She didn’t know if it was real or a dream. Or one of her visions. But it made her head hurt. She didn’t tell her father. He didn’t like her visions. “I don’t remember anything.”

  “Good,” he whispered in the voice he used when he didn’t realize he’d spoken out loud. He watched her for a minute longer and then nodded. “I love you, pumpkin.”

  “I love you too, Daddy. Don’t worry about me. I’ll be fine with Aunt Edna.”

  And Adam would look after her. He always did.

  CHAPTER ONE

  HER FIRST DATE in six weeks blown to hell. Kendall Morgan pressed the cell phone to her ear. “When do you need me?” She cast an apologetic glance at her good-looking new neighbor who’d finally gotten around to asking her out.

  “Now.” Nathan’s voice was firm, with an edge that hinted at secrets. “Please,” he added. Probably an afterthought.

  She couldn’t ask her boss to wait. No one asked Nathan Larraby to wait. She made her excuses to her date and settled for a chaste kiss and tantalizing whiff of hot male. Promising a rain check, she grabbed her bag and jacket and left his apartment. She hurried down the street to her Volkswagen, not bothering to take the extra few minutes to go to her own apartment a few doors away so she could change. When Nathan said now he meant now.

  Her date’s curtains were open, so she couldn’t help but see as he pulled his shirt over his head. Nice chest. Darn. Well, it probably wouldn’t have worked out anyway. It never did. Her sixth sense made intimacy a risk. Body fluids were often strong conductors. Kissing could be hell sometimes. Sex...a nightmare. There were things that helped, but it was always a crapshoot. Not conducive to “happily ever after.”

  A car eased away from the curb, distracting her. It didn’t belong to any of her neighbors. She knew most of the people on this street. With the exception of her and the new guy, everyone else was old. She’d seen the vehicle a couple of times before. It was big and dark, like the ones Nathan’s bodyguards used. He was protective of everything around him, but surely he wouldn’t spy on his employees.

  It took fifteen minutes to reach Nathan’s estate in the rolling Virginia hills. She pulled up to the gated entrance. The guard, a man with more muscles in his neck than Kendall had in her whole body, nodded once and let her in. The entire estate was surrounded by an iron fence that would have done justice to a maximum security prison and protected by an extensive surveillance system. After the mile-long drive in from the gate, she parked in front of the mansion and started up the steps.

  Nathan met her at the door wearing a suit that probably cost as much as her apartment. His light brown hair was cropped close and, as usual, his handsome face tense. In the months she’d worked for him, he never laughed, rarely smiled. He was all mystery and no clues. If she wasn’t so busy working on his relics, she’d turn her talents to decoding him. He raked her over once with dark, smoky eyes. “Hope I didn’t interrupt anything important.”

  “Just a date.” Since she’d started working for him, she hadn’t had one that he hadn’t interrupted. Maybe he was spying on her.

  “My apologies.” A muscle twitched in his jaw. He hadn’t shaved and the faint shadow made him look sexy. He escorted her inside, through the elaborate atrium that led to his library, which was adorned with first editions, priceless historical documents, and rare art. If Aunt Edna got a glimpse of this place, she’d be hearing wedding bells. Maybe that would stop the barrage of personal ads Kendall had been getting since her aunt discovered e-mail.

  Two men on Nathan’s technical security team were just leaving the room. Fergus stood behind them, his face worried.

  “...trace the data security breach,” one of the men said.

  Nathan pushed back his sleeve and looked at his watch. Not a Rolex, as Kendall would have expected, but silver on a worn leather band. “Meet me back here in two hours with an update.”

  The two men left and Nathan motioned Kendall inside. He took her jacket and handed it to Fergus, who nodded his head as if she were royalty. Every inch the proper butler. “Miss Kendall, I hope you’re well.”

  “Yes, Fergus. Thank you.”

  “Lovely dress. Were you at dinner?” He glanced briefly at Nathan, and Kendall thought she saw the barest hint of a frown. He probably realized Nathan had interrupted her meal. Sometimes she wondered if Fergus had his own sixth sense. He seemed to know everything. A good trait for a butler, she supposed.

  “Yes, I had dinner.” And had been looking forward to dessert.

  “I’m sorry if you had to cut your evening short—” Nathan’s apology was interrupted when the front door slammed. Fergus hurried out as footsteps rang across the floor.

  “Larraby, this had better be good. I left a nice warm bed and a hot...” The man entering the room stopped short when he saw Kendall. “Meal,” he substituted. She knew that wasn’t the word he would have used had she not been there.

  Her senses started tingling as she sized the intruder up. Dangerous
. A rebel. Steel-gray eyes met hers—intelligent, calculating, cool. A mask for the anger and insolence lurking inside. She blinked, distancing her mind. She didn’t pry without good reason. After all, she wouldn’t appreciate someone digging around in her thoughts. The stranger’s gaze dropped to her slinky red dress, lingering longer than it should. Kendall squirmed under his appraisal, which was every bit as intrusive as her evaluation had been.

  Rumpled dark hair and clothes—black T-shirt and faded jeans—backed up his claim that he’d been in bed.

  “Kendall, I’d like you to meet Jake Stone. Jake, this is Kendall Morgan. She’s my relic expert.”

  Kendall nodded a greeting. Was that lipstick on his neck?

  “We don’t have much time,” Nathan said, picking up a leather satchel from the marble credenza behind him. He seemed more intense than usual. Perhaps because of the latest security breach. “The jet leaves in one hour.”

  “Jet?” Kendall inquired.

  “You’re going to Italy.” Nathan nodded toward the solemn butler, who set down two duffel bags. “Fergus has your clothes and equipment packed.”

  Kendall still hadn’t gotten over the awkwardness of having Fergus pack her clothing for these spontaneous trips, including bras and panties. She would prefer to do it herself, but he always beat her to the punch, choosing her things from the wardrobe that Nathan insisted she keep here. Between Fergus and the backpack she kept loaded and ready in her car—she knew better than to answer Nathan’s summons without it—she was usually well prepared.

  “And you’ll need this.” Nathan handed Jake the satchel.

  Jake frowned. “She’s not going with me. I work alone.”

  “You’re sending him with me?” Kendall said at the same time.

  “Hold on.” Jake threw up a defiant hand. “I don’t have time to babysit a skirt.”

  A skirt? Arrogant jerk.

  “I need both of you for this job,” Nathan said, returning Jake’s glare. “Follow orders, or you can go back.”

  A look crossed between the two men. Kendall didn’t need her sixth sense to feel the testosterone seething underneath. Both men were over six feet, muscular, probably an even match strength-wise, but Jake’s collar-length hair, worn jeans, and boots made him look like a badass, while Nathan looked like more like Batman hiding behind Bruce Wayne.

  Jake glanced at Kendall, his eyes flat. “Let’s get it over with, then. Why are we going to Italy?”

  “I’m looking for a box,” Nathan said.

  Kendall tried to see inside his head, but as usual, it was like hitting a wall. “What kind of box?”

  Nathan hesitated before answering, and she knew it would only be a half-truth. “An old one.”

  “That’s all? An old box?” Jake leaned a hip against the sofa. “You gotta have more than that.”

  “It contains something powerful,” Nathan said.

  “A relic?” Kendall asked. This was where her expertise came in.

  “I can’t say yet.”

  Jake’s eyes narrowed. “You and your damned secrets.”

  Who was this guy? No one talked to Nathan like that.

  Nathan motioned to the sofa. “Both of you, sit.”

  Jake set the satchel on the table and dropped onto the sofa, knees spread wide. He folded his arms across his chest and lifted a mocking eyebrow. Kendall held his gaze and sat, not far away from him, as she knew he expected, but in the middle of the sofa. She regretted her decision immediately when the cushion dipped, putting them shoulder to shoulder. His scent slithered up her nose. She scooted back a few inches and tugged at her dress, ignoring his leer. Bastard.

  “The box is ancient,” Nathan said. “It was guarded for centuries by a secret order.”

  “A secret order?” Kendall’s pulse kicked up a notch. “What kind of order? Like Templars?”

  “I don’t know what they were. Monks? Knights? No one seems to know much about them.” Nathan pulled a cross from his pocket. It was silver, a couple of inches long, and hung from a chain. Kendall’s senses started buzzing. “I think this is connected to them,” he said, handing it to her.

  She took the cross and the buzzing grew louder. The metal felt cold. There was an opening in the center, and the edges were rounded. Or perhaps just worn with age. It was ancient. She could tell from the saturation of emotions attached to the piece. Sadness, betrayal, fear. There was something else she recognized, but the sensations flying at her like shrapnel came too fast to make sense. Sometimes it took awhile to get a clear picture. Sometimes it never came at all. She turned it over and saw a worn mark. A circle perhaps. A memory flashed through her mind, as if there were something she should know. “Where did you get this?”

  “I’ve had it for a while.” He didn’t offer more but surprised her by kneeling in front of her. His eyes met hers, dark with secrets. He took the cross from her hand and placed it around her neck, his fingers as warm against her skin as the cross was cold. “Keep it,” he said, his voice low.

  Goose bumps covered her arms. She wasn’t sure whether her reaction was caused by the cross or his fingertips. She looked over and caught Jake’s insolent stare.

  “So where in Italy do we start looking for this mysterious box?” he asked.

  Nathan rose and walked to the credenza. He unlocked a drawer and took out two thick envelopes. “I’m still working on the precise location, assuming the place still exists. We’ll start at Saint Peter’s Square in Vatican City. I’ve found someone who claims he knows something about the group. You’re meeting him there.”

  “Vatican City?” A thrill ran through Kendall, followed by immediate dread. She’d visited once as a girl. The trip hadn’t gone well. The vast amount of history and relics had given her sensory overload. She hadn’t been back since. Hopefully, it would be a better experience as an adult. It might be smart to drink a couple of glasses of wine first to dull her senses.

  “I don’t know how much this guy knows,” Nathan said, “or if it’s accurate, but we have to start somewhere.”

  Jake muttered something about needles in haystacks, and then said, “I guess we’re going to Italy, Ms. Morgan. Try not to slow me down.” He looked at her legs again and lifted a mocking brow. He was trying to intimidate her.

  “Do you always stare at women’s legs, Mr. Stone?” she whispered.

  “Only when they’re worth looking at.”

  Nathan walked back to the sofa and placed the envelopes on the table in front of them. He took the opposite seat in an ornate chair that once belonged to a king. Kendall had found it for him a month ago. In addition to his relics, at Nathan’s request, she had taken charge of his antiques.

  “You’re pretty certain this box is in Italy?” she asked, picking up her envelope.

  “All the clues lead there, and I believe if we locate the secret order, we’ll find the box.” Nathan watched as she opened her envelope. Inside were maps, euros, dollars, a black AMEX card, and two passports under fake names. Jake slit his envelope and Kendall saw that it appeared to hold the same. Next, he opened the satchel, and Kendall glimpsed the handle of a gun. His eyebrows rose in surprise.

  Strange. Nathan didn’t like guns.

  “Anything else we should know about this trip?” Jake asked, examining the contents of the satchel, which he didn’t appear inclined to share.

  “We might not be the only ones looking for the box,” Nathan said. “Someone has been buying up valuable relics.”

  “Someone besides you?” Jake asked.

  Nathan ignored the gouge. “I believe he’s involved in the black market...among other things.”

  It was the “other things” that caught Kendall’s attention. Jake’s too, judging by his narrowed eyes.

  “Is he dangerous?” Jake asked.

  “Anyone can become dangerous if given the right motivation,” Nathan said. “We don’t know for sure if this man even exists, but some of the rarest relics in the world have disappeared. The owners usually disappear too
. Everyone with a collection worth having fears him. He’s like the Grim Reaper of relics. That’s how they refer to him, the Reaper.”

  “Sounds like a comic book villain,” Jake said.

  “I’ve heard about the relics that have disappeared,” Kendall said. Anyone involved with artifacts and antiquities was familiar with the thefts.

  Nathan studied Kendall and Jake, his expression serious. “If you do find this box, don’t try to open it. It can’t be opened unless it’s on holy ground.”

  Jake gave a derisive snort. “Anything can be opened with a crowbar and some dynamite.”

  “Don’t try to open it. That’s an order.” Nathan’s voice was sharp.

  A wave of hostility rolled off Jake. He didn’t appear to care for orders, which was unfortunate since Nathan was good at giving them.

  “What the hell’s in this box?” Jake asked. “A demon?”

  Nathan rubbed a knuckle across his chin, something he did when he was troubled. It was one of the few things about him that she could read, and for some reason it disturbed her. “I can’t say, but we have to find it before anyone else does.”

  The fact that he didn’t discount Jake’s demon theory had her and Jake sharing the closest thing yet to a commiserating glance.

  “So we’re looking for an old box that may or may not be somewhere in Italy. We have no idea what’s inside it, but we might have to fight someone called the Reaper to get it. And it can’t be opened except on holy ground. Nice.”

  “Just find the damned box as quickly as possible. I’m running out of time.”

  “Why the urgency?” Kendall asked. She was used to Nathan’s spontaneous trips, but this trip was unusually rushed.

  “Timing is crucial,” Nathan said. “I think someone else is close to finding it.”

  “Maybe it’s a demon with a time bomb,” Jake muttered, his weight shifting as he stretched long, muscular legs.

  Kendall scooted over to keep from sliding toward him. “When you say holy ground, do you mean a church?”

  “Your guess is as good as mine. I’m just going by rumors.” Nathan rubbed his eyes. He looked tired. Again.