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CHAPTER

3

ROBYN GARCIA STARED AT THE e-mail she’d just read with disbelief. The artifacts she’d requested for the African exhibit were being delayed for another three months. Unbelievable. After all the time that she’d put into securing them, and after she’d boasted to her boss about turning this around so quickly… Now she’d have to tell him it was on hold, but she wouldn’t be giving him any sort of ETA, not even a ballpark one. Why risk making another promise she may not be able to keep?

She scanned her desk, observing her meticulous organization. Her in-tray was nearly empty, and she was well aware of everything that was still in there. And short of earth-shattering miracles, none of them would be resolved today. She had a holder for her pens, pencils, and highlighters, but it only contained a couple of each. No sense cluttering up the space by overstocking her office supplies. Her laptop sat next to a desk calendar, and she had a spiral-bound notebook with a blue pen resting on top of it. There was only one other item on her desk, and while it wasn’t necessary given the lettering on her office door, she couldn’t bring herself to get rid of it.

She picked up the nameplate and ran her fingers over the etching as she read it: Robyn Garcia, Curator of Fine Antiquities.

It never got old, thinking about what she’d accomplished in her career. She’d had a life plan from the beginning, and she’d had intention. Really, it was no surprise that she’d ended up as a curator. But she’d never imagined herself taking part in treasure-hunting expeditions. Or rather, they were more like legend-hunting expeditions. Regardless, she’d never seen that one coming.

She set the nameplate down again and turned her attention back to the e-mail. Her mind searched for a diplomatic response but came up empty. The message required one. Normally she didn’t have a problem stringing together a bunch of respectful words, but right now, she could only imagine one thing happening if she kept looking at the e-mail: she’d be tempted to fire back something impulsive, bordering on rude. Maybe it was a good time to step away and check on a few exhibits to make sure everything was fine and in order with them.

She went to get up when her door opened and Matthew Connor strolled in. His eyes were bluer than she remembered. She swept some of her dark hair behind an ear. “What are you doing here?”

“Well, it’s been awhile since we’ve seen each other,” he responded casually.

“You’re the one who took off to Alaska, and before that to—” She stopped talking before it came across like she was keeping track of his schedule. “It’s good to see you.”

And it was. It always was. They’d been friends since college and lovers there for a while, too. But just when things started to get serious between them, she’d been offered this job. And with her life plan coming together and Matthew’s selfless understanding, they’d ended things so she could focus on her career. She’d even gone so far as to avoid expeditions with him for a time, claiming they were too dangerous.

“You too.” He flashed her a smile that could stop her heart if she allowed it to.

“If you had been around yesterday, you could have joined us at Gretzky’s.” By us, she meant, Cal, Sophie, and herself, but Matthew would know that.

He was still smiling as he sat down in the chair across from her. “I figured you’d end up on a patio for drinks.”

“Uh-huh.”

She regarded the light in his eyes but also picked up on shadows of secrecy. He got that look when he was thinking about an expedition. But she didn’t have time to go away to wherever it was he had in mind. Maybe he had the luxury of dropping everything on a whim, but she didn’t. She was tethered to a job she loved, and Lord knew she had enough that needed taking care of. The e-mail about the African exhibit was far from being the only thing on her to-do list.

“If you’re here about an expedition, I can’t go,” she stated, certain she was getting in front of what he’d come here to ask.

“You don’t even know when I’m going.” Matthew leaned forward, one corner of his mouth lifting as if it had been raised by a hook. It was a carefree and devilish expression, and one that she found titillating, whether she wanted it to or not. And she didn’t want it to. They were better off as friends. It was so much less complicated. He did his thing; she did hers. And when they did go on quests together, it was an experience they shared as friends.

“It doesn’t matter.” She was shaking her head. “I have too much to do here.”

Matthew’s gaze went to her tidy desk before meeting her eyes. “It doesn’t look like it.”

“You know that my desk isn’t an indication of my workload. Do you want to see my in-box?” She gestured toward her monitor and then set her hand down on her desk.

Matthew reached forward and put his hand on top of hers. Her heart began to beat faster. She pulled her hand away and swallowed, hoping he hadn’t sensed how uncomfortable his touch made her.

His gaze dropped to her desk but then tracked up to meet her eyes. “You seem a little jumpy. I think someone needs a vacation.”

“Ha!” She mocked laughter. “You have no idea.” Truth be told, she hadn’t taken time off since the better part of a year ago, when they had gone in search of the City of Gold.

Matthew splayed out his hands. “No time like the present, then.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “An expedition”—she pointed a swirling finger at him—“isn’t a vacation. It’s work.”

Matthew sat back in his chair and bobbed his head side to side. “Fun work. And in this case, it could affect the fate of the world.”

“Excuse me while I roll my eyes. The fate of the world? Really?” She expected him to smile or laugh, but his eyes darkened and his mouth fell into a straight line. “You’re serious?”

“I am dead serious.”

“So what is this mission that could affect the fate of the world?” She’d started off armed with cynicism but found that her shield was starting to lower. What was wrong with her? Was he really baiting her with the fate of the world? Was she that desperate for time off that she was buying into his hyperbole?

“Before I continue,” he said, “I just want to make sure you realize that what I’m about to tell you is highly confidential.”

The skin pricked at the back of her neck, and tingles ran over her shoulders. “Why don’t we move over there?” She got up and gestured toward a small seating area with a dark-green leather couch and chair. It wasn’t to her taste, but she hadn’t footed the bill for the furniture, either.

Matthew sat on the chair, and Robyn took the couch.

“Lock the door, please?” Matthew requested. “Just in case someone walks in.”

“Ah, like you did.” She smirked, got up again, and did as he’d asked.

“Hey—” he put his hands up in surrender “—Gloria wasn’t at her desk.”

That explained how Matthew had gotten past her assistant, who was responsible for announcing visitors.

She took a seat again and folded her hands in her lap. “All right. Talk to me. Tell me about this find that can affect the fate of the world.”

“It’s the Emerald Tablets.” He put it out there with stark seriousness, but there was no way he could be.

She leaned back, sinking deeper into the couch. “You’re kidding me, right? They’re a myth. You really think they—”

“There’s evidence indicating that they do exist,” he cut in, perfectly anticipating what she was going to say.

He’d come to her before with wild stories about the Tablets and speculations on their whereabouts, but he’d always come back down to Earth. “What evidence? Do you have it with you?”

“Not exactly, but—”

Robyn smiled and shook her head.

“Do you remember how bizarre the lost City of Gold sounded to us at first?” He showed no sign that her indifference was affecting him. “But it existed, and we went in search of it on less information than I have now.”

“We were sort of forced into it.” The words came out harsher than she’d intended, and she softened her delivery. “I didn’t mean that the way it sounded.”

He dismissed it with a wave of his hand. “It’s fine.”

Silence fell between them, and Robyn wondered if he was also remembering what had truly spurred on the expedition: Sophie had been kidnapped, and the ransom had been finding the city. They’d pulled it off, but it was a taboo subject with Cal and Sophie, for obvious reasons.

“Are you considering asking Cal?” She broached the subject with the diplomacy she normally used in her position at work.

“I am.” His voice held conviction but was also peppered with apprehension.

“Really, it doesn’t matter what you have to say about the expedition. I can’t take the time off.”

“You brought this museum several artifacts from the Incas’ lost City of Gold.” Matthew paused, as if hoping to drive home his point, but she was opting to play hard to get. “The City of Gold. This museum owes you for the media attention you brought them.”

“They gave me a large raise for that.” For some reason, verbalizing that right now made her question if it truly had been enough.

“I’m just saying that I’m sure your boss would understand.” And there he was, applying another twist on her arm to break down her defenses. She guessed he’d try anything to make her entertain the idea of going with him, to believe that it was even an option.

“The Tablets, Matt? Really?” Her heart cinched in her chest as she watched hurt sweep over his face at her obvious disbelief. “You said you had evidence? Hit me with it,” she asked, surrendering to hearing him out. They were friends, after all.

“I received a call from Egypt and…”

Matthew continued to talk, but she was stuck on Egypt. Because the child in her, the one whose life plan was to work as a curator in a museum, also had grandiose dreams of visiting Egypt before she died. But it hadn’t happened yet.

“…So we’re all vouched for.” He stopped talking, and his serious expression gave way to a smile that touched his eyes. “Were you listening to anything I said?”

“I heard ‘Egypt,’” she confessed with a wince.

“And women say men don’t listen,” he teased. “Alex has found evidence that’s led her to believe that she and her team are on the verge of finding the Tablets.”

“And this evidence?” The pitch of her voice carried a plea. “You still haven’t said what it is exactly.”

“Well, I did, but apparently, you tuned me out completely.” He tsked. “She found hieroglyphics that mentioned the Tablets.” He paused, seeming to notice her confusion. “You didn’t hear that, either?”

“Sorry.” She winced again.

He smirked, not seeming to take the fact that she’d zoned out on him personally. “You’ve always wanted to go to Egypt. Now’s your chance.”

“Let me think about it.” The words sank in her gut. Maybe this was her once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Matthew laughed. “You really didn’t hear a thing I said, did you? If you had, you probably wouldn’t have anything to think over. There’s also an indication that a son of Khufu might be buried in the Western Desert, over one hundred and fifty miles from the Great Pyramid.”

How in the world had she missed that?

“A son of Khufu?” She leaned forward, perching on the edge of the couch cushion. “History indicates that two of his nine sons served as pharaoh: Djedfera and Khafre. But their tombs have already been found. That leaves Kawab, Djedfhor, Baufra, Babaef, Khufukhaf, Minkhaf, and Horbear. Of these, Baufra has never been archaeologically attested to. He was only mentioned in a couple of unverified documents.”

Matthew leaned back in his chair. “No one can say you don’t know your Egyptian history. You’d be perfect to have on this trip.”

She was too concentrated on Khufu’s family line to fall victim to his flattery. “Two of Khufu’s sons proceeded him on the throne but not his eldest. Kawab died before the end of Khufu’s reign.” She paused, meeting his eyes, and they were sparkling. She was certain they were mirroring her own excitement. “I don’t understand why a son of Khufu would be buried so far away from the Great Pyramid…”

“Exactly. And there’s only one way to find out for sure.” Matthew’s hook was baited again, and she was circling.

Damn him. She was intrigued by the mystery, and mysteries needed to be solved.

“Don’t take too long to mull this over,” he said.

“Why?”

“The plane leaves tomorrow morning at eight.”

“Tomorrow?” Anxiety ratcheted up in her chest. “You can’t be serious? What’s the rush this time?” To save Sophie, they’d been given a deadline, but she couldn’t imagine what was imposing a time crunch on this expedition.

“You don’t remember much about the Tablets, do you?”

“Um.” She licked her lips and turned away. But in her defense, one couldn’t know everything…

“Let’s just say that we need to get our hands on them before the wrong people do.”

She nodded slowly. “And you know this Alex person well?”

“Well enough,” Matthew said.

She took a deep, heaving breath. “How long do you think the expedition will take?”

“I’d say to count on a month.”

She gasped. “Thirty days?”

“That’s what a month is,” he said it offhandedly, as if it were no big deal, and maybe in his world, it wasn’t.

“I don’t see how I can swing that.” The e-mails that were stacking up, the diplomatic negotiations, the current exhibits she was responsible for taking care of…

“Bring your laptop. They do have the Internet over there.”

She raised a brow. “In the middle of the desert?”

“Ah, so you did hear some of what I said.”

“I’d just assumed—Egyptian pharaoh and all.”

He laughed. “The desert? An Egyptian pharaoh? I’d say they have a connection.”

“Matthew, be serious.” She found herself smiling.

“Fine.” He smirked and held up a hand. “In all seriousness, I’m sure they’ll have access through a satellite network.”

She didn’t say anything for a few seconds. He’d made a convincing argument, and she was grappling with finding a way to refute his logic. The thought of bringing work with her didn’t sound appealing, but he planned on leaving tomorrow. Still, she couldn’t just cut and run that fast. “I’ll have to get back to you.”

“All right.” Matthew patted the arms of the chair before he got up. “Let me know tonight?”

She nodded absentmindedly.

He stopped at the door, his hand on the knob. “And I’m going to call Cal. Wish me luck.”

“Luck…” she said softly, already lost in her thoughts.

Matthew closed the door behind him. She’d wanted a distraction from that cursed e-mail, and boy, had she gotten one. This could be her chance to go to Egypt. And it would be so much more important than simply fulfilling a personal goal. She’d be on an actual expedition. She’d be making a contribution to the world—and saving it, if she surrendered herself to the legend of the Tablets.

She smiled to herself in her empty office, as she let her mind get carried away with thoughts of pyramids and mummies. But her musings were short-lived. Who was she kidding? The timing was lousy. Besides her job, she was pretty certain that tomorrow night she had a date. It was a blind date, no less, but one Sophie had arranged. And she’d promised Sophie she wouldn’t back out of it. The fact that she hadn’t been on a date in six months, maybe more, deepened the commitment. After all, she owed it to herself to get out and meet someone. But the more she tried to convince herself to stay, the more she wanted to go. As for the guy, she could get together with him when she got back. She just hoped Sophie would understand.