Lanthinian (Complete Story)

Developed by A. Sylvur with C. Newbold’s Idea

Table of Contents (Just for Laughs)

Table of Contents*………………………………………………………………………………………… Page 1

*Inserted as a self help for those who desperately need to find the table of contents.

Chapter One – Something Brewing…………… …………………………………………………… Page 2

Chapter Two – Those Gorgeous Guys……………………………………………………………… Page 7

Chapter Three – The Heirloom………………………………………………………………………. Page 14

Chapter Four – Time for Camo……………………………………………………………………… Page 21

Chapter Five – Brewed………………………………………………………………………………… Page 25

Something Brewing

The rain stopped by mid-afternoon, but the clouds threatened that they had more. However, visibility wasn’t an issue for the women who worked in their secret office of their beach home from Florida’s west coast. They were thankful the hurricane had veered back out to sea. One typed while the other did research. It was a team effort and knew each others strengths and weaknesses. The girls were dedicated in their task, until the sound of a car screeched to a stop in their driveway and gave them pause. As they stood up to conceal their office at a moments notice, the car door slammed shut then they heard the front door open then closed. The quick footsteps of their friend were unmistakable and they relaxed. Each turned their eyes to the door and waited. A moment later, the door opened.

“Krissy . . . Coral, you won’t believe what I heard. I mean read.” Hopee announced excitedly as she rushed in.

Coral reached for a scrunchie then pulled her long light brown hair back into a pony tail. “Hope, are you going to tell us?”

“Do you have to be so demanding?” Krissy tried not to laugh.

“Ugh! This isn’t good news.” Hopee dropped onto the sofa. “I know I always look excited, but this is bad.” She reached into her black leather purse with titanium chains for straps and pulled out a piece of a news article. “Read it if you dare.”

Not one to hesitate, Coral snatched it before Krissy could make up her mind about if she wanted to read it.

The other two waited for her to finish. As she read, she slowly sat on the sofa.

A few seconds later, she raised her beautiful hazel eyes, “Is this a joke?”

“Is it?” Hopee was hopeful.

“What is it?” Krissy was curiously frustrated.

“It,” Coral stated as she looked at the article, “is about three artifacts found in what they believe is Atlantis.” Her eyes glanced between her best friends. “The artifacts were found by members of the Atlan Agency.”

Krissy’s hand jumped up. “Whoa. What are you saying? That we missed three family treasures?”

“That’s exactly what it means, Krissy.” Hopee shook her head. “So, how are we going to get those back?”

Krissy moved and sat on the sofa next to Hopee with her hands folded on her lap. “Wait . . . if they have it, then they stole the artifacts from our home, right?”

“Yes. But they wouldn’t have stolen them if we hadn’t missed them. I told you storing them in our ancient home was a bad idea.”

“That’s not possible.” Hopee was in denial. “We’re descendants. There is no way we could have missed those three. We’re drawn to the artifacts.” She looked up and glared. “Alright, genius, I want a logical explanation. So hand it over.”

Coral was stunned. “What? Me? Krissy was the one—”

Now it all made sense and the other two glared at Krissy who raised her hands in surrender. “Whoa. I found the four items you told me to get.”

“Seven items. You were supposed to retrieve seven.”

“They don’t even sound close. Four and seven.”

“Don’t go there.” Krissy glared at Hopee.

Coral’s face fell into her hands, and after a brief, yet refreshing rub she said, “Okay,” then took a deep breath then continued, “We’ll need to hire a secretary so we can go back to work. Krissy, see if Nina is still available. Hopee, I’ll need you to create an advertisement that will grab every secretary’s eyes from thousands of miles away if she can’t and I’ll get a drink.”

“Great. We work and she drinks.”

Krissy shrugged as she went back to the computer to search for a phone number. “And we’re doing it. That’s why she’s the smart one.”

Coral laughed. “I’ll be right back. You’re not doing all the work. If you must know, I’m going to get the 411 on Atlan and do research before Hope does anything drastic like breaking and entering.”

“Ooh.” Krissy nodded.

Hopee’s eyes grew wide and insightful, “Awesome. We’ll go with that for plan B.”

“Oh great.” Krissy face turned sour. “Thanks for giving her ideas.”

Coral pointed to the doors and said, “I’m gonna go now.” As the smart one walked out the door, Hopee followed her.

Not about to be left behind, Krissy sent the info to the printer then chased after the other two.

Gathered around the bar just outside the secret office, Coral poured herself a drink then went down the few steps into the den and started up the computer. Hopee propped her laptop on her knees on the comfy white suede sofa. Krissy went to retrieve the paper from the printer before she joined them in the den. Just as she was about to sit down to make the call, their doorbell rang.

They eyed each other with the question of who would get that.

Coral rolled her eyes as she stood up. “I guess I’ll get it.”

“I thought we had a house keeper?” Krissy wondered out loud.

“I thought she had the day off.” Hopee intruded.

Just as Coral was about to enter the hallway, a tall handsome semi-tanned man with gorgeously dark hair and sexy dark eyes smiled down at her before he kissed her.

Krissy and Hopee whispered to each other. “It’s the J. Man,” then giggled.

“That’s new.” He pointed to the opened bookcase and not so well hidden door.

“Nnnoooo,” Coral shook her head slowly as she tried to quickly make an excuse to explain the bookcase that opened like a door on top of a door.

Hopee lifted her hand. “Hurricane damage last year. Still hadn’t gotten round to fixin’ it. We were just in there assessing the damage.”

“Really? We’d been dating for a long time and, well, anyway, I’m sorry to hear that. Need help closing the bookcase on top of it?” He looked down as he lifted Coral’s chin.

“That would be wonderful,” Krissy interjected, “but you two have wasted enough time in here. Get your evening started and have fun. Don’t worry about this. But we do thank you for offering. However, I already called my cousin. So, Adam will be here soon.”

Hopee forced herself not to cringe and prayed her friend wouldn’t continue talking about relatives that were dead.

As he escorted his girl out the door he asked, “How many cousins does Krissy have? I mean every time I’m here she’s naming different relations.”

“Well, with Krissy you just have to understand that she’s unusual. Unlike most people who don’t know their distant relations and therefore don’t lay claim to everyone, she does.”

“Are you trying to convince me that she knows all of her relatives?”

“It’s possible.” She stood beside him as he opened the passenger door.

“I didn’t think she was that smart.”

Coral lifted a brow. “She has talent.”

“I didn’t mean that in an insulting way. It just didn’t fit with her personality.”

“Fine. Can we talk about someone else? Oh, how about your best friend?” She smiled as she slid into the seat.

The J. Man laughed. “No. But I do apologize. Does that make you happy?”

“Yes. Thank you.”

He closed the door and shook his head as he made his way to the driver’s side. As he slid into the seat he turned toward her and asked, “Are you sure you’re not upset with me?”

“As long as it doesn’t get back to Krissy, I think I can willingly and completely forgive you.”

Quickly he leaned over and kissed her. “You’re too good to me.”

“I know.” She smiled.

Inside the house, Krissy straightened a painting and the bookcase began to close then she inquired, “Have they left yet?”

Hopee stealthily looked out the bay window. “Not yet. They’re kissing.” A moment later she added as she waved her hand behind her. “Oh, wait. They’re backing out.” She turned away from the window with a mischievous smile. “They’re outta here.”

“And so are we?” Krissy guessed.

Those Gorgeous Guys

“Oh stop looking like you’re about to cry. She’s busy and we need to do this. We don’t have time to,” she rolled her eyes as she made quote marks with her fingers, “wait for research.”

“I’m with her on this. They probably don’t know what they have.”

“What? Weren’t you listening about the article?”

Krissy shrugged shyly. “Maybe.”

“Don’t worry. She’ll thank me for this.”

“Really? Cause, I’m getting a totally different feeling.”

She slung her purse onto her shoulder. “This’ll be sweet. And before you ask, we’re not breaking and entering just yet.”

“Yet?”

Hopee laughed. “I was kidding.” She grabbed Krissy’s hand then headed out the door before she added, “for now.”

On the way to the agency, Krissy pleaded, “Is there anything I can offer you to make you change your mind?”

“Not a thing.”

“A shopping spree?”

For a moment Hopee struggled with the offer then took a deep breath, determined to prove her method will work this time. “No.”

The entire drive Krissy pondered a better offer, but couldn’t think of one.

With force, Hopee threw the car into park. “We’re here.”

“I foresee trouble.”

“When did you become psychic?”

Krissy ignored the remark and questioned, “What are you going to say? We can’t just walk in and they’ll just hand over our artifacts.”

“I plan to get our artifacts back. And would it kill you and Coral to have a little faith in me? I mean come on.” As she grabbed her purse, she said, “Oh, you’ll be the distraction.”

“Oh no. No way!”

With a sigh, Hopee tried to be understanding. “What is so difficult about being the distraction? I’m the one risking it all by snooping in their files.”

“I should have known there’d be snooping involved.” Though she felt the weight of the task at hand on her petite shoulders, Krissy followed Hopee into the elegant museum’s gold embossed glass doors. The interior décor briefly distracted her and she uttered in awe. “Very nice. Feels Asian with a slight touch of Egyptian.” A grand staircase was straight ahead, just past a waiting area and it captured their attention.

“Thank you,” two satisfied male voices crooned.

One of them stated, “Welcome to the Atlan Museum.”

Hopee and Krissy turned slowly toward the deep male voices then swallowed when their eyes met two gorgeous men with mouth-watering smiles.

Self-conscious, Hopee swallowed again and wanted to pat her hair or at least the blue stripe down the side of her face. Nervously, she smiled.

Caught off guard by the gorgeous men, Krissy sighed dreamily and didn’t realize her power seeped out until Hopee hit her and she blinked.

Both men stared at them blankly then looked around in wonder.

Sheepishly, Krissy cleared her throat. “Hello.”

The tall dark haired man seemed caught in her eyes as he took her hand and said almost breathlessly, “Hello. I’m Nicky, and this is my friend and coworker, M. G. May we help you, ladies?”

Although Hopee started to shake her head, she paused before she did a complete shake then changed it to a nod. With a nudge, she tapped Krissy’s toe. “Well, we’re here for–”

Both men leaned slightly forward when she stopped in mid-sentence.

“We’re here because we read the paper and would like to take a tour.”

“A tour guide should be finishing up momentarily. Would you care to wait?” Nicky implored then added, “Please.”

With a nod, Krissy tugged Hopee from the men. “Thank you. We’ll wait in the waiting area.”

M. G. asked, “May I get you something while you wait?”

“Pepsi?” Hopee asked cheerily.

Krissy shook her head. “Nothing for me, thanks.”

“Pepsi it will be.” He smiled but was hesitant to leave. Finally, he was able to leave their presence and disappeared behind the information desk.

For several moments, Nicky nervously fidgeted with objects on the desk before he approached them in the waiting area. Hesitantly, he asked, “Are you ladies from around here?”

Krissy nodded slowly. “Yes. You?”

“Ugh, yes. I’ve lived here all my life.”

“I love the weather here, but my friends and I just moved to the area.”

“Really?” He debated a moment then suggested, “My friend and I will be off work in an hour, which will be about the time your tour should end. I’d love to show you around the city. If you’re not busy or have another engagement?”

Hopee glanced at her friend then the man, a few times. At the shake of her friend’s head, she knew Krissy was going to decline and stepped in. “We have no plans for the afternoon and we are not engaged.”

“Great.” He beamed and tried to control his excitement as a group of people descended the stairs.

M. G. approached with a chilled Pepsi in his hand. “Looks like I am just in time.” He walked faster then handed the soda to Hopee.

“Thank you.” Hopee said as Krissy dug for money. “I’ll see you in an hour.”

He nodded.

“Dinner? Before or after the tour?”

Confused, M. G. lifted a brow at Nicky.

Krissy shrugged. “After?”

“Sounds great.” Nicky glanced at Krissy’s lips.

Hopee knew that look and tugged Krissy away so Nicky could think again. “Thank you for the soda.”

“Allow me to introduce you to your guide.” M. G. led them to the tour guide as she bid the other group goodbye. “Lara, only two for this last tour. And no charge.”

Lara looked at the women beside M. G. with loathing then forced a smile. “Of course, Sir.”

Krissy whispered, “Don’t expect her to be friendly.”

Knowingly, Hopee chuckled. “That’s very kind of you, M. G. Thank you.”

“Yes it is very kind of him.” Lara gritted. “So kind, that perhaps he would like to take you himself?”

He didn’t waste the opportunity. “What a wonderful idea, Lara. I’m sure you need a break.”

Lara was about to protest, but M. G. offered Hopee his arm.

“After you.”

Nicky rushed toward the stairs and ordered as he passed the tour guide, “Lara, stay at the information desk. Thank you.”

At their backs, Lara complained, “She has blue hair. Hello.”

Reluctantly, Lara sulked toward the desk and dropped into the seat as she crossed her arms.

Behind the security doors at the top of the stairs, Krissy and Hopee walked with the two gentlemen.

“Here you’ll find the map that brought us to discover Atlantis which is where we found the artifacts.” Nicky stuck his hands into his slacks and felt something. “Oh, M. G., I forgot to give this to you.” With the rectangular box in his hand, he passed it over. “A special gift from J.L; he said it was part of the attire.” He reached into his other pocket and pulled out another one without the fancy box. “I have one too.”

“Sweet.” M. G. said as he donned the gentleman’s wristlet as Nicky donned his.

Hopee fidgeted as her hands tingled and knew Krissy sensed the artifacts too. “That’s very interesting. Where are the artifacts that were discovered? I’m anxious to see those.”

“Right this way.” Nicky lead them through a maze of artifacts and each piece had its own dedicated history. “The next hallway will be short, but you may notice the security will be a bit overdone.”

After they rounded the corner, Hopee wished Coral had been with them. Immediately, she thought about taking the items with Krissy’s power of confusion. But, she threw that idea out when Krissy shook her head. She began to wonder if she was that transparent.

Strangely, what started as a tingle began to rumble through the women’s bodies.

Hopee thought to Krissy, The attraction is too strong to disguise.

Panicked, Krissy unleashed her power to confuse the men.

Both women were astounded when the men didn’t seem to be affected.

“Are you ladies alright?” Nicky asked.

It’s not working!

Confused and oddly impressed, Hopee asked, “What does M. G. stand for?”

Nicky laughed. “I’ll answer that one.” His co-worker groaned, but he continued, “We call him the Mystery Guy.”

“Really?”

“It was either that or a blank name tag.”

Nervously, Krissy laughed as she noticed the artifacts began to glow with their presence. The artifacts are ours. I mean they’re genuine.

Before the men could continue with the tour and look at the glowing artifacts, the women tugged them through the next armored doorway.

“So, you’re ashamed of your name?” Hopee inquired.

Again, Nicky laughed. “Oh, it’s much more than that.”

M. G.’s fierce glare for his co-worker left little to the imagination.

A bell rang.

“Well that concludes our tour. Would you ladies mind accompanying us to the control room to shut down?”

“Isn’t that against company policy?”

Nicky shook his head. “No. We determined you were not armed when you walked into the museum, so you’re good.”

In the control room, cameras were everywhere and with the push of a few buttons and switches, steel doors dropped from the ceiling and sealed the artifacts.

Krissy did not mistake the satisfaction in Hopee’s undertone when her friend said, “That was easy.”

Doom settled in her soul and silently, she called for help in the form of her other friend, Coral.

The Heirloom

“Atlan is a Detective slash Archeological agency?” Coral moaned. “This is not good.”

“Not what you were hoping for?”

She looked up. “I’m sorry. I forgot you were here.” Coral pulled money out of her purse. “Here. Thank you for your time.”

“Will that be all then?” He asked. “Need me to look into something else?”

Upset, she shook her head with a frown. “Maybe later. Thank you.”

After he nodded, he opened the front door and left.

Coral paced in the living room for what seemed like hours as she waited for her friends to return.

Finally, she heard voices and pounced with a sharp jerk on the door. “Where have you been?” She said before her eyes made contact with two unknown men with her friends.

“Easy, mother dear.” Hopee smiled.

Coral rolled her eyes. “You’re grounded.”

Krissy pressed her lips together.

“You too.” She pointed to the men then turned to her friends. “Now, who are they?”

“Please forgive our friend.” Hopee rolled her eyes. “Coral, this is Mystery Guy and this is Nicky J.”

Both men shook her hand. “Delighted to meet you.”

“Yes. I’m Nicky. They said you would say that.”

“Pleasure to meet both of you and somewhat surprised.”

Hopee shrugged. “They showed us around town.”

M. G. fidgeted in a moment of silence then said, “Well, I think it’s time for us to go.”

“Are you sure you’re all right?” Nicky asked Krissy.

“All right?” Coral was suddenly concerned. “Please come in. I want to know what happened.”

Pleased at the invitation, M. G. ushered the women inside the door. “Both of them fainted at the restaurant.”

“Fainted? Pshh. Nothing to worry about.” Coral pushed her hair behind her ear. “Krissy and Hopee, I need your help with tea and coffee.”

“Coffee for me.” Nicky requested.

M. G. made a sour face. “Tea for me, please.”

“Coming right up.” Coral smiled as she ushered her friends into the kitchen. As soon as the kitchen door closed, she attacked. “You went to the museum?”

Krissy pointed at Hopee. “She made me.”

“We couldn’t wait for the research.”

“And what did you find?”

“The artifacts. And they have more power than the others.”

Coral paused in her reach for the cups. “How much more?”

“The pull was so strong I don’t know how she missed it.”

In an effort to hide, Krissy took the cups and put them on the tray as she began to whistle.

Both Hopee and Coral looked at Krissy. “Well?”

“I don’t know. Everything was talking to me that night. I couldn’t tell who was what and what was who.” She put a hand on her hip. “Another thing. I wasn’t the one who said it would be safe in the ruins of our old home.”

Coral held out her hands. “Fine. I was wrong for once.”

“Everything all right in there?” M. G. called from the living room.

Hopee poked her head out the kitchen door. “Just peachy. Having trouble reaching the cupboards.”

“I’d love to help.”

“Ow.” Hopee said as she was pulled back into the kitchen. A moment later she stuck her head back out and said, “No need. Coral has a ladder. Thank you.” She was jerked away from the door and another muffled, “Ow,” was heard.

“We wouldn’t need a ladder if you hadn’t made the ceilings over ten feet tall in the kitchen.”

Krissy nodded. “No human is ten feet tall. That was just a little extreme.”

“But it looks cool.” Hopee looked up at the ceiling. “I feel dizzy just looking up. Sweet.”

“You know. I get that feeling too.” Krissy nodded. “But what are we going to do about the guys who followed us home?”

With a lifted brow, Hopee announced, “I don’t know about you, but I’m keeping mine.” She took the pot of coffee, put it on the tray then carried it out before Coral could detain her further.

“Before you say or ask anything. I think we’ll need to steal it back. There is no way they’ll give up the artifacts,” Krissy determined. “And we can’t tell them why the artifacts belong to us.”

“What were they?”

She leaned close and whispered, “One was your mother’s giant pearl, which I think caused the extreme pull we felt. The other was my mother’s heavy gold necklace with a distinct Atlantian style with precious unknown, need I add un-mined stones that no surface dweller could possibly discover deep in the ocean floor.” She took a deep breath then continued, “The third was Hopee’s father’s Atlantian stones and gold plaque with his initials and family crest.”

Coral felt sick. “I think you’re right. We’ll have to let Hopee plan this one.”

Before Krissy could say another word, Nicky appeared. “Need any help?” His eyes glanced up then stared at the ceiling. “That is one extreme ceiling.”

“Yup.” Both women added just before they put the tea on the tray.

“Here, let me carry that for you.” Nicky took the tray from Krissy. “Please, lead the way.”

Just as they sat down and got comfortable, the doorbell rang. Coral stood up to greet the person, but Jesse rushed in before she could make it out of the living room.

Shocked, Jesse froze for a few minutes then looked at Coral. “I’m sorry I didn’t know you had company.”

“They came with Krissy.”

“And me.” Hopee lifted her hand. “Hello, J. Man.”

“Hey.” His eyes stayed on the men as he added, “Hello, Krissy. Who are your friends?”

The other men stood up, somewhat puzzled.

“Hello, J. Man,” Nicky commented playfully then smiled. “I’m Nicky and this is my partner, M. G.”

“M. G.?”

“Mystery Guy.” M.G. remarked as he gave his ear a tug.

Jesse laughed then cleared his throat as they shook hands. “Nice to meet you.”

“Well, I’m glad we’ve all been introduced. Care to sit with us, J. Man?”

He shook his head. “Actually, I came to give Coral something that dropped out of her purse. I found it when I got home and figured it wasn’t too late to bring it back.” He pulled a box out of his pocket.

Krissy’s eyes widened as Hopee swallowed. Coral smiled nervously. “Oh. Thank you.” She hugged him as she took the white pearly box. “You’re the best.”

“I hoped you’d say that. Can we speak privately?”

His expression let the women know he peeked in the box.

“Of course.” To their company she nodded as she said, “It was a pleasure to meet all of you,” then disappeared with Jesse into the kitchen.

“I would like to know where you got this unique piece of jewelry.”

On the precipice of the relationship, Coral realized one of two things: one, she could lie and risk losing the man she loved should he ever discover the truth, or two, she could mask the lie.

“It was a gift from my mother.”

Jesse observed her every move. “Do you know anything about it?”

Aware of the trap, she shook her head as she leaned slightly back on the table. “Why are you drilling me? It’s just a piece of sentimental jewelry.”

With a sigh, he backed off a bit. “I’m sorry. It’s just that this particular piece of jewelry is similar to that found from artifacts believed to be genuinely from Atlantis. Would you allow me to study it?”

“Will I get it back?”

Jesse smiled. “Of course. It’s your mother’s.” He kissed her forehead. “And I promise to keep it safe. It’ll only take a few days.”

“I trust you.” Reluctantly, she handed the box back to him. “I suppose you’re not spending the night tonight?”

He shook his head. “No. But you are always welcome to sleep over at my place.”

Reluctantly, she knew she had to plan to get the artifacts back. “I wish I could, but the girls and I have some work to finish up. But I’ll see you for lunch?”

“Yes.” He kissed her. “Definitely for lunch.” With a mischievous glint in his eyes, he asked, “Your place, mine or a hotel?”

“Get us a room,” Coral said then kissed him again.

With a small tug, he pulled her back into the living room. “Well, it was nice to meet you gentlemen, but I have a busy day tomorrow.”

The other men stood up and said they did too.

“We’ll walk you out.” Krissy said.

As the men got in their vehicles, the women waved goodbye.

“I think they knew each other.” Coral didn’t hesitate to offer her opinion as her man pulled out of the driveway first.

“You’re always suspicious.”

Krissy didn’t want to discard the suspicion completely. “But she is the smart one.”

“Yes, but she’s been wrong before. Hasn’t she?”

“Once.” Coral admitted.

Hopee snarled. “You two are so paranoid, I don’t know how you survive everyday.”

“Let’s get this over with. When do you want to get the artifacts?”

“Tonight.” Hopee said as she waved goodbye to M. G.

Coral glared at Krissy. “Why did you have to ask? I was hoping for a drink.”

Time for Camo

Nearly an hour later, dressed in black camouflage for the evening task, the three women skulked around the roof of the Atlan Museum.

“I can’t believe I’m actually doing this.” Coral felt a deep sense of guilt.

Hopee said, “Shhh. Keep your voice to a whisper if you must talk. And for the record, they stole it from us. We are just forcing them to return the artifacts to its rightful owners.”

“Against their knowledge?”

“Technicalities,” Hopee argued. “Whether they know it or not, those things belong to us. And we all know they won’t just hand them over. So, to save pride and blame, we will do this the right way.”

Coral squirmed. “I hate it when you’re right.” She sighed. “Let’s do this.” She donned a black camo mask with her friends. “I only hope I can forgive . . . myself in time.”

After the vent was opened and the detector disabled, Hopee was the first to enter. Krissy and Coral pushed each other forward, to get the other to go next. A moment later, Krissy surrendered and followed Hopee. With a silent prayer, the smart one reluctantly and illegally entered forbidden territory.

For several minutes all went as planned, until they heard voices as they were about to drop to the floor in the control room.

It’s midnight! Who’s here? Hopee thought to the others.

Krissy and Coral shrugged.

Quickly, they struggled to get the vent back into place as two men approached the door. Unable to secure it, each held a corner, mindful not to allow their gloved fingers to be seen from the other side.

The men entered the control room. Without light, each went to a different section of the room, pushed lighted buttons, typed on a lit up keyboard, then one turned around unexpectedly.

They were too far away to hear, but immediately the men rushed out.

Relieved, Hopee held the vent as Krissy and Coral lowered her to the ground. As the others joined her, she rushed to disarm the Atlantian artifacts and opened the doors.

I’ll get the artifacts. You two keep a watch on the door. As soon as you see the video signal go out, that’s your cue to leave. I’ll find another way out. Hopee didn’t wait around to make sure they understood, but immediately raced to find what she came for.

“Think we’ll get caught?”

Krissy shrugged. “I bet it’ll be a close call . . . to freedom.”

“Not very reassuring.” Coral sulked.

“When is breaking and entering ever reassuring?”

“You have a point.” In light of that depressing news, Coral reached into her camo pocket and pulled out miniature liquor bottles. “Wanna drink?”

“Sure.” Krissy took a cute little bottle. “Good thing it’s small. If it were larger we wouldn’t have time to enjoy it.”

Coral smiled and lifted hers for a toast. “I’ll drink to that.”

Krissy tipped the bottle up then swallowed once. “Huh. That’s it? Just a swallow?”

The smart one nodded. “Want to share Hope’s?”

“Oh yeah. It’s her fault we’ll get caught.”

They split the third bottle between them when they noticed Hopee in the artifacts room. Two seconds later the camera went out and they heard movement in the ceiling.

“We’ve been caught,” Krissy whispered as she ran for the door. We can’t go through the vent system. Now what?

Let’s try another room.

Someone activated the alarm system. Red lights and sirens were everywhere.

I think I’m about to hyperventilate.

Near a panic herself, Krissy quickly picked a lock and entered the room as they heard steel doors slam shut throughout the museum.

“The vent.” Coral pointed in the flashing red lit room.

They moved a chair to put the vent within their reach. But as Coral pushed Krissy into the vent, the door was kicked opened.

Instantly Coral’s hands went up. “Don’t shoot, I surrender!”

“Don’t—”

Abruptly, the man’s eyes went blank.

Krissy jumped onto the ground. “We’ll just walk out with the guard.”

“Are you crazy?”

With a wide smile, Krissy took the guard’s gun then wrapped her arm in his as she handed Coral the weapon, then took his hand held means of communication before she released his mind. “Thank you so much for the tour, but we should really be on our way.”

“Where am I?” The guard looked around, confused. “We’re in Mr. J’s secretary’s office?”

Coral worked frantically to remove the batteries then silently set the gun in a drawer.

“Yes. Don’t you remember?” Krissy took him toward the door. “Our tour?”

“No. I don’t.” The guard noticed the chaos of lights and sound. “I need to get you ladies out of here. If the boss finds out what I’ve done, he’ll fire me.”

Coral looked sorrowful. “I hope you don’t get fired for being so kind to us. We owe you more than words can express.”

“You’re welcome. I think. Let me turn off the alarm first. I’ll come back for you in a moment.” He took a deep nervous breath then went to the control room. Seconds later, he returned as promised. “Now stay close. I don’t need anyone of the other guards to see you.”

N. J. and M. G. stepped out of an office as they tried to escape with the guard.

Brewed

“Ladies?” Nicky inquired curiously, as though his thoughts may have conjured Krissy by thinking about her.

For several seconds neither spoke.

Can you?

Coral wanted to shake her head, but refrained as she thought to Krissy, I can’t. My power only seems to work on the guard.

Same here . . . We’re in so much trouble.

“Hector, what happened to the alarm system? Why is it off? Are these the intruders?”

“No, boss. They were with me. I disobeyed company policy and took them for a tour. I think.”

A familiar voice chuckled behind N. J and M. G. “Don’t be too hard on yourself, Hector. They are beautiful.”

Krissy’s jaw about dropped. “J. Man?”

“Hello, Krissy.” He addressed his companions, “N. J. and I will escort these ladies to my office. M. G., I need you to locate their other friend. Hopee. You’ll find her in sealed in with the artifacts.”

M. G. nodded then took off in a run.

Krissy and Coral winced at the thought of being encased in a steel tomb.

“This way.” J. Man took Coral’s arm and escorted her to his office. “I didn’t plan for it to happen this way.”

Confused, Krissy lifted a brow at his odd words until she looked around his office. “OMG. You were right. They do know each other. Are they—”

In response, Coral slowly turned her head to her friend and lifted a brow, but wisely kept silent. “It takes a while to sink in, okay.”

The smart one wasn’t about to expand that thought just yet. But the possibility loomed in her mind like a volcano about to erupt. Could it be that they were the resistance that caused their great city Atlantis to crumble? It had been years since she’d heard the story. The artifacts with the man she’d thought held no secrets from her were from the Atlanrahs Resistance. Her shoulders dropped. With her heirloom in his hands, she was sure he knew that her family was with the Lanthin Alliance. If only she had listened to her mother’s wise words about the gorgeous guys and how they loved conflict. Sadly, she met Jesse’s sad gaze. “Wipe the pretend sad look off your face. Why didn’t you tell me who you really were when you discovered my heirloom?”

From within his desk drawer, he withdrew the necklace she had handed to him. The large sea shell spiral was a mixture of several different precious stones naturally encased in a solid diamond. It was flawless.

“Interesting that you didn’t find it necessary to discuss your past with me either.”

“Ooh,” Krissy winced, “he got you there.”

Hopee’s voice was heard in the hallway. Everyone remained silent as they watched the door.

M. G. opened the door then pulled a reluctant Hope into the room. “Found her in the artifacts room hugging the three artifacts we found.”

“Darn, they have both of you.”

Krissy held her arms open and traumatized by the events of the evening, Hopee ran to her friend.

“It was horrible being buried in steel,” she muttered into Krissy’s shoulder.

“You weren’t there long,” Nicky looked at his watch.

Hopee glared at him then sighed before she asked, “Okay. Don’t keep us waiting. What’s it gonna cost us to hush this up and be on our way?” It was then her eyes came into contact with the J. Man’s. “J. Man?”

“Hello, Hope. Glad you can join us.”

She looked around the darkly designed office. “Wow. Those remind me of—”

Before she could finish, Coral pulled her into an embrace. They are from the resistance.

That would make them our enemies.

Yay, it didn’t take you as long as it did Krissy.

“Are they somehow communicating?”

Jesse stood up then opened a safe. “Yes.”

The three women winced.

“It’s a mind gift the Lanthinian Alliance members shared.” Nicky informed M. G.

Confused and amazed, M. G. inquired, “Are you saying these three women are descended from the Alliance of the city of Atlantis?”

“He’s slower than Krissy.” Coral patted her friend’s hand. “J., this is between you and me. Let them go home.”

“Not with my artifacts. Unless you would like to apologize?”

She planted both hands on his desk and gritted. “You first.”

“Damn. Wish I had some popcorn.” Nicky commented. “This is getting good.”

J. Man groaned while Krissy and Hopee nodded in gleeful agreement.

“N.J. and M. G., please escort the ladies to our home and don’t let them out of your sight. Oh, M. G.?

“Yes?”

With a glance toward Hopee, Jesse added, “As a precaution, don’t take the artifact off your wrist.”

With regret, he looked at Coral when the three women inhaled.

Both Hopee and Krissy refused to be taken and stood by Coral’s side.

“Weren’t we warned about secretive men with gorgeous smiles?” Hopee glanced at M. G. and couldn’t resist a dreamy stare.

Krissy pinched her. “They’re the enemy. Gorgeous, but still the enemy.”

“Peril’s good for the soul.”

Coral and Krissy did a double take in Hopee’s direction then Krissy pinched the dreamer.

“No. We are not enemies.” Jesse stared at the woman he loved. “The war is over. There is no struggle for power here. Atlantis is destroyed, much to our regret.” He reached for Coral’s hand, but she retreated. “Why fight over history?”

M. G. nodded. “Can’t bring them back. Besides that was . . . wait . . . was it before your time?”

“No. We’re ancient,” Krissy lied.

Hopee shook her head. “Whoa!” With a flirty face, she told M. G., “Only our thoughts are aged with wisdom.” To prove it, she licked her bottom lip then winked.

The smart one tried not to laugh.

“J. Man is right,” Nicky added his thoughts, “we weren’t there when the war started. So we were born on different sides of the feud. It wasn’t our fight. It wasn’t our war. Can’t we move forward toward peace?”

This time it was Krissy whose face took on a dreamy glow. “Would this peace talk be an all nighter?”

Nicky chuckled softly. “If you’d like.”

Shocked, Krissy hid her eyes. “Did I say that out loud?”

Everyone answered, “Yes.”

Once again, Jesse walked toward Coral, reached for her then pulled her into his arms when she didn’t resist him. “Peace? I love you. Truly and deeply.”

“Only if our artifacts come home with us.”

“Agreed,” Jesse didn’t hesitate.

M. G. asked, “How are we going to explain to the public about the suddenly gone artifacts?”

Hopee grinned. “A curse. Hey, it worked for the Egyptians.”

Krissy pulled J. Man away from Coral. “Did you hear any of what Hope said?”

“Yes.” He lovingly caressed Coral’s face. “A curse it will be. Nicky, get on that. Leak it to the press while M. G. prepares his speech.”

“Why me? I’m not descended from a powerful ancient culture. My pathetic last name is Gemini.”

Everyone faced him open-mouthed.

Impressed by the reaction, he nodded in satisfaction. “Maybe I am someone after all.” He puffed up his chest then said his name, “Hear this world. I’m Mortimer Gemini.”

Hopee patted his chest and said, “How about we just stick with M. G.?”

Slightly hurt, he accepted the inevitable. “I knew it was too much to hope for.”