“Want what?”
“Don’t play stupid, Mr. Wells.”
He skimmed his fingers over her shoulder. “I like beautiful things. Valuable things. Irreplaceable things.”
A shiver crawled up her spine. “What assurance do I have that if I give it to you that you won’t turn on me or my father?”
“Now why would I do that? Surely, you don’t believe I’d implicate myself in this. I’m simply taking advantage of an opportunity that was dropped in my lap.”
“What about the curse? That doesn’t trouble you?”
Xavier laughed. “Come now, Olive. Don’t be silly. Curses aren’t real.”
“How do you know that? There have been too many unexplained things that happen after tombs are compromised. Tunnels collapse. Diggers dying suddenly of heart attacks.”
“You’re a scientist. You know that those things can all be explained by science.”
“Too many coincidences.”
“You sound paranoid.”
He was right. She did. She took a deep breath. “Doesn’t matter. I just want this to be done so I can wash my hands of it.”
“All you have to do is hand the heart over to me and walk away.”
“I want something else.”
Xavier cocked his head to the right. “Oh?”
“You’re an opportunist. Surely you can appreciate me taking advantage of an opportunity.”
“I’m listening.”
“I want the next dig in Alexandria fully funded, no questions asked.”
“If you help me make this auction successful, I’ll concede.”
“And if I don’t?”
“Are you really bargaining with me here? I could put you and your father in prison.”
“You’re an awful human being, do you know that? You use kids with cancer to funnel money into your pocket. You threaten people with prison if they don’t do your bidding.”
Heat spread from her belly to her neck and up into her cheeks. She was sure her face was red. “You’re a prick.” Olive downed her champagne and set the empty glass next to the auction sheet on the table. With a backward glance, she headed for the double doors across the room. Xavier stood there in front of the stupid fruit painting with a smile plastered on his face. She imagined he always looked so self-satisfied.
Olive turned forward just in time to run into the broad chest of a man. The heart scarab fell from her grasp and bounced on the marble floor. She looked up into the kohl-lined eyes of the man she’d seen by the café. He smirked.
Olive bent to grab the relic off the floor and rushed past him. The smell of lilies hung heavily in the hallway as she rushed toward the bank of elevators and fear boiled up in her gut. In her haste, her heel caught on the carpet and she stumbled, but caught herself with a hand on the wall.
She stabbed at the up button while watching the corridor, waiting for the mysterious man to emerge and pursue her. He had to be the mummy coming after his scarab heart. Maybe even sent by Osiris himself. Perhaps she should go back and give it to Xavier, make it his problem, but she’d been the one to take it. Surely passing it off wouldn’t absolve her of guilt.
The light above the elevator came on and a bell rang. The moment the doors slid open she slunk inside. Her head spun a little, probably from the champagne. She didn’t drink often, but at the moment she wished she had another one to ease her anxiety. Why had she agreed to this? Her father was a grown-up; he should fix his own messes.
For the next few days, the students would be cataloguing the dig. She could go back and slip the heart back where it belonged. That would stop this madness, this sense that she was losing her mind. And it was the right thing to do. She wasn’t a thief. But her father was. Damn him. The thought of her charming, well-spoken father in prison made her stomach churn. He was too pretty, but at some point, Casper was going to have to start being responsible for his own actions. Olive wouldn’t be bailing him out anymore.
Tears burned her eyes as she exited the elevator and jogged toward her hotel room door. First thing in the morning, she would hail a taxi back to the tomb of Amenken and make this right.
Chapter Three
The night had passed slowly with her waking every hour. Until that scarab was back where it belonged, Olive would likely not get a good night’s sleep. With coffee in hand, she sat on the small balcony and watched the sun rise. The sky went from inky black to swirls of pink and purple and orange. Another half hour and a cab would meet her down at the street and take her back to the tomb.
She dressed and tucked the scarab into her bra for the last time. She made sure her keycard was in her purse and pulled open the door to her room. Instead of an empty hallway, she was greeted by the man with the kohl-lined eyes.
“Going somewhere?”