They strolled uptown until they reached Jay’s hotel.
Walking into the well-appointed lobby, Jay moved purposely towards the bar. Desmond and Kelsey followed.
“I’ll have a glass of merlot,” Jay said to the bartender. “The good stuff you keep hidden. Not that cheap house swill you pass off as fine wine to the tourists.”
The bartender cocked his head. “You got an ID, kid?”
Jay took out his wallet, glanced inside, and then exhaled loudly. “It’s in my room. Look, I’m twenty one, I’m French, and I’d like a drink.”
The bartender shrugged. “Sorry, I don’t make the rules. I need to see ID for anyone that looks under thirty. It’s the law.”
“This country is utterly ridiculous,” Jay muttered. “Just forget it.” He grabbed the peanuts in the dish on the bar and shoved a handful into his mouth.
“I’ll have a gin and tonic,” Desmond said, smugly. He took out his identification and showed it to the bartender. “Kelsey, would you like something?”
Kelsey shook her head. “I’m good.” The last thing she wanted to do was put something else in her stomach. She turned back to Jay, who glowered at Desmond.
“Why would talking to a priest cause him to run?” Kelsey prodded, trying to stop the confrontation that she felt sure was about to happen.
The bartender gave Desmond his drink, and he imbibed in long, deep sips.
Jay scowled at him. “Damned if I know.” As soon as the bartender turned his back, Jay leaned over and fished some olives out of the bar tray and popped them into his mouth. He chewed loudly and glanced around the bar. A woman across the room, sitting by herself, smiled seductively at him. Her salon tan, bleached blond hair and low cut dress screamed out for him to come over. He nodded back at her and raised an olive in her direction. She smiled coyly back.
Desmond smirked. “Looks like your ride is here.”
Jay cocked his head towards Kelsey. “Well, unless you’d like to lend me yours?”
Desmond instantly rocked off the stool, wrapped his right hand around Jay’s throat and slammed him hard into the bar. It happened so fast the bartender didn’t even notice until a highball tumbled over and crashed to the floor.
“Hey, take it outside, or I’ll call the cops!” the bartender barked.
“I am the cops,” Desmond snapped back. He refused to let Jay go until Kelsey pried his fingers off of Jay’s throat.
“We’re fine, right officer?” Jay smiled innocently. He tossed the remaining olive still in his hand into his mouth.
The bartender gave them another cautious glance and then bent down to clean up the broken glass.
“I’m not a party favor,” Kelsey seethed. She glanced back at Desmond, who had an expression in his eyes she’d not quite seen before. He was beyond angry.
Jay adjusted his clothing and ran his fingers through his hair. He picked up a butter knife sitting on the bar and used the blade as a mirror. “Kelsey,” he began, as if nothing had happened. “There’s a British Airways flight to Egypt tomorrow at 3:00 pm out of Kennedy. I’ll meet you on the plane. Try to be on time. I hate how late you Americans always are.” Without another word, he sauntered away from them and sat down at the woman’s table. Seconds later his arm was around her shoulders and he was sipping her glass of wine.
Desmond’s eyes were angry slits. "Let’s get out of here before I do something that I’ll have to fill out a week’s worth of paperwork for.” He glanced at Kelsey as if he suddenly noticed something. “You all right?”
Do I say something to him? Is it possible I’m pregnant? No, not before she was leaving. “I’m fine. Just a little tired.” Oh, please let that be all it is.
Kelsey and Desmond passed Jay, now nuzzling the nape of the older woman’s neck. A bottle of wine stood on the table before them. Kelsey glared at the kid.
If I’m lucky, he won’t even know I’m gone until he gets on the plane.
She had no intention of catching the afternoon flight. She planned on already being in Egypt by then.
Chapter 4
EGYPT
The fight started as soon as the cab stopped in front of Desmond’s townhouse.
“Kelsey, I don’t want you going with him.”
She measured her words. “Desmond, I’m not going to get into this with you right now.” She didn’t even feel like explaining that she would catch an early morning flight and leave Jay in New York.
“This kid is trouble.”
She arched her eyebrows. “Trouble for who? Certainly not for me, or for you for that matter. But I’m telling you, if you keep up this ridiculousness we’re going to have problems.”
His eyes hardened. “We’re already having problems, aren’t we?”
“Desmond, what is wrong with you? Why are you acting like this?
He pursed his lips. “Because I know there are things you’re not telling me. I know you’re having nightmares. You want to talk about trust? How about you start by telling me why you’re hiding things from me?”
Her jaw dropped. “You’re upset because I’m not sharing dreams I’m having? I don’t even know what they mean. How about you start telling me why you’re always staring at me like you’re terrified something is about to happen to me and you don’t trust anything I do? Or, how about you start by telling me why you haven’t introduced me to your mother yet?”
He closed his eyes. “Kelsey, let’s not do this right before you leave.”
“Me? I haven’t done anything. You, on the other hand, seem to have a lot of things you need to work out. Think about it while I’m gone and get back to me.”
She turned to the cabbie. “Take me downtown to Chelsea, please.”
Desmond seemed like he was about to say something, but then apparently changed his mind. He threw a twenty dollar bill on the seat. With a huff, he got out of the cab without even kissing her goodbye.
Kelsey watched his retreating back as he stalked towards his townhouse. He turned back to her once, and their eyes locked for just a second before the cab pulled away.
This was bad. She wondered if this meant the beginning of the end for them. Her stomach dropped just thinking about it. She took out her cellphone and called Julia. The whining started immediately.
“Hey, Kelsey. What, you get a boyfriend and I don’t get to see you anymore? What’s with that?”
Kelsey sighed, glad for the diversion. Julia had been Kelsey’s best friend since they were eleven years old, and was one of the most dramatic and instigative people she’d ever met. A huge tattle-tale, she constantly stirred up trouble. “You are so ridiculous. I just saw you Tuesday night. That was all of three days ago.”
Julia sniffed. “Oh, fine. Then if you weren’t calling me to hang out, I’ll assume you called me because you need something?”
“Yes. Tickets please.” Julia, besides being Kelsey’s best friend, also worked part-time for Kelsey’s brother, Ari. Ari ran a huge company that conducted profit and loss reports for some of the major corporations in the world. That was the cover job. His real love was the side jobs his specialized teams conducted for the CIA, FBI and anyone else that had enough money to pay for clandestine operations. Julia served as the firm's resident lawyer, researcher, and travel agent. Kelsey herself worked on many of the missions. Even at her young age, she was as brilliant and skilled as some of the most lethal assassins on the planet. After the murder of her parents, she dedicated her life to avenging their deaths, learning how to hunt down those who had killed them. She had acquired a substantial amount of knowledge and aptitude along the way.
Kelsey told Julia about Armand Dupuis and the letter.
“He thinks you might know something way back from your time in Egypt? I can’t imagine your parents getting involved in anything crazy with their two little kids with them. Do you have any idea what it was, or what he found, that’s causing all these problems now?”
“I have no clue. He said it has to do with all the empty tombs populating Eg
ypt and it has something to do with reincarnation.”
“Reincarnation? Oh, come on. That again? Are you serious?”
Kelsey snorted. “I know, right? Everything I get involved in seems to revolve around that.”
“Do you remember your parents or Armand mentioning anything about it during your stay there?”
Kelsey thought about it. “Not even a little, but I do remember quite a bit about the trip. I had fun digging around in the sand looking for artifacts, learning Egyptian, and seeing the pyramids. I don’t remember anything mind blowing, though. I mean, I was only six.”
Julia chuckled. “Yeah, but you’re not like other people, Kelsey. Your six is like other people’s twelve or fifteen.”
“Oh stop it. I was just a little kid.” Still…
“Okay, so you’re going to Egypt to snoop around and see what you can find out? Do you need the team to do any research for you? Make some calls to see if we can find this guy and what he was up to? I’m itching to do something more interesting than investigating old geological surveys in remote areas of the Middle East, which is what Ari is having me do right now.”
Geological surveys? She could never keep track of what projects her brother was working on from one minute to the next. “Yeah, see if the team can find out everything they can on the empty tombs. See if there’s any connection to them that doesn’t have to do with robberies or ancient ceremonies. Maybe another angle no one has considered before. I’ll call you guys once I get there. Can you book me on the 8:00 am flight?”
“How many tickets?”
“Just one.”
Julia snickered. “Just one? Desmond isn’t going with you?”
“No, why would he go with me?” Kelsey knew the answer she would get.
“Oh, please. He’s your little shadow. Since the moment you two met, it’s like you can’t seem to go anywhere without him. Well, actually, he can’t seem to go anywhere without you. You’re like an old married couple.”
“Just book one ticket and stop giving me grief.”
Julia paused. “Whoa! Did I just hit a nerve? You guys have another fight? What, is he mad about that guy Jibade now?”
Kelsey closed her eyes. “We’re fine.”
“I knew it. Okay, I’ll let it go, for now. What about Jibade? Am I getting a ticket for him?”
“Absolutely not. Let him get there on his own. If I’m lucky, he won’t come. The guy is a real ass.”
“Is he a cute ass?”
“Let it go, Jules, he’s a jerk.”
“You never let me have any fun,” Julia pouted. Kelsey heard the clicking of computer keys in the background. “Okay, fine, it’s done. Print out the boarding pass when you get home, grab your passport, and you’re on your way. You’ll have to get your visitor’s visa there. You have money?”
“I do. There are extra piasters in my safe.”
“You can’t take your gun there anymore.”
Kelsey just remembered the new rules. Great. “I’ll get something when I get there.”
“Okay, if you have a problem, let us know and we’ll call in some favors. Have a good trip.”
Kelsey was about to hang up when she heard Julia again. Her voice was hesitant. “Hey, Kelsey?”
“What?”
“Be careful, okay? I know you’re completely capable, but things are not stable in that country right now. Especially for an American woman traveling by herself and asking questions. Militants are going so far as to kidnap their own schoolgirls to make their points.”
Kelsey was touched. “I’ll be careful, Jules. Don’t worry. None of this is really even about me. It’s about Armand Dupuis, my parents and something that happened sixteen years ago that they may, or may not, have even been a part of. My parents were all about finding Xanadu. Egypt was always just a side hobby. I’m sure this entire trip will be for nothing. I’ll contact you when I arrive. In the meantime, see what you can find about the tombs, and we’ll connect then.”
Kelsey hung up the phone, suddenly nauseous again as soon as the cab pulled up to her apartment. She placed her hand on her stomach, becoming increasingly concerned. She tried to wait the feeling out, staying in the cab and watching a homeless man push a cart past her building. He screamed to anyone who might listen about the end of the world coming at the hands of aliens. She watched him shuffle down the street until he was nothing but a shadow blending into the night. She waited another minute until the feeling passed.
“Thanks for waiting,” she said to the driver. She paid him and then prepared herself to have a nice chat with Viktor, her doorman.
#
From the alleyway, he watched her emerge from the cab and skip up the steps. She moved as lithely as a gazelle. Ever since she’d come to live with his family at the age of ten, he’d loved watching her. If she only knew how much.
“Hey, sis.” Ari slipped out of the shadows and emerged into the illumination shining from the lamppost. He kept his chin down so she couldn’t see the bruise on his face he’d gotten two days before when Desmond cold-cocked him. Kelsey stopped mid-step and turned towards her brother. He marveled how she hadn’t even flinched when he surprised her. She was so damn cool.
She grinned and tilted her head. “What are you doing here? Stalking me again?” she teased.
He shrugged. “I know you’ve been having a hard time with the cop. Thought I’d come by and give you a shoulder to cry on. Anytime you want to dump the guy, you give me the word. I can have him in the East River in an hour.”
Kelsey snorted. “Thanks, but it’s not that bad.”
“That’s not how I see it. You can’t move anywhere or have a guy speak to you without him getting his panties all bunched up.” Ari tapped his temple. “There’s something wrong with him and you know it. He’s been getting progressively worse and obsessive… about a lot of things.”
Kelsey rolled her eyes. “Just stop it, okay? We’re just going through a rough patch. It happens to everyone. Come on up and we’ll talk more.”
They didn’t speak in the elevator, but Ari studied her. He knew every inch of her being and he didn’t like what he was seeing. His sister appeared as beautiful and alluring as ever. She’d left her long dark-brown hair wild and loose, and had decided to entice everyone by wearing a skin-tight black t-shirt with a mini leopard print pencil skirt. Her feet sported a fantastic pair of high-heeled copper sandals studded with amber gems. He was pleased to see she wore the gold toe rings he’d given her for her birthday last month. They looked great with the blood red polish on her toes. He had a thing for feet.
But he could see stress lines around her eyes, and her color wasn’t as glowing as it normally was, regardless of how much make-up she was wearing. “You feeling okay?”
“I am now. I’ve been having stomachaches again. Just like when I was a kid, remember? But it comes and goes. Right now, I’m fine.” The elevator stopped on the fourth floor and they got out. Kelsey unlocked her apartment and they went inside.
He secretly loved coming here. It felt as if he’d stepped into another world. Kelsey’s time in Tibet had influenced her tastes greatly. The apartment was filled with photographs of the Himalayas, trinkets from the country and golden statues of the Buddha. The smell of exotic incense permeated the air. At any given time her home would be flooded with the scents of jasmine, amber or musk. Tonight he smelled hints of mint, lemon and pine. He breathed deeply and relaxed. Kelsey had turned on the lights, but he dimmed them lower until the room was only a soft glow.
“Oh, that’s great, mood lighting. Just what I need right now,” Kelsey joked, and fell onto one of the colored cushions on the living room floor.
Ari sat next to her. “Want to tell me what’s going on?”
Kelsey brought him up to speed about Jay and Armand. Reluctantly she described the argument with Desmond. “Look, I know you don’t like him, but you have to understand something. I love him. With all my heart.”
He stared at his sister. They’d been
through so much together and he understood her better than anyone on the earth. But he knew her passions and understood he had to tread lightly here. “I know you’re connected to him because of what happened six months ago. But that’s not a reason to stay with someone. You don’t need a guy in your life who is constantly worried about how people act around you. Seriously, you want this threat hanging over your entire relationship? That’s no way to live. Hell, I’d rather you be with Joshua then.”
Her jaw dropped. “Joshua? Really? You’d finally let me date your best friend? The guy who’s had a hard-on for me since high school? Wait, I remember the last time I actually kissed him, I got an ice bucket full of cold water thrown on me. Right outside on my balcony I do believe it was.”
He waved her away. “That was years ago, and I’ve matured. Look, I just want what’s good for you. You’re having nightmares, your boyfriend is obsessed with painting pictures from his dreams like a crazy lunatic, and you guys are having relationship problems. And now this with Dupuis? It’s a lot for anyone, Kelsey. I know you’re tough, but sometimes I worry about you.”
“You worry about me?” She arched her eyebrows disbelievingly. “What about you with all your clandestine agendas? How about you coming clean to me about the shiner on your face that you’ve been trying to hide by only letting me see your left side? What, you think I don’t know why you turned the lights down? It certainly wasn’t to seduce me. And how about telling me why you’re having Julia do all these geological surveys?”
He clicked his tongue. “That girl has a faucet for a mouth.”
“And yet you still hired her. And what’s Joshua doing back in town anyway? He never mentioned it the other night when he came over with you. I thought he was supposed to be in the Pacific with the Navy?”
“His assignment’s over. He’s back in New York for a bit. As for Julia, I hired her because she’s that good, but she’s still a pain in the ass.”
Kelsey studied him for a moment and then bit her lip. He knew she was concerned about him. He was right.
The Quest of the Empty Tomb Page 4