“Let go!” I jerked my hand out of his grip.
In a flash, Andrew stepped to Richard. “You touch her again, and I’ll break every bone in your body, starting with your skull.”
Richard threw his hands up in surrender. “I just wanted to see the original one. I’ve only seen photos of it.” He moved back, and his foot slipped on the wet rocks. At that moment, Andrew pushed on Richard’s chest, and the jerk fell backward into the pool.
We turned and made our way to the cave’s mouth.
“Oh, come on, Andrew,” Richard called out. “Let’s work on this together. It would be like the good old days. You need my help, my resources. I have more money at my disposal than you do.”
Without looking back at Dr. Dickhead, Andrew wrapped his arms around my back. I looped my legs around his waist, my arms around his neck, and buried my face into his shoulder, pressing my chest into his. It was nice to be pressed into his body again.
“Take a breath,” he said, slowly walking us into the rush of water.
* * *
Outside, a somber sky awaited us, and gusts of wind pushed on the tops of the trees. On the shore, William and Brandon sat on the ground next to our backpacks, and Brie was perched on a rock, talking on a satellite phone. She wore a khaki long-sleeve shirt, brown hiking pants with multiple pockets, and a high-braided ponytail. Two thickset men with shaved heads, dressed in desert camouflage uniforms, stood not far from her. As we swam closer to them, William leaped to his feet.
“I didn’t say a word,” William said as we slogged through the last ten feet of the water. “I swear.”
My chest heaved from a long swim. I gave William a death stare as I marched to my pile of clothes and dropped the old leather bag. I could feel the leering eyes of the two hideous round-faced men on me, but my anger left no space for self-consciousness. I shouldn’t have texted anything to William. He was a smart man, but I guess he had a big mouth when it came to pretty boys. I yanked my shorts off the ground.
“Andy,” Brie said, a bit too breathless for my liking, her eyes perusing Andrew’s body. “You are so… mmm. An extra six years looks great on you.”
Jealousy gripped my throat. I wasn’t too fond of the way she was inspecting him.Argh. She used to touch him too. I wasn’t a violent person, but my hands itched to push her fucking face into the mud.
Andrew grabbed his pants and pulled them on without making eye contact with the bitch.
Brie pocketed her phone in a leather crossbody purse.
“Did you find anything?” William asked.
“Do you really think I’d tell you? In front of them?” I jerked my chin in Brandon’s direction, stepped into my shorts and brought them up. “Maybe we did. Maybe we didn’t.” Frustration boiled my blood. Why did Richard always appear in the same place we were? Was it a coincidence? Did he know about the palace too?
I buttoned my shirt and grabbed my boots. I wrestled the left sock on, the fabric clinging to my skin. The feel of wet socks always hurled me back into my worst memories. So many times, as a kid, I had to wear damp shoes because they hadn’t dried overnight. William and I owned only one pair of tennis shoes each, and we wore them until our neighbors passed down some of their kid’s shoes. “Tell me, Brandon.” I stared at the Dr. Dickhead minion. For some reason, I couldn’t bring myself to look at Brie. “Do you guys follow us around because you have no clue how to find Augustine’s treasure?”
“I… We don’t…” Brandon said, his brown eyes round and eyebrows raised.
“Did you shove a tracking device up my brother’s ass last night?” I pulled my other sock on.
Brandon’s eyes widened more, his cheeks turning red, and his gaze locked on William. “You’re related?”
“Isn’t it obvious? Same features.” William circled his face. “Of course, my skin tone is much better than hers. She’s always outside, and I’ve told her it’s harmful.”
Andrew set his hat on his head and threw on his backpack. He marched over to Tweedledum and Tweedledee and reached for our hunting rifle at their feet. The left guy stepped on the barrel, holding the gun in place.
Andrew glanced up at the bonehead. “Let me have my gun.”
“William,” I snapped. “Why would you give them our gun?”
“I didn’t,” he said. “They took it.”
The ogre spitted to one side, then sneered, baring his crooked teeth. He shook his head. Andrew straightened to his full height, his expression that of someone who was as calm as a bomb with a short fuse. He had a few inches on them, but I wasn’t sure he could handle both at the same time if their staring contest escalated to something ugly. Andrew peered over his shoulder at Brie.
“Tell your guard dogs to let go of my gun,” he said to her.
I quickly yanked my other shoe on and laced it up, stuffed the leather pouch into my backpack, and stood up. When I worked at Salzburg Wine Distributing, I often traveled alone, so I’d picked up a few self-defense moves just to be safe. If we were about to get into a fight, I was ready.I think.Of course, they not only had our rifle, but it was also hard not to miss the pistols on the ogres’ belts. The events of this day hardly seemed real. First, the cave turned out to be a dud, then a scorching kiss with Andrew—can’t think about it right now—and now we were on the verge of a tussle.
“Andy,” Brie said, placing her hands on her hips, her ample cleavage very noticeable. Were her top buttons unbuttoned before and I hadn’t noticed? I squared my shoulders. “Let’s all work together.”
