Bryson spun to face Emma. Maggie raised her eyebrows at her. “Are you kidding? Seriously? You are so jealous. It’s incredible. Even in this moment, you can’t stand it that men find me attractive!”
“I guess it’s easy,” Emma stated, “you’re always throwing yourself at them, so of course they do.”
“Oh, well, I guess it’s better than being a sell out like you!”
“Now, ladies,” Bryson began before Emma interrupted him.
“I didn’t sell out! I couldn’t bat my eyelashes and get out of the situation you stuck me in the last time. And here we are again! My life hangs in the balance thanks to Maggie Edwards!”
“That’s enough!” Bryson shouted over them. His pleas did little to stop their bickering.
Maggie drew her mouth into a thin line. She balled her fists and tensed her muscles. “That’s it, Emma! That is the last straw!”
“Oh, yeah?” Emma said, matching Maggie’s stance. “What are you going to do about it?”
“I’m going to kill you before he does!” Maggie screeched. She dove toward Emma and knocked her onto the ground. They rolled around in a tangle, knocking into Bryson. They clipped him at the knees, and he toppled backward. With the wind knocked out of his lungs, it took him a moment to recover. Ollie swooped in and snatched the gun from his hand as his arms flailed. He trained it on Bryson before he recovered.
Tarik and Henry used the distraction to elbow the remaining guards closest to them. Charlie elbowed the guard Tarik attacked in the back and Tarik knocked him out with a head butt. His gun clattered to the floor where Tarik retrieved it.
Piper raced to Henry’s side. She kicked the guard hard in the shin as Henry used his clasped wrists to swing upward, stunning the man with an uppercut to the jaw. The man stumbled backward two steps. Henry pursued him, swinging his arms again, his clasped fists smacking into the side of the man’s jaw. The second blow knocked the man unconscious. He collapsed to the floor. Henry scooped his gun into his bound hands, training it on the man.
“Man, did that feel good,” Piper exclaimed. “Ever since he nearly killed me in that fire, I’ve wanted my revenge!”
Bryson groaned on the floor, still conscious. “Wouldn’t try it if I were you, mate,” Henry warned, swinging the gun toward Bryson.
Bryson narrowed his eyes at him. “Planning to shoot me with the safety on?” he snapped. Bryson rolled to his side and began to climb to his feet. With Henry’s bound hands, he remained unable to release the weapon’s safety.
Maggie snatched the gun from Henry’s hands and clicked off the safety. “I’m not,” she answered.
“I wouldn’t push her, mate,” Henry said with a grin. “Like I told you, she’s real stubborn.”
Maggie stared at the horizon. The sun already sunk low in the sky, painting it red, orange and yellow. She clasped her arms across her chest. Activity buzzed around her. After turning the tables on their captors, Henry had called in the cavalry. Helicopters shuttled additional men to the site. They carted Mr. Richards, Bryson and the remaining two members of his team off. Now, they worked to secure the site before cataloging of the site’s assets. Ollie bustled around; his enthusiasm for the find obvious.
Maggie smiled at him, delighted to witness his excitement. She scanned the horizon. Her eyes fell on Emma, who sat at the end of a dune a few feet away. Emma stared at the horizon, lost in thought.
Maggie sauntered over to her and plopped down in the sand. “Mind if I sit?” she questioned.
Emma glanced sideways at her. “You already did,” Emma answered.
“Yeah,” Maggie said with a chuckle. They sat in silence for a few moments. “Nice move in there,” Maggie said after a while. “You set that fight up well, Bryson never saw it coming.”
“He led himself right into that one,” Emma said with a shake of her head. “I have to admit, it felt good knocking him over after that remark.”
Maggie chuckled. She paused a moment then said, “You know I didn’t mean anything that I said in there.”
Emma glanced at Maggie again before returning her gaze to the horizon. “Really? I’m not a sell out?”
“No,” Maggie admitted. “It was wrong of me to be mad about that. It really was unfair.”
“So, I’m forgiven? Not that I think I needed it, but…” Emma’s voice trailed off.
Maggie gave her a closed-mouth smile. “Yeah, forgiven.”
Maggie’s forehead wrinkled, and she peered sideways at Emma. “You… didn’t mean what you said, did you? All that about me throwing myself at men and whatever.”
Emma shrugged. “No, I guess not.”
“You GUESS not?” Maggie giggled. “Don’t hate me because I’m beautiful,” she said. She struck a pose.
Emma chuckled. “Funny. I don’t hate you because you’re beautiful. Though it is frustrating how you always get your way.”
“I don’t ALWAYS get my way,” Maggie countered.
Emma glanced sideways at her with an unconvinced expression. She glanced at the library entrance as she sifted sand through her hand. She pursed her lips. “Well, the great Maggie Edwards does it again! Another fantastic discovery under your belt.”
“You were a big part of that, too,” Maggie reminded her.
“Plenty to catalog, at least. It should keep me busy for a while. There’s a whole new set of things to work on back at the tomb site and this library…”
Maggie interrupted her, blurting out, “You should take the job in Rosemont.”
Emma furrowed her brows and stared at Maggie. “Really?”
“Yeah,” Maggie said with a nod, “yeah, definitely.”
“You sure Rosemont’s big enough for the two of us?”
Maggie grinned at Emma. “I’m sure,” she said. “Plus, there’s a great guy I can introduce you to. I think you’d get along.”
Emma eyed Maggie for a moment before she returned her gaze to the horizon with a nod. “I just might.”
“Good,” Maggie said. She gave Emma’s shoulder a squeeze before she climbed to her feet.
Henry approached the girls from the makeshift headquarters being set up near the entrance of the library. He stopped a few feet from them. Maggie approached him, slipping her arms around his waist.
“Well,” he said, gazing at the library entrance, “the great Maggie Edwards does it again.”
Maggie rested her chin on his chest and gazed up at him. “Well, the team did.”
“You’re right, the team.”
“Led by the great Maggie Edwards,” Maggie said with a grin.
“Of course, princess, of course,” Henry said, matching her expression.
“So, what’s next for the great Maggie Edwards and her illustrious team?”
Henry raised his eyebrows as he pondered the question. “I’m not sure. Perhaps a nice long break. I could use a vacation.”
Maggie pulled back and looked at him. “How do you feel about Scotland?”
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Ready to continue the adventure with Maggie? Look for Book 3 in the Maggie Edwards Adventures series coming in 2022!
Like cozy mysteries? Check out the Cate Kensie Mysteries series. Misty Scottish moors and a quirky castle. Read Cate’s first adventure, The Secret of Dunhaven Castle, by clicking here!
Like supernatural suspense? Try the Shadow Slayers series, a fast-paced page-turner! Book one, Shadows of the Past, is available now!
Love immersing yourself in the past? Lenora Fletcher can communicate with the dead! Can she use her unique skill to solve a mystery? Find out in Death of a Duchess, Book 1 in the Duchess of Blackmoore Mysteries.
A Note from the Author
Dear Reader,
Thank you for reading this book! Secret of the Ankhs is the second installment in the Maggie Edwards Adventures series and was great fun to write! Look for Book 3 coming in 2022!
Keep reading for a sneak preview of Shadows of the Past, Book 1 in the Shadow Slayers Stories series!
All the best, Nellie
Shadows of the Past Synopsis
Josie is having terrifying nightmares...
And she can’t make sense of them.
During the day she’s a typical twenty-five-year-old woman, but at night all she keeps seeing is blood...
On her hands.
When a mysterious man drops an antique music box on her doorstep, Josie is intrigued, especially when he leaves her a note...
And calls her by the name Celine.
Promising her all the answers she’s looking for, Josie takes off with the mystery man and embarks on a journey to find out why she’s having nightmares, who Celine is and, most importantly, what lies hidden underneath the surface.
As danger is confronted and more information is revealed, Josie is completely unprepared to learn what lies at the heart of these strange occurrences.
And who-or what-she really is...
Shadows of the Past is Book One of the Shadow Slayers Stories series and is a supernatural suspense mystery novel for people who love fast-paced action, secret identities and edge-of-your-seat suspense.
Get Shadows of the Past now.
Shadows of the Past Excerpt
“Josie!” Damien called behind her. “JOSIE!” They caught up to her and Damien grabbed her elbow. “Josie, please, wait.”
“D, sorry, this isn’t the best time. I’m busy trying to get things figured out so we can get back to normal. Now, please, let me go. Go back to the house. Read a book or something and go home on Monday.”
“No, Josie!” Damien said, “I will not accept that. No way!” Damien’s insistence surprised Michael.
“D, please, I can’t explain it now, I can’t but I definitely want you and Michael to go. I’m pleading with you to leave.”
“Why, Josie? This is beyond bizarre and I’m not leaving without you. I want you to come home with us.”
“I can’t come home yet, D, I can’t.”
“Why? Please, Josie.”
“There is nothing to worry about. But I can’t come home.” She turned to leave.
“Josie, come on,” he said, grabbing her arm again. “You can’t expect us to go home and leave you here. Do you realize how bizarre this looks to ANYONE on the outside of it?”
She pondered for a moment. “I realize how bizarre it is, yes. It’s as bizarre as it was to me when Gray first approached me but it makes sense, it does, but I can’t explain it. Now, please…”
“No, Josie,” Damien continued, “no. I’m beyond worried about you. I’m exceptionally concerned. This bizarre story about you being someone named Celine who that kid told us lived here when his mother was a kid, these people bringing you here, you going along with it, have they brainwashed you? Are they threatening you or someone in our family?”
“No and no. I’m not brainwashed. They are not threatening me. I am here of my own free will, believe it or not. And I have other things to do. Now, please,” Josie said, pulling away from Damien’s grip and heading off down the path.
Damien opened his mouth to call after her but gave up, surmising it would be useless. Michael clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Well, we’re right back where we started, still no information, but a terrible feeling that something is wrong.”
“Something is wrong,” Damien said, turning toward him. “And if Josie won’t tell us, then I’ll confront the guy who brought her here. One way or another we’re getting some answers. Come on!”
Keep reading Shadows of the Past by clicking here!
Secret of the Ankhs: A Maggie Edwards Adventure (Maggie Edwards Adventures Book 2) Page 33
