Secrets of the Sapphires

by T. Sue VerSteeg

  Drenched in sweat, Nia slapped her hands over her ears, tucking her head down at the loud, reverberating shots. Her eyes had yet to adjust from the bright light, but the noise sounded entirely too much like gunfire. Panic roiled in her gut as she blinked, squinting in a poor attempt to focus on her surroundings. She reached out in front of her and felt wires, the cage. Her hand slid along the metal weaving until she felt the sapphire dangling in front of her. Yanking it free, she tucked it snugly between her breasts for safe keeping until she figured out what was going on. Dark shadows appeared around her; a hand grabbed her shoulder. Instinct took over. She threw her elbow upward in the general direction of the hand, making solid contact.

  A familiar voice cried out, “Son of a bitch! Nia, it’s me, Levinson.”

  She quit struggling and allowed Levinson to drag her out of the cage and across the floor. She felt a cold, solid wall against her back.

  “Where are we?” she whispered. Gunplay continued as Nia’s sight slowly returned. She glanced around at the forms now resembling people.

  Levinson pressed her against the wall, speaking over his shoulder, “Same place you disappeared from.” He slapped someone next to him on the arm and said, “I’m getting Brooks out of here; she’s been through enough. We’ll meet back in the states.”

  Just as the person acknowledged Levinson, a loud explosion rang out. The force of the blast smashed Levinson back against her. Wooden splinters sprayed against them and Nia tucked her face into her cloak.

  Before the debris even had a chance to settle, she blurted, “What the hell was that?” Gut feeling told her it was the small, makeshift building with the light ray. Tears slid down her cheeks with no warning. Garrett would be trapped back in time until she could figure out a way to recreate the light source.

  And come hell or high water, she would figure out a way.

  ****

  The hot water cascaded over Nia’s body, easing all of her aches and pains, except one. Her heart still felt torn in two and no shower in the world would heal that pain. Her mind wandered back in time to Garrett’s whereabouts. Was he still in the dungeon? Was he in danger? Was he still alive?

  “Yes, he’s alive!” Nia’s voice echoed through the empty women’s locker room. The trip back to the states was a blur. Sleep had claimed her during the entire flight. Her groggy brain made the rest of the journey hazy at best.

  A faint sulfur smell still remained in her hair even after shampooing three times. Her fingers had begun to prune and Levinson would undoubtedly come looking for her if she wasted anymore time. He’d tried to debrief her in the plane. Nia closed her eyes and ignored him. Her heart was still too raw to speak, her body too worn out to resist the sleep her brain insisted on.

  She towel dried her hair into ringlets and slipped on the clean sweats and t-shirt she kept in her locker for workouts. She tucked the sapphire and diamond jewelry safely between her breasts again. Sitting on the bench, she put her tennis shoes on then spied her tattered dress and cloak next to her. Picking up the heavy wool garment, she cradled it, allowing the tears to fall. The sulfur smell she’d spent thirty minutes trying to remove from her body invaded her senses anew. Garrett’s image popped into her mind. She closed her eyes and replayed the passion they’d shared in the warm water. Nia allowed herself to descend into the memories of his fingers tracing her chin, her neck, her breasts...

  Levinson cleared his throat, ruthlessly yanking her from her indulgence. Nia flew to a standing position and whirled around toward him, her hair fanning out, damp curls whapping her in the face. She let the cloak slip to the ground, swiping at the tears on her cheeks. Her spine steeled straight, she slid her professional mask into place.

  “Sorry I kept you waiting.” She exhaled a huge breath as she walked toward him.

  “I didn’t mean to interrupt. I was just worried.” The concern in his voice carried over into his eyes. Levinson put an arm around her shoulders, hugging her body against his while he walked her back to the privacy of his office. Normally he would sit across the desk from her. This time he sat in the wingback chair next to her, holding her hand in his. “Are you okay?”

  “Of course.” Nia yanked her hand free, pretending to smooth imaginary wrinkles from the base of her t-shirt. She stared at the pristine white material. Since her parent’s deaths, she had made sure everything in her life—including her clothing—had been plain, easy to care for, no frills. White t-shirts could be bleached, plastic houseplants didn’t need care, outdoor plants were set on automatic watering timers, and keeping men at arm’s length had meant no heartache.

  “Had” being the operative word in the latter instance.

  “The angry scowl on your face would suggest otherwise,” Levinson whispered as he jiggled her chair to garner her attention.

  After shaking her head with entirely too much vigor, she replied, “I’m fine, I promise. The whole thing has been way out of my norm and still seems a bit too surreal. I mean, who in this room has gone back in time?” Nia peered around at the imaginary crowd, slowly raising her hand with a halfhearted, lopsided grin on her face.

  “At least you’re still a smart ass. You’re going to be fine.” He rose and walked around the desk, sinking into his leather chair. Leaning back, he continued, “I need to know everything that happened over there…back then.” A befuddled look crossed his handsome features. “I guess this is kind of surreal for me, too.”

  She reached into her bra, which garnered a look of shock from her boss. With one finger she poked the sapphire deeper, using the others to retrieve the diamond ring and damaged watch. She placed them on the desk, scanning his face for the bulging vein at his temple.

  He merely stared back at her waiting for an explanation.

  “We had to survive. The diamonds were the only way I could pay for supplies and food.” In a knee jerk reaction, she found herself leaning back in the chair with her eyes squinted, expecting the worst.

  “I’m sure I’ll understand once you’ve told me everything. I’m just glad to have you back. Insurance will cover the missing stones. Nothing could replace you to this agency.”

  Nia released her nervousness in a huff then went on to tell him everything she felt pertinent to the agency. Images of Garrett in various stages of undress flashed in her mind at the most inopportune moments. She kept finding herself rubbing her temples, looking at her lap to cover any traces her expression may give away. She glossed over the hanging incident, but found her hand tracing the scar at her neck.

  “They hung you?” Levinson smacked his palms onto the desk and stood. “Thank God Garrett got to you in time.”

  Anger swelled in Nia’s gut. “This coming from the man who had given up on us? You destroyed the light source right after I came through. Obviously you weren’t coming back to the castle to make sure we returned.” Bitterness devoured her decorum along with her good sense. “You may as well have been my hangman. Per the schematics, you have to have the same light beam on both ends to successfully travel. Without the ability to absorb the light, no one can travel to that side even with the sapphire. Admit it!” Nia jumped to her feet. “You gave up on us!”

  Levinson’s jaw dropped open. With his height advantage, he peered down his nose at Nia. “For your information, we had solid intel stating that there was no way for you two to return.”

  “Bullshit.” Nia matched his stance.

  Shaking his head, Levinson turned around and punched his code into his safe. With his back to her he mumbled, “Not that I’m obligated to prove anything to you, I just know you won’t believe me unless you see it with your own eyes.” He turned back toward her, slapped a file on his desk, and shoved it her way.

  Nia stared at the manila folder for a moment. The outside was labeled with all of the confidential stamps, initials and warnings she had seen before. She adjusted her gaze back to Levinson, addressing him with a mere raised brow.

  “Go on. I doubt there’s much information on the outside. That’s w
hy all of the red letters and warnings are on there.” Sarcasm oozed from his words as he tapped the folder.

  Flopping back onto her seat, Nia grabbed the file and flung it open. An actual embossed printout from their direct CIA wire was on top with the words “Time Warp Mission Failed” in bold. Each word shocked her more than the last.

  We regret to inform the Paranormal Division that intelligence sources have confirmed the time travel passageway collapse. All agents involved in this case, namely Agent Garrett Van Deren and Agent Nia Brooks, are feared lost and unattainable. Every measure must be taken to destroy the remaining Time Warp structure in the lower level of Castle Ludwig as soon as humanly possible to avoid any other changes in the fabric of history. Time is of the essence in this mission.

  Nia looked back up at her boss who stood flinging his favorite wooden pen end over end. She shoved the folder back toward him. “Well, I’m living proof that this is a lie.”

  “I understand that now,” He slammed the pen down on top of the file. “But at the time of this mission, we had no reason to believe anything other than what’s on that paper.” He shook his head, disbelief widening his eyes. “You know what this means, don’t you?”

  “Mole?” Nia’s mind raced, considering each employee as a suspect.

  “Yep. Any idea who it may be?” His brow creased, he began stroking an imaginary beard at his chin.

  Several new hires climbed to the top of Nia’s mental list. She nodded emphatically. “Agent Hornung is brand spanking new with Agent Castile right there behind him. New blood always makes me nervous. Whoever it is will have to face my wrath when I figure this out.” She slapped her hand on his desk as she stood. “As for now, if you don’t need any further information, I can hear my bed calling to me all the way across town. Sleeping on the ground has taken its toll on me.” Nia placed her hands in the small of her back and arched her shoulders backward.

  Levinson walked around his desk and put his arm around her again. “You know I would never have called that mission into play if I’d known the truth about the organization…about all of this, right?”

  Nia stared up into his eyes. Nothing but concern registered within them. She smiled, laying her head against his shoulder. “I do now.”

  He walked her to the section exit and kissed the top of her head. “I’m glad you’re back safe and sound. I’d tell you not to come in tomorrow, but I know you won’t listen.”

  As Nia wound through the parking lot toward her car, she passed Garrett’s black Mustang. She ran her hand over the meticulously pampered paint, staring at the vehicle, willing him to appear in the driver’s seat. Tears welled in her eyes. She allowed them to fall since the parking garage was deserted. She leaned against the cool metal, slid to the ground, yanking her knees to her chest, and cried.

  She cried for being lost in time. She cried for facing her parents’ killer. She cried for being hung. Most of all, she cried for Garrett.

  The sound of a door slamming pulled her from her pity party. She jolted to her feet. Her car was parked only a few spots away. She was belted into the driver’s seat before she even noticed who was there.

  Lexie.

  Nia slouched in her seat, watching her worst nightmare, who actually had no business being at the office in the middle of the night, sashay toward her own vehicle parked a few rows away. A man stood in the shadows, walking to Lexie’s car as she approached. Nia strained to make out a face in the dim lighting and cracked her window in an attempt to hear them. All she was able to make out was Lexie’s shrill, angry voice spouting, “I told you not to meet me here!” She disappeared into her car, the man into a late model Ford. He followed her out of the garage. Nia waited a few seconds and took off in their general direction. When she made it out of the garage, they were nowhere to be found. She decided that Lexie had merely pissed off yet another ex-boyfriend, and he was not taking her kiss-off excuses. Besides, Garrett was weighing on her heart too much to care.

  The roads were empty, making her drive home graciously short. Nia fumbled with the lock, dropping her keys even though she had made every attempt not to wake her roommate. When Nia was finally able to swing the door open, there stood Cassie in her flannel robe, baseball bat poised at the ready, a tiny rape whistle hanging from her lips.

  “Shit, Nia!” Cassie’s voice squeaked through her whistle. She tossed the bat onto the couch and let the whistle fall into her cleavage. “Why didn’t you call and let me know you were coming back so soon?”

  “So soon?” Nia set her fake travel bag and purse next to the bat, turning her attention back to her friend.

  “Yeah, Mr. Levinson called yesterday and said you were gone for a while overseas and wouldn’t have any cell phone or computer access for some time.”

  Nia’s foggy brain fought for a convenient lie to placate her roommate. “Well, that didn’t play out like he’d planned. I was able to get home sooner than he expected. I guess I never thought about calling. I just wanted to sleep in my own bed.” She slid her sweatshirt off and tossed it over her suitcase.

  “What the hell happened to your neck?” Cassie reached out, but Nia was able to grab her wrist before she touched her skin.

  Again her brain reeled for an answer when all she really wanted to do was fall unconscious onto her pillow top mattress and fluffy comforter. “I had an allergic reaction to a cheap necklace. Serves me right for being such a tight ass, I suppose. Lesson learned.” Nia dropped Cassie’s hand as she kicked her tennis shoes off next to the door. Without letting her friend get a word in edgewise, she headed up the stairs toward her room, exclaiming over her shoulder, “I’ll fill you in on my trip tomorrow. All I want right now is to sleep. It’s been like six hundred years since I’ve slept in my own bed.” Give or take a century, Nia thought.

  Cassie’s voice lilted up the stairwell, “Drama queen.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  Nia tugged at her turtle-necked sweater as she walked off the elevator, into the sterile white surroundings of the division. Her nightmares had startled her awake more than she’d actually slept. She yawned and stretched while rounding the corner to her cubicle. The sight of a dark haired man with his back to her fired adrenaline through her heart even though she knew it couldn’t be Garrett. She slid into her desk chair and flicked on her monitor. A steaming cup of coffee already sat on her coaster. Her mind raced to figure out who would have known she was there. She stood, scanning the room above the partitions. Garrett’s brilliant blue eyes stared back at her from the other side of the room, sending her heart into beat-overload. A stupid smile crossed her face, as she stumbled out of her workspace. She mentally rehearsed her words, weaving between desks and people, making her way toward him.

  I think I love you! No, too direct.

  Where have you been all my life? Nope, too cheesy.

  How in the hell did you get back here? Too harsh.

  As she turned the corner, she literally collided with Lexie, who was leaning on him. She rubbed his chest while she stared into his eyes, a possessive look plastered on her face.

  When Nia shoved Lexie’s shoulders to move her, she turned a psychotic gaze toward Nia. “I don’t think so, bitch.” She looked down her perfectly altered nose at Nia. She shoved her back and continued, “He’s back from his stint of pretending to be your boyfriend. Now, he’s mine.”

  Nia and Lexie both looked at Garrett for confirmation. He nervously shifted his gaze back and forth between the two. Nia’s eyes narrowed more with each wasted second.

  Garrett finally shoved a hand out between the girls, rolling his eyes. “Lexie and I have a date this weekend.”

  Nia placed both hands over what felt like a puncture wound to the chest. Her heart had been ripped into shreds; her stomach felt reminiscent to being punched. Tears threatened to spill down her cheeks. Stubborn pride stepped in, tilting her chin in defiance. She fought the urge to ram her fist into his wounded side. “That’s great. You two have fun.” Sarcasm oozed from each word ev
en though her voice cracked toward the end.

  Lexie leaned against Garrett, grabbed his hand, and placed it on her ass. “Oh, don’t worry. We will.” She popped herself up on tippy toes, forcing her tongue between his lips. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling his head down to meet hers. For a split second Nia thought she’d read distress on Garrett’s face, but his lips sealed with hers, as he pulled her into his embrace.

  Bile rose in the back of Nia’s throat. She ran back through the office and into the gym. She continued to the locker room, locking herself in a bathroom stall. Questions and emotions pelted her from all directions. How did he get back? Were his actions toward her in England just due to being lost in time? Did he ever really care for her at all? Was he out of his ever lovin’ mind? Her head swam with thoughts; her gut ached with emotion. Too angry for tears, she finally allowed the bile its escape, vomiting in the toilet. After flushing, she sat down on the seat, staring at the glossy gray door. Before she had a chance to ponder her situation further, the sound of heels clicking on the cement echoed off the walls.

  Lexie.

  Nia pulled her knees to her chest and sat quietly in hopes the blonde bitch would keep walking.

  “I know you’re in here.” Lexie’s words were followed by more heel clicks until black Prada stilettos appeared on the other side of the door. “Not woman enough to admit when you’ve lost?”

  Nia allowed her cheap knock-off heels to hit the floor again and slammed the door open. It missed Lexie’s face by a fraction of an inch, though the force tousled her perfectly coiffed hair. “Damn, so close.”

  Overstated pity puckered Lexie’s mouth, scrunching her brow. “I know you thought he was your man with all of those crash courses on each other for the mission and getting to spend time with him alone in England. It really doesn’t look good for you now, though. He just told me how hot he thinks I am and that he had these really wild dreams about me in some satin outfit he wants to buy for me after our date.” The faux pity vanished from her face and pure evil filled her eyes. “I can’t wait to fuck his brains out this weekend.”