Fountain of Secrets (The Relic Seekers)

by Clenney, Anita

  But her resolve didn’t keep her from dropping a kiss on his chest.

  When she finally met sleep, King Arthur was waiting for her on the battlefield. It was different this time. She didn’t feel as if she was actually there, but she did see the same scene, the knights and the horses, and this time she heard what King Arthur said.

  “Find the chalice. It’s the key.”

  She shot up in bed and looked around the room. Jake was gone and the sun was shining through the window. She looked at the clock. Nine thirty a.m. She’d overslept. Kendall jumped up. She had just pulled one leg from her sweats when the door opened and Jake walked in. She did a one-footed dance and grabbed a pillow to put in front of her.

  “Don’t bother on my account. I’ve already seen it.”

  Kendall threw him a scowl. “Why didn’t you wake me up?”

  “When you didn’t open your eyes after I peeled you off my chest, I figured you needed the sleep.”

  Kendall rolled her eyes. “About that knighthood application…”

  “I behaved very knightly.” He grinned. “I could have done a lot more than sleep.”

  “It wasn’t my idea for you to share the bed.”

  “But you didn’t kick me out. Actions speak louder than words.” He dropped a kiss on her nose. “Breakfast is ready. I didn’t want you to miss out.”

  “I thought we were meeting everyone at nine thirty.”

  “They postponed the trip until noon. Alice, Sandy, and Rhonda have headaches, and Halle has the mother of all headaches. Larry has a stomach thing. I’d wait a few minutes before you use the bathroom.”

  “I know what King Arthur said.”

  Jake frowned. “You saw him again?”

  “I dreamed about the vision, but this time I read his lips.”

  “Read his lips in a dream? Your gift is damned strange.”

  “I know, but what can I do? I can’t send it back.”

  “So what did Arthur say?”

  “He said, ‘Find the chalice. It’s the key.’”

  “Key to what?”

  “I don’t know, but we’re in a house with a powerful chalice, so I’m going to find it.”

  “Now?” he asked.

  “Why not?”

  “That’s not a good idea with everyone here. I planned to search last night, but I slept like the dead.”

  “I have to find it.”

  “You distract them. I’ll look for it. Tell them about this latest dream. They’re here to find Arthur, so give them Arthur.”

  Kendall nodded. “Good idea.” She owed them that much.

  “I’ll go tell them you’ve had another experience to share over breakfast.” Jake walked to the door. Kendall went to the bathroom and brushed her teeth and hair. She pulled it back with the ponytail holder she was still using. It irritated her that she knew more about the anorexic owner of the stupid hair tie than she knew about Nathan’s location and safety. She saw a mark on her face and leaned closer. There was a cross imprinted on her cheek. She stared at it, and then realized it was from where she’d slept on Jake’s chest. She rubbed at it, but it would be a while before it went away. Maybe no one would notice. She hurried to the dining room where everyone was anxious to hear about her new experience.

  “Oh my God. There’s a cross on your cheek.” Alice hurried to Kendall’s side, her expression as rapt as if she’d seen the Virgin Mary. “Everyone, come and look. Kendall has a cross imprinted on her cheek.”

  Everyone crowded around and Kendall opened her mouth to explain. Jake shook his head no and slipped out of the room. The mark was certainly a distraction. The group was electrified to hear she’d had another dream. She gave them more details about the battlefield and seeing Arthur and his knights fighting, but she didn’t mention the chalice, though she wondered if she should. They might bring the Blue Chalice out sooner. But she needed to examine it in private, not with an audience. She dragged the story out as long as she could to give Jake more time to find the chalice, but it was disconcerting having everyone staring at the imprint of the cross that burned accusingly into her cheek. Jake showed up and rescued her as she was about to come clean and tell them the mark was from Jake’s necklace. She left the group talking excitedly about the day’s events.

  “With a little encouragement, you might get them to start a fan club,” Jake whispered as they walked back to the bedroom.

  “They think the cross was some kind of sign. We’ll probably burn in hell because of this. Did you find the chalice?” she asked when the door closed.

  “No, but I think I know where it is. The Upper Room is locked.”

  “You didn’t pick the lock?”

  “I thought I heard someone in the hall.”

  “Everyone was with me. No one left the room.”

  “It must be whoever is in that last bedroom.” Jake hurried toward the room and tried the door. Locked. “I’ll pick it.”

  “You can’t pick it with everyone here. If someone is using the room, he’s getting in and out some way.”

  “He must be using the window. I’ll see if I can pick up his trail outside.”

  “I’ll nose around for the chalice. Maybe I can sense something.”

  After Jake left, Kendall asked Halle about the Blue Chalice, and she confirmed that the Chalice Trust kept it locked up in the Upper Room.

  Jake came back a few minutes later. “I found footprints leading to the street. A man’s. No way to track him on the road.”

  “Halle said the Blue Chalice is kept in the Upper Room, but we can’t get in there with everyone here. And we can’t ask her to show it to us. She doesn’t even have the key.”

  “If we could get out of the Camelot trip, I can pick the lock or go through the window,” Jake said.

  “She thinks the caretaker will be back by tomorrow or the next day. We can wait that long. We can’t abandon them,” Kendall said. “They’re counting on us.”

  “Counting on you. We need to find this chalice.”

  “You could stay and find it,” she said.

  “No. I’m not letting you go alone. And it wouldn’t do me any good. You’re the one that needs to touch it.”

  “Then let’s wait for the caretaker. We have a lot of other stuff to explore. The Tor, the abbey, and the Chalice Well. I want to see the actual well. We only saw the fountain that the well flows into. And then I want to see the White Spring across the street.”

  “When we’re finished, there are a couple of inns nearby. We can see if Brandi’s been there.”

  Kendall would have preferred to go to the well alone, but she knew she would have a hard time convincing Jake. He was incredibly protective of her, just as Adam had been. As they left the house, she studied him… his build, his face, bone structure. Some kids were easily recognizable as adults. Some weren’t. She couldn’t tell with Jake. He could have been Adam, but there was nothing specific. Adam hadn’t had any birthmarks or noticeable scars. He should have, as many times as they got bruised and scraped, but the scars always faded. Both of them had been amazingly healthy growing up.

  Kendall and Jake slipped into the garden before it opened to the public. They followed the stone path to the Vesica Piscis pool, the fountain, and finally the Chalice Well. The well was in the middle of a recessed area paved with stone and surrounded by trees. The cover of the well was made of iron with two interlocking circles. Kendall immediately felt something calming here, but there was also power.

  Jake seemed to sense that she needed solitude. He hung back a bit, exploring the trees, while she went to the well. She sat on the edge, as thousands must have done before her. At first she felt the calming presence, and then the images started to come. She saw a long table and heard men’s voices speaking in… Hebrew? A long-fingered hand, gentle but calloused, picked up a cup and lifted it to his lips. A sense of peace filled her, love, and then terrible dread. Fear, followed by resolution, acceptance. It must be done. There was no other way.

  The image
changed, and she sensed pain, terrible pain, though she didn’t feel it. She saw blood dripping from a foot, where a nail had been driven through the tissue. She heard a woman’s soft cries and saw a man standing nearby, tired, weary, his soul torn with grief. If he had done more, could he have stopped them from killing him? Stopped the sacrifice? No. It was meant to be.

  Kendall’s head was starting to hurt, but she couldn’t stop the images. She heard a loud agonized cry and a male hand held out a cup, which began to fill with blood. Not just any cup. The same cup the man had drunk from at the table.

  The Holy Grail.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  KENDALL LOOKED LIKE a statue sitting on the edge of the well. Her eyes were open, unblinking, and Jake knew she was someplace else. He was afraid to interrupt whatever was happening, and afraid not to. But when she gave a small cry, he couldn’t wait any longer. He rushed over to her, knelt down, and touched her hand. “Kendall?”

  She blinked several times and her gaze focused. “What?”

  “What happened? What did you see?”

  “Jesus.”

  “Huh?” Of all the things he’d expected her to say, that was the last.

  Her fingers tightened on his hand. “I was there.”

  “Where?”

  “The Last Supper. The Crucifixion. I saw it. I heard it.”

  “Holy—” Jake cut off the curse. “No wonder you’re pale.”

  “It was incredible,” she said, her voice breathless with awe. “The legends are right. Joseph did bring the Holy Grail here.”

  “The Holy Grail. So we’re looking for the Holy Grail and the Fountain of Youth?” Jake almost cursed but stopped himself. He knew Kendall well enough to know she wasn’t faking. But his scientific brain still balked at some of this stuff. But the other parts, the one that had seen Kendall’s gift in action, and the boy in the orphanage dreaming that he was a secret knight on a mission for King Arthur so he didn’t have to believe no one wanted him, those parts of him wanted to believe it was real.

  Kendall’s shoulders were drooping. She was tired. These visions sapped her strength.

  “Can you walk?”

  She nodded and started to stand. Her knees buckled and she sat down again. “Maybe not.”

  “Do you want me to carry you?”

  “No. Just give me a minute. Let me close my eyes. Sit with me.”

  He sat beside her, slightly behind, and let her rest against him. He could feel some kind of energy coming off her. An aura… He didn’t know what the hell it was, but it was so powerful it was frightening. He wasn’t about to move and leave her to deal with it alone. His admiration for her grew, as if she weren’t already on a damned pedestal. He closed his eyes and put his arms around her, pulling her against his chest. It was like getting a mild shock, but without the pain. He picked up flashes of something. Sensations maybe. He couldn’t begin to describe or decipher them, but it felt as if they were wrapped in a soft cocoon of light. Just him and her. Nothing else existed. He couldn’t have said how much time passed. It was as if time didn’t exist. Then he felt Kendall stir in his arms. He didn’t want to leave but he heard voices nearing. The gardens had opened.

  “We should go,” Kendall said, starting to stand.

  Jake helped her up. She was still wobbly but able to walk. She seemed a little stronger when they got to their room, but he insisted she rest. “You know how these things affect you.” He pulled off her shoes and made her lie down. “We have a lot of work to do here. We have to find that chalice and figure out why we’re here. I need you mentally and physically strong.” He hesitated. “Nathan needs you to be strong. Curse or not, if he doesn’t get rid of his condition, it’ll kill him.”

  “You’re worried about him too.”

  “I work for him. He’s a paycheck.”

  “You don’t believe that any more than I do. I do need to rest. The group is counting on me to find King Arthur.”

  “If anybody in the world can do it, you can.”

  She gave him a tired smile. “That’s not what you used to say. You’re really working on your knighthood status.”

  “I know I was… skeptical when we first met.”

  “You mean obnoxious?”

  “Obnoxious then. Sorry, but I don’t trust easily. I like what I can see and feel.”

  “Most people do. It’s OK. You’re being very supportive now.”

  “Well, a knight must do what he can. ‘And always do to ladies, damsels, and gentlewomen succor, upon pain of death.’”

  “Where’d you learn that?” Kendall asked. “That’s part of the knight’s oath.”

  “Must have read it somewhere.”

  “What about the White Spring and the inns,” she asked. “We need to find Brandi.”

  “I’ll look for Brandi while you rest. Later, we’ll go to the White Spring.”

  She nodded. “I am zonked. I get so tired of this.”

  “I know. But ninety-nine percent of the world would give their right hand to glimpse what you do. I don’t understand it. I don’t always like it, but it is a gift.”

  “Not a curse?” she asked, eyes closed.

  Her hair was down, falling over her shoulders. Not a drop of makeup as far as he could tell, but she looked so beautiful it made his chest ache. Hell, what was wrong with him? He’d known her for only a few days, but it felt like it had been a lifetime.

  He left her there and walked down the street to the closest two inns. At each, he told the innkeeper he was looking for his friend. He got lucky at the second one. A woman matching Brandi’s description had been staying there. But his luck didn’t last. She had checked out early that morning. Cold feet, he guessed, after they’d almost caught her. The owner said she’d asked about another inn in town.

  Jake caught a taxi and went past the abbey into the main part of town. It was obvious from the storefronts that the town was immersed in the legends of King Arthur, the abbey, and the Tor. The area catered to everything from religion to paganism. He checked the inn where he’d hoped to find Brandi, but she wasn’t there. He found a café with Internet service and searched for other nearby lodging. He made several calls with no luck. Then he tried Nathan at the hotel, but he didn’t answer. Jake hadn’t told Kendall, but he was getting concerned that Nathan hadn’t contacted them. Sure he was worried that he’d hurt Kendall, but he could have left a message telling them he was either still cursed or cured.

  It was a short taxi ride to the hotel, but Nathan wasn’t in his room. Or he wasn’t answering the door. Jake was about to get management to open the door, when a maid walked by. When questioned, she said she had seen Nathan leave his room yesterday. At least he was alive.

  Jake walked out to hail a taxi and glimpsed a woman with red hair. Red hair, near their hotel? And she looked just like Brandi. Jake ran toward her, but when he reached the corner where he’d seen her, she wasn’t there. He checked the shops nearby, but there was no sign of her. Maybe it was his imagination or another redhead.

  He didn’t want to leave Kendall any longer. He started to hail a taxi when one pulled up across the street. A woman got out. She looked at Jake as he approached, and her eyebrows rose in appreciation. He’d gotten used to the look. Sometimes he took what was offered. Sometimes he didn’t. Lately, he’d been too caught up with the whole business with Nathan and Iraq to worry about women. Now, he was too caught up with a green-eyed blonde.

  Ignoring the woman’s interest, he grabbed the taxi and went back to the house. When he walked inside, Halle was planning the night’s activities. “Good. You’re back. I hope Kendall’s feeling well enough for the moonlight tour and séance tonight.”

  “I think she’ll be fine. She was tired. The visions take a toll.”

  “They did with Lizzie too, but Kendall’s better than Lizzie. You think Kendall would be interested in doing another tour after this is over? I was thinking Stonehenge and Avebury. I haven’t been since last year.”

  Jake didn’t want
to disappoint Halle, so he said something vague and then went to check on Kendall. She was still resting. He pulled off his pants and tossed them on the other bed, then climbed in beside her, moving close to her back.

  “What are you doing?”

  He draped his hand over her stomach. “Snuggling.”

  “You can’t wear your pants while you snuggle?”

  “You know me better than that.”

  “The least you could do is to warn me before you undress.”

  “And miss that look on your face?” He smiled. “How are you feeling?”

  “Better. Still tired.”

  “I don’t think we’ve recovered from that damned cave. I’m still groggy.”

  “I guess traveling through a portal will do that. And we lost a day, so we’re behind on sleep.” She started to get up.

  He put his hand on her waist. “Where you going?”

  “Bathroom. Is that OK?”

  “Unless you need help.”

  “I’ll manage.”

  She crawled over him, but he trapped her. “You have to pay the toll,” he said, nuzzling her neck.

  She kissed him hard and then jumped up. He watched her go, wondering what he was going to do about her. She was inside his head, and he was afraid there was no getting her out. He closed his eyes for a second. Yep. Still there. He must have nodded off, because when he opened them, she was there too, but this time she was standing on her head with her back against the wall.

  “What the hell are you doing?”

  She flopped back over onto her feet. “Trying to wake up, get my blood pumping.”

  “I can think of some better ways to get your blood flowing.”

  “I imagine you could.”

  “I was thinking of a foot massage,” he said, smiling innocently.

  “Really? Not something more… carnal?”

  He leaned back against the pillow and watched her. “I’m working on my application for knighthood. But if you want something less chivalrous and more carnal, let me know.”

  “I’ll be sure to do that. But right now, we need to check the White Spring. We should have time to go before dinner.”

  He groaned and got out of bed. He wanted to grab her and climb back in, spend the next twelve hours or so just lying in bed with her, but she was right. There was work to do. “Are you feeling up to this séance tonight?”