by Summer Lee
THE SONS OF DESTINY
A novel by
Summer Lee
The Reluctant Hero Series #3
Other Books by Summer Lee
Standalone Novels
The Witch of Endor
Standing Strong
Comes the Pale Horse
Warrior Woman
The Babylonian Queen
Beach Angel
The Biblical Adventure Series
The Staff of Moses
The Sword of Peter
The Fleece of Gideon
The Crown of Christ
The Ark of Noah
The Coins of Judas
The Sling of David
The Commandments of God
The Glorious Companions Series
Angel Heart
Kindred Spirits
Royal Family
Awaken the Passion
Forgotten Tales
The Maid from Moab
A Love for Solomon
A Home for Hava
The Reluctant Hero Trilogy
The Shroud of Turin
The Jewels of Jezebel
The Sons of Destiny
The Stargazing Trilogy
Under the Blood Moon
Harvest Moon
Sign in the Stars
The Sons of Destiny
Published by Summer Lee
Copyright © 2016 by Summer Lee
All rights reserved.
Ebook Edition, License Notes
This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Dedication
To Scott and Dianna.
The Sons of Destiny
CHAPTER ONE
Magena
Magena Nightcloud used to think of herself as someone who was prepared for every eventuality. That was thanks to the amazing job her parents did of raising her and preparing for the world of men.
Her life was simpler then.
She could have never imagined that she would be thrust into a surreal existence where she was chased by the law, threatened by mobsters, and introduced to more secondary characters than a huge detective drama.
Her mind refused to absorb a lot of the things. The Hive of Baal, the strange poem that they gave her, the oddly timed death of Alan Cranston, meeting the Biblical Jezebel, vanishing from the underground chamber where the Jewels of Jezebel were revealed gladly by the same woman, and her new ally being the target of… well… everything.
Her belief in God and Daniel DiBenedetto were the only thing that made sense to her. God was the one constant who didn’t change no matter what she went through. He was her rock. Over the past several weeks, she reluctantly shucked her old life, only to be written into an intense adventure novel, or so she felt.
Daniel seemed as lost as she was by all of the previous events. She wished that she could have taken him with her to wherever she was now. She was also sure that somehow the laws of physics were violated in ways that she could only imagine.
She sat on the carpeted floor in her flowered granny gown that she was wearing when she woke up. She felt violated with all her hair chopped off and two I.V.s attached to one arm. The floor was warm which helped. She hid her I.V. pole as far to one side of the outer room as she could.
One of the men she heard in the office had a voice that sounded like Dan but deeper. It had to be his father. From what she heard, he was at least partially responsible for the predicament that his son was in.
Without warning, the office door opened and an older man with salt and pepper hair stepped into the room and glared down at her. She recognized him as the man she saw on the trail, Daniel’s father. She had met him in the wilderness when she and Daniel were looking for Jezebel’s jewels.
He showed no surprise as a sinister grimace formed on his lips. He was dressed professionally in a dark blue business suit that had been meticulously ironed. His face was worn, but clean shaven. There were no obvious signs of plastic surgery, but he definitely used a powerful skin conditioner.
His shoes were polished until she could see her reflection in them. The shine was so perfect that they looked as if they had just come out of the box. His dark, piercing eyes told Magena that his smile was for show. There was something sinister lurking deep within him.
“Hello, my dear,” he said, in a calm tone. “I believe it would be more comfortable on the couch in there.” He swept his open palm in the direction of the interior office. In spite of his gentle demeanor, his glare told her she had no choice but to obey.
She struggled to stand up, because the cord on the I.V.s made it awkward, so he offered his hand to her. She felt she had no choice about that either, so she reluctantly took his hand and let him help her stand.
He moved to one side to allow her into the office. Now that she was standing, she noticed that he was considerably taller than she was. At least 6’4”. Maybe taller.
Grabbing the pole for the I.V., she held her head high as she walked past him going into the small room.
Her mouth dropped when she saw who was sitting behind the small oak desk cluttered with papers.
She gasped. “Alan Cranston?” she shrieked. “You are supposed to be dead.” She was not worried about holding in her emotions anymore. She was shocked to see he was still alive.
He looked apprehensive. “Magena. How are you feeling?” He wouldn’t make eye contact with her, so she ignored him as well. When he finally looked up, she attempted to stare him down.
Taking his time, Daniel’s father closed the door behind him once she was all the way into the office. “Please. There’s no need for all of this tension,” he said impatiently. “This situation is self-explanatory.”
“How so?” Magena responded brusquely as she spun around to glare at him.
DiBenedetto walked to the phone on the desk and picked up the receiver. Magena and Cranston glared at each other in silence, as he pressed two buttons.
“Yes, it’s me. I need a nurse to Alan’s office immediately. Thank you.”
Magena took in a deep breath and looked at DiBenedetto. “Is the nurse for me?” she asked, cautiously. She wanted to say something sarcastic, but she wasn’t in a position of power. Playing it safe and finding out all she could sounded like a better and safer plan.
DiBenedetto nodded as a soft knock was heard on the door to the office. He turned and opened it. A young male nurse dressed in green scrubs came in with a small plastic box. He looked at Magena nervously. “This might be easier if you sat down on that chair.” He pointed to a padded office chair.
She sat down and stayed quiet as the nurse removed both I.V. lines and bandaged up her arm. When he was finished, she flexed the hand on the arm that the I.V.s were removed from and breathed a sigh of relief.
The young nurse then took the I.V. pole and left the office as quickly as he had entered, closing the door behind him.
“There,” DiBenedetto said as if he was relieved as well. “Now that you’re awake, there’s no need for the I.V.s. Does that feel better, my dear?”
Magena remained seated as she watched Cranston getting more nervous. He started to play with his stapler. “Yes. Thank you,” she said, in monotone.
DiBenedetto walked slowly behind Cranston who was still seated. He clasped the sitting man’s shoulders, which made Cranston jump. “There’s still too much tension in this room,” DiBenedetto said, in a composed manner. “Alan. Why don’t you go check on something important or go to the bathroom or something? I believe your nervousness is creating a stale atmosphere.”
; Without hesitation, Cranston got up and hurried out of the office, then closed the door behind him.
DiBenedetto again, picked up the phone and punched in two digits. “Make sure we’re not disturbed. I’m in Alan’s office. I’m in a very important meeting.”
With that said, Magena felt impending doom and could not breathe deeply. She started to sweat. Never had she felt so helpless. “Are you… going to… kill me?”
“Heavens, no!” he exclaimed as he pulled a man’s handkerchief from an inside pocket in his suit jacket and wiped off the chair Cranston had been sitting in. He then sat down carefully, stooping to keep his pant legs straight.
“Why would I go to all of the trouble of keeping you alive, if I was only going to kill you?” He lost his smile as he looked at the top of the desk with disdain. It appeared that the mess agitated him. Magena assumed he was a clean freak and possibly a germaphobe.
He sighed. “Now that you’re here, I’m afraid I’m going to have to tell you everything. Your first question in your mind is, ‘How on earth is Alan Cranston alive?’ I’m sure you’re questioning your source of information when you were told that he was killed. I’m sure you’re questioning a lot of things right now.”
She didn’t respond in any way to reveal what she was thinking. She would let him make all of the first moves. She hoped he was serious about letting her know everything that was going on. The only problem with that was once she knew his plans, the odds of her making it out alive became practically zero.
He waited for her to respond and smirked when she didn’t.
“I would like to get dressed,” she managed to say, trying to sound confident.
“Of course,” he returned as if he expected her to say that. “First, I would like to enlighten you. If you don’t mind.”
She nodded.
He smiled and continued, “What you have been a part of is groundbreaking in the realm of virtual reality. I own the program, of course, but I refuse to make it public. This isn’t something for the general masses. It’s more of something that could be utilized by our very own government… or any other government with enough capital to support it. I’m sure you can keep that little secret.”
“Where’s Daniel?” was all she would allow herself to say. Until she knew the situation better, she had to be extremely cautious when speaking to her traveling companion’s father, or anyone else who wasn’t Daniel.
“I’ll get to that,” he replied. “Would you like a beverage or something to eat?”
She wanted to say that she was hungry, but no words came out. She was afraid of what they might do to the food.
“I can tell that you don’t trust me,” he said with a disappointed look. “I completely understand that. If I were you, I probably wouldn’t have been able to say a word at all. I would be very cautious about opening my mouth as well, because this is a strange and confusing situation. One in which I would need to learn more about before deciding on how to respond.”
She kept her face expressionless, and was not about to show that he had her pegged. He had obviously been through this situation with several people before.
He picked up the phone again and punched in two numbers. “Please bring lunch with a couple bottles of water for two to Alan’s office. Also, make sure to pick up Miss Nightcloud’s clothing and shoes. She is very uncomfortable in her flannel nightgown. Thank you.”
She wondered why he had to explain his actions to whoever was on the other end of the phone. He appeared to be very much in charge. He was either exceptionally well-mannered, or there was someone above him that he had to suck up to.
“Would you like anything else, my dear?”
She gulped and took in a deep breath. “Answers.”
He chuckled. “Of course. That is exactly what I’m giving you.”
There was a soft knock on the door.
“Enter,” he said.
The same male nurse entered with Magena’s clothes neatly folded with her shoes on the top of the pile. A young woman followed closely behind him with a two trays sitting on top of a cart on wheels. She set one in front of DiBenedetto, while placing the other in front of Magena on the desk. The woman then grabbed two bottled waters and set one by each tray.
After depositing silverware and napkins, she left without a word.
The male nurse placed Magena’s clothes on the floor beside her chair and then left the room, closing the door behind him and the young woman.
She looked down at the clothes with a questioned look as DiBenedetto uncovered his tray to reveal grilled salmon with broccoli and mashed potatoes. There was a side of applesauce.
“Would you like me to leave while you dress?” he asked without looking up at her.
“Do you have cameras in here?” she snapped back, without realizing how rude she sounded.
He laughed for the first time. “Do you think that I installed cameras to watch you change your clothes? Ha ha!” He then looked up at a corner of the room and swiped his index finger across his throat. A small red light went off.
He stood up. “I’ll be just outside. Please inform me when you’re finished dressing so we can continue our lunch and conversation.” With that being said, he left the room and closed the door.
She looked at her clothes. They had brought her blue jeans, a white, ruffled, long-sleeved shirt and her brown leather boots from her suitcase. She quickly dressed, opened the door and then sat back down. Back in her own clothes, she felt more comfortable. She even uncovered her tray and poked at her salmon with her fork.
DiBenedetto reentered the office and secured the door behind him. He sat back down behind the desk and uncovered his lunch. “There, now. I’m sure you’re much more comfortable. Shall I continue?”
CHAPTER TWO
Daniel
Meanwhile, in a mountain range near the Judea Hills of Israel, Daniel was trying to figure out what was going on in his life.
He believed he was between the West Bank and Jerusalem. That was all he knew. Even though Daniel DiBenedetto used to be good at getting what he wanted with verbal manipulation, it wasn’t happening now. He was not prepared for the situation he was now in. He literally had his back against the wall.
Usually, when in scenarios where he was in danger, he would switch to automatic mode and let his inner con man out to correct his situation. In this case, his mind just went blank as he faced Yasmeen, who claimed to possess the spirit of historical Queen Jezebel. Daniel believed she was probably possessed by the same demons that had possessed the wicked queen three thousand years ago, but Yasmeen was a phony.
If that was not enough, an army of Baal worshipers now surrounded him. He had no visible means of escape.
“I want this sorry excuse for a man dead,” Yasmeen ordered with an evil grin. “I will give one of my precious jewels to the person who brings me his head in a bag.”
Daniel didn’t have a lot of time to remember what Magena had said about the ancient Jezebel, so he strained his memory for information he might have picked up along the way. His forte was faking it through life, until recently when he teamed up with Magena.
He had to find a way to fake it again, to save his life.
Several Hive members danced toward him while raising their arms in the air and waving them about wildly. They also emitted the weirdest primal screech he had ever heard in his life. “Aye yi ya ya.”
He did not dare take his eyes off of Yasmeen. That’s when the idea hit him. For the first time since he was in that predicament, he smiled. It was a knowing smile.
He didn’t know if it would work, but he had no other choice. “Stop, infidels!” he shouted with a faux confidence. “How dare you attack me!”
Several of the Hive members stopped short with the booming command. They turned back toward Yasmeen.
She rolled her eyes. “Are you seriously stopping because that guy told you to? No wonder you are in serious need of leadership!” She clenched her teeth and her fists, as she angrily glared at
Daniel. Pointing, she screamed, “Tear him apart or answer to me!”
They prepared to attack again, and with more intensity. They obviously did not want to upset their queen. She looked extremely vexed as it was.
Daniel knew that he had to exude more of a commanding presence if he wanted to stay alive. Otherwise, he would be dead in another few moments.
He shouted, “You dare to question my orders, Jezebel?” His confidence even impressed himself. “You dare to question… your king?”
Even Yasmeen winced at that proclamation. The anger fled rapidly from her face, as it was replaced with curiosity and confusion.
The army of Baal stopped once again with wide eyes and mouths dropped open. Again, they looked back at Yasmeen for direction. Daniel fully expected her to be even angrier that they halted again, but she wasn’t. The Baal people were only confused.
Daniel smiled. That was good.
When his targets were confused in the past, that’s when he knew it was time to strike quickly before they had time to think. “Has my absence made my followers lazy in bowing to their king?” He strutted forward, looking over the Hive members with disdain and his fingers crossed behind his back. He growled loudly, hoping for them to obey. It was all he had.
“Woman!” he bellowed at Yasmeen. “What have you done to my subjects? Does the lack of male leadership turn them into mush? Are they that much in need of their king?”
Yasmeen glared at Daniel. “Do you expect me to believe that your body now houses my former husband’s soul?” He guessed that she was trying to trip him up to see just what he was up to.
He strutted toward her without hesitation, even though his heart was pumping fast enough to explode out of his chest. He could not show the fear. “Is it any less believable than my queen has taken command of another mortal vessel as well?”
He was starting to get the hang of being a king. He didn’t know how long he would have to keep up the charade, but it had to be long enough for him to escape.
