by Melissa Frey
The Secret of the Codex
Melissa Frey
Independently Published
in the United States of America
Copyright © 2018, 2019 by Melissa Frey.
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever.
www.melissafrey.com
Book Layout © 2017 BookDesignTemplates.com
The Secret of the Codex / by Melissa Frey. —2nd ed.
Summary: When archaeology professor Kayla Harrington unearths a powerful Secret with colleague Grady McGready, she begins to realize that there's more to this discovery—and to him—than she thought.
ISBN 978-1-7324335-2-6
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
For my dad, who raised me to
love the written word
Reader,
Sometimes the journey itself is the adventure.
As I was writing this book—a book a decade in the making—the biggest lesson I learned was that I had to trust the process and embrace the journey.
And that’s what Kayla discovers in this book—that sometimes the destination is just as important as who you become getting there.
My dream is that this book will keep you up at night, have you rooting for the heroes, and leave you breathless. Isn't that what we all want to get out of the books we read?
But more than that, I hope it makes you consider that the supernatural is possible, encourages you to find a love that takes your breath away, and nudges you closer toward the destiny you were created for all along.
<3 Melissa
The Secret of the Codex
CHAPTER 1
Lightning
University of Central Florida, Anthropology Department
“Doctor Harrington?”
Dr. Kayla Harrington looked up from the papers she had just finished grading to see a young blonde-haired, blue-eyed student standing in the doorway of her office with a messenger bag slung over her shoulder. She couldn’t have been more than twenty. Kayla could almost remember being that young—when she wasn’t trying to forget.
Kayla smiled and motioned her in.
The girl smiled timidly in return, tentatively entering the room. “I brought your mail.”
Kayla nodded her thanks, reaching for the stack of papers and scanning the first few items with idle curiosity. Nothing good ever came in the mail anymore.
She’d gotten through a few pieces of mail before she noticed that the girl hadn’t left yet. She slowly drew her eyes up to meet the girl’s gaze. “Yes?”
The young student flashed another timid, almost apologetic smile before responding. “I know you’re about to leave, but I was wondering if you had my final graded yet.”
The flight! Kayla’s heart skipped a beat. She’d nearly forgotten about it. Her eyes flew to the clock on the wall.
Her heart slowed down. She still had a few minutes. She offered the student a sheepish smile. “Sure, I should have it right here . . .” She shuffled the papers in front of her and quickly found the student’s final. Sorting the students’ papers alphabetically may be a little obsessive, but it did have its advantages.
After a brief once-over, she handed the paper across her desk with a wide smile. “You wrote a good paper. The conclusion was a little weak and didn’t sound like you’d thought it all the way through, but all in all, good job.”
The student smiled in return, more confident this time. She eagerly scanned the front page, her eyes quickly lighting on her grade. She looked happy with a B. “Thanks, Dr. Harrington. See you next semester.”
Kayla offered a quick wave as the young girl rushed out of her office. She glanced over at the clock again. Ten minutes until she needed to leave for the airport. Enough time to finish looking through the mail.
Most of it was junk mail, magazines, and a stray bill that somehow got sent to her office instead of her home. But near the end of the stack, wedged between a magazine and a furniture ad, was a small, manila envelope.
Kayla’s brow furrowed as she turned the package over in her hands. No return address. She reached for a letter opener and sliced open one end. Then she upended it, dropping its contents on her desk.
There, sitting atop the stack of newly-graded papers, was a silver charm attached to a long chain, almost like a necklace of sorts. Kayla leaned down without touching it, scrutinizing it for a moment, then picked it up, laying the charm in her left palm. From end to end, the charm nearly stretched the length of her palm. The metal was haphazardly chiseled into a crude rendering of the symbol for lightning. But the way it was rendered . . . something seemed oddly familiar.
She slowly stood, stepping around her large suitcase on her way to the overfilled and overflowing bookcases that lined the far wall of her small office. They were too big for the space, but she didn’t care. They served their purpose. Barely.
She quickly found the book she wanted—she could always find things in her “organized clutter” as she called it, though no one else ever could—and she reached up to pull it out of its slot. It slid out easily, too easily—she had to jump under it to keep it from crashing to the ground. Her hands were the only thing that kept the large tome from hitting her in the head.
She flipped the book open quickly, stealing a glance at the clock. She needed to leave soon.
But not quite yet. She scanned the book, trying to find what she was looking for. Then, abruptly, she did. She laid the charm in the book, right beside the picture on the page, comparing the two. The distinctive way the symbol was drawn pointed to a very specific origin. She didn’t know why she didn’t recognize it immediately.
Now she really did have to leave. She returned the book dutifully to its proper place, draping the long necklace around her neck and dropping the charm beneath her shirt, then stepped over to the worn leather couch to retrieve her luggage. She leaned down and picked up her large suitcase by the handle, slung the strap of her smaller bag on her shoulder, and started for the door.
Then she remembered the papers she’d just graded and turned quickly to snatch them up—the way she kept her desk semi-organized in neat stacks ensured that she didn’t grab anything else in the process—just before leaving and locking up her office. She placed the newly-graded papers on the front desk counter with a bright smile to the department’s long-suffering receptionist before leaving the building for the summer.
Lamanai Archeological Project, Northern Belize Rainforest
Kayla stood up and stretched, yawning. Her long auburn hair fell down her back as she closed her eyes to the blinding glare of the sun. It had been a long day, and it wasn’t even close to being over. She was fairly certain that this day still had quite a few more working hours in it.
Kayla blinked and shielded her eyes with one hand as she glanced down at the sandy ground where a dusty terracotta bowl was lying in pieces at her feet. After half a second’s deliberation, she called over a nearby grad student to finish up the analysis. The monotonous portion of the work—though in truth she really didn’t mind it—didn’t need to be completed by the person heading up the dig; plus, it would give one of her favorite students much-needed field experience.
After letting the student know where she was going, Kayla trudged to her tent, pulling her gloves off on the way. She smiled serenely as she reached the entrance and eyed her cot. Without stopping to remove her shoes, she flopped down on the makeshift bed.
After a few minutes of trying to sleep—though she’d known
it would never happen before she’d even started trying—she reached for the necklace she still wore, the one she’d received just before she came here. She held the charm up to the light, turning it over and over, and stared intently at the lightning-shaped charm between her fingers. She had spent the entire plane ride here trying to figure out what it meant.
She didn’t know why, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that this was a warning of some kind. But a warning against what?
A polite voice interrupted her reverie. “Knock, knock.”
Kayla sat up and smiled at the pretty young student she’d left with the terracotta bowl, the charm in her closed fist. “Hey, Jackie. Are you having trouble with the pottery piece?”
The girl called Jackie smiled back at her, flipping her long black hair out of her face. “Nope, all done.” Her grin widened, and Kayla thought she saw her eyes begin to sparkle. “Dr. McGready is asking for you. I think they found something.”
Kayla blinked. The dig had only been up and running for a few short months—and they had already found something? She hurriedly dropped the charm beneath her shirt and jumped up with a grin. “Coming.”
“Jack, can you shine some light down there?” Kayla offered what she hoped was an overtly flirtatious smile in Jack’s direction. A little light flirting always seemed to win their handyman over.
Her plan worked like a charm. Jack McFarland wheeled an industrial spotlight over to the correct spot. “Anything for you, sweetie.” As the oldest worker on site, Jack was well-liked by everyone. He always had a nice word to say and a questionably interesting story to tell, if you had the time to stick around to hear it.
“I think we’ve hit the jackpot, Kayla,” came from one of the dig’s excavators.
Kayla gave a quick nod, but didn’t look up to see who’d made the comment. She was too busy leaning over the shoulder of the computer tech on site, Dr. Grady McGready, trying to make sure the lighting was just right.
She watched as his deep blue eyes, eyes that complimented his short yet unruly dark brown hair perfectly, surveyed the scene expertly from behind his computer screen. A colleague of hers at the University of Central Florida and an expert in Mayan religious rites and traditions, Grady was now also filling the shoes of the dig’s usual computer tech—the one who’d fallen violently ill just yesterday and had been medevacked to the States for treatment—thanks to his degree in computer science. One of his many degrees, if what she’d heard about him was true.
She took half a step back and looked at him more closely. They’d never really spoken to each other—excepting the occasional “hello” or nod as they passed in the hall and the usual business conversation at department meetings—and Kayla’d never really given him a second thought. But something about the way his sapphire eyes were examining the screen in front of them with such an understated confidence . . .
As she moved back toward the screen in front of them, she stole a glance at him out of the corner of her eye. He was only a few inches taller than her but easily outweighed her—though nothing about him made her think he was overweight. He just looked . . . strong. Like he spent a few hours a week running, maybe some occasional weight-lifting, but never spent much time at the gym.
Kayla didn’t really think he needed to.
She chastised herself. He was her coworker, nothing more. No need to complicate things. She’d been down that road before, and it hadn’t ended well. And that was an understatement.
Grady’s voice jolted her back to the present. “Shine that light a little to the left, Jack.”
Kayla struggled to get her mind back on task. Thoughts like that would only distract her. She was here to do her job—nothing more. She leaned up close to Grady, checking the monitor to make sure the lighting was right. Once she was satisfied that everything was ready, she called out to their long-suffering handyman.
“Hey, Jack, we’re all set. Thanks!” She waved him over.
Jack smiled at her as he headed their way. The group of people surrounding them—mostly the excavators that had made the discovery—now gathered behind Grady and Kayla to stare at the computer monitor.
The light illuminated a deep and narrow shaft. Though the light didn’t reach the bottom, the widening walls of the shaft made Kayla think it was close. Embedded in centuries of dirt and debris, darkened skeletons lined the sides of the shaft. On one side, jutting out from between the layers of skeletal remains, were crude yet flat rocks that stuck out from the wall in a sporadic but oddly recognizable pattern.
“Hey, are those steps?” one of the onlookers queried, pointing at the screen.
Kayla’s heart skipped a beat as she walked the ten yards to the shaft, taking the flashlight off her belt and pointing it down the hole. She broke into a grin. “I think so!” This is great, Kayla thought. I’ve only been here a few days, and we find this!
She could feel Grady’s gaze on her back. “So what’s the plan, Dr. Harrington?”
Kayla sighed, still gazing into the shaft. Then she looked up at the darkening sky and headed back toward Grady and the computer. “We’re losing the light. Let’s start on this first thing tomorrow. And please, it’s Kayla.” She smiled sweetly at him, then turned back to the group and raised her voice. “Okay, everyone, let’s get some rest. We’ll start on this as soon as the sun is up.”
Grady grinned from behind the computer monitor as the crowd surrounding him dispersed. Kayla’s tenacity was infectious—and quite endearing.
He started to join her at the edge of the shaft, but suddenly he couldn’t move. As though his mind had opened a gateway to the future—one possible future, anyway—he could see them together. He saw their nondescript home back in Florida, saw them having breakfast in their small kitchen every morning, saw her lying next to him in bed with the sunlight streaming through the window, illuminating her cheek as she slept . . .
Grady shook his head violently, trying in vain to erase the idea of Kayla and him together. His inexplicable vision of them together was . . . well, unsettling to say the least. Where had those images come from?
He looked back at the monitor—hid behind it, more accurately—concentrating a little too hard on bringing his mind back to the present. He barely knew Kayla—she’d never given him a second glance, he was certain of that—but something was there, hiding just below the surface. Something he just couldn’t quite put his finger on.
He’d never really considered dating her—not seriously enough to act on it, anyway. She’d only ever been a coworker in his eyes. Oh, she was attractive—beautiful, he’d thought more than once—but she always seemed out of reach. Like he wouldn’t have anything close to a chance with her.
Life was cruel. Why had his mind conjured up those images of them together? He didn’t—couldn’t—have a future with her, not in this lifetime.
Then she was standing right next to him. “Dr. McGready, can I talk to you for a minute?”
Grady jumped. He hadn’t said anything aloud, had he? That would be . . . unbearable. “Call me Grady.” He shoved his hands in his pockets. “And yeah, what’s up?”
Kayla looked over at him and smiled, leaning in just a little and lowering her voice. “Care to get started tonight? Our little secret?”
Grady grinned at her, feeling much more at ease. When he wasn’t thinking about them together, she tended to have a calming effect on him. Odd. “Sure, I’d love to.”
As the sun started to disappear behind the trees of the surrounding forest, they worked together getting the markers set up for the computer to read, sending a light down the middle of the shaft to help them better determine its length, and ensuring the lighting below would be sufficient enough for them to do some preliminary exploring.
Personal feelings aside, Grady was excited to have Dr. Harrington—Kayla—working with him on this project. He had been in Belize for the spring semester working on this site—one purported to be an important religious site for the ancient Mayans, though no one had yet determine
d why—and was glad to finally have another expert on the dig. And not just another expert, but the leading Mayan language expert in the U.S., if not the world.
“Okay,” Grady said as soon as he’d checked the computer screen one last time, “we’re all set. Let’s go.”
Kayla couldn’t miss the hint of a smile on Grady’s lips. She reached for the flashlight she’d laid by the mouth of the shaft and smiled back at him, pointing the light toward the hole in the ground. “You first.”
Grady grabbed his own flashlight, attached it to his belt, and headed toward the illuminated shaft. Kayla felt a wave of warmth caress her skin at the sight of the brilliant smile he flashed her way before climbing down.
After he’d descended the first few steps, he peered over the edge of the hole. “You coming?”
Kayla grinned and snapped her own flashlight to her belt. “Wouldn’t miss it.”
CHAPTER 2
Discovery
After what seemed like an eternity, Grady could finally see the sandy bottom. He jumped down, his landing sending up a cloud of fine brown dust. Just before the air cleared and Grady could see again, Kayla jumped to the sandy floor. Coughing, Grady strained to see something—anything—but all he could see was a cloud of dirt.
When the dust finally settled, Grady pulled out his flashlight. They hadn’t been able to adequately illuminate this room from above, so the light from their flashlights and the small lantern he had clipped to his belt was the only light they were going to get tonight. Grady’s beam searched the walls, the ceiling, the floor, looking for any clue as to where they were.
