The Maiden Medallions: Beastkeeper Read online

  A loud knock rapped against the front door as he entered the kitchen. Assuming his mother forgot something or that Danny had dropped by, James flung the door wide open.

  He regretted his actions as soon as he did.

  The old man stood in his doorway. Startled by the unexpected visit, James stepped back and bumped into Castle coming up behind him. His head in a lowered stance, the dog growled and glowered at the stranger at his door. Their eyes met, then Castle let out a series of yelps and disappeared into the house, leaving James to fend for himself.

  “Hey! Where’re you going?” he called out after his retreating dog. Turning back to the old man, James searched his wrinkled face, trying to determine his intent. “What do you want?”

  The man’s words were calm and compassionless. “You found the medallion. Now you must come with me.”

  James eyed the old man, his feelings sliding from anxiousness to curiosity. He realized there wasn’t a lot to be afraid of. The old man seemed smaller than he remembered and he wore the same clothes as yesterday, just without the hat. His life must be extremely hectic if he couldn’t even find the time to change. James couldn’t understand how Castle could be intimidated by this man at all.

  “Bring it and come,” the old man persisted.

  Although he wasn’t entirely sure of what the old man was talking about, he did have a hunch. Reaching into his back pocket, James pulled out the object and held it up. “Are you talking about this?”

  The old man glanced at it but his face remained placid; nothing registered on the rigid features of his emotionless face. “You have found the medallion. Now come with me.”

  Though slightly annoying, James didn’t think he was capable of causing harm. Castle may have been fearful, but in looking at the frail old man standing in his doorway, he just couldn’t believe he was all that dangerous. However, he would still proceed with only the utmost of caution.

  “Where will you be taking me if I decide to go with you?”

  The old man pointed off into the distance.

  “Oh, well that tells me a lot,” James said sarcastically. But he felt compelled to follow the old man, regardless of his ambiguity. He had questions he wanted answers for and accompanying the old man could provide them. At the very least, he might learn about the connection between the object and his grandmother.

  James slipped the medallion back into his pocket. “I’ll come with you but I’m bringing my dog with me.”

  The old man stared at him before replying in his toneless inflection. “No. It is not possible.”

  “Then we have a problem,” James said.

  “You must come,” the man insisted.

  James was growing tired of the same old mantra the man kept spouting. He wanted to go but not without Castle. Assuming the man was harmless didn’t actually make it so.

  The familiar roar of Danny’s Mustang grew steadily louder. James watched it come up the road, then pull into the driveway.

  The old man grabbed his arm. Stronger than he looked, James struggled to pull himself free. But the man would have none of it and held on firmly. Leaning close, he whispered in his face. “Bring the medallion to the fields. I will find you.” Letting go, he disappeared around a corner of the house.

  Danny exited the car. “What’s going on? Who was that?”

  Ignoring his friend’s questions, James stepped through the open door and went in search of the old man. He was hardly surprised to discover he had vanished in only a handful of seconds. He had a habit of appearing out of nowhere, so why not disappearing as well?

  “Who was that guy?” Danny asked.

  “You know what, I’m not sure...but I have to find out.”

  Danny looked up and down the street. “Where did he go?”

  James chuckled. “I got no idea, none at all. But we’ll see him again.”

  “You’re in trouble,” Danny said, shaking his head. “First Cooper, now this old guy...”

  “There’s no trouble. It has to do with this.” James showed him the object.

  “What is it?”

  “It’s some kind of medallion. He asked me to find it, and I guess I have. For some reason, it’s really important to him. He asked me to bring it to the fields.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  James smiled at his friend. “I know what he means. Let’s go for a drive.”

  6

  The dark blue helicopter descended towards the woman waiting below. She stood on the tarmac, her shoulder-length auburn hair fluttering severely in the helicopter’s generated breeze. Wearing body hugging black jeans and a red spaghetti-strap tank top underneath a full-length charcoal leather coat, she waited patiently for it to touch ground. Gazing through tinted sunglasses, she failed to recognize the African-American male piloting the landing copter.

  The woman gripped the handle of a silver attaché case. Checking the security cuff linking the case to her left wrist, she used her free arm to shield her face as she hurried towards the helicopter with a large white ‘B’ inside a hexagon pattern on the doors.

  The passenger side opened up, a silent invitation to climb aboard. But she hesitated, wanting to gauge the pilot’s legitimacy first. “Who are you?” she shouted through the open door. “Where’s Charlie?”

  “He’s been reassigned,” the pilot yelled over the copters whirling blades. “I’m the new guy!”

  She was tasked with bringing the contents of the attaché case to her grandfather. And even though she didn’t know what was inside, she knew of his expensive tastes. But so did many others. Business rivals, criminal factions and petty thieves targeted his operations in the past. It was possible someone was attempting to do so again. However, the pilot was flying her grandfather’s private helicopter so the chance of this being a plot of some kind was fairly remote. Still, injecting fear into the man couldn’t hurt.

  Pulling her coat aside, she revealed a silver and black handgun housed safely in its holster. “You will fly me directly to the estate. Anything funny–do anything stupid, and I will ventilate you.”

  Shock registered on the pilot’s face. He looked at the holster, then back at the young woman. “Don’t worry, Miss Bone,” he said reassuringly. “I’m not here to cross you. I started flying for your grandfather a few weeks ago. Perhaps he didn’t inform you.”

  “Perhaps he didn’t,” she said with a wicked smile. Judging his reaction as honest, she stepped inside the cockpit, closed the door and settled in for the flight.

  The copter lifted off and flew towards the sprawling estate of her grandfather, her only relative left in the entire world. His name was Jeremiah Bone.

  Having lost her family at the tender age of three, she spent her informative years at his side and most of her youth on the estate. She learnt much from him and he spared no expense on her education which included a wide range of instructors, personal tutors and trainers. All in all, she considered growing up on her grandfather’s estate some of the happiest times of her life. But gradually, things changed as she grew into a woman and realized he groomed her with a specific purpose in mind.

  The pilot interrupted her introspection. “Miss Bone? There’s a call for you.”

  She didn’t have to ask who it was. Sliding the headset on, she adjusted the microphone, then nodded at the pilot.

  “Evelynn,” a voice crackled in her ear.

  “Yes, Jeremiah.” She always used his first name. It was what he preferred.

  “Welcome back. I assume all went well on your assignment?”

  “Yes, of course,” she said dismissively. “Tell me, do you have a new pilot?”

  “Yes...Jacob, Jacob is his name. Is there a problem?”

  Evelynn heard the irritation in his voice at having the subject changed. “What happened to Charlie?” she asked. Charlie had been Jeremiah’s personal pilot for the past ten years. She regarded him as a friend, one of only a handful of people she would ever consider as such.

  “We’ll dis
cuss things later–after you land. Please see me promptly when you arrive.”

  The transmission ended leaving only electronic hums buzzing in her ear. Removing the headset, she placed it back in its housing.

  “Everything alright, Miss Bone?”

  “Yes.” Evelynn gazed out the window. “Everything is fine now, Jacob.”

  The helicopter flew over a huge two storey mansion before landing in the designated area behind the glass, brick and steel structure. Several men waited to greet them as they exited the chopper. Jacob and one of the men went to the rear of the helicopter. Exchanging pleasantries and a few laughs, they unloaded some packages before carrying them off to the nearby hangar. Another man walked around the helicopter checking off items on his clipboard.

  “Miss Bone, if you would follow me,” said her escort. His face was quiet as he stood by in his black military style uniform, a white letter ‘B’ stitched over the breast pocket indicating his employment as one of Jeremiah’s private security squad.

  She nodded, unlocking the cuff from her wrist. The handle firmly in her right hand, Evelynn stepped in line behind the security officer as he led the way from the landing zone. Following the guard along a winding concrete path, she scrutinized the mansion. Immaculate as ever and grand in scale, it was the only place she regarded as home even after being away for close to a year.

  The mansion was erected on a vast area of flat land. After her grandmother’s disappearance ages ago, Jeremiah bought the property, built his home and lived there ever since. Located southwest of Gainesville, Florida, he always said he preferred warmth over cold. By the time she came to live here as a child, he had already spent years residing on the estate.

  Over time, renovations to the mansion were completed such as replacing most of the back wall with one way, bulletproof glass. In fact, all the windows on the property were now highly resistant. Additions were made and expansion projects, including multiple underground science and research labs, a shooting range, hangar bay and various recreational facilities, had been authorized.

  Jeremiah ran an efficient organization but many speculated on how he amassed such a fortune. The man Evelynn knew always had a lot of financial wherewithal making him an exceedingly influential man whenever he wanted to promote his agenda. An archaeologist by trade, he had long since retired yet his passion for ancient and rare antiquities had not followed suit, his collection growing steadily larger through her expertise.

  She followed the security officer through the expansive yard, around the flower gardens and fruit tree groves, past the tennis and basketball courts and up a dozen or so steps into a large, white marble-pillared courtyard. A woman waited there, a woman Evelynn recognized.

  The officer disappeared from view down the steps as Sandra Sebastian, Jeremiah’s personal assistant and driver, approached from the opposite side of the courtyard. Evelynn observed her tall, athletic build. Sandra had obviously been devoting more time at the estate’s gym since she saw her last, but she didn’t plan on offering a compliment.

  “It’s so good to see you again,” Sandra said. “How long has it been?”

  “A while.” Evelynn noted the woman’s neatly arranged dark brown hair, her perfect ebony skin so flawless and smooth with just a subtle hint of jasmine drifting about her. Clearly, she spent a great deal of time at the spa. “I suppose Jeremiah wants to see me right away?”

  “Yes, he does.” Sandra turned and headed towards the rear entrance of the mansion. Wearing gray slacks, a beige formfitting sleeveless top, and open-toed sandals, Sandra was dressed for the tropical weather she lived and worked in, unlike Evelynn who preferred the look of leather in almost any environment.

  Evelynn tried to push aside the inadequacy she often felt when in Sandra’s company. She admonished herself for allowing those feelings to resurface even after being away for so long.

  “Did you enjoy Paris?” Sandra asked, stopping next to the courtyard checkpoint. Manned by a large security guard, it was one of six found on the property. Located at all entry points around the estate, these checkpoints functioned as security stations and were manned each hour of every day.

  “Yea, I love it there. Looking forward to going back as soon as possible.”

  “Well, I hope we don’t keep you then,” Sandra replied coldly. “Hi, Dev. Everything good today?” she asked the guard on duty.

  “Everyt’ing good, miss.” Pressing a switch beneath the counter, the burly man unlocked the glass doors built into the thick glass of the mansion’s back wall. The doors slid apart creating an entranceway into a huge, sunlit chamber.

  “Thanks, Dev.” Sandra led the way inside.

  The glass wall provided an abundance of light; an immense skylight brightened the interior even more. The floor was tiled over in diamond patterns of alternating black and white. A short distance back from the entranceway was a large circular fountain. Made of marble and ivory, water poured forth from the jaws of an emerald dragon’s head.

  Corridors on the left and right of the sunlit chamber led to other parts of the mansion. Beyond the fountain, the chamber narrowed into a hall and merged with the spacious foyer by the front entrance. Splintering off from main hall were passages to the library, games room, a private dining area, staff lounges and change rooms.

  “He’ll meet you in his office,” Sandra said, ascending a flight of curved stairs.

  Evelynn followed her up the steps positioned along the left side of the chamber. Covered in narrow red carpeting, it was one of a matching set; a second flight of stairs ran along the right side. Connecting with the mansion’s upper level hallway, the dark brown double doors located at the center of the hall led to Jeremiah’s private office.

  The upper corridor extended past both staircases before angling towards the front of the mansion. Leading to multiple guest suites, various studios, recreation rooms and the estate’s own restaurant and lounge called the Balcony Bar, this hall was one of the more heavily traveled areas on the entire estate.

  Removing the keycard clipped to her pants, Sandra swiped it through the reader. The doors opened inwards, then closed behind them as the women proceeded down a hall.

  Evelynn walked past the reception area. The secretary on duty looked up from her computer screen, then returned to her business. Glancing at the empty boardrooms where meetings were held on a regular basis, Evelynn arrived at the end of the hall and a second set of doors.

  Using her keycard, Sandra gained access to the office within. Sensor lights activated as the women entered the inner sanctum of Jeremiah Bone.

  “I’ll inform Jeremiah of your arrival,” Sandra said before leaving Evelynn alone in the office.

  A windowless room, the dim light was supplied by tall silver lamps placed in each corner. Topped with opaque lampshades, there were plenty of shadows scattered throughout the carpeted office. A crystal and gold table lamp illuminated the surface of a crescent-shaped desk, the light revealing the clutter scattered about on top.

  This office was one of a few Jeremiah maintained on the estate, but this was his main office and also contained his private quarters. The door leading to his personal chambers was next to the lamp in the back left corner of the room. His private elevator was part of the adjacent wall.

  The office was sparsely furnished. There was a black leather chair pushed up against the desk and a matching couch along the right wall. A glass coffee table was next to the couch; an opened laptop computer, a red candle and an ashtray rested on top.

  Evelynn placed the attaché case on the desk. Gazing at the mess strewn about, her eyes settled on a file folder labeled Ancient American Folklore. She also saw papers discussing reptiles, maps of North and South America, books on Native American culture and some photographs of people and places she didn’t recognize.

  Sifting through the pictures, a photo of a circular object with round mirrors caught her attention. She saw the words communication, absorption and control written across it in Jeremiah’s handwriting. In
addition, a large question mark had been scrawled below those words.

  A steadily increasing hum indicated the elevator was rising. Rumbling to a halt, the doors parted and out stepped a tall man in a dark suit and black shoes. Round-rimmed, green-tinted spectacles covered his eyes and his longish silver hair was tied back in a tail. Holding a black cane topped with a crystalline orb in his left hand, he walked without a trace of a limp, the cane more of an accessory than a necessity.

  The elderly man grinned at her. “Evelynn, my daughter.” His voice was deep and projected throughout the room.

  Opening his arms in welcome, Evelynn accepted the invitation and embraced her grandfather. She hadn’t realized how much she missed the strength of his arms around her. For a man of his age, he always seemed at optimal health. She couldn’t remember him ever being sick even as his peers dwindled away to the ravages of time.

  “How was Paris? I hope you got the chance to see it all.”

  “I enjoyed my time there. Some friends showed me the city, but after a while, I needed other diversions,” she said with a coy smile.

  “Yes, I heard you had quite the adventure.” Jeremiah strolled to his desk and pulled out the chair. Sitting down, he pushed a few items aside, then pulled the attaché case towards him. “But now it’s time to put all that behind you. We have important work to do.”

  Evelynn remained standing waiting for Jeremiah to continue.

  “How’s Marcus?” he asked, running his hand along the attaché case.

  “He’s fine. He had everything ready. I was in and out in no time at all.”

  “That’s too bad. New York is a wonderful city.”

  “It was business, wasn’t it? I didn’t think I had time for shopping.”

  “Yes, yes you’re right. Thank you for bringing it to me, Evey.” He turned the case around so the locks faced him. “Now, I’m sure there are things you would rather be doing than spending time with an old man. Perhaps seeing some friends?”

  “Speaking of friends, what happened to Charlie?” she asked.