“It doesn’t work quite like that. If it did I would long ago have dug up my own hoard of Roman gold, believe me. I thought I explained, my psychical sensitivity is linked to my sense of touch. I need some connection to the object I am searching for, something to help me obtain a focus.”
“Let’s see what we can find.” He walked toward the shed. “But first we’ll pick up a few items that may prove useful.”
The thrill of the mystery whispered to her senses. She rushed to follow him.
“There is only one more thing I would point out, Lucas,” she said.
“I knew it.” He did not pause. “You simply can’t resist this compulsion, can you?”
“Sorry, no.” She collected her skirts and broke into a brisk trot to keep up with him. “The one final point I wish to make is that at least you have a few relatives to contend with. I can tell you from personal experience that there are worse things than having a difficult family.”
He stopped at that and turned back to face her, comprehension shadowing his eyes. “That would be having no family at all? You may be correct, although there are times when I would disagree with you.”
“Come now, you know perfectly well that you are very fond of Beth and Tony.”
“On occasion.”
She smiled. “I have seen the three of you together. You are quite close.”
He shrugged. “We are family.”
“Exactly.”
He frowned. “But I see now that I had not considered the matter from your perspective.”
“Does that mean that you will now condescend to listen to my advice on how to deal with Judith?”
He raised a hand and smoothed a few stray tendrils of her hair back behind her ears. The energy of desire stirred the atmosphere around them. He kissed her forehead, a light, glancing, casually possessive kiss that marked her as his in a thousand indescribable ways.
“I will listen, but I will most likely ignore it,” he said.
He moved on to the shed.
She followed quickly. “I was afraid of that. Has anyone ever told you that you are an exceedingly stubborn man?”
“I believe you yourself may have mentioned it on occasion. I recall the word ‘cork-brained’ was employed.”
“I apologized.”
“That does not mean that I will allow you to forget the remark.” He stopped in front of the windowless shed, opened the door and moved into the dark space. When he reappeared he had two pairs of heavy leather gardening gloves in his hand. He gave her one pair. “Put those on. They’ll provide some protection.”
He went back into the shed while she did as he had instructed. The gloves were far too large and the thick leather made her feel clumsy.
Lucas emerged from the shed again, buckling a wide leather belt low on his hips. Two knife sheaths, one quite large, the other much smaller, hung from the belt. He must have seen the curiosity in her eyes.
“The small blade is for taking specimen samples,” he explained. “The larger one is called a machete. Chester brought it back from one of his botanical expeditions. It can slice through some of the foliage in this place.” He glanced at a nearby curtain of orchids. “At least it could the last time I was here.”
“Too bad we did not have that large knife with us last night.”
“I didn’t take it into the maze because it is of little use after dark. The energy in the Night Garden is so powerful at that time that it is nearly impossible to hack through even something that appears as fragile as a cluster of daisies or a bank of ferns.”
She studied the massive iron gate that guarded the entrance of the maze. “Would it be possible to destroy the Night Garden by day?”
“I think one could make some headway by day but it would be slow going.” Lucas took a key out of his pocket and unlocked the gate. “And I’m afraid that what foliage was destroyed in sunlight would most likely regrow overnight.”
“So quickly?”
“The only limitation on the growth of the plants now appears to be the proximity to the paranormal waters of the spring. That was always true, but for some reason, after centuries, the forces at work around the spring are growing more powerful. I must find the cause.”
She watched the gate slowly swing open, revealing the yawning green mouth of the maze. “Would it perhaps be possible to use strong chemicals to destroy the foliage?”
“Uncle Chester conducted a few experiments to see if the plants could be destroyed with various acids but none were markedly successful.”
“In other words, you may never be able to destroy the Night Garden.”
“Not with any methods that have been tried thus far.” Lucas entered the dark mouth of the maze. He disappeared almost immediately, fading ghostlike into the shadows. “Watch your step. The same rules apply in daylight as at night. Try not to brush against even the most harmless-looking leaf and, whatever you do, don’t scratch yourself on a thorn.”
She paused at the entrance. The currents of energy emanating from the labyrinth were different in the daylight, more subdued but no less ominous. The waves of paranormal power sparked frissons of shuddery awareness across her senses.
She heightened her talent and moved into the intense, primal energy of the maze. Her senses stirred. The foliage sighed and whispered around her.
“It is as if the plants are sleeping now,” she said.
“But no less alive.”
Lucas used the old key to lock the gate. “I don’t want to risk Tony and Beth trying to follow us. They are both endowed with far too much curiosity and sense of adventure.”
She smiled. “In that they take after their older brother.”
Lucas gave her an unreadable look. “Do you think so?”
“Judith told me that you were the closest thing Tony and Beth had to a father. It is obvious you were a good one. They adore you and they admire you.”
“Judith exaggerates,” Lucas said. “She always does.”
His tone was gruff but he sounded oddly pleased, Evangeline thought. There was a note of satisfaction in his voice, paternal satisfaction.
“You will make a very good father to your own children,” she said before she could stop to think.
He looked startled. “I track monsters and sometimes I kill them.”
“Speaking as a former child, I can assure you that is a fine trait in a father. It’s very reassuring to know that Papa can take care of the monsters hiding under the bed.”
Lucas startled her with a soft laugh. She had the feeling that he surprised himself, as well. He slipped the machete out of its sheath.
“Let us be off,” he said.
Evangeline looked around and was relieved to discover that she could perceive the walls and ceiling of the maze as clearly as she had during the night.
“Oh, good,” she said. “We won’t need a lantern.”
“No,” Lucas said.
He walked quickly toward the far end of the corridor. She hesitated a few seconds. It occurred to her that last night she had been wearing only a nightgown and a wrapper but today she was dressed in a tailored shirtwaist gown and low-cut walking boots. The dress was styled with a fairly trim, narrow silhouette, the bustle small and discreet. The hem ended just above her ankles and there was no dust ruffle to sweep the ground. Nevertheless, she did not want to risk having the draped fabric accidentally snag against one of the poisonous thorns.
She collected her skirts in her gloved hands, pulled the folds more snugly around her legs and followed Lucas deeper into the maze.
The lush, verdant energy of the plant life around her sent frisson after frisson across her senses.
“I wonder if this is what it was like at the dawn of creation,” she whispered, “when the world was new and awash in the raw power of life?”
“That is a question for the poets, not scientists,” Lucas said. “But I’ll agree that there is a lot of power here. You can surely sense how difficult it would be to destroy this garden, root and bra
nch.”
“Yes,” she said. “Furthermore, I think it would be wrong to do so, even if it is possible. This is a wondrous place.”
Lucas smiled faintly. “Perhaps I should set up a booth and sell tickets.”
“That is an interesting notion. It is a pity that so many parts of the garden are dangerous.”
They exited the maze into the Night Garden and made their way to the shadow gate that guarded the ancient bathhouse. Evangeline braced herself for the mild shocks of energy and followed Lucas through the entrance.
They moved through the first pool chamber and went along the vaulted corridor into the next. The waves of sparkling energy from the second bath rolled over her senses like liquid jewels. Hot memories of the night of passion briefly overwhelmed her. She was aware of the sudden warmth flushing her cheeks.
Lucas surveyed the chamber. A little heat kindled in his eyes.
“I don’t know about you,” he said, “but speaking for myself, I will never forget this room.”
She cleared her throat and concentrated on the door of the stone passageway that led to the third chamber.
“I assume you have a key to the door of the third chamber?” she asked briskly.
His brows rose. “Are you attempting to change the subject?”
“We are here on an investigation. I hardly think this is the time to discuss unrelated subjects.”
“Right.” Lucas looked down the stone passage. “Back to the business of the third pool. The door itself will not be a problem. There is no key. The lock is an ingenious device that requires a code. One pushes a series of steel pins in a certain sequence and the door opens.”
“You have that code, I assume?”
“Yes. Chester gave it to me years ago. The more difficult problem is dealing with the energy in that chamber. You will understand when I get the door open. Neither Chester nor I could get more than a few steps into the room. Believe me, we both tried on a number of occasions.”
He walked down the hallway and stopped in front of the massive steel-bound door. Evangeline followed and watched him push several pins in the big lock.
There was a grinding rumble of the hinges but the door swung open slowly, revealing an arched doorway framed in large blocks of solid stone.
One of the stones glowed with an inner light, storm-dark and ominously radiant.
A cauldron of hot energy boiled in the doorway. Flashes of paranormal lightning pierced what appeared to be impenetrable chaos. The currents of power spilled out into the room, charging the already overheated atmosphere. Evangeline’s senses flared in response. Her hair lifted, floating around her head. Excitement twisted with dread inside her. She was fascinated, thrilled, enchanted.
She moved forward slowly and came to a stop in front of the energy gate.
“Astonishing,” she whispered.
Lucas looked at the gate. “Do you think you can work that kind of energy?”
“Yes,” she said, very certain. “This gate was fashioned by a person, not by the forces of the earth.”
“Not by my uncle, either, I can tell you that much. He installed a new door but the energy gate was here when he bought the abbey.”
“This gate is old,” Evangeline said. “Centuries, perhaps thousands of years old. But it was created with the power of a human aura, so dampening it with my own wavelengths should work. The pattern feels … female.”
“You can tell that?”
“Yes. A very powerful woman crafted this gate. I think that only a woman could open it.”
She studied the glowing crystal embedded in the doorway. “And I think I know exactly where to begin.”
She took a step closer and then another and put out one hand. Gingerly she flattened her palm against the slab of crystal. It brightened immediately. Paranormal electricity crackled through her but she felt no pain, just a euphoric exhilaration.
Slowly she probed for the fierce currents of power radiating from the crystal. When she had identified the strongest waves of energy, she countered with a dampening force. At first nothing seemed to be happening, but after a few seconds the energy of the gate started to abate.
A moment later the storm winked out of existence like an extinguished candle flame.
“Incredible,” Lucas said. “You are an amazing woman, Evangeline Ames. But I believe I have made that observation on previous occasions.”
The admiration and respect in his voice warmed her. “Yes, you have, but I thank you.”
“Now to see if the treasure is in there,” Lucas said.
She laughed at the anticipation that shivered in the atmosphere around him. He was as caught up by the adventure as she was.
He moved through the doorway and stopped, looking at something that Evangeline could not see.
“I should have known this was not going to be simple,” he said.
“What is it?” Evangeline walked swiftly into the room and followed his gaze.
“There is no treasure in here.” He moved one hand to indicate the bare stone chamber. “So much for my theory.”
The only thing in the room was the large, deep pool in the center. Unlike the two pools in the outer rooms, this one was rimmed with slabs of silvery crystals. The water glowed, just as it did in the outer baths, but the light was very different. The surface resembled a moonlit mirror.
“Well, it was an excellent theory,” Evangeline said.
“Thank you,” Lucas growled. “I certainly thought so.”
Evangeline walked closer and looked down into the pool. The outer baths were crystal clear but this one was not. Lucas came to stand beside her. Their reflections flashed and sparked on the surface of the pool.
“It’s like gazing into a liquid mirror,” she said. “One can sense the depths but one cannot see beneath the surface.”
“A trick of the light,” Lucas said. “It’s difficult to even look at the water.” He turned away to survey the chamber.
Evangeline knelt on the rim of the pool and dipped her fingertips into the silvery water. She did not have any problem looking at the water. Energy shivered through her.
The mirrored surface brightened. Ghostly visions appeared. She glimpsed a woman in a white gown, her hair coiled and braided in a style that could be seen in the remains of ancient Roman wall murals.
She stirred the waters again and watched, fascinated, as other images came and went, floating across the surface of the pool—a woman wearing the habit of a medieval nun, another dressed in the style of the seventeenth century.
Over the centuries other women had unlocked the storm gate and entered this room to look into the pool, Evangeline realized. Somehow the mirrored surface had captured and retained some of their reflections. She wondered what the others had seen, what they had sought to discover in this place.
She stirred the dazzling waters with her fingertips, seeking the patterns of the currents of power. Another wave of exhilaration flashed through her when she found what she was looking for.
“What the devil do you think you’re doing?” Lucas reached down and seized hold of Evangeline’s shoulder. He started to haul her to her feet. “I told you, those waters are dangerous. According to the legends they induce hallucinations and visions.”
“Look,” she said quietly. She shook off his hand and put her fingertips back into the waters. “That is no vision.”
Lucas kept his hand locked on her shoulder but he looked down into the pool.
“Damnation,” he said. “The treasure.”
The waters had cleared, revealing the bottom of the ancient stone bath and a single stone bench built into one side just below the surface. There was a heap of objects on the bottom. Earrings, necklaces, rings and delicate bracelets sat on the bottom of the pool and all of it gleamed dully with the unmistakable luster of ancient gold.
“So many valuable things,” Evangeline said, awed by the staggering sight. “Whoever left this treasure here was extraordinarily wealthy by any standards.”
&
nbsp; “Perhaps this was a jeweler’s hoard,” Lucas said. “He may have stored his wares in this pool so that they could not be stolen.”
“The owner of the objects may have been male but I am certain that only a woman could access this pool to retrieve the gold.” Evangeline hesitated. “And she would have to be quite powerful.”
Lucas looked at her. “To get through the storm gate, do you mean?”
“Yes, but I believe that is only the first obstacle. I am certain that the pool waters provide a second barrier.”
“I understand that one would have to have the talent to clear the surface so that the bottom of the pool is visible, but I don’t see why the water is an obstacle.”
“Not every woman who could reveal the treasure would be able to enter the pool to retrieve it. The waters are deep. They would come up to my neck at the very least and I think they could be very dangerous, even lethal.”
She pulled her fingers from the water. The surface shifted, once again becoming a liquid mirror. The treasure was no longer visible.
“What do you think would happen if I put my hand into the pool?” Lucas asked.
“I have no idea but I’m certain that there is considerable risk involved.”
“What kind of risk?”
She looked at him. “I cannot say.”
“I’m going to conduct the experiment.”
She made a face. “I rather thought you might.”
Lucas took off his coat and rolled up one sleeve. Carefully he dipped his fingers into the water.
And yanked them out again at once. His features tightened in agony.
“Damn it to hell.” He clenched his jaw, gritted his teeth and gasped for breath. Hastily he shook the droplets of water from his hand.
“Are you all right?” she asked quickly.
“Yes, I think so,” he rasped. He took a deep, steadying breath. “But I don’t think I’ll conduct any more experiments for the moment.”
“What happened?”
“I’m not sure. Let’s just say I had the distinct impression that I was about to fall straight into the fires of hell.”
“Hallucinations?”
“More than just visions. I could feel the flames.” He hesitated, frowning. “There was a soul-eating cold as well. It was indescribable.”