Page 47 of The Eagle's Vault

“And Rav?” I asked. “He normally gets the bodyguard duties.”

Jayce craned her head around and waggled her eyebrows. “Scarlett needed him for something else.”

I snorted, crossing my arms over my chest. “I’m second choice then?”

Jayce’s smirk widened into a grin. “Third, actually. But don’t worry, pretty boy. You’re doing a stellar job.”

My eyes shot back to Leigh. She’d said I was more than a pretty face after the original recon job. Jayce had found her new favorite word for me.

Before I could ask who the second choice was, as though it mattered, Isaac cut through my thoughts. “Did you know the Christians used to hide down here from Roman persecution?”

He’d been chatting me up since we left the hotel, asking dozens of questions I couldn’t answer about my job. It was tiresome, competing with the tour guide’s monotonous drone. The man didn’t take any of my hints.

“That’s not true, Isaac.” Leigh turned around, the vibrancy of her wig catching the dim light, and a spark of energy flared in her eyes. The kind of energy she had after our first visit to Cassaforte. Her gaze met mine for a fleeting moment, setting off a strange excitement within me. “Why wouldn’t the Romans search down here if they were looking for someone? They knew the Christians buried their dead here.”

Isaac just stared at her as we continued through the tight, damp tunnel, his brow furrowed. Obviously, he wasn’t used to being challenged, especially by his sister.

“Where’d you hear that, Leigh?” I asked.

Isaac let out a snort. “She’s always got her nose in a book.”

Leigh’s shoulders stiffened. She didn’t reply, but her pace quickened. Annoyance curled within me, directed at Isaac. I had a brief, vivid fantasy of shoving him into one of the catacomb’s burial niches and bricking it up. The thought drew an involuntary chuckle out of me.

Since that wasn’t really an option, I had a second: Flirt with Leigh. It would have had its benefits. One, I’d get to flirt with a gorgeous, intelligent woman. And two, it’d tick Isaac off. Win-win in my book.

Instead of diving headfirst into that, I picked option three and shot back at Isaac. “You should respect a woman with an inquisitive brain. It’s an attractive quality.”

Jayce’s tone dripped with sarcasm. “As long as they’re not too inquisitive, right, Declan?”

I nudged her playfully, giving her a knowing grin. “Says the woman who can’t keep her hands off other people’s shiny things.”

Jayce let out a snort of laughter. “Five years, bud.”

Five years sober, she’d say. Sober from stealing for profit or for the thrill alone. Working for us had turned her sad life around.

As we followed the tour guide deeper into the catacombs, I let my gaze wander back to Leigh. She was walking ahead, the faux red curls bobbing with each step. Isaac’s petty quip had dampened too much of her spirit.

Leigh glanced over her shoulder, a soft smile gracing her lips as our eyes met. Then she turned away, leaving me with the remnants of that fleeting connection.

Bolstered, I couldn’t resist another jab at Isaac. “In fact, Isaac, I’d say your sister’s book smarts make your average safe look like a jack-in-the-box.”

Isaac glared at me, but before he could retort, Leigh came to his defense.

“My brother’s skills are just as impressive as mine. We’re a team.” Leigh stood up for her brother, as she should, and I’d put her in that position.

That’s not how to win a woman over, Declan.Failed again.

We fell into silence, the hushed delivery of the tour guide magnifying his level of theater. “No one,” he said in a stage whisper, “has ever fully mapped the Catacombs of Rome. And just recently, an earthquake opened up a new passage.”

The guide led us through a narrow tunnel, his flashlight casting long, grotesque shadows against the walls. The air grew denser, colder, as he continued his tale.

“At the end of this new corridor, scientists discovered a door.” His voice dropped even lower. “A mysterious door that no one has been able to open. The door is marked with symbols of the zodiac and ancient frescoes of keys and animals surround it.”

Murmurs rippled through the group. I felt a thrill rush through me, the allure of the unsolvable, the need to learn the unknown. Leigh seemed to sense it too, her head perking up, walking faster to close the distance with the guide.

What was the door no one could open? And if I stood in front of it, how long before she opened up to reveal her secrets to me?

“Declan,” Isaac began, his tone suggesting a forthcoming conversation.

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