Page 43 of Sealed By Fire (The Nature Hunters Academy 2)

“Ra is a descendant of Ramses the Great,” he said.

Tara nearly laughed but then realized that he was serious. “Oh, okay. So, what does that have to do with not breaking promises?”

“It’s kind of a long story,” he said.

She shrugged. “I’ve got nowhere to be at the moment.”

“How about we move this to somewhere that isn’t the bathroom floor?”

“Not the bed,” she said quickly as she climbed up from his lap.

Elias laughed. “Not going to say I’m not disappointed, but I will concede the bed is a dangerous place. How about the floor in front of the bed?”

Tara walked into the bedroom and sat down on the carpeted floor at the foot of the bed. She was beginning to lean back against it when Elias sat beside her and once again plucked her up as if she weighed nothing. He sat her across his lap and entwined their fingers once again.

“Comfortable?” she asked, smirking.

“I like holding you,” he said matter-of-factly.

How was she supposed to tease him about that when he said it with such sincerity?

“So, the ancient Egyptians, Ramses’ people in particular,” he began, “worshipped many gods. But the one they were most loyal to was Osiris, the lord of the underworld. They believed him to be the most powerful because he had dominion over the dead. They thought if they worshipped him and gave him their allegiance, then he would grant them some sort of favor in the afterlife.”

“He’s the lord of hell,” Tara said. “Didn’t that give them a clue he wasn’t a good dude?”

“Evil often cloaks itself in light. It tells lies wrapped in truth so one becomes misguided and led astray. Whatever Osiris promised them, it was enough to make them believe thattheywould not suffer the fate of others that went to the underworld.”

“Please tell me Ra isn’t that dense.”

Elias chuckled. “No, he isn’t. And if he was, Liam, Aston, and I would knock some sense into him.”

“Thank goodness for good friends,” Tara murmured.

“When Ra’s parents began teaching him about his heritage before they died, they shared all of this with him. They were still loyal to Osiris.”

“In this day and age?” she asked, trying to sit up and look at him. He held her close so she couldn’t wriggle free.

“Do you want me to tell you the story?”

“Oh, my bad,” she said, smiling sheepishly. “Carry on.”

“Thank you, princess,” Elias said dryly. “It wasn’t until after his parents' death and the discovery of the world of the elementals that Ra learned the truth of his people. Ra has been to the underworld before. It was actually before he went to Crimson Academy.”

“Did he think he was going crazy?”

Elias tapped her mouth with his finger and said, “Hush.”

Tara snapped at him with her teeth, and he snatched his hand away.

“Vicious female,” he said and kissed her on the temple.

“You hushed me, you Neanderthal.”

“As I was saying, Ra went to the underworld when he turned sixteen. According to his ancestors, once he became the head of his household, so to speak, because of his father’s passing, he was to receive the memories of his ancestors. Apparently, his parents hadn’t mentioned that to him. They also didn’t mention that all the males in his bloodline had been promised to Osiris.”

“Is there a happy ending to this story, because I don’t think I can handle anymore heartache.”

“Ra’s story isn’t over yet, so the ending is still to be determined,” Elias said. “Osiris sent for Ra, and one of the demons took him to the underworld. He met his ancestors and received their memories. Ramses also shared with Ra how it was possible to keep from sharing in his people’s fate. There were two things Ra would have to do in order to avoid being sent to the underworld upon his death.

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