Read Online Treasured Lies by Kendall Talbot - Free Book Online Page B

spear was gone, there was no reason why he couldn’t move. At least, that’s what he wanted to believe. It took a few moments to psyche himself up. To prepare, he sucked in deep breaths, as if readying for battle. Then, with clenched jaw and brute determination, he pushed up from the table.

Chapter 9
    Rosalina watched Archer and Jimmy disappear below the surface for the second time that day. The water was so clear she was able to follow their descent for a full minute or two before they vanished into obscurity. She checked the time on her watch and set her alarm for fifty minutes in advance. That’s when she’d return with the small boat and prepare for the men to resurface.
    With a flick of the switch, she started the engine and motored towards the sandy Anafi shore. The diver-below buoy bobbed in the water, waving the marker flag in their wake. Directly above her, the sun was fireball white and it reflected off a piece of treasure that had slipped out from under the tarpaulin.
    â€˜Hey, Ginger, can you push that back in please?’
    Since their visit from Ignatius, they’d all become paranoid. And with good reason. She couldn’t imagine what Archer, or Jimmy would do if Iggy managed to get hold of any of this treasure.
    Just trying to estimate the value of what they’d found so far was breath taking. The monkey statue alone had to be priceless. It had been a mammoth effort to raise it. For starters, it weighed so much it was impossible to lift it into the little motorboat, even with the four of them helping. In the end they had to tow it very slowly back to Evangeline .
    It was proving quite problematic not having the yacht at the dive site; everything was taking a whole lot longer. It was time they couldn’t afford to waste. But both Jimmy and Archer had become obsessed with continuing the recovery operation like a stealth mission. It didn’t matter how many times she suggested it, there was no changing their minds about mooring the yacht closer to the dive site.
    Once they’d towed the statue to Evangeline, Archer used the crane to lift the monkey statue onto the dive deck. The entire operation took hours, but seeing that golden statue glowing in the afternoon sunlight had been magical. Archer flatly refused to let Jimmy or Alessandro lift it, knowing full well the weight was too much for the two men, given their recent operations. So between Archer, Ginger and Rosalina, the three of them juggled the statue up the stairs and into the saloon.
    The statue now took pride of place at the foot of the bar. It looked like it was always meant to be there—an exquisite piece designed specifically for that spot. Alessandro, who’d remained aboard Evangeline , was probably trying to work out how to open it right now. After the statue was in position, they’d devoured a quick snack of her homemade macadamia and salted caramel friands, and then set off again.
    â€˜We’re coming up to a rock on your left.’ Ginger pointed the mound out. It was barely visible beneath the surface, but hitting it would have them sinking to the bottom in seconds, especially with what they had on board. Rosalina adjusted the steering to avoid the rock. Once they were past the line of rocks that formed a natural marina for the secluded beach, Rosalina headed straight for the shore.
    Ginger jumped off as the boat crunched on the coarse sand and pulled on a rope in an attempt to drag the boat further ashore. Rosalina climbed over the side too, and even with both of them pulling, they were unable to move the boat any further forward.
    Once Rosalina was certain the boat was secured, she set about putting up the beach umbrella and laid a few towels beneath it, while Ginger reapplied sunscreen to her face and hands.
    â€˜Think we could have a look at what they found?’ Ginger grinned while rubbing a good dose of cream on her nose.
    Rosalina glanced at her watch, forty minutes to go. ‘I