Page 20 of The Lost Guardian

Rental car? he wondered. It didn’t matter.

He turned away from Ali and focused on Brooke. It was easier that way, as he could almost convince himself they were having a conversation among friends.

Almost.

“Well…” He shoved his hand through his hair. “Do you remember me telling you about the last time Abuelo Manco came to visit?”

“Yeah, of course,” Brooke answered. “It was before we met. You were what, eight?”

“Ten,” Santiago answered. “Yes. And do you remember the stories he told me?”

Brooke’s brow furrowed, giving her the distinct look of a puzzled puppy. “Sort of… Some legends about an Inca emperor or something?”

Santiago nodded, the tension in his body alleviating slightly. “Atahualpa,” he went on. “The stories were fantastical, but the history is real. Atahualpa was the last Inca emperor before the Spanish conquest. In 1532, he was captured and held hostage by the conquistador Francisco Pizarro.”

“Santi, what does this have to do with anything?” Brooke demanded.

“Just let me tell the story, okay?” Santiago pleaded.

Brooke pursed her lips, likely realizing he needed to talk about something safe, familiar—history. “Fine,” she agreed, motioning for him to continue.

“Pizarro promised that if the emperor’s followers could fill the main hall of the palace with gold and treasures, he would let him go,” he continued.

“They held him for ransom?” Brooke asked, and Santiago nodded.

“Precisely. That room is actually called the ‘Ransom Room,’ and parts of the structure still exist in Cajamarca today,” he answered.

“I’m guessing this story doesn’t have a happy ending?” Brooke asked wryly. She’d heard enough of his lectures to know colonization rarely did.

“The emperor’s followers did as the Spanish demanded. For the better part of a year, they filled that room with gold, silver, treasures, jewels. They piled it almost to the ceiling. And then…when the ransom was finally paid, the Spanish reneged on their deal and murdered Atahualpa anyway.”

“No,” Brooke gasped. “Bastards!”

Santiago nodded. “Worse, they baptized him first. Then they killed him in the main square and gave him a Christian burial.”

Brooke looked scandalized.

“Don’t worry,” Santiago continued. “Later, his followers secretly unearthed his body and took him to an unknown location to mummify and lay him to rest in accordance with their own traditions.”

“Well, that’s something, I guess,” Brooke grumbled.

Despite the tale, Santiago smiled. He remembered his nights with Abuelo Manco, insisting that the older man be the one to “tuck him in” so he could hear more about the Inca and their history.

“Abuelo Manco was the reason I first learned about my ancestry.” Santiago wasn’t sure why he was directing this to Ali, who hadn’t asked. Maybe he just needed to tell someone. “After him, I spent all my free time in the library, learning as much as I could about precolonial life in the Andes.”

“I remember,” Brooke chimed in dryly. Santiago grinned. On more than one occasion, he had dragged her along with him. Even back in high school, he was a researcher at heart. He pored over old texts while Brooke read YA novels—or the occasional bodice ripper hidden behind a more “respectable” book.

Santiago faced his friend again, returning from his memories. “Abuelo Manco told me that those followers of Atahualpa, the ones who unearthed him and stole him away, were known as Los Guardianes de la Tumba.”

“The ‘guardians of the tomb’?” Brooke translated, glancing between him and Ali.

The other woman stayed quiet. Santiago suspected she was using this opportunity to find out just how much Santiago knew. He considered keeping quiet, but he needed the escape more.

“Exactly. The ‘tomb’ is Atahualpa’s final resting place. And they didn’t just take his remains there,” Santiago replied. Brooke leaned in, her eyes questioning.

“They took back every last piece of gold and treasure they’d collected for his ransom, and they buried it with him,” he said. “The best part? No one knows the location of that tomb. It’s been lost to time and history.”

“That’s great. I mean, it doesn’t undo the murder, but it’s a pretty good revenge story.”