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"Chris," I whispered softly. He looked at me in confusion. "I know this is very difficult for you. But you mustn't lose sight of our goal. Do you hear me?"
He nodded hesitantly, which spurred me on to continue talking. However, his empty eyes worried me, and I knew I had to slow down.
"Think of Charly and Anne. We haven't found them. Besides, so many other women have been kidnapped. Do you remember that room on the INTREPID? How many young women were held captive there, and what condition some of them were in?"
My brother's twitch, grim expression, and determined look indicated that even with his faith shattered, he was a priest who had the welfare of his congregation, of the people themselves, at heart. That was his calling, not to serve some god. That was Chris.
The grip on my hands tightened.
"I'm on board! Whatever it takes, I'll help you," he confirmed my expectation. Jordy and Rick nodded in agreement. I knew I could rely on all of them.
"Mr. Baldur, Tanael," I pointed to the angel, who suddenly seemed strangely out of place in this small salon. My gaze lingered on him for a moment. I cleared my throat sheepishly and turned back to Chris. "He has an old papyrus in which the last known location of the Holy Grail is recorded."
"The Holy Grail?" Chris's eyes dart excitedly back and forth between me and the fallen angel. "So, it really exists?"
"It does exist. But my interest is not in the Grail itself, but in the documents that have shared its location—documents that can hopefully answer some questions and unlock secrets. The Grail has subsequently moved on, but these important writings are lost," Tanael reported patiently.
"Where is that supposed to have been?" the priest asked, and his enthusiasm for ancient artifacts, writings, and riddles made him forget everything else.
"That's the question we need your help with." My attention turned back to the angel.
"Tanael, where would you like Chris to look at the papyrus? Here? Or..." I didn't want to use the word underworld unnecessarily, so I wiggled my eyebrows up and down to make it clear to him what I meant.
"I think we can do that here in my study," he answered my question, which was underlined by gestures.
I exhaled with relief. The moment when my family might have to flee to another world would come sooner than I would have liked, and they had enough information to process for today. I turned worriedly to my father, but he didn't look at all confused or overwhelmed by the situation—quite the opposite. His eyes sparkled with life, an energy he had lost with my mother's death.
Before I could think about it any further, my brother and the angel were already getting up to go to the study. Jordy and Rick had been munching on snacks, and Sam offered my dad another drink.
"Are you coming, Myrina?" Tanael asked me and held his hand out to me. I quickly stood up but ignored the mysterious man's hand. A suppressed growl was the only reaction he had to my rejection. Very quietly so that only I could hear it, and apparently Sam did too because he couldn't suppress a chuckle behind me, which earned him a nasty look from Tanael.
I walked past him to the drawing room door without knowing where this study was.
"At the end of the corridor, first door on the left," I heard Sam call out to me with amusement. I was infinitely grateful to him because, without these instructions, I would never have been able to find it or even maintain my pride. Chris caught up with me.
"How are you, sis?" he whispered to me. "You look like you're fighting an inner conflict." Of course, he had long since figured me out. His priest gene sometimes gave him something of a nose for any problems.
"I'm fine, Chris," I assured him in a cheerful, fake voice with an equally fake smile. "How are you?"
"Distraction doesn't work," he didn't answer my question. "You've lied better than that before."
He looked down at me thoughtfully. "If you want to talk, I'm here for you."
A silent nod was all I could manage, as I was aware of Tanael's footsteps behind us. I bravely swallowed my tears. Why did Chris always press the right button to bring my hidden feelings to the surface?
We walked on in silence, following Sam's instructions, until we reached the study. My upbringing prevented me from simply opening the door to the room myself, so I stood next to my brother and waited for Tanael to invite us to enter with him.
In keeping with the rest of the beach house's ambiance, this room was also elegantly furnished with a warm touch.
Tanael walked purposefully towards a massive teak table, on which he unrolled the document I was already familiar with. Chris approached him cautiously, and I could see his astonished expression.
"Is that it?" His voice trembled slightly.
"Exactly. It dates from around the year 1000 BC." The angel turned the papyrus so that my brother could see it better.
"Aramaic," he said. With his hands crossed behind his back, he leaned forward. It seemed to me that he was also holding his breath to prevent it from harming the paper spread out in front of him.
Curious, I joined him. Tanael's watching my every move made me so nervous that I almost bumped into Chris.
