Rise of the Snake Goddess by Jenny Elder Moke

Author:Jenny Elder Moke [Moke, Jenny Elder]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Disney Book Group
Published: 2022-06-07T00:00:00+00:00

The entrance might have been plain, but the people passing through it were certainly not. Their evening finery put the three of them to shame, which was no small feat considering Joana’s impeccable sense of style. Sam sucked in a breath as an older gentleman passed by them with the most beautiful woman she’d ever seen on his arm.

“Is that—” she started, and Joana nodded.

“They’re always shorter in real life than they are on the screen,” Joana said, tilting her head to the side. “He’s taller than Buster Keaton is, though. Oh hell.”

“What?” Sam asked, on alert.

Joana rolled her eyes, turning her back to an older couple surveying a tall painted vase. “The Jeffersons. They’re friends of Auntie Neem. I should have figured their type would be here. Their apartments back in New York are always chock-full of knock-off junk. Talk about long on dollars and short on sense. Just look at her hat, I’m surprised that thing didn’t take flight out on the seawall.”

“Let’s focus on why we’re here, shall we?” Bennett interrupted, steering them deeper into the fortress. “Mr. Boivin—or should we call you Nico here?”

“Ah, Nico would be best,” Boivin said hastily, smoothing down the edges of his mustache.

“Of course it would be,” Bennett muttered. “Where can we find the girdle, Nico?”

Boivin gave a small shrug. “I could not say for sure, but it will certainly be the prize of the night. Nikolai often keeps the most precious pieces for display only to the highest bidders of the evening. We’ll have to be discreet, though. Many of these are Nikolai’s men.”

Sam could have spent the entire evening wandering the fortress, admiring the thick metal bars set into the small windows and the collection of old military equipment on display, but the architecture paled in comparison to the pieces set up throughout the space. They were as impressive as the artifacts she had briefly glimpsed during her time in the Heraklion Archaeological Museum. There were Kamares wares, fruit bowls, vases, frescoes, statues, and pieces of jewelry that had been polished to a shine. For a moment, Sam thought perhaps they had been mistaken and this truly was an exhibit, until the woman in the ridiculous hat picked up a necklace made of thin strips of gold and draped it over her neck, making a cooing noise.

“What is she doing?” Sam said, the words choked. “She can’t just…touch that! It’s a priceless Minoan artifact!”

“It looks Mycenean to me, actually,” Bennett said.

“But…these pieces belong in a museum!” Sam whispered, harshly enough that she drew the attention of a nearby couple perusing a set of amphorae. Bennett gave them a genteel smile and pivoted away, drawing Sam along with him. Mr. Boivin lurked among the artifacts, muttering comments to himself at the state of each piece. Joana trailed along behind him, giving Sam a hard look for abandoning her with the duplicitous Frenchman.

“Bennett, we can’t just let them…sell all of this,” Sam said, lowering her voice as she threw an apologetic look to Joana.

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