Chains of Ice Read Free Page A

he could see the treasure inside the bag. “It’s different. Not gold. Not jewels. But it’s ancient and it’s . . . it’s important.”
    “Great.” Gary smiled and started across the floor.
    Sophie grabbed him. “No!”
    “What?” Gary looked disdainfully at her fingers curled around his arm.
    Sophie wasn’t an eloquent woman, or even intelligent; she ran on instinct and now she simply repeated, “No.”
    Sun Hee turned her head from side to side. “There’s another way.”
    “Oh, for God’s sake—” Gary started out across the floor again.
    John didn’t even think. He grabbed Gary’s shoulders and yanked him back. “You’ve got a team. Now listen to us!”
    Gary turned blazing eyes toward John.
    John protected himself automatically, lifting his hand and holding his power like a shield. He felt the energy of Gary’s mind slam into him and bounce off.
    John staggered back, his neck whiplashing as if he’d been hit. For a moment, his eyes rolled back in his head.
    Amina caught him.
    Gary glared at John. “I’m the leader here.”
    John recovered, and in a low, intense voice, he said, “Yes, and Sophie is the one who knows about traps. If she says no, then you don’t go. If Sun Hee can catch the scent of another passage, then you follow her. We are your team. We are your backup. We’re in mortal danger. So listen to us. ”
    One by one, the team members looked around. Stone creaked behind them. John glanced up, and as if a giant’s fingers pinched the ends of the ceiling slab, the center bulged downward. If it shattered, the glacier would capture them, crush them. Drown them.
    Sophie covered her head with her hands and whimpered softly.
    “This way,” Sun Hee said, her voice strong and sure, and she disappeared through a narrow crack in the wall to the left.
    Gary hesitated, still wanting a fight.
    John could almost see the realization strike him: if Gary didn’t move, Sun Hee might reach the treasure, and the danger, first. His gaze promised retribution, but swiftly he squeezed through the crack after her.
    As Gary disappeared, Amina’s glow faded, but she demanded, “John, why did you say that? Why did you do that?”
    “My God, Amina, have you looked around?” Max answered.
    The ice was visibly failing everywhere, slipping down the walls and pooling as water on the floors.
    “And listened?” Bataar lifted a single finger.
    The melting glacier growled like a hungry beast. John watched the shifting shadows inside the treasure room. “There they are!” He pointed across the altar room and up.
    Somehow, Sun Hee and Gary had worked their way through the tunnel, then crawled up through the rock. Now they perched on a ledge close to the ceiling and almost directly over the small, frozen, leather bag.
    Gary gripped Sun Hee by the waist and held her.
    She wiggled, head down, over the treasure.
    Gary braced his elbows against the rock to hold himself steady as she stretched, pulling against his grip.
    John’s heart pounded so loud he feared Bataar could hear it.
    All the while, tremors shook the floor and walls and the noise of running water got louder.
    Sun Hee’s fingers brushed the red cord that held the bag closed. Once. Twice.
    Behind the altar, the increasing pressure behind the stone made it appear gelatinous.
    John gritted his teeth, held himself back. He wanted to use his power, support the cave with a force field. But not with Sun Hee in the way.
    On her third swing, she snagged the cord.
    The Chosen held their breaths as she lifted it from the altar.
    For a moment, the shaking in the cave eased. The sound of water diminished.
    She shot them a triumphant grin. Winked at John. Signaled Gary to pull her back.
    The Chosen laughed and clapped.
    John raised his hand and prepared to use his power to help Gary lift her—and a violent jolt shook the room.
    The glacier roared.
    A huge slab of rock tilted back as if some beast was deconstructing the cave.
    The ledge that held Gary shook so