Page 59 of Sins of Leo

“Poor Buttercup. I’d offer to go in alone, but if this relic is like the last one, then fetching it is a two-person job. One human, one Zodiac.”

“Why?” she asked, stalling for time.

“Dunno,” said with a roll of his shoulders. “Although, when I read the report, Scorpio said the orb was released when he kissed Rebecca.”

“Rebecca being?”

“The scientist stationed in the area. She was the one to find the cave. A good thing she was smart, since Scorpio claims she solved some of the puzzles.”

“You know, this would have been good to know before you dragged me on this journey,” she grumbled.

“Would you have still come?”

She could have lied and said yes. “No.” She sighed. “But we’re here, and once we get this artifact, we can go home.” Home. The word slipped out, but it wasn’t her brownstone that came to mind. How did a single day in the tower make her feel as if she belonged there?

“There’s the spirit.” He beamed. “Shall we?”

“You first,” she groused.

“You just want to stare at my ass,” he teased as he approached the wall.

Now that he mentioned it…

The door didn’t immediately appear, the vines having spread over the entire surface. Leo appeared to know where he wanted to start yanking, though, because he grabbed hold of the thick tendrils and began to pull.

Despite herself, Ruth felt a sense of awe as he cleared enough for her to see the door, etched in stone, ringed in symbols, still perfect, as if freshly carved.

“It doesn’t look that old,” she remarked.

“Given the magic probably protecting it, not surprising.”

“Do you think anyone’s opened it?”

“Guess we’ll soon find out.”

Leo ran his hands over the surface before grumbling. “I can’t find a latch, and there’s no hole like the one Scorpio found.”

“You mean a keyhole?”

“No, an actual hole that Rebecca shoved her hand into to pull the lever.”

Her brows lifted. “Please don’t tell me you expected me to stick my hand in some jungle hole probably filled with bugs.”

His lips quirked. “Maybe.”

Ruth stared at the doorway, thinking. “In the movies, a book or lamp is the trigger.”

“Don’t think we have those here.”

She leaned closer to the wall before pointing. “Why is the rock darker in this spot?” Something had been smeared over it, obscuring the circle etched in the rock.

Leo squinted before rubbing his fingers on it. “I think it’s dried blood.”

“Are your Zodiac gods the demanding-sacrifice kind?”

“We don’t have gods,” he muttered. “That said, I guess blood could act as a key.” He didn’t hesitate to run the machete blade over his forearm.

“Leo!” she exhaled, shocked at his action.

---