Chapter 40 Secret Five

• Before me lay a sight that would haunt my dreams forever.
• A sprawling, ancient-looking temple loomed in the center of the clearing, its walls adorned with twisted, serpentine carvings. The air was heavy with the stench of incense and something far more sinister. The chanting grew louder, a cacophony of voices that seemed to come from all directions. My mouth gaped open. I shut my eyes for a long moment, not able to believe what I was seeing. It was like I had dropped into that old movie Romancing the Stone. Surely once I opened my eyes again, it would all be gone.
• But when I dared to look again, my eyes locked on Lachlan standing at the top of the altar, his eyes closed, his face tilted upwards as if in supplication. He was dressed in a long, black robe, the hood thrown back, revealing the handsome, chiseled features I would know anywhere. Except this time, the face I'd grown to love was cast in dangerous looking shadows, the fire from what had to be hundreds of torches mimicking hell itself.