"I'm tough to kill." I smiled when I saw he was alive. "I brought the ladle, and it's full of water."

"Ven needs it right away. He stopped breathing."

I knelt down beside Ven. His body looked as solid as a board, and he was clenching his muscles. Morley was on his other side and opened Ven's mouth.

"Do you think I should just pour it in?"

Morley nodded, his eyes shining. He had waited twenty-five years for this moment.

I placed the ladle against Ven's lips and tried to keep my hands from shaking. I tipped it carefully until all the water dribbled into his mouth. After that, all we could do was wait.

After a minute had passed, there was no sign of movement. My tiny flicker of hope turned into despair.

"This stupid ladle's not doing anything." I felt a lump in my throat. Everything we sacrificed had been in vain. Ven was going to die today. I couldn't stand it.

"Be patient." Morley was trying to be kind, but I could see he was losing hope. The years spent searching had been a fool's errand. We had risked our lives for an illusion.

I closed my eyes, pressing my fingers against his neck, tears spilling out as I frantically checked for a pulse. Nothing. He had no heartbeat.

Ven was gone.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX.

VEN.

I drifted in and out of consciousness, floating outside of my body. There were voices. One belonged to a woman, and others blended into a cacophony. I remembered I was supposed to do something, but I wasn't sure what it was. The thought was on the outskirts of my mind. It vanished every time I tried to focus on it.

The woman was someone important. We were doing something together. I didn't know what.

What I did know was that pain filled my body. Agony was a part of every muscle, bone, and nerve. The last thing I wanted to do was think about my suffering. I noticed a beautiful light. It was peaceful and beckoned to me. I knew if I went into the light all my pain would go away.

Merely moving in the direction of the glowing light felt wonderful. I sighed, feeling my pain start to disappear. I was about to enter the light when I paused.

Wasn't there something I was supposed to do? It was related to the woman. Was she important?

The light had a magnetic pull on me, and involuntarily I began moving to it again. I heard a noise in the distance and imagined my body was moving, but everything seemed far away. The light was right here. I felt torn in two directions. It was time to enter the light, but a little part of me was reluctant to surrender. Could I stay and bear the pain?

I don't know how long I floated between the light and the pain. The place was timeless. I wasn't in a hurry. I had to choose between doing something easy and doing what was necessary.

Without warning, the pain receded. I felt an intense relief and immediately moved back toward my body. I glanced longingly at the light, but I realized I wasn't supposed to be there yet. I had things to do. I felt like I had been underwater and was going back up for a breath of air when my consciousness reintegrated with my body.

Crashing back into reality, I woke up.

Everything hurt. I could hear the sound of someone crying. My eyelids were so dry that I could barely pry them open. When I finally managed to open my eyes, I wasn't sure where I was.

It was bright here too, even though I had turned away from the light. A woman's head was on my chest. She was sobbing like she had a broken heart. I vaguely recalled someone crying like that on my shoulder before. I wondered why it didn't make me uncomfortable.

Suddenly I remembered everything. Searching for the ladle, making love to Emmy, getting hit with poisoned arrows, and passing out. I had no idea what had happened after I lost consciousness. All I knew was that Emmy was crying on my chest like she had lost a family pet.

I tried to speak, but the only thing that came out of my mouth was a croak. Her head came up, and I tried again. "What's wrong, Emmy?" I thought I managed to speak clearly this time. She started weeping even louder than before, and Morley appeared from somewhere. They both talked at the same time. I wasn't sure what they were saying. My brain felt a bit fuzzy. I knew I had to tell her one thing before I thought about doing anything else.

"Listen to me." My voice was rough, but it worked. She took my face in her hands and gazed into my eyes.

"I love you." Now she knew, and I could die in peace. She closed her eyes as if she were praying and leaned down to kiss me soundly on the lips.

Her touch made me feel much better. Maybe it wasn't the kiss. I felt like I was regaining strength with each passing moment. The pain and stiffness were receding in my limbs. Soon I felt strong enough to sit up.

Morley and Emmy exchanged incredulous glances. I shook out my arms, which seemed to be working. I wiggled my legs. Did the poison leave my body? I pulled up my shirt to check on the wound on my chest and saw a round, pink scar.

"I guess the ladle is real. It worked."

Emmy nodded and hugged me. "What about Abel?" she asked. "He's still in there."

Morley nodded and walked down the hall, going through a small door. He was back a few minutes later with Abel in tow.

"You didn't even tie him up?"

"He's my brother, Emmy."

"Not to me. He's a danger to everyone." She shook her head.

Before they could enter into an argument, the room started to shake. Dust began falling from the cracks in the ceiling.

Morley looked at Emmy in dismay. "Taking the ladle was the last straw."

"Are you saying there's additional danger?" Abel looked incredulous.

Morley shook his head. "We have to get out of here. It sounds like the entire catacombs are at risk."

"The Stone Goddess leaves no survivors," Emmy whispered to herself.

Cracks appeared in the ceiling and the walls. Dust poured out of the cracks, coming down in a thick cloud that threatened to cover us.

Emmy started shouting above the noise. "It's not regular dust. It's hematite. Put your mask on!"

She was already wearing her mask. My hand reached into my pocket and pulled out the cover, putting it over my face. Morley produced a mask for himself, and Abel was forced to cover his nose and mouth with his shirt.

Morley motioned to the tunnel, and we followed him quickly. Once inside, we saw two paths go in different directions. One appeared to lead back to the ladle's resting place while the other had stairs leading up. "We have to climb. I'm not sure how much time remains."

I moved behind Emmy, and we raced up the stairs together. I kept looking back to confirm Morley was still behind us. I didn't care if Abel died down here, but I was determined to make sure Morley came with us.

In case we needed further incentives, dust and stones began to fall in the stairwell. Emmy slipped, but I caught her ass. We stayed on our feet. My muscles started to ache from the effort, and my lungs were burning. I hoped my breathing problems were from the exertion, and not because I accidentally inhaled hematite.

We had started to slow down when we came to a door. More rocks were filling the stairwell. One crashed into my head. When I touched my forehead, my fingers came away wet with blood.

Emmy was fumbling with the door. There was a handle, but I could see her searching for a puzzle. Morley pushed past her and leaned on the release. "Sometimes things aren't complicated."

We all slipped out of the door, emerging onto the mountainside where we saw Abel's team trudging down the mountain. It was cold in the shadow of the cave, and we moved out into the blissful heat of the two suns. Looking through the door, we could see the demise of the structure. I held Emmy's hand as the catacombs which kept the Silver Mestolo of Zelia safe for centuries collapsed into ruins.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN.

EMMY.

I leaned into Ven's side, putting my arm around his waist. He smelled wonderful. I couldn't wait to take him home. It was our one-year wedding anniversary today, and I was going to give him a gift he would remember for a long time. The new lingerie I was wearing was only the first part.

Distracted by Ven's delicious scent, I had missed whatever Morley was talking about. We were part of a small crowd of archeologists in a beautiful new building. Morley was making a speech and would soon cut a ribbon opening the Morley Davidson Wellness Center featuring the Silver Mestolo of Zelia. Modern technologically-based security heavily guarded the ladle. No more rolling stone wheels.

The plan was for the center to treat terminally ill patients who were incurable. People could take a drink from the ladle, then get educated on how to keep themselves healthy. A wellness center had been Morley's dream since he first learned about the ladle. From the time he started on the adventure to heal his brother, he had focused on this goal.

Surprisingly, Abel was at his side. He was shocked by his near-death experience and went through a change of heart. He apologized and asked for Morley's forgiveness. Reconciling with his brother made Morley happier than I had ever seen him before. He loved his brother and was deeply hurt by their schism.

I was happy for my mentor and planned on working with him for a long time. We had all taken a drink from the ladle, of course. We expected the single drink to increase our life span by thirty years.

Ven had found a purpose in his life. He decided to go back to school and was taking courses in archeology. He had discovered a new interest. Once he graduated, we would work side-by-side, hunting down artifacts and learning from the wisdom of the ancients.

In the ceremony, Morley was cutting the ribbon. Ven squeezed my hand, and we smiled at each other, briefly releasing our hands so we could clap. He leaned down to whisper in my ear. "I can't wait to get you home." His breath sent tingles down to my core.

"Oh?" I tried to play innocent. "Why would that be?"

"I know what you're wearing under your dress."

I blushed and bit my lip, trying not to smile. "I have a present for you." I gave him a coy look.

"As long as it's not something dusty and old, I'll take it. I've had enough of that to last a lifetime." He grinned at me.

"I wouldn't give you an ancient artifact for our anniversary. This gift is much wetter and is definitely alive."

His eyes darkened, and I drew in a breath at the sight of his desire.

"I'll search for that treasure any day, my love." He gave me an intense look that set my core on fire. We made our way to congratulate Morley. Now that the ceremony was over, we were ready to go home. Neither of us could wait to celebrate our first year of marriage.

We hurried home, both of us on edge. As soon as we entered the bedroom, he pushed me up against the door and started kissing all over my body. Soon we were both so wound up that we couldn't wait another minute. He quickly stripped off my dress and made quick work of his clothes.

He paused for a moment when he saw my bright red lingerie. It was a red satin bra and matching panties. "Those look fantastic, but right now, they've got to go."

I didn't care as long as he fucked me immediately. I could wear them another time. In fact, I didn't have to wait for him to undress me. He was naked already, and I pushed him onto his back on the bed. His eyebrows flicked up. I usually let him take the lead, but not this time. I needed him. I was going to take what I wanted.

He moved back until he was against the headboard. He watched me slowly undo the clasp of my bra and pull it off. I heard his breath catch when my breasts came into view. Then I slid out of my panties and dropped them on the floor, crawling over to him, ready to take him and make him mine.

I had already soaked my underwear, so I knew I was ready. I positioned myself over him and slowly took his cock into my body. He filled me, and I closed my eyes in ecstasy at the sensation of being penetrated deep inside my core. I sank completely, covering the last inch of his cock and making our pelvises flush.

I couldn't speak. I felt my orgasm building already, and I had barely moved. I raised myself up and let him push back inside. It felt amazing. I rode up and down on him, increasing my pleasure. He rubbed against my G-spot in a way that drove me crazy.

"That's good, Emmy. Ride me." Ven moved his hands to my hips. He leaned forward and took one of my nipples into his hot mouth. I gasped at the feeling and started to rock faster. He sucked hard, then switched to the other side. That was enough.

I came hard, moaning and contracting around him. He held my hips still and drove up into me several times before he stiffened and emptied himself into me. I wrapped my arms around him and held on as shudders wracked my body. The bliss continued until I finally stopped moving and collapsed with my head on his shoulder, feeling spent.

After a while, he whispered to me. "You're my treasure, and I'm glad I found you. I love you."

"I love you, too." I had a lazy grin on my face. He said kissed me until I forgot treasure hunting, archeology, and everything except for him.

"Now that you've found me, what are you going to do with me?" I gazed into his eyes.

"I'm going to hold onto you and never let you go."

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