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Chapters (96)
  1. Title Page
  2. Acknowledgments
  3. Epigraphs
  4. Prologue
  5. Lost
  6. Chapter One
  7. Chapter Two
  8. Chapter Three
  9. Chapter Four
  10. Chapter Five
  11. Chapter Six
  12. Chapter Seven
  13. Chapter Eight
  14. Chapter Nine
  15. Chapter Ten
  16. Chapter Eleven
  17. Chapter Twelve
  18. Chapter Thirteen
  19. Chapter Fourteen
  20. Chapter Fifteen
  21. Seek
  22. Chapter Sixteen
  23. Chapter Seventeen
  24. Chapter Eighteen
  25. Chapter Nineteen
  26. Chapter Twenty
  27. Chapter Twenty-One
  28. Chapter Twenty-Two
  29. Chapter Twenty-Three
  30. Chapter Twenty-Four
  31. Chapter Twenty-Five
  32. Chapter Twenty-Six
  33. Chapter Twenty-Seven
  34. Chapter Twenty-Eight
  35. Chapter Twenty-Nine
  36. Chapter Thirty
  37. Chapter Thirty-One
  38. Chapter Thirty-Two
  39. Chapter Thirty-Three
  40. Chapter Thirty-Four
  41. Chapter Thirty-Five
  42. Chapter Thirty-Six
  43. Chapter Thirty-Seven
  44. Chapter Thirty-Eight
  45. Chapter Thirty-Nine
  46. Chapter Forty
  47. Chapter Forty-One
  48. Chapter Forty-Two
  49. Chapter Forty-Three
  50. Chapter Forty-Four
  51. Chapter Forty-Five
  52. Chapter Forty-Six
  53. Chapter Forty-Seven
  54. Chapter Forty-Eight
  55. Chapter Forty-Nine
  56. Chapter Fifty
  57. Chapter Fifty-One
  58. Chapter Fifty-Two
  59. Chapter Fifty-Three
  60. Chapter Fifty-Four
  61. Chapter Fifty-Five
  62. Chapter Fifty-Six
  63. Chapter Fifty-Seven
  64. Chapter Fifty-Eight
  65. Chapter Fifty-Nine
  66. Found
  67. Chapter Sixty
  68. Chapter Sixty-One
  69. Chapter Sixty-Two
  70. Chapter Sixty-Three
  71. Chapter Sixty-Four
  72. Chapter Sixty-Five
  73. Chapter Sixty-Six
  74. Chapter Sixty-Seven
  75. Chapter Sixty-Eight
  76. Chapter Sixty-Nine
  77. Chapter Seventy
  78. Chapter Seventy-One
  79. Chapter Seventy-Two
  80. Chapter Seventy-Three
  81. Chapter Seventy-Four
  82. Chapter Seventy-Five
  83. Chapter Seventy-Six
  84. Chapter Seventy-Seven
  85. Chapter Seventy-Eight
  86. Chapter Seventy-Nine
  87. Chapter Eighty
  88. Chapter Eighty-One
  89. Chapter Eighty-Two
  90. Chapter Eighty-Three
  91. Chapter Eighty-Four
  92. Chapter Eighty-Five
  93. Chapter Eighty-Six
  94. Epilogue
  95. Also by Jeremy Robinson
  96. Copyright

“What about King?”

Chapter Thirty-Nine

THIRTY-EIGHT

Rome, Italy

WHAT ROME WOULD later deem a small, localized magnitude-four earthquake shook the underground tunnels. Dust fell from the ceiling, stinging King’s eyes and further obscuring his view of the dim hallways lit by the occasional electric bulb.

Following Alexander proved to be difficult. The man was faster than he looked, and his intimate knowledge of the tunnels made every footfall well placed. He also seemed to be unaffected by the dirty air, which congested King’s and Pierce’s lungs.

The three emerged into a larger hallway, free of dust, and picked up speed. Shrieks of the Forgotten suddenly drowned out the screams of dying people. Somewhere ahead, Alexander’s guardians were fighting back. But King knew it wouldn’t be enough.

He also knew there was very little the three of them could do against the golems he’d seen. But he would rather die than not try.

Alexander stopped in front of a door that had been torn off its hinges. A body, cloaked in black flew out and struck him in the chest. They both fell back hard against the tunnel wall. The Forgotten shook off the impact, spun to its feet, and dove back into the room with a shriek.

As a wound on his shoulder quickly healed, Alexander stood and took a small bottle from his pocket. It looked like the small liquor bottles they served on airplanes. He drank the contents down and turned toward King. “Stay here. It’s not safe for you.”

Then his body shook with a strange kind of energy that made his eyes gleam with intensity. With a battle cry, he charged into the room.

King approached the door, his weapon drawn and ready. The tunnel shook with a massive impact, causing him to catch himself. He looked back at Pierce, who shook his head. The message was clear: don’t go in. But he had to. This was where Fiona and many other people had been held, and not one of them was screaming now.

Thinking of Fiona, King spun around the doorframe and pointed his weapon inside the room. His eyes took everything in, but his mind took several seconds to process what he was seeing. The floors, walls, and ceilings oozed with overturned cots, human body parts, smeared flesh, and a thick coat of crimson blood.

Fighting in the center of it all were two Forgotten, Alexander, and one very large stone monster constructed of ancient marble columns, bits of arches, tiled wall, and a worn bust for a head. The golem was more refined than the one King had seen before. It wasn’t just humanoid, with arms, legs, and a head, it also had fingers for gripping. The giant was hunched over, a Forgotten clinging to its back. It swung its arms side to side, trying to grasp the dark cloaked creature, but couldn’t reach.