Elusive Hope Read Online Free PDF Page A

waistcoat, he reminded Hayden of the dark shadow he’d just seen flitting through the greenery. Or had he seen anything at all? He thought to ask Thiago about the odd mist, but didn’t want to sound foolish. Probably just an illusion brought on by the heat and humidity, which seemed to rise with each step he took. he longed to take off his boots, but he’d seen too many snakes and insects to risk tromping around barefooted. Sweat slid down his back and covered his neck. Slicing a piece of twine from a nearby plant, he tied his hair behind him. What a sight he must be. He certainly looked nothing like the gallant gentleman he presented himself as whenever he’d been working a scam. His thoughts drifted to Mrs. Henley, the charming, beautiful Katherine Henley. How her face would light up when Hayden sauntered into a room wearing his silk-lined suit of black broadcloth and stylish top hat. He knew the first time he’d met her at the horse races in Louisville that he would soon have her swooning at his feet, willing to do anything he asked. He grinned. He’d made at least two thousand dollars off her. Not bad for only a few week’s work. But, of course, the lady’s husband was none too pleased when He discovered she’d purchased an empty, useless cave instead of a silver mine. Hayden hoped the man hadn’t been too hard on her. He shrugged off a twinge of guilt before halting and glancing up at the canopy.
    Thiago bumped into him from behind. “What is it, senhor?”
    “Do you hear that?”
    “No.”
    “Exactly. The birds have stopped chirping. And where is the incessant drone of insects?”
    Thiago ran a hand through his dark hair and looked around. “You are right. They are gone.”
    “Over here!” Graves’s shout lured Hayden onward, the crunch of leaves beneath their feet the only sound filtering through the trees. Despite the heat, a chill slithered down his back. He hoped he wasn’t walking into a trap. The thought caused a curse to emerge from his lips as he plunged through one final thicket and nearly bounced off a massive stone wall that was at least ten feet high.
    “Holy Mary, mother of God.” Thiago crossed himself.
    “What is this place?” Hayden shifted his shoulders beneath a palpable heaviness in the air.
    “This way.” Graves gestured. Hayden had never seen the man so exuberant. Which made him feel even more uneasy. They followed the wall as it curved around the clearing, no doubt enclosing something within. A fort, perhaps? But out in the middle of the jungle?
    “I do not like this.” Thiago moaned from behind as they came to an opening that must have been the entrance but was now merely a rotted wooden gate strangled by green vines.
    “Isn’t it incredible?” Graves slapped the stones with his hand. “Looks to be quite old. Perhaps built by natives.”
    Incredible? A different word came to Hayden’s mind—disturbing. Though covered with moss and vines, the stone structure stood as a firm reminder that whoever built it had been trying to keep something out. “If natives erected this, it makes one wonder what they were afraid of.” Hayden shifted his stance and glanced from Graves to Thiago. Didn’t they feel the heaviness in the air?
    “Perhaps, they feared Lobisón,” Thiago said as he gazed up at the wall’s height and then peered around the corners of the broken gate to examine the thickness of the wood. “Or something far worse.”
    Hayden wondered what could be worse than a man that turned into a wolf but thought it wise not to ask. He already had the urge to turn and run and never come back, to trust his instincts—the ones he’d honed living on the streets. They had saved his life more than once and now they were telling him to scurry out of there as fast as he could.
    Yet, what if his father had come this way, stayed here, left a clue?
    Without a word, Graves slid through the opening and disappeared within.
    Hayden started after him when Thiago clutched his arm.