Page 1 of Monsters in the Museum (Defenders of the Light #1)

Chapter one

N ora grimaced in pain as she endeavored to endure a night in the most uncomfortable place she could imagine: a nightclub. The blisters on her feet throbbed in time with the amplified base pounding out of the speakers above the crowded bar. Colored lights cut through the hazy air, and the song blasting through the room was by some pop star whose name Nora should probably know but couldn’t call to mind.

She took a sip of the drink her sister had ordered for her and wrinkled her nose at the cloying sweetness that coated her tongue, the taste overly fruity and artificial. It appeared that the bar’s only saving grace was their hot wings. A half-eaten plate littered with picked-over bones sat on the bar before her, courtesy of her sister, Odelle.

Now Odelle raised her glass to her sister in a toast. “Cheers to the youngest department head in Chicago Field Museum history.”

Nora raised the chicken wing in her hand and bumped it against the rim of Odelle’s martini glass. “I’m not officially department head yet.”

“Just take the damn compliment. You know it’s inevitable at this point,” Odelle retorted, shaking her head so that the neon lights reflected off her sleek platinum bob. “Thanks to your presentation and the funding you brought in to restore those weapons from ancient Greece, the board is sure to approve your promotion. Although, maybe I should get some of the credit too. I bet those dull old fogeys at the museum would have loved your presentation no matter what you said, as long as you stood up there wearing the outfit I picked out.”

“I’m sure you’re right, zaika ,” Nora commented drily, intentionally not bringing up the mangled state of her toes caused by the heels her sister had selected. “The museum board decides what departments get funding solely based on how much they want to sleep with the person presenting the pitch. Now I understand why the paleontology department always gets all the money. I mean, have you seen Bert?”

Odelle snorted in an unladylike manner. “Of course, big gray tufts of ear hair have always been my greatest turn on.”

Nora smiled and polished off the wing in her hand. “I do have to thank you for your help with the presentation. Getting to restore these artifacts all but guarantees I’ll get that department head promotion I’ve been gunning for.” Nora wrinkled her nose as she licked buffalo sauce from between her fingers. “I just wish Leo would stop trash-talking me to the board, saying I’m too young for the position. He hasn’t done anything to write home about since he ran that mummy through an MRI machine almost five years ago!”

“Okay, okay,” Odelle cut in. “Now is not the time to start in on all the drama. If I let you vent about department politics now, I’ll be here until I have grey ear tufts of my own.”

Nora bit back her retort, knowing that her sister had listened to her go on about the dramas of academia enough in the past. She had promised Odelle that tonight would be a celebration, and she wouldn’t spend the entire time talking about work, as much as she would prefer to be thinking about her job these days. Instead, she asked, “Did you have to wear the tall prosthetics plus the shoes? Isn’t that a touch redundant?”

Tonight, Odelle had chosen to wear the pair of sculpted prosthetic legs that made her six feet tall, and then proceeded to add a pair of killer heels to the ensemble. The finished product had the effect of making Odelle look like a veritable Amazon.

“What’s the point of having feet made of carbon fiber if I don’t take advantage of it by wearing fantastic shoes? Besides, I like feeling as if I could eat men alive.”

Nora nodded over her drink, “Speaking of which, that one over there looks as if he wouldn’t mind being eaten alive.”

Odelle glanced over her shoulder at the overly tanned Ken doll of a man who eyed her from a few feet away. Seeing her looking, he approached and slid himself onto the empty bar stool next to them.

Nora smiled and took another sip of her drink, suppressing a grimace again at the overpowering sweetness as Odelle struck up a conversation. Nora caught the bartender’s eye and waved him over to order herself a dirty martini as her sister continued to flirt. She deserved at least four olives in her drink for listening to her sister laugh at the man’s horrendous pick-up line.

Just as the bartender arrived with her glass, Nora’s phone vibrated in her back pocket. She fished the phone out of her jeans and frowned at the illuminated screen.

Even as she read the message from the emergency notification system at work, her phone buzzed in her hand again, several new texts popping up on the screen from coworkers. A handful of messages written in all capital letters indicated that a fight over who should go check on the artifacts had broken out. Nora didn’t hesitate before typing a message of her own.

As soon as the text was sent, she turned back to Odelle, but her sister was still otherwise occupied. Odelle had leaned in toward her admirer, and he was reaching out to put a hand on her leg, the long lengths left exposed by the scandalous hem of her cocktail dress. He clearly hadn’t noticed that her flesh transitioned to prosthetics just below her knee in the dim light of the bar, too distracted by Odelle’s coy smile. Nora smirked despite herself when the man jumped as his hand encountered cool carbon fiber instead of warm skin. He raised his eyebrows a fraction, but Odelle gave him a wicked grin and continued their conversation.

Nora tapped Odelle on the shoulder to get her attention.

“Hey zaika , I have to go. There is a security breach at work, and I need to deal with it,” Nora explained, already slipping on her jacket. The scent of coffee enveloped her, drifting off the worn leather and forming a cozy bubble around her in the chaos of the club.

“Girl, you do not know how to take a break. It’s supposed to be your night off!”

“Comes with the territory of getting promoted,” Nora countered as she grabbed a few crumpled bills out of her purse and set them on the bar. “You stay and enjoy yourself. It looks like you aren’t quite done breaking that poor man’s heart.”

Indeed, Odelle’s admirer was obviously appreciating the fit of her dress as the women spoke.

“Oh, I’m not,” Odelle admitted, “But he can wait. I’m coming to the museum with you. Somebody has to make sure you don’t stay too late.”

Odelle fished a pen out of her purse and grabbed the man’s hand. His brows drew together in puzzlement before he smirked at the realization that she was scribbling her phone number on his palm. Nora sighed. If she knew Odelle, she would lead this man on for the next two weeks before realizing he didn’t have the brains to keep up with her, and then she’d leave him hanging.

“All right, let’s get out of here,” Odelle said as she grabbed Nora’s elbow to start weaving toward the exit. Just before they slipped into the crowd, Odelle looked over her shoulder and shot a wink at the enamored man whose gaze still followed them.

Nora chuckled as they pushed toward the door.

“That poor man. He’s not going to know what hit him.”

As the cab pulled up outside the museum, Nora’s stomach clenched with unease. Red and blue flashing lights filtered in through the car windows. She threw open the door and pushed her way into the chilly air as Odelle handled paying the driver.

Wrapping her scarf around her neck to combat the cold night air, Nora made her way over to the nearest squad car.

“Excuse me, sir?” Nora asked. “What’s going on here? I work at the museum, and I got an alert about a security breach.”

The police officer looked rather uninterested as he answered, “A bunch of security alarms went off in an office on the lower level—called in the emergency services automatically. We’ve searched the whole area, and everything seems copacetic.” The officer shrugged as he continued, “Must have been a glitch in the system.”

“I work in an office on the lower level. Can I at least go in and make sure that nothing was damaged or stolen? We store a lot of priceless artifacts down there.”

“That would be great, actually.” The officer’s tone turned grateful. “We need somebody to confirm that nothing was taken before we can leave the scene. You can go inside and take stock.”

Nora dug inside her purse for her office keys as she wove her way through the parked squad cars to the main entrance. Before she could make it to the bottom of the museum steps, Odelle strode up behind her and grabbed her arm.

“What are you doing?”

“Going inside to make sure nothing was damaged, of course.”

Odelle looked at her like she had grown a third arm. “You can’t go in there. What if the burglar is still inside?”

“Um, yes, I can,” Nora said, turning and continuing her march up the steps. “Besides, the police said that they swept the area, and it was empty.”

Odelle continued to follow her. “Well, then I’m coming with you.”

Nora sighed but did not slow her walking. “You’re just coming with so you can be the first reporter on the scene. Get the inside scoop on any big news before anybody else gets wind of it.”

“Well, maybe,” Odelle admitted, not sounding the least bit contrite. “But somebody also has to protect you. You may specialize in ancient weaponry, but you would be useless in actual combat.”

“And you plan on fighting off a burglar in those shoes?”

Odelle seemed unconcerned. “If Wonder Woman can figure it out, then so can I.”

Nora chuckled as she let them into the darkened museum.

“You know,” she commented as they passed the looming Tyrannosaurus Rex in the main entrance which looked haunting in the dim lighting, “I’ve always wanted to come in here at night. See if the dinosaurs and mummies come alive when we aren’t looking.”

“Stop joking around,” Odelle scolded her without venom, the click of her heels echoing as they made their way down the steps to the basement. “This is a crime scene.”

“It’s not a crime scene; it’s just the scene of a glitch in the security system, according to Officer Unhelpful out there.”

As they reached the bottom of the stairs, a prickling of warmth under Nora’s skin forced her to loosen the scarf around her neck. Even then, a bead of moisture trickled down the small of her back.

As if she had heard her thoughts, Odelle asked, “Is it just me, or is it really hot down here?”

“It’s not just you.” Nora unzipped her jacket.

“Maybe there’s some sort of problem with the boiler. That might have tripped the security system.”

“Is that a thing?” Nora asked as they reached the door to her office. Just as she moved to unlock it, a shiver ran up her spine. She paused, the key hesitating an inch from the lock. In the pregnant silence, a slight shuffle at the other end of the hallway grabbed her attention.

She whirled toward the sound, eyes straining to see any movement in the darkness. Just as she was about to turn back to her office door, scolding herself for being skittish, a dark shape shifted, moving toward the loading docks.

Nora froze once more, her hand snaking out to grab Odelle’s wrist. Understanding the unspoken message, she remained silent. There was a tense moment where both the intruder and Nora seemed to acknowledge their awareness of the other’s presence. The hot air was preternaturally still, as if the whole world was watching to see who would break the silence first.

Then, the intruder bolted. Nora took off after him without a second thought, dashing down the hallway, all the blisters on her feet forgotten in the adrenaline of the moment. She barreled after him, combat boots pounding against the concrete floor. He was heading toward the loading docks, where there was a back door that he could use as an escape.

The figure was tall and lean, with long legs that allowed him to run faster than Nora, but her familiarity with the basement hallways allowed her to keep up. She skidded around several corners, trying to keep him in her line of sight. The intruder crashed out through the back door, Nora following behind. In the open ground of the moonlit back alley, the man gained speed, and it became clear that she wasn’t going to be able to catch up.

Before she could think through the stupidity of her actions, Nora shouted, “Stop!” The word came out a little breathless from her sprint.

To her eternal surprise, the man froze, and Nora was taken off guard enough that she skidded to a halt behind him, the soles of her boots scraping against the asphalt, loud in the night air. The man’s shoulders tensed, drawing up toward his ears as if he were fighting some internal battle. He turned his head as if to look behind him but stopped halfway. The moment stretched on, but Nora remained frozen, unsure of what to do now that she was no longer chasing the man.

As suddenly as he had stopped, the man took off again at a breakneck speed. Nora was about to run after him once more when Odelle flew through the door behind her and grabbed her arm, halting her.

“ Zolotse , are you crazy?” Odelle’s voice was breathless, too, but Nora hardly registered it as she watched the lanky figure disappear around the corner and into the night.

Odelle stepped in front of her, grabbing her attention.

“You just bolted away from me! What’s gotten into you?”

“The man… didn’t you see him?”

Odelle’s eyes narrowed, and she looked toward the end of the alley where Nora was gesturing. “A man?”

Nora nodded.

“Nora… I didn’t see anything.”

Nora’s mouth fell open.

“It was probably just too dark for you to make out, but I swear there was a man. He ran out here!”

Odelle shook the arm she was still holding, “And you ran after him? He could have had a gun… he could have hurt you!”

Nora had the sense to look contrite, “I didn’t even think of that.”

Odelle clapped a hand to her forehead. “Why am I not surprised by that answer? Come on, let’s go find the cops. Maybe they can still catch him.”

Nora did her best to give the police a description of the man, but she had only seen him from the back, and it had been dark. The officer listened to her story, but Nora got the distinct impression that he had pinned her as a frightened female whose nerves had gotten the better of her. The police informed her they would continue to monitor the area, but the monotone in which he said it convinced Nora that he was just repeating the approved party line for her benefit. He made a point of telling her before she left that she should, in fact, run away from imaginary burglars and not toward them. Odelle looked at her meaningfully, clearly intimating an I told you so , before dragging her off to hail a cab.

Odelle chattered during the short ride about how Nora owed her a proper night out and speculated aloud about the man she had met at the bar. Nora nodded along, too tired to protest, her mind replaying the moment in the back alley on repeat. It seemed impossible that she had imagined him, but Odelle was observant and it wasn’t like her to miss things. Still, the tense set of the man’s shoulders before he bolted seemed burned into the back of her eyelids. Nora told herself that her heart only hammered at the image from the adrenaline of the chase, but something in her was drawn to the stranger. She forced herself not to think about who the man might be or where she could find him as she fell into bed.