Chapter 136

Chapter 136

When Damien woke up, his whole body felt weak and drained. Looking around at the unfamiliar surroundings, he knew he'd been kidnapped — he just couldn't tell whether it was the Celestial Temple or the Dragon Society behind it.

Then Pax showed up with people to bring him food, and everything clicked into place.

"Eat up. Our boss has no interest in killing you. Once I find the treasure, you're free to go." Pax slid the food container across to Damien and said flatly.

Damien was so frustrated he didn't know whether to laugh or get angry. "I've already told you I have zero interest in your so-called treasure. Why won't you people believe me?"

Pax sat down across from him. "You've seen the treasure map. That means you can't stay out of this. Just sit tight."

Damien let out a short, exasperated laugh. "Is everyone in the Dragon Society out of their minds? If I actually cared about this treasure, wouldn't I just send my own people to find it? What's the point of grabbing me?"

"All your people are out scouring the city looking for you," Pax said, completely straight-faced. "They don't exactly have time to go treasure hunting."

Damien was speechless. He rolled his eyes and gave up on the conversation entirely.

There was no getting through to an idiot with logic this twisted. All he could do for now was wait it out. But he wasn't sitting still — he was quietly working to purge the poison from his system.

They always said rare medicinal herbs grew all over Crescent City. Apparently even the surrounding towns had their share. He hadn't expected a group like the Dragon Society to have someone so skilled with poisons.

What looked like a simple, ordinary toxin was actually layered — poison hiding inside poison — causing all kinds of strange reactions in the body.

Meanwhile, Ironclaw had lost Damien's trail. The Dragon Society's people had deliberately led him in the wrong direction, which is how he finally confirmed it was the Dragon Society who had taken Damien.

"We storm the Dragon Society and demand him back!" Mona paced back and forth across the room, her voice sharp with urgency.

Ironclaw's expression was just as grim. "This is Dragon Society territory. Even if we go in swinging, what then? We're badly outnumbered."

"Let's wait for word first. The boss might reach out to us on his own soon enough. Have a little faith in what he's capable of." As far as Ironclaw was concerned, wiping out the Dragon Society head-on was a long shot — but breaking out from the inside was another story. With Damien's skills, getting free shouldn't be a problem.

Mona couldn't think of a better plan either, so she went along with Ironclaw's call to hold and watch.

On another front, Bavich sent people slipping into Crescent City again — not to stir up trouble this time, but to use the connection between Damien and Judy to get inside. It still didn't work.

Bavich exploded in fury. "You want to push it? Fine. Don't cry when I stop playing nice!"

He had his people pass a message to the robots guarding Crescent City's entrance, claiming he had earth-shattering news for Judy — her mother was still alive. If Judy didn't care whether her mother lived or died, she was welcome to stay inside Crescent City and never see him. And her mother, currently locked in a dungeon, would soon be used as a test subject.

Inside Crescent City, when Judy received the message, her hands shook violently.

She never imagined her mother could still be alive — imprisoned in the dungeons of the Celestial Temple.

"Don't worry. I can help you get her out." Domingo moved to Judy's side and gently wrapped an arm around her shoulder to comfort her.

Judy shook her head. "The Celestial Temple is a monster beyond anything you can imagine. Rescuing my mother with our strength alone is nearly impossible."

"But walking out there right now is suicide!" Domingo's face went hard. He refused to let Judy leave, no matter what.

"It won't be. I still have value to the Celestial Temple. I'll find a way to buy time. For all we know, this is all one of Bavich's schemes and my mother has been dead for years."

That's what Judy said out loud — but thinking of how brutal and ruthless Ronan was, she knew it was entirely possible he'd kept her mother locked away just to torment her. So whether Bavich's message was true or not, she had to go find out for herself.

Back with the Dragon Society, aside from being given a daily dose of poison that left him physically drained, Damien was otherwise being kept well-fed and comfortable.

Bryce had heard that Rhett was holding Damien and wanted to go take a few swings at him — but was stopped before he could get anywhere near him. Rhett hauled Bryce into his office and gave him a thorough dressing-down.

Rhett had thought this through carefully. He wanted Damien along for the treasure hunt, giving Bryce and the others an extra edge.

Back in Crescent City, Judy and Domingo were still deep in a heated standoff.

"Stop being naive! You might never come back!" Domingo was dead set against Judy leaving, but he couldn't physically stop her — not when her mother's life was on the line.

"In a little while, have someone bring Shannon to you. Make sure it gets to New York — and put it in Damien's hands yourself." Judy looked at Domingo with complete seriousness. "As long as the Celestial Temple still needs something from me, they won't kill me. That's my last card to play."

"Alright." Domingo could only agree, reluctantly.

"Tell Damien I've been brought back to the Celestial Temple. He'll find a way to come for me."

Domingo's face lit up at that. "I can help you too!"

Judy smiled, but her words were blunt. "I know this is hard to hear, but Domingo — you're not strong enough to go up against the Celestial Temple. Do what I've asked, and don't do anything reckless."

"Knowing your limits and learning to hold back — it's one of the most painful things there is. But if you can manage it, I'll see you in a whole new light."

Judy lifted Domingo's hand from her shoulder and held his gaze steadily.

Domingo looked deflated, but gave a firm nod.

Over with the Dragon Society, Bryce and Pax gathered their group, packed up their things, and set off into the desert with Damien in tow.

"Clever move by the Dragon Society — getting free labor out of me." Damien was positioned in the middle of the group. By all logic, the poison should have kept him from running — but Pax wasn't taking chances, and had everyone keep a close eye on him.

"Shut up and keep moving." Bryce shot back with a cold grunt.

They flew by helicopter to an unmarked mountain peak, then continued on foot.

During the hike, Damien had fully cleared the last of the toxin from his system. Whether it was because they intended to use him as a helping hand, they hadn't given him another dose. By their estimate, he was probably running at about ten to twenty percent of his normal strength.

During a rest stop, Damien managed to slip a communicator off one of the others and sent Ironclaw their location, telling him to bring people for backup.

It was a good thing he'd planned ahead — Ironclaw had a copy of the map.

The group pushed through the mountains for a full day. As night fell, they arrived at a crumbling old church.

The doors of the chapel had long since rotted away. Even the walls had half-collapsed. Vines and weeds had taken over the inside, and the chirping of insects was loud and constant.

Pax was first through the entrance. He lit a camping lantern and hung it from one of the worm-eaten pillars.

"We camp here tonight. We move out again tomorrow." Pax announced.

Bryce had already rushed over to one of the hall's walls and was running his hands excitedly over the murals.

"This has to be it — the legendary treasure! We've found the spot, we're going to be rich!" Bryce's excited voice pulled everyone's attention toward him.

Damien looked over too — and his eyes went sharp.

That looked oddly familiar.

Painted across the wall was a sprawling mural depicting a massive ritual ceremony. Most of the figures knelt in reverence around a circular altar, their expressions solemn and devout.

On the altar itself sat several enormous clay urns overflowing with gold coins, silver coins, copper cash, jade, and jewels — blazing with color and light.