The Brothers’ Keepers CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
The Brothers’ Keepers CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Grossmunster
(Archaeologist Grace Madison is in Zurich, Switzerland. With her family and an octogenarian seminary professor, she’s cobbling together clues from the Protestant Reformation, hot on the trail of a family friend who has deceived them at every turn.)
Grace
“What do we look for?” Non one answered Mark.
After swinging by the goliath Zwingli statue, we trotted up seventy frozen steps to the Grossmunster north portal, shrouded in winter mist. Turning the corner to face the deeply inset doorway, we encountered a robed seminarian droning at a crowd blocking the entrance.
The University of Zurich Graduate School of Theology was housed on cathedral grounds.
“Penance,” Jeff muttered, his bearded chin shoved beneath a muffler festively decorated by icy spikes.
“Listening to him is too high a price for sin,” Becca said. She nudged through huddled pilgrims awaiting lecture salvation, and we followed in an unholy conga line, past biblical scenes under a vibrant geode transom. The sincere young man was still talking when the doors closed behind the security detail we picked up with the choppers.
European cathedrals are unheated, but the Grossmunster interior was partially insulated from a bone-penetrating chill rising from the Limmet River a hundred fifty yards east. Matthew stepped in front of me, threateningly close. My body tensed until Mark cupped my elbow.
“What are we looking for?” Matthew asked.
I bit my tongue to prevent inquiring why our fearless leader didn’t know. Dr. Merrit sat on a wooden pew worn butter-smooth, forty feet beyond Matthew. A thick scarf covered his graying chins, his felt hat in gloved hands. He winked while patting the bench. I decided to behave until I joined him.
“I’m not sure, Matthew. I suggest we fan out, look for anything suspicious. I’m going to recuperate from those stairs. My lungs are seared.” It was the best I could do short of taking him by his collar to shake him senseless.
I sat next to my professor. He placed a gloved hand on mine, and dropped his head as if to pray.
“I think it’s the other doors, Grace. The set where the unfortunate crowd waits is Biblical, but the other is Reformation. Stan had a file last semester. And related reference books on his desk. They’re being refurbished. The doors. They’re not here. They’re what we’re after.”
I bowed piously, confident faked prayer was not heretical in this situation. “What was he looking at?”
“There were a lot of Luther books in the stack, so I guess something Luther.” Leaning forward, he balanced his forehead on his fists, and strangled the hat. “Maybe find a photo?”
“Out of my technological league. Let me turn the kids loose on it.” I dropped the kneeler with a crack and hit my knees.
Maggie stood at the pulpit, scratching her head in a most uncivilized way. She looked toward my noise. She acknowledged my nod, and directed Jeff and Becca toward me.
Matthew, Cliff, and Mark were forward in the chancel, studying three stained-glass windows emitting no light above the altar. Mark saw my motion too, and I believed he would keep Matthew busy. He pointed at a window farthest from me, doubtlessly expounding creative theology. Or a theory about metal and liquid glass, and the creation of the window.
“Mama?” Maggie whispered, slipping into the pew ahead. “What’s up?”
“We need a photo of Luther on the doors from the south portal. Dr. Steele studied them. They’re Reformation. Can you help? With your phones? More detailed, the better.”
My young brood walked through arches to the narthex behind me, toward another set of geode windows glowing from meager afternoon sunlight. Color streaked across the floor like a rainbow, reminding me of God’s faithfulness in keeping promises. I assumed they sought stronger cell service near the windows, instead of in the center of a stone edifice.
Turning to the front, I nodded when Mark caught my eye. He extricated himself from Matthew and Cliff, who appeared to disagree, and joined Dr. Merrit and me.
“We’re looking for images of the other doors. Being refurbished. Dr. Merrit thinks Dr. Steele came here for them. I have Maggie, Jeff, and Becca sourcing images online.”
“You okay, Dr. Merrit?” Mark touched his shoulder. I hoped he was breathing.
“Yes,” he said, raising his head after a few moments. “I was really praying this time.”
Publisher: RidgeRoute Press (November 17, 2014)
Category: International Suspense, Mystery/Thriller
ISBN: 9780991401734
Tour Date: January/February 2015
Available in: Print & ebook, 314 Pages
A friend’s deception. A family’s dilemma.
While cataloging looted antiquities in Brussels, archaeologist Grace Madison discovers that her daughter has vanished in France, and her son’s bride has been attacked in Switzerland. After the Madisons unearth a relic whose taproot pierces the Ancient Near East, they realize that before they can save themselves, they must rescue an old friend. If he’ll let them.
They sacrifice hearts and lives in a race against eternity on a four-thousand-year-old trail crossing three continents.
Because choosing what’s right is all that’s left.
Praise for When Camels Fly (Parched Series Book I):
“Page-turning international suspense–this writer is on her way up.”-DiAnn Mills, Christie Award-winning author
“An exciting novel of suspense, intrigue, and mystery. Very nicely done.“-Paul Johnson, Readers’ Favorites
“It’s obvious from the writing that the author has spent time here.”-Ellis Shuman, Times of Israel
“The book was fantastic and nearly impossible to set down. Highly recommended.“-Kathryn Bennett, Readers’ Favorites
“A unique, totally out in the left-field, never been told story. I love that.”-Every Free Chance Blog
Advance Praise for My Brothers Keepers:
“The Brothers’ Keepers, book 2 in the Parched series, delivers masterful international suspense driven by contemporary family dynamics. Light the late-night oil because you won’t want to put this book down.”-DiAnn Mills, Christy Award Winner
“I thought Horton peaked with her first novel When Camels Fly. I’ll admit, I was wrong. The Brothers’ Keepers is magnificent! The main characters from her first novel are beautifully developed in this sequel.
This is a more accessible novel than When Camels Fly mainly because of the location — Europe. She incorporates the history of the places her characters visit, and she weaves an incredibly feasible story around these events. The story is as complex as When Camels Fly, a good thing that requires close reading, but it is well worth the effort.
I highly recommend reading When Camels Fly before this one and continuing journeying with the Madison family!-Leigh Bennett, Reader
“I am once again became enthralled by the exploits of an intelligent, older woman and her family whom I first got to meet in When Camels Fly. It’s so rare to find a heroine that the more mature amongst us can relate to on some level. I look forward to learning more about Grace, Mark, Maggie, Jeff and Becca as they become embroiled in yet another adventure after Maggie goes missing and an attempt is apparently made on Becca’s life whilst she and Jeff are honeymooning in Switzerland.“-Anne Rogers, Reader
About NLB Horton:
Winner of ‘A People’s Choice Award’ in fiction, NLB Horton returned to writing fiction after an award-winning career in journalism and marketing as well as earning her Masters of Biblical Studies degree from Dallas Theological Seminary. She has surveyed Israeli and Jordanian archaeological digs, tossed a tarantula from her skiff into the Amazon after training with an Incan shaman, driven uneventfully through Rome, and consumed gallons of afternoon tea while traveling across five continents.
Horton is a member of the venerable Explorers Club, based in New York City and founded in 1904 as an international multidisciplinary professional society of explorers and scientists. From her home in the Rocky Mountains, she writes, cross-country skis, gardens and researches ideas for her next novel. Horton’s first novel in the Parched series, When Camels Fly, was released in May 2014. The Brothers’ Keepers is the second, with the third installment available in fall 2015.
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You will truly want to read The Brothers’ Keepers after reading this chapter excerpt!
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