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A young reporter in 1923, Alma Reed accompanies archaeologists to the ruins of Chichen Itza, where a fortune in Mayan artifacts has been stolen from a sacrificial well. It's believed a curse was unleashed by the theft—yet the career-making story it offers the ambitious journalist seems a godsend. It also leads her to a passionate love affair with revolutionary governor Felipe Carrillo Puerto. But when fate darkens their lives and damns them as doomed political pawns, Alma can't help but wonder if the curse is not, in fact, very real. In another century, another writer is fascinated by Alma's tragic story. Drawn restlessly to Yucat?n—and away from the stifling needs of her desperately ill partner—Sage Sanborn is tempted by her growing feelings for David, a scientist who encourages her to delve deeper into Alma's history. And in this ancient place of mystery and spirits, Sage must make an impossible decision that will forever change the course of her life.
E-Book Content
The Sacr ed W ell A Novel
Antoinette May
To my husband, Charles Herndon, whose patience and practicality made The Sacred Well a reality.
En lak ech. You are the other me. —A Mayan saying
Contents Epigraph
iii
1 A Storm Warning
1
2 Dos Peregrinas?
10
3 My Destino
27
4 Mouth of the Well of the Wizards
41
5 The Red Devil with Green Eyes
53
6 The Temple of Kukulkan
69
7 Hunac Ceel’s Legacy
80
8 Secrets
89
9 The View from the Top
98
10 Another Life
107
11 Encounter with Kukulkan
120
12 The Case for Simón Ruiz
129
13 A Perfect Martini
144
14 The Cenote Gives Up Its Secrets
155
15 The Palace of the Governor
166
16 Into the Abyss
179
17 A Final Farewell
186
18 If You’re Going to Kill Me
194
19 Making Headlines
203
20 My Next Assignment
211
21 A Pair of Risk-Takers
225
22 Forgetting Felipe
241
23 The Good Life
253
24 The Nature of an Affair
261
25 La Peregrina’s Journey
274
26 Valencia’s Advice
285
27 Day of the Dead
298
28 Pixan-Halal
313
29 Home Again
325
30 Again Yucatán
337
31 A Good Life?
354
Epilogue
372
Author’s Note
377
Timeline
379
Acknowledgments
381
About the Author Other Books by Antoinette May Credits Cover Copyright About the Publisher
1 SAGE Yucatán, the present day
érida is an ancient city, sensual and sophisticated. I loved it on sight and dreamed of getting lost there, a fantasy that haunts me still. As special guests, our wooden chairs had been placed on a small dais in the center of tiny Parque Santa Lucía. Sitting in the front row, making notes, I watched couples dance on an improvised stage. Dark-suited men darted like moths. Women in white whirled coquettishly, trays of champagne glasses delicately balanced on their heads. I knew about balancing acts, have gotten good at them. Not now, not tonight, I pleaded to—to whom? Ixchel; this was her territory. I want to have fun tonight, I told the Mayan moon goddess. This is my time.
M
A ntoi net t e May
Leaning back, I fluttered a sandalwood fan against the sultry night, savoring the quaint old park with its graceful archways and lush plantings. The mariachi band sounded great: horns, violins, lots of guitars. When lightning sliced the sky I sat up with a start. A low roar echoed in the distance