Read Island Tango (Silver Goddess Series, Book One) for Free Online

sigh of relief.  But the relief to be home was fleeting.  Troubling questions climbed into her mind.  What had she just done?  She had cancelled a business trip that had been planned for months with a colleague she had known for years.  Even though Kent was too polite to ever admit it, Herculea was certain she had offended him.  Had she gone loca all of a sudden?  One tango and a dinner with Pedro and she was ready to fly clear across the world to chase a preposterous legend!
    Herculea sat down on the sofa and took out her cell phone from her purse.
    It was Friday at 7:00 PM.  Exactly twenty four hours ago, her date with Pedro was just beginning.  The apartment had vibrated with an unidentifiable energy magnified by the haunting Spanish guitar recording.  Tonight, there was nothing but a disquieting stillness, leaving Herculea feeling very alone.  She mentally scolded herself, knowing she couldn’t expect to hear from Pedro so quickly after the date.  For a split second, she was tempted to call Pedro.  But Herculea’s natural warrior spirit rose up and demanded that she put the phone down and start to make serious preparations for this trip.  This wou ld be no ordinary business trip; it would be a n expedition .
    Sprinting to her bedroom, Herculea retrieved floral luggage from the walk-in closet.  She smirked as she looked at the lavender and rose print painted over the entire duffel bag.  Who said women can’t be tough and feminine?  Yanking open her dresser drawers, Herculea selected some basic cotton tee-shirts in a rainbow of shades, as well as jeans to protect her legs from insect bites.  The ritual of packing took the surreal aspect out of her upcoming trip and filled her with anticipation.  Soon, the bag was full and could not hold one more item if it was going to fit overhead as a carry-on.
    Satisfied that she had packed all the essentials, Herculea set the luggage aside and went to the kitchen to fix herself a hot cup of orange ginger tea.  With a buttered raisin scone on the side.  Of course.

Chapter 4
     
    Fidgeting impatiently in her shoebox of a seat, Herculea tried to compose herself.  The plane had been grounded for nearly an hour at San Francisco International Airport.  As the pilot tried to appease the passengers with promises of a momentary takeoff, Herculea groaned, thinking of how her journey had not even begun.  First, she had to make a connecting flight at New York’s JFK Airport.  Assuming that transition went smoothly, it would be another ten hours of flying before she finally landed in Brazil.  Herculea glanced over at the passenger next to her, a lanky older gentleman in a business suit.  Poor man.  She bit her lower lip to keep from laughing as she observed the tall man’s knees pressed uncomfortably in to his chest.  It was times like these that Herculea really appreciated her petite stature.
    As the plane finally began to taxi towards the runway, Herculea lifted up the flap on her window seat and watched the perpetual Northern California rain pour down.  She wondered how Kent was doing.  The university’s travel department had not been able to purchase side by side seats for the colleagues, and for that she was grateful.  She had endured a curt encounter with Kent at the gate before he boarded the plane to sit in the next to last row.  Kent had appeared perturbed with her .  Herculea felt a twinge of regret for having bailed out on their assignment, but it was not because she doubted her purpose.  No, it was because the long standing friendship between her and Kent seemed to be threatened now, and she did not want to lose him.
    The jet became louder as it rapidly picked up speed before ascending into the murky sky.  The voices of her fellow passengers were drowned out by the raucous propulsion of the plane, and Herculea found herself alone with her thoughts.  Pedro had not contacted her at all since their date.  She had tried not to be too dejected, but