Zagros Mountains in the Kingdom of Iraq 1924

Harry Taylor brushed his hat against his dust-crusted trousers and knelt in front of the sarcophagus. Pry bar in hand, he paused. Within the heavy coffin lay the culmination of five years searching, studying and digging in the driest of deserts near the base of the Zagros Mountains.

"Are you going to open it, or what?" William Prater, Harry's assistant and friend, stood on the other side of the stone platform, sand and sweat streaking his blond devil-may-care looks. "Whatever you do, hurry it up. You never know when those tomb guards will show again."

"Or the meddling British, for that matter. Give me a hand with this thing." Harry jammed the pry bar between the lid and the casing and leaned hard on it. A crunching, scraping noise accompanied the incremental movement of the cover as it rasped across the top, revealing the treasure within.

A glint of light reflected off a shiny surface inside and a squiggly line of carved snakes appeared beneath Harry's arm. Adrenaline spiked in his system, sending blood racing to his heart. He'd done it! "William, my friend," he said in a reverent whisper, "we've found the tomb of Vashti, daughter of Azhi, the Devil Shah of ancient Persia."

"A princess, huh? She was probably daddy's little girl and completely spoiled. She better be loaded, is all I got to say." Will leaned his shoulder into the lid and it slid to the side, where it teetered for a moment then fell with a resounding whomp, shaking the sandy floor of the tomb.

"I think we've hit pay dirt, Will." Harry straightened, tossing the pry bar to the ground, excitement bubbling up in his belly at what lay before him. A smile stretched his lips across his face, and he flipped his hat in the air. "Do you realize what we've found? Do you have any idea?"

Will stared down at the mummified remains of an ancient woman surrounded by decayed woven baskets and several unscathed decorative bottles. He frowned, his lips twisting in a lopsided grimace. "A mummy and some old bottles?"

Harry laughed, his voice echoing off the chamber walls. "Will, look past the dust and decay. Don't you see the details in the finely woven gown she's wearing? Look here, the embroidery is still intact. These symbols are those of the ancient lovers, Vis and Ramin. See the stone with the carving of a two-headed dragon laying over the mummy's head?"

"So, it just looks like a big dumb rock, to me." Will shrugged. "Big deal."

"William, my man." Harry draped an arm around Will's shoulders. "Beneath that layer of dust is the most mystical stone known to man. Kings have fought wars to possess it, but it was lost long ago. Heinrich Schliemann himself couldn't find proof of its existence."

Will's chest puffed out. "But we did it, eh?" He gave Harry a skeptical glance.

"So, why's it so damn important?"

"Because of the legend." Will's lack of enthusiasm irritated Harry. He began to wonder what Will thought he'd been searching for all these months. "The legends say that whomever touches the Stone of Azhi will have great powers. Powers to change the world as we know it. Powers to make every wish come true."

"My wish right now is for a ten pound steak and a woman to share it with." Will licked his lips. "Suppose it might be worth something back in the States?"

"It's priceless-if only for its historical significance. But there are many men who would pay a king's ransom for its professed magical properties."

Will leaned over the mummy and reached for a dusty bottle. "I wonder what the bottles are for?"

"Probably contained the princess's favorite perfumes. Never mind them. It's the stone we want. No one's gonna pay for old glass when they can have all that power."

"Shit, I've been three long weeks without the comfort of a woman." Will waggled his eyebrows. "Does it have the power to grant me a woman?"

Harry was glad Will had finally understood the importance of their find. He slapped his friend on the shoulder. "Why settle for one? You could buy a dozen women with the money we'll make."

"Hell, I might even buy you one."

"No thanks." Harry lifted a bottle from the collection at the mummy's feet and brushed the dust from it. The blown glass reflected hues of deep sea green and blue, and was rimmed with gold bands.

"You aren't still mad about Fiona, are you?"

"Not in the least." He set the ornate container back in the sarcophagus.

Will lifted another of the glass bottles and tossed it lightly in the air, catching it one-handed. "Good, she's not your type anyway."

What was his type? Someone willing to follow him on wild chases across hostile continents? What woman in her right mind, would do that? Harry didn't know and really wasn't too interested in finding out. Last one, Fiona, had tried to hem him in with ultimatums.

Had he stayed, he'd have resented her. Leaving her had been the only answer.

"I'm so hungry I could eat a steak the size of Cleveland about now." Will grabbed for the stone at the same time as Harry.

"Wait, Will. We need to be careful." What if the legends were true? Could the stone be dangerous? When his fingers felt the smooth points of the two-headed dragon, tingling spread from Harry's hand up his arm and into his chest. The tingling turned to a burning sensation.

"What the hell?" Will staggered backward, his forehead creasing into a frown. He stared down at his hands and shook them.

The floor trembled and the walls around Harry and Will shook. Dust rose and filled the air until Harry couldn't see the hand in front of his face, much less his friend. "Will!"

"Harry! What's happening?"

"I don't know." Harry's heart raced and his breathing came in short gasps, his lungs filling with sand. "I feel like I'm on fire."

"Let's get the hell out of here!" Will called out.

But the doorway remained shrouded in thick dust.

The burning intensified until Harry felt he'd been seared by the sun. He gagged and choked on the sand rasping against the lining of his throat. Giant stones fell from the walls and ceiling.

What a way to go. Just when he'd discovered the stone of Azhi, he'd die in the mummified arms of the devil king's daughter.

The dim light from the torches snuffed out and blackness engulfed his tortured body. As if picked up by a tornado, he was jerked off his feet and sucked toward the sarcophagus, spiraling like a puff of smoke filtering through a tiny opening. His body screaming in pain, he could hear Will's terrified cries echoing his own. Then a loud thump ended the storm, sealing him in darkness.

Harry drifted into oblivion, wondering what the hell had happened.