The Belial Stone (The Belial Series #1)(42)

“Laney, Patrick, I’d like you to meet Dr. Margaret Shandone. She is Dom’s extraordinary partner.”

Dr. Shandone waved away the words. “Oh, please. Call me Maggie. Dom’s finishing up. He’ll be right out.” Her eyes twinkled as she shook Laney’s hand. “He tells me you have an Atlantis problem.”

“We’re really not sure. But right now, that’s where all the signs are pointing,” Henry replied diplomatically.

Maggie walked over and gave Danny a hug, ruffling his hair as she released him. “So, you’ve come to pick Dom’s brain. I have to tell you, I haven’t seen him this excited since his arguments about the na?veté of a theory of everything were supported.”

“I resent that, Maggie.” Dom bounded into the kitchen, a big smile on his face. “I was not that excited about string theory.”

Dom shook hands with Henry, who, in turn, introduced him to Laney and Patrick. Now, this man was more of what she expected. Dom's salt-and-pepper hair sprung out from his head like it was trying to escape. His dark eyes were magnified by thick lenses. Baggy cargo shorts, an incorrectly buttoned shirt, and a brown sweater vest completed the outfit.

He kept tugging at his collar. He reminded Laney of Max, when Kati had forced him into a dress shirt for Christmas. She liked him already.

“Ah, lunch, excellent.” Dom pulled a sandwich off the tray, and sat next to Danny, who gave him a grin. “Did you have a chance to read that book I sent you?”

Danny nodded. “It was good, although I think the author is off base about all five superstring theories really being a single unitary theory.”

Dom clapped Danny on the shoulder. “I thought the same thing. Maggie here was trying to justify it by saying he was arguing for a paradigmatic shift in our interpretation of transformation duality.”

With matching grins, Dom and Danny rolled their eyes at the end of the statement. Laney couldn’t help but laugh.

Maggie shook her head. “Don’t drag me into this. Besides, I think these good people are here to talk about a different topic. You’ll have to excuse me, though, I need to finish up a few more things in the lab.” With a quick kiss to Dom’s cheek, Maggie disappeared back the way she’d entered.

Dom glanced around the group seated around the island. “Ah, yes. You want to know about Edgar Cayce.”

Henry perched his hip on the counter and crossed his arms. “As I explained on the phone, Dr. Priddle seems to be basing his entire claim on Cayce’s assertions about Atlantis and something called the Belial Stone.”

Dom bounced in his chair as he spoke. Energy radiated out from the man. “Now, Cayce was an interesting character. He was a psychic, born in 1877. A devout Christian, he seemed to have an extraordinary gift, or more accurately, gifts. While in a trance-like state, he could diagnose people’s illnesses. He was reported to have been very accurate. Some of the treatments he recommended are now actually recognized by the medical community. He also did life readings for people about their past lives.”

Patrick interrupted. “He seems an unusual choice for someone to base their academic work on.”

“Not at all, not at all.” Dom waved his hand with his words, sending part of his sandwich flying across the island. Henry sighed, shifting out of the way to avoid the airborne turkey.

“Cayce was an amazing man. He was not a fluke. He was the real deal. He predicted that a sign to Atlantis would appear in 1968 or 1969, and then voilà the Bimini Road appeared.”

“But wasn’t that proven to be naturally-formed beach rock?” Laney asked.

Dom swiped the comment away, his hands flying with his words. “The skeptics are saying that, but who’s to say the Atlanteans didn’t make use of a natural formation?”

Danny had to duck out of the way to avoid being hit. Laney smiled as Patrick pulled Danny’s chair closer to his own to get him out of the danger zone.

“And that can't explain the ancient anchors that have been found all over the Bahamas, indicating a seafaring civilization thrived there,” Dom continued.

Henry gestured with both of his hands for Dom to calm down.

Dom's hands stilled. “Sorry. It’s just such an exciting topic.”

“We understand, Dom.” Patrick smiled. Her uncle took all personalities in stride, even eccentric professors. “But why would Drew think the Belial Stone was buried somewhere? From what he wrote, he seemed to believe that it was intentionally hidden.”

Dom nodded and his face turned serious. “I’m sure it was. According to Cayce, a group of Atlanteans, known as the Sons of Belial, converted the stone into a weapon and began using it to destroy the rest of the Atlanteans, who were called the Children of the Law of One.”

Jake raised an eyebrow. “The Children of the Law of One? Really?”

“Horrible name, right? But when Cayce talks about Atlantis, he’s actually talking about the creation of mankind. The Children of the Law of One were the good. They believed in living in harmony with nature and being companions of the creator. Many wouldn’t even fight, not even to defend themselves. Peace and kindness were their primary goals.”

“And the Sons of Belial were the bad.” Laney was struck by the similarity to the Hebrew War scroll. In it, there had been talk of an end-of-times battle between the Sons of Belial and the Children of the Light. Could the Children of the Light been the same as the Children of the Law of One?