A Pure Heart of Stone

By J P Fireshadow

This adventure will puzzle you every step of the way. It gets more and more thrilling as you see Jackie trying her hardest to protect the stone but also see Alex getting closer to stealing the stone. It entices you to desperately wonder what will happen next. Who will have the stone? Will it be tragic or peaceful? You will never know until you get to the last shocking chapter.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Fulton Books, Inc.
• Release date: Aug 18, 2023
• ISBN: 9798889821052

Book preview

Table of Contents

Title

Copyright

Prologue

The Beginning

Chapter 1: The Cave

Chapter 2: Deadly Choices

Chapter 3: The Stone

Chapter 4: Deceived

Chapter 5: The Strong One

Chapter 6: Ten Years Later (Short Intro)

Chapter 7: Jackie's Day

Chapter 8: Missing Pieces?

Chapter 9: Julie's Day

Chapter 10: Jasmine's Day

Chapter 11: Stephen's Day

Chapter 12: Julie: A Surprise Visit

Chapter 13: Jackie: Investigating

Chapter 14: Alex: Hiding Out

Chapter 15: Jasmine: A Lethal Mission

Chapter 16: Jackie: The Legend

Chapter 17: Lucas: A Mind of Its Own

Chapter 18: Julie: Chief Wall?

About the Author

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A Pure Heart of Stone

J P Fireshadow

Copyright © 2023 J P Fireshadow

All rights reserved

First Edition

Fulton Books

Meadville, PA

Published by Fulton Books 2023

ISBN 979-8-88982-104-5 (paperback)

ISBN 979-8-88982-105-2 (digital)

Printed in the United States of America

Prologue

The Beginning

I dug deeper and deeper into the coal mine.

I must keep going. I know it's here. What am I looking for? I don't know. All I know is that there is something here that must be found.

Jackie, Tom said as he placed his hand on my shoulder.

I can always tell when it is Tom because his graduation ring jabs into my shoulder every time. His ring has a small flat spike on the bottom rim. It shows off that we were the all-star dragon's basketball team in high school before we graduated. He is always so proud of it whenever the subject comes up.

He sighed reluctantly. Come on, Jackie, you have been at it for three days straight.

I paused, breathing heavily.

I am so exhausted from all the digging I have endorsed.

He insisted, You need some rest.

I wedged the shovel back into the soft dirt.

He gently pulled my arm back. Please. Let's get some sleep.

I sighed and dropped the shovel.

I know I need the rest. I have a very strong urge to keep digging, but he is right.

We headed back to camp and went to sleep.

I woke up the next morning to Alex's extremely perky voice.

Good morning! Alex cheerfully gloated.

I grunted out of annoyance.

It is so annoying how cheery she is in the mornings.

She asked delightfully, Did you find anything yet?

I muttered, No.

Oh well, don't worry, sweetie. I'm sure you'll find… She paused.

I looked up at her.

She continued, Um…whatever it is you're looking for.

We all gathered around a campfire outside, drinking coffee.

Tom, Alex, and Justin are my three best friends. Tom helps me dig, Justin hangs around the camp to watch our stuff, and Alex keeps everyone's spirits up.

Justin scowled angrily. So how much longer, Jackie? Huh? How much longer are we going to be out here near this goddamn cave empty-handed!

Tom yelled back, Hey! Now just calm the fuck down!

Justin's face turned red. No! YOU can calm down with all these disgusting mosquitos and sleep on the grass!

Alex interrupted, Whoa, whoa, whoa. Hey! Just cool it, boys.

Tom continued, If you don't like it, then why don't you just go!

Justin laughed, And leave all the money to you? Ha! Not a chance!

Tom lunged toward Justin, but Alex held him back.

Tom snapped, What the hell makes you think that we are going to get any money out of this anyways! She didn't say anything about money! Only an artifact! Why the hell are you even here!

Justin smirked as he answered, Because the last time that she had the urge to dig, we ended up with a $2,000 profit from a unique gem, and there is no way in hell that I'm ever going to pass up another $2,000!

Alex leaned on Tom with a half smile as she spoke. Well, it's not her fault that you have such a constant need to be pampered like a baby before every trip.

She quickly pointed at his tent behind him and said, Go take a nap with your tantrum.

He glared and walked away.

She sighed. Don't worry about it, sweetie. You know how he is.

She noticed that I am staring at the campfire.

She spoke with concern. Jackie?

A moment of silence passed.

She nudged me. Honey, are you okay?

Startled, I shook my head and said, Sorry, Alex. Did you say something?

Stunned, she sat beside me. I asked you if you are okay. Is Justin starting to get to you?

I answered, confused, No, why?

She sighed. Because you don't seem to be yourself lately. I mean. First, you wanted to go for a long drive. Then you wanted to stop in the middle of nowhere near a small village that I have never even heard of.

Tom continued, They seemed to be tribal natives, but I don't understand why they looked so confused. We came off route 14A, which is a very common road. But they ran into their tents so fast like we had some sort of disease.

Chapter 1

The Cave

We all gathered around the campfire for warmth as Justin explored the cave.

Justin's voice echoed out of the cave, Hey guys! Get down here and look at this!

Tom stood up. Who the hell does he think he is, giving US orders?