The Undiscovered Wonder

> **⚠️** *This article contains major spoilers for the entire book. Please proceed with caution.* **⚠️**
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Book 6 - The Undiscovered Wonder

### Publisher

Sunbird Books

**The Undiscovered Wonder** is the sixth book in the Treasure Huntress Saga.

## Synopsis

*A plane crash leaves treasure huntress Simone Cassidy stranded on an uncharted tropical island somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. As Clark Bannicheck and his team scramble to rescue her before the formidable mercenary organization SWANN can get to her first, Simone soon realizes her biggest threat may already be on the island ... long dormant, but now awakened. A non-stop thrill ride of explosive action, white-knuckle suspense, and heart-stopping drama, The Undiscovered Wonder finds treasure huntress Simone Cassidy at her most desperate hour.*

## Story

Immediately follows the events of Sealed by Fate.

The plane carrying Simone and Sonja away from Mexico has crashed on an uncharted island. The sisters survive, but the pilot dies when the plane falls off a cliff. Stranded, Simone and Sonja must work together to survive. But they are strangers, and Sonja is upset after having her whole life turned upside-down.

Meanwhile, back in Mexico, Vincent has been arrested after starting a fight as a distraction, allowing Simone and Sonja to escape. Lincoln is taken by April and Solomon and held captive, and the trio search for the island, suspecting the sisters to still be alive. Vincent is left out of prison and contacts Clark.

Simone and Sonja learn that the volcano on the island is active. They search for the plane's transponder, but do not find it. They decide to venture north toward the nearest potential shipping lane, hoping to find fresh water on the way. But their trek is soon interrupted by crocodiles. Once they are safe, they find a stream to drink from, and Simone explains how to stay safe on the island. Back in Mexico, Vincent learns that Cameron, the pilot of the plane chartered for Simone, never arrived - the sisters were flown toward the island by someone else, likely with ill intent. Clark tells him to stay in Tijuana, and that Esteban Lopez is coming to meet him.

Solomon interrogates Lincoln about where to find Simone, but learns nothing of importance. Instead, he has April interrogate her former partner. Back on the island the tremors continue, and Simone and Sonja find a strange formation of white stone circles, which tell Simone that someone else has been on the island at some point, perhaps recently. After making it to the shore, they find a second formation of stones closer to the volcano, but Simone still doesn't know what they are for of what they mean, or if they present a danger.

As Lincoln argues with April about what they believe in, Simone and Sonja argue about what part they want to play in each other's lives. After a heated exchange, they reconcile around a campfire on the beach and learn more about each other, and the lives they had before meeting. That night, Lestrade's plane lands on the island. In the morning, he located the crashed plane that Simone and Sonja flew in on, and an odd cargo of robes.

After being awakened by a violent tremor, the sisters find a strange black temple on the island, and go inside to investigate. They descend a set of steps and find an underground cavern where a woman is strapped down and a group of robed figures appear to be in the process of conducting some sort of ritual sacrifice. Simone orders Sonja to head for the beach, and Simone creates a diversion by setting the acolytes on fire, allowing the woman on the altar to escape. As this is happening, Solomon's plane lands on the island.

Simone escapes the temple and finds the woman, Brigid, in the jungle. Brigid is anxious to get off the island, and leaves Simone. Searching for her sister, Simone rushes to the beach where she told Sonja to go, but Sonja is not there. Simone returns to the temple, fearing that the Augur has taken Sonja as their new sacrifice. Lincoln has found a way to escape from April.

On the beach, Sonja meets with Lincoln, who deduces that the doomsday cult on the island is trying to cause an eruption. Lestrade comes across April and Brigid, but Brigid falls into a chasm after the ground splits during a violent tremor. Simone is knocked out down in the underground cave by the Augur, who wants her as their new sacrifice.

Sonja gets the handcuffs off Lincoln, but they run into April in the jungle. Sonja retreats while Lincoln and April have another encounter. On her way to the beach, Sonja finds the strength to return to the temple and rescue Simone. Lestrade bears witness to Lincoln and April's altercation, which turns physical, and April orders Lincoln to return to the plane at gunpoint, but he refuses.

Simone awakens strapped to the altar - the new sacrifice of the acolytes. Sonja arrives just in time to save Simone, and the two fight off the Augur and the acolytes. Sonja demonstrates incredibly fighting ability from her MMA training. In the chaos, Simone stabs an acolyte with the black ceremonial dagger, and they fall upon the altar where their blood spills, triggering a cataclysmic eruption. The sisters race for the surface as the cavern explodes around them.

The quarrel between Lincoln and April halted as the volcano blows, drawing their attention. A fissure opens and consumes April, but Lincoln pulls her out just in time. She disappears into the jungle that has been set on fire. As Simone emerges from the underground cave, she finds the temple is totally gone, blown apart and scattered across the jungle, which is being covered in a blanket of ash. Fire and rock rain down, and Sonja is nowhere to be found. Simone fears the worst.

As Simone races to escape pyroclastic flow, she calls for her sister while unknowingly being tracked by Lestrade through the wildfire. Simone and Sonja reunite on the beach, and Lestrade has to choose between killing Sonja (and Simone) or getting to his plane so he can safely get off the island. He decides to shoot Sonja, but Lincoln shoots him first, and Lestrade disappears, living to fight another day. Simone, Sonja, and Lincoln are picked up by a boat with Vincent and Esteban. On board, Sonja meets Clark Bannicheck for the first time.

## Characters

* Simone Cassidy
* Sonja Martin
* Lincoln Lewis
* April Farren
* Clark Bannicheck
* Solomon Loy
* Lestrade
* Esteban Lopez
* The Augur
* Brigid

## Notes and Trivia

* The only book in the series thus far which does not contain a relic hunt.