A Woman to Treasure
A Woman to Treasure
Synopsis
Levi Montbard loves history and isn’t afraid to search it out no
matter where it takes her. A scroll she acquires to sell in
Montbard’s Antiquities in New Orleans leads Levi on an
adventure that will take her from London to Morocco, by way
of the Sahara Desert. A story of a female Templar Knight
should sound like a hoax, but to Levi the new information
rings true. Proving the scroll accurate becomes an obsession.
She’ll stop at nothing to uncover the truth.
Yasmine Hassani spends her days teaching female studies in
Marrakech to women who want to leave a mark on their
country. An arrogant Westerner storming into her office is
highly unexpected and leaves Yasmine laughing off the
absurdity of her claims. No one knows more about the history
of the Templar Knights than Yasmine, and reluctantly
intrigued, she agrees to help Levi.
But their search turns down one dead end after another, almost
as if someone is working hard to keep old secrets buried.
They’ll have to fight the Catholic Church, centuries of
tradition, and their growing attraction for each other to
uncover the mystery of the female Templar Knight.
Praise for Ali Vali
One More Chance
“This was an amazing book by Vali…complex and multi-
layered (both characters and plot).”— Danielle Kimerer,
Librarian (Nevins Memorial Library, Massachusetts)
Face the Music
“This is a typical Ali Vali romance with strong characters, a
beautiful setting (Nashville, Tennessee), and an enemies-to-
lovers style tale. The two main characters are beautiful, strong-
willed, and easy to fall in love with. The romance between
them is steamy, and so are the sex scenes.”— Rainbow
Reflections
The Inheritance
“I love a good story that makes me laugh and cry, and this one
did that a lot for me. I would step back into this world any
time.”— Kat Adams, Bookseller (QBD Books, Australia)
Double-Crossed
“[T]here aren’t too many lesfic books like Double-Crossed
and it is refreshing to see an author like Vali continue to churn
out books like these. Excellent crime thriller.”— Colleen
Corgel, Librarian, Queens Borough Public Library
“For all of us die-hard Ali Vali/Cain Casey fans, this is the
beginning of a great new series…There is violence in this
book, and lots of killing, but there is also romance, love, and
the beginning of a great new reading adventure. I can’t wait to
read more of this intriguing story.”— Rainbow Reflections
Stormy Seas
Stormy Seas “is one book that adventure lovers must read.”—
Rainbow Reflections
Answering the Call
Answering the Call “is a brilliant cop-and-killer story…The
crime story is tight and the love story is fantastic.”— Best
Lesbian Erotica
Lammy Finalist Calling the Dead
“So many writers set stories in New Orleans, but Ali Vali’s
mystery novels have the authenticity that only a real Big Easy
resident could bring. Set six months after Hurricane Katrina
has devastated the city, a lesbian detective is still battling
demons when a body turns up behind one of the city’s famous
eateries. What follows makes for a classic lesbian murder
yarn.”— Curve Magazine
Beauty and the Boss
“The story gripped me from the first page…Vali’s writing style
is lovely—it’s clean, sharp, no wasted words, and it flows
beautifully as a result. Highly recommended!”— Rainbow
Book Reviews
Balance of Forces: Toujours Ici
“A stunning addition to the vampire legend, Balance of
Forces: Toujour Ici is one that stands apart from the rest.”—
Bibliophilic Book Blog
Beneath the Waves
“The premise…was brilliantly constructed…skillfully written
and the imagination that went into it was fantastic…A
wonderful passionate love story with a great mystery.”— Inked
Rainbow Reads
Second Season
“The issues are realistic and center around the universal
factors of love, jealousy, betrayal, and doing the right thing
and are constantly woven into the fabric of the story. We rated
this well written social commentary through the use of fiction
our max five hearts.”— Heartland Reviews
Carly’s Sound
“Carly’s Sound is a great romance, with some wonderfully hot
sex, but it is more than that. It is also the tale of a woman
rising from the ashes of grief and finding new love and a new
life. Vali has surrounded Julia and Poppy with a cast of great
supporting characters, making this an extremely satisfying
read.”— Just About Write
Praise for the Cain Casey Saga
The Devil’s Due
“A Night Owl Reviews Top Pick: Cain Casey is the kind of
person you aspire to be even though some consider her a
criminal. She’s loyal, very protective of those she loves,
honorable, big on preserving her family legacy and loves her
family greatly. The Devil’s Due is a book I highly recommend
and well worth the wait we all suffered through. I cannot wait
for the next book in the series to come out.”— Night Owl
Reviews
The Devil Be Damned
“Ali Vali excels at creating strong, romantic characters along
with her fast-paced, sophisticated plots. Her setting, New
Orleans, provides just the right blend of immigrants from
Mexico, South America, and Cuba, along with a city steeped
in traditions.”— Just About Write
Deal with the Devil
“Ali Vali has given her fans another thick, rich thriller… Deal
With the Devil has wonderful love stories, great sex, and an
ample supply of humor. It is an exciting, page-turning read
that leaves her readers eagerly awaiting the next book in the
series.”— Just About Write
The Devil Unleashed
“Fast-paced action scenes, intriguing character revelations,
and a refreshing approach to the romance thriller genre all
make for an enjoyable reading experience in the Big Easy…
The Devil Unleashed is an engrossing reading experience.”—
Midwest Book Review
The Devil Inside
“The Devil Inside is the first of what promises to be a very
exciting series…While telling an exciting story that grips the
reader, Vali has also fully fleshed out her heroes and villains.
The Devil Inside is that rarity: a fascinating crime novel which
includes a tender love story and leaves the reader with a
cliffhanger ending.”— MegaScene
A Woman to Treasure
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A Woman to Treasure
© 2021 By Ali Vali. All Rights Reserved.
ISBN 13: 978-1-63555-891-3
This Electronic Original Is Published By
Bold Strokes Books, Inc.
P.O. Box 249
Valley Falls, NY 12185
First Edition: May 2021
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and
incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are
used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or
dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely
coincidental.
This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form
without permission.
Credits
Editors: Victoria Villaseñor and Stacia Seaman
Production Design: Stacia Seaman
Cover Design by Tammy Seidick
eBook Design by Toni Whitaker
By the Author
Carly’s Sound
Second Season
Love Match
The Dragon Tree Legacy
The Romance Vote
Hell Fire Club in Girls with Guns
Beneath the Waves
Beauty and the Boss
Blue Skies
Stormy Seas
The Inheritance
Face the Music
On the Rocks in Still Not Over You
One More Chance
A Woman to Treasure
Call Series
Calling the Dead
Answering the Call
Forces Series
Balance of Forces: Toujours Ici
Battle of Forces: Sera Toujours
Force of Fire: Toujours a Vous
Vegas Nights
Double-Crossed
The Cain Casey Saga
The Devil Inside
The Devil Unleashed
Deal with the Devil
The Devil Be Damned
The Devil’s Orchard
The Devil’s Due
Heart of the Devil
The Devil Incarnate
Acknowledgments
One of my best childhood memories was being at home during
the summer with my brother. Every afternoon we’d sit and
watch “The Big Movie.” It was a local channel’s lineup of
movies that had theme weeks. The pirate/treasure hunts were
at the top of our list of favorites, so thank you, Radclyffe, for
the opportunity to create my own adventure stories. Thank
you, Sandy, for another great title idea and for all you do.
Thanks to the BSB team for your support and hard work.
Thank you to my awesome editors, Victoria Villasenor and
Stacia Seaman. Vic, thank you for dragging me along until I
see the light. You and Stacia have taught me so much and I
appreciate both of you. Tammy Seidick, thank you for this
awesome cover—I love it.
Thank you to my first readers Lenore Beniot, Cris Perez-Soria,
and Kim Rieff. Your comments, questions, and commentary
really make me consider every possibility, and that’s always a
good thing.
A huge thank you to every reader. You guys send the best
emails, so every word is written with you in mind.
Last year was interesting as well as challenging for all of us.
Hopefully, everyone had as wonderful a quarantine partner as I
did. C, thank you for keeping us both sane and laughing. We
can add this to our adventures. Hopefully there are plenty
more to come that do not include a pandemic. Verdad!
For C
and
The adventurous soul in all of us
CHAPTER ONE
Lot number twenty-six—a collection of scrolls recovered from
the grave of a young girl. These are believed to be on ram’s
skin and are a form of a childhood diary of the young girl they
were buried with.” The auctioneer pointed to the rolled skins
tied with leather strips. “The paleography and carbon dating
put them at about 1300 AD.”
Levi Montbard sat on the end of the fourth row in the
famous Drouot auction house in Paris and tapped her
numbered paddle on the side of her thigh. This was the lot
she’d come for, although her grandfather Cristobal had already
made quite a few purchases. He had a good eye for what
would sell in Montbard Antiquities and Rare Books back
home in New Orleans, but the scrolls were for her private
collection.
“We’ll start the bidding at five thousand euros,” the man
said as he smoothed down his tie. Levi lifted her paddle as her
grandfather perused the rest of the catalog for the day’s
auction. There was a back-and-forth between Levi and an
older man in the front, but he wasn’t willing to go over thirty-
eight thousand. “Sold to number forty-two. The next item…”
She and her grandfather stood, their mission accomplished.
“Lunch?” her grandfather asked.
“Are you sure you don’t want to stay?” She flipped
through the catalog and pointed to the last lot. “A Kelmscott
Chaucer doesn’t come up often. It’s in poor condition, but if it
goes for a good price it’ll be a good investment.”
“You’ve seen it already?” Her grandfather laughed. “Of
course you have. Who’s the beautiful woman working in the
back who’s willing to give up the house secrets for time with
you?”
“I’m not revealing any of my sources. Come on and I’ll
buy you a crepe and a latte.” Levi slowed her gait, not because
her grandfather was feeble but because he was six inches
shorter. “We’ll be back in plenty of time.”
“Do you know anything else about the scrolls you
bought?” Cristobal Montbard was the head of their family, and
he’d instilled in his only son and then his only grandchild the
family’s love of history. The Montbard family wasn’t in the
antiquities business simply for profit but to share with those
who loved the past as much as they did and to provide the
treasures that would fuel people’s imaginations.
“They were found outside Jerusalem in an unmarked grave
in what the archaeologists describe as a peasant burial site.
The grave held a young girl, and the code the scrolls was
written in was declared childhood nonsense.” They sat at an
outdoor café and she ordered for them in French. “They most
probably are, but it’s good practice at breaking codes. They’ll
make a good wall hanging for someone if they turn out to be
nothing.”
“How hard could the code have been that the auction house
didn’t attempt to crack it?”
“You know the auction houses, as well as the people
putting the items up for sale, are all about profit.” She dropped
two sugar cubes in the espresso the pretty waitress delivered
and smiled at her grandfather. “Why spend good money
translating a simple exchange between children?”
“But you don’t think that’s all it is?”
“Think of the time period and where they were found. No
&n
bsp; one, much less a child, would’ve wasted scrolls on foolish
childish musings. Parchment was too valuable back then, and
it wasn’t as if they could reuse it. The site held plenty of other
graves with museum quality pieces, so I was lucky this one
fell through the cracks. It doesn’t happen often when it’s state
archaeologists, but it happens. The pieces they let go of will
fund the rest of the dig they’re on.”
“No wonder the girls can’t leave you alone when you’re
using words like musings.” Her grandfather’s teasing was a
constant, but she loved it.
Levi was close to her parents, but her grandparents,
Cristobal and Diana, were two of her favorite people in her
life. Her mother’s parents were also important to her, but they
lived in London and she didn’t see them as often. While her
grandfather Cristobal enjoyed his books, cigars, and whiskey,
her grandfather Percy had summited Everest twice and had a
professor at Oxford. It was an intimidating family to be a part
of when you considered the list of accomplishments on both
sides, but they’d given her an adventurous heart.
“Believe me, there’s a lot more than my grasp of the
English language that makes that true.” She loved the way her
grandfather laughed. “I have a gut feeling there’s something
hidden in that code, and I’m going to find it. It was good luck
they weren’t highly advertised.”
“Ms. Montbard.” A man in Levi’s periphery said her name
in a cultured English accent.
She wasn’t concerned since her grandfather didn’t appear
alarmed or worried. Whoever this guy was, she wasn’t going
to give him the satisfaction of turning around. She’d been
taught an honor code all her life, and the first lesson was that
to get respect you had to give it. This guy was clearly playing
a game to get her attention instead of politely coming to the
table.
“Ms. Montbard,” the guy repeated. He was standing next
to the table now, acting like she was supposed to curtsy. “Are
you hard of hearing?”
“Not at all.” She rested her chin on her palm and didn’t
invite him to sit. “Is there something I can do for you?” She