Page 27 of Welcome to Bone Town

“Archer! Archer!” Dr. Whitlock bursts into my tent like a desert storm. “Archer.” She says once more, her breathing labored like she ran here. Panic lifts the hairs on the back of my neck.

“What? What is it? Are you ok?” I rush out as several horrible scenarios play through my mind. We all heard about what happened with the bandana, and then the jackal last night. The woman seems to attract trouble, through no fault of her own, and the thought of anything happening to her makes my chest ache.

My panic cools when I see Cora holding up the artifact we uncovered a few days ago with a bright smile. A noise behind her draws my attention just in time to see Bear entering the tent. We haven’t spoken much since our kiss the other night. Not that we’re avoiding each other—okay, maybe I’m avoiding him a little. That kiss was mind blowing, and I know if I hang out with him alone again, I’ll probably beg for more, and he made itpretty clear it was a one time thing. I do still have some dignity.

But when our eyes meet, the look he gives me is so heated, I’m about ready to throw out what little pride I have and beg him right here in front of Cora. My skin feels tight, cock waking up, as I imagine her watching me with Bear. I’m not usually into exhibitionism, but with the way I want Cora, I don’t think I’d mind. Maybe she’d even join in. Thinking of the omega makes me realize she’s been talking to me this whole time. Shit, what is she saying?

“Bear, tell Archer what you told me. About the box.” She’s nearly bouncing on her toes in her excitement. I think a blush has risen on his cheeks at the attention, but it’s too dim in the tent for me to truly tell. He sucks his teeth like he’s embarrassed, but lifts a meaty finger to point at one side of the box.

“Uhhh, this groove right here. It uh—” He looks at Cora who nods at him encouragingly. “It looks like a twist lock union. You know, like what you'd use to connect a fire hose.”

Bending down slightly to get a look at the artifact in the omega’s palms, I see what he’s talking about.

“Arch, I think we’re missing part of this artifact,” Cora says. “I’d bet three years of my salary that there’s another piece somewhere, and that it has the interlocking counterpart to this one.”

My eyes widen as her meaning sinks in. Immediately I stride past the two of them, heading for the main tent, yelling as I walk. “We need the maps!”

Moments later, all three of us are in the main structure,pouring over the large survey maps on the table, when a grumpy Dr. Slate arrives. “What the hell is going on? I heard shouting.”

Pausing my perusal, I reply. “Cora thinks there’s another piece to the puzzle box.”

His eyes widen as he turns to the omega. “What makes you think that?”

She glances at Roman before quickly holding out the puzzle box. Their fingers graze each other, and she pulls her hand back like she touched a live wire. Her eyes widen briefly as she tucks her palms under her armpits, like she doesn’t want to risk touching him again.

Once he starts examining it, she shows him the groove and recounts what she and Bear just told me without meeting his eyes. When she’s finished, both archeologists return to the table to scrutinize the maps.

“But where would it be…” Dr. Slate’s rhetorical question trails off as his eyes bounce around the diagrams. The silence in the tent is heavy, the air thickened by the anticipation of discovery.

We all know that the other piece might not be at this site at all. The two parts could have been kept somewhere entirely separate from each other, hell, it could be lost to history for all we know, but if it’s here… My heart races, blood rushing like a waterfall.

This is the part of archeology that makes all the hours in the hot sun worth it. Uncovering treasure, discovering secrets long hidden, solving puzzles.

After a few minutes, Cora straightens and addresses the group. “What do these markers look like to you?” Shepoints along the edge of the dig site and we follow her finger.

“It’s an omega,” I gasp. “Well, not like the designation, like the actual symbol. Except it’s missing a foot.”

“A foot?” Bear questions.

“Yeah, see here? If you start where we found this artifact,” I trail my finger along the map, “and follow the markers indicating where we found the bones and pottery, it loops up like the arch of the omega symbol.” My finger stops at where the baseline should be, tapping the spot. “If this were the omega symbol, though, then there would be a foot on this side as well to complete it.”

“Holy shit.” Roman curses. “But why would the remains be shaped this way? It doesn’t make sense.”

“If this was a ceremony site dedicated to the goddess Lunara, her devotees would do everything possible to feel closer to her and to manifest her power,” Cora pipes up. “It stands to reason they would build it shaped like the symbol that is the embodiment of her essence.”

Roman nods slowly as he processes her reasoning. “I guess we know where we need to dig next.”

24

“You shouldn’t be out here digging on your own,” I call down to Dr. Whitlock. She’s been a force to be reckoned with for the past two days since we figured out the puzzle box might have a missing piece. Right now, she’s in a pit ten feet deep, chiseling at the walls. Her cheeks are flushed from the heat and her hair has partially fallen loose from the neat bun she had it in at the start of the day.

She doesn’t respond to me.

Things have been awkward between us since the jackal incident. The whole camp has been on edge since then, but it’s been more intense with Cora and me. I don’t know if it’s just because I saw her breast or if it’s something else, but she’s been extra snappy with me—when she’s not avoiding me all together.

Not that I’ve been much better, but I’ve been trying.

My head has been a mess ever since that moment she clung to me for support. That, coupled with my conversationwith Bear about omegas, has me questioning all my actions. It’s not right for me to punish Cora for her designation, something she has no control over. But working with her, getting to know her, it feels… terrifying.

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