Page 93 of Night's Reckoning
“You tried?” He smiled. “That’s an interesting way of putting it.”
“Truth doesn’t come readily to me like it does to you.”
“What does?”
“Survival.”
Ben nodded. “I know.”
“I don’t recognize the emotion I see on your face right now.”
“I know.” His voice was soft. “But… I can’t really explain it to you, Tiny.”
“Can’t or won’t?”
How could he explain what he barely understood? He loved her. He probably always would. But he knew she wasn’t good for him, and he wasn’t willing to sacrifice his life just to spend it on the periphery of hers.
“I can’t.” His voice broke. “I’m sorry, Tenzin. I can’t explain it.”
She nodded and turned back to her book. It was a thin volume and it looked like it was Italian.
“What are you reading?”
“Sixteenth-century Italian philosophy by someone named Tullia d’Aragona.” She glanced up. “Fabia was finished with it and I ran out of books.”
“Right.” He waved. “I’ll see you.”
“I will see you, Benjamin.”
* * *
Fabia and Benworked with the university divers for the next three days, trying to make up for the loss of Meili and the disruption to the excavation. The vampires had slowed down and were starting to search away from the main body of the wreck.
While the night crew had found jar after jar of fine glasswork, metal objects of unspeakable beauty, and gold bars and coins, not a single weapon had been found, especially not the sword that was the main goal of the expedition.
Ben and Fabia swam around the wreck site. Ben tapped Fabia’s shoulder and switched his radio to a private channel. “Do you think it’s lost?”
“We have no way of knowing.” She shook her head. “It doesn’t make sense.” She stopped to watch Lin and Jon take a basket up to the surface. “Even if the blade has deteriorated, the hilt was supposed to be made of precious metal and gemstones. Those things would last.”
“Is it possible someone stole it?”
“It’s possible. Anything is possible.” Fabia was watching the divers. “Have you noticed something unusual today?”
“Fabi, most of this stuff is a mystery to me. I only know a little of what you guys—”
“That area over there.” She pointed to a section of the hull. “No one is working on it.”
“Are there still storage jars?”
Most of the cargo jars had been collected, and the divers had moved on to looking for smaller pieces of the shipwreck puzzle. Looking for tools and personal items from the sailors. Things the vampires had little interest in.
“That section butts up to the reef, so it’s been harder to sift through.” Fabia swam over to Jon and Ben followed.
He saw her switch radio frequencies to the public channel, so he did too.
“That section by the reef.” She pointed to it. “Has it been excavated yet?”
“Meili was working there,” Jon said. “I suppose we haven’t wanted to disturb it.”
