Page 147 of Dawn Caravan
“He’s not going to.” She waited for the next firework before she ripped off the vent with her hands and handed the lid to Ben. “Be right back.”
How on earth had René broken into this thing? Other than the vent that it took a contortionist—or Tenzin—to enter, it was a vault. He didn’t see a crack or a seam. Ben was reluctantly impressed.
He waited on the roof, trying his best to appear like just another wind vampire hanging out on a caravan roof at the party, watching the fireworks light the night sky.
A few minutes after she’d disappeared, Ben saw Tenzin’s hand pop up through the vent, holding a small bundle wrapped in leather. He grabbed it, stuffed it inside his jacket, and went back to ignoring the slight rocking beneath him as she moved around the trailer.
Five achingly long minutes after her hand first appeared, it popped up again, this time holding another bundle. Ben grabbed it and shoved it next to the other goblet before he scooted over and tried to help Tenzin out.
She lifted herself up and out of the vent, only to get stuck at her hips.
Ben frowned. “What’s the problem?”
“I have no idea.” She twisted and squirmed, but it just wasn’t happening.
“What’s going on?” Ben looked at her hips. “You didn’t have a problem getting in.”
“Maybe gravity helped?”
It was a tiny vent, but if she’d entered that easily…
Ben crossed his arms. “What’s in your pockets?”
Her eyes went wide. “My pockets?”
He reached down and squeezed his hand through the side of the vent, reaching around her backside to feel a large lump that had definitely not been there before. “You have gold bullion in your pockets, Tiny.”
“Do I?”
“Are you trying to tell me it just happened to fall in there and you didn’t notice?”
“It’s only twenty… thirty ounces. Maybe.”
Ben squeezed one cheek. “Really?”
“In each pocket,” she muttered. “Fine.” She sighed heavily and dropped down again, only to lift a handful of small gold bars through the vent.
“Uh-uh.” Ben wasn’t taking Vano’s gold. Sure, he was a bad guy, but Ben had been hired to find Radu’s goblet. If he wanted to maintain a reputation as an honest operator, he had to stick to his principles.
“Oh, come on!” She popped her head out of the vent. “Will you just—?”
“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but you promised René you wouldn’t take Vano’s gold.”
She hung on the edge of the vent and pouted.
“Tenzin, we need to go.” Ben could see the crowd beginning to break apart. “It’s almost midnight.”
She sighed deeply and dropped the gold on the floor; then she slipped from the vent with ease and nudged the vent back into place. “You’re still no fun.”
“That’s not what you said when you woke me up tonight.” He hooked his arm through hers. “Ready?”
They took off, stepping off the roof and gliding through the sky until they came to land across the clearing on a roof shaded by a large oak tree.
“What are we doing?” Tenzin asked. “We need to meet René.”
Ben reached for the two pouches. “I may not be greedy, but I want to see them.”
Tenzin crossed her legs and sat. “They’re beautiful.”
