Page 16 of Stealing the Star Stone
Chapter Five
Tarnis’ Messis Station
My plan’s working.
Year of 2202, May
Novawastorn.Thornehad acted the perfect gentleman and almost childlike in his eagerness to try tea.That he didn’t like her favorite didn’t bother her, but his charm had.She could almost like him.Squeezing her crossed arms tighter, she willed herself to find nothing appealing about him.The manhadbroken her young heart.
His pale face alarmed her, but after the last comment that she needed to ‘behave,’ he could faint and lie there in a pool of his vomit.
At least he’d paid for the day’s activities.That was her plan and the only reason she hadn’t left his ass in Orbit & Oolong.So far, meeting the infamous Arell had been a highlight.And agreeing to seeing this artefact was more to get Mr.Rich-Ass to pay for her research than the desire to spend alone time with Eli Thorne.
The pod slowed when it approached the welcoming center, touching down on a cushion of air.She chanced a glance at her charge, half-expecting him to be green at the gills.Only to whip her focus away.
The ass looked too good: his cheeks glowing with warmth, his sparkling green eyes appearing to reflect the lush farmlands around them.
Noise slammed into her the instant the pod doors opened.People milled about, mothers screaming at their wayward children, and someone even had a pet dog at their heels.A station-sec yelled at a few youngsters banging on the glass walls of the center.
Flashing lights of the paparazzi made her hesitate.“Ready to run?”she asked Thorne.
He grimaced, sliding on his sunglasses, then tugging his coat around him.
His perfect hair tumbled over his forehead in an all-too-familiar style.Thankfully, many men had followed the trend he’d set.She led a path around the edges of the crowds, not wanting to cut a swath down the middle.When they neared, a sec-guard raised his head, studied Thorne, then gestured them to enter.
“Welcome,” he mumbled.“We were warned you might attend.Lord Vex Orien will be pleased.”
“Who?”Nova asked Thorne when they entered the gallery.The cacophony dampened the deeper they ventured into the quiet confines of art and muted conversations.
“How should I know?”He ushered her past a couple, a hand at her back.
She’d swear his touch scorched her through her coat and uniform.Madness, that’s where her thoughts had gone.
“Eli Thorne, what a pleasure.”A silver-haired and bearded man strode toward them, wearing an authentic, black-pearlescent leather jacket.He held a glass of champagne in one hand.What impressed Nova was the diamond-studded blaster at his hip when no weapons were allowed planetside.
Thorne flicked off his sunglasses and beamed at the man, his hand already extended for a shake.“The pleasure is mine.”
“I’m Lord Orien.Welcome to my exhibition.I’m always on the hunt for new benefactors.Xenology is expensive work, y’know, and finding such treasures isn’t for the faint-hearted.Curious about my artefact?”the man mused.
“I am indeed.”Thorne hitched a thumb behind him.“The station-sec told me about it, and I must admit, it piqued my interest.”
“We’re taking it on a tour of the galaxy, hoping to trigger a reaction from it and the general public.Like I said, finding donors is always a blessing.Studies have only revealed its genetic make-up, not its purpose.”He led Thorne to the atrium of the gallery where an illuminated plinth took centerstage.
Upon it sat a rainbow-colored stone twice the size of Nova’s head.Strange hexagonal and beveled markings were carved into the smooth rock.There were no slips or cracks along the grooves—whoever made those had a steady hand.Whatever it was, it had so much unknown potential.
She eyed it, searching for a flicker of life like a spark or an embryo.“You’ve just put it on a stand?In the open?What if it’s a bomb of some sort?It’s alien, right?”She faced Lord Orien, unable to keep the censure from her voice.
He scowled, giving her a once-over that implied he found her lacking.“It is safe, having thoroughly been tested.The natives claim it’s a fertility idol.”He stroked the surface, the rings on his long fingers gleaming in the bright light.His gaze took on a manic gleam.“Isn’t it beautiful?”
“But you think it’s something more?”Thorne asked.
“Touch it,” Orien urged.“It resonates at a frequency of thirteen hertz.Why, we don’t know yet.”
Nova tried to snatch Thorne’s hand away.“This is madness.”
Orien shoved between them, keeping them apart.“If you don’t behave, I’ll have security escort you out.”
Thorne hesitated then pressed a fingertip to the stone.“It’s warm,” he whispered.“Nova, try this.”
