Page 88 of Stealing the Star Stone
“I didn’t say anything,” he said, peering at her.
She shrugged.He had, but she wasn’t going to argue with him.She wanted this done and behind her.Never again would she bemoan her fate as a pilot.She’d taken that cushy job for granted.
“There,” he said, pointing at a hole in the ground.
She groaned.“Really?We don’t have rope.”Anger was swift to strike, flooding her body with adrenaline.She was ready to punch something.
“It has a ladder, sort of,” he said, peering inside.“Notches in the rock.”
Great!I’m going to break my neck.
“I’ll go first,” he said, dropping the bag beside her before turning his back to her so he could descend.
Part of her wanted to run in the opposite direction, to chase after Zal.She far preferred a Yuxmet than what lay below.
“They have blue flames that burn eternally and stones that play with people’s lives, but no magic that could whoosh us to a destination?”She stomped her foot.“I couldstranglesomeone.”
“Save that fire, honey,” he said as he located a rung at a time.
She glared at him surrounded by darkness, only his face illuminated.
He smirked.“She’s so adorable when she’s angry.”
She jerked back, torn between basking in his admiration and smacking him.“What the hell, Thorne?Why are you talking to me in third-person?”
His eyes widened then narrowed.“Back to Thorne are we?”And down he went, disappearing from view.
Panic gripped her.The night air, the chilly breeze, the vast and unknown sky surrounded her with a sudden sense of loneliness.
“Thorne!”She sprawled on the ground to stare into the hole.When he didn’t answer, she said, “Eli?”
“Better,” he said, his face appearing.
Relief coursed through, draping over her shoulders like a warm blanket.
“Are you coming?”he asked.“And bring the bag.”
And just like that, the panic was back.She clambered to her feet and looped the bag’s strap across her chest, getting it settled at the base of her spine.Then with a deep breath, she sat on the edge, dangling her feet into the abyss.
There, for a few minutes, she debated whether she should believe an old woman.Unfortunately, Zal was off, planning to meet her.He’d reacted as if what Senmut had said was fact.Nova wasn’t up to chasing after him.But worse than that was the guilt lashing her conscience for agreeing to his plan.
They’d needed a way to return.He’d offered.But what if something happened to them, would he know?Would he wait?Could he perform some sort of rescue?
“Nova, honey,” Eli said, “We can’t waste time, remember?”
And down she went, notch after notch and slower than a sloth.Thankfully, if she fell, he might cushion her fall or die beside her.
What a great comfort that thought is.
Hands grabbed her waist and yanked her off the wall.She squealed then stumbled when her feet hit the ground.
“Not funny,” she snapped.
“Whoa, someone’s hangry,” he said.“I could do with a protein bar.Do we have any left?”
He rooted through the bag, yanking it down as he dug deeper.With it still in place, she had to bend backward.But since her stomach gurgled, she wasn’t going to stop him from finding anything to eat.
He leaped away, waving a bar.“Think it’s our last.Next time Amenkar offers a meal, we take him up on it.”
