A bead of sweat rolled down my chin and dripped into the sand. My heart beat wildly, unnerved by the tune thrumming across my nerve endings.
With careful fingers, I removed an ornate hair comb and held it up in the flickering torchlight. A scalloped seashell sat nestled among an intricate bed of shining pearls and gold coral filigree. At the back, a glittering fan of rough-cut amethyst stones was bound to a silver comb.
Treasure rooms often held multiple artifacts, but nothing in our research had mentioned a jeweled hairpiece. The find was unexpected. It felt distinctly out of place, as if it belonged in the crown of a mermaid, not buried in a cave in the heart of the jungle.
I couldn’t tear my gaze away. There was something about it. The comb was delicate, but it felt heavy with concealed enchantment. I ached with the urge to reach back and place it in my hair.
“What did you find?” Gavin’s question startled me from my trance.
I dropped the comb into the sand as if it had burned my skin. The music ceased, leaving me hollow and trembling.
“A jeweled hairpiece.” I curled my fingers into my belt to keep from reaching for it again. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it? Like it came from the sea.”
He brushed his thumb over the seashell. “You should take it. The piece suits you.”
An odd rush of longing flowed through my veins, but I forced myself to look away. “You know my rules.”
Gavin studied me for a moment, then nodded. “You never take more than what you came for, and you always give something back.”
“You anger the treasure gods at your own risk.” Breaking through the last of my daze, I bumped his shoulder and playfully drew an X in the sand near the comb.
He shook his head, his tone teasing, but there was a warmth I could almost mistake for admiration. “You’re the only thief I know with morals. No one else would think twice.”
I delved into the satchel at my waist to find the piece of sea glass I always carried. It was a small token, collected from the beach in front of my abandoned home. My father used to say sea glass held magical powers. An object not born of the sea, but changed by it, shaped, smoothed, and transformed by forces beyond its control.
And I believed him.
For as long as I can remember, I've had an affinity for the pale-colored glass. Whenever I touched it, I felt something stir like a current moving just below the surface. As if the sea's magic lived inside, and it was simply waiting. That energy brought me balance. A sense of peace.
The day we’d left our home, my father had placed a pile of sea glass on the stone steps, a quiet offering in the face of what we'd lost. I didn't understand it at the time, but the memory stayed with me.
Now, I leave sea glass in the place of each treasure, whispering the ocean's blessing he taught me. I like to think I'm giving back a little of the magic I take.
“It’s important to respect the trade,” I said softly. “I believe it’s what separates us from the vultures. I never want to lose sight of that. Besides—” I cocked my head and usedhis shirtsleeve to brush the last bit of sand from my fingers. “I’m not a thief. I leave that designation to you. You’re the expert.”
“True,” he said with a wry smile. “I amexceedinglyskilled, in more ways than one.” He captured my hand, running calloused fingers over my knuckles, and tugged me closer. “But there are a few things I haven’t been able to steal.”
I let out a mocking gasp, the sound shallower than I'd intended. “Maybe you aren’t as skilled as you think. Maybe you lack what it takes. Maybe—”
His head dipped, our temples brushing as his voice lowered to a hushed whisper. “Maybe you’re as blind as those bats you’re so scared of.”
I swallowed hard. My teasing response died in my throat.
“Um, guys! We have a problem,” Cass’s anxious shout echoed through the chamber. I tore my hand from Gavin’s before I had to look too closely at the way my heart was thudding inside my chest.
“What happened?” Bowen asked as he secured the treasure chest in his pack and stepped off the altar.
“They happened.” Cass jabbed her thumb toward the hole we’d crawled through, the one connecting the treasure chamber to the rest of the cave. “It’s the band of marauders we dodged earlier. They caught up and found the tunnel.” Cass twirled the end of her ponytail around her finger and cast an innocent gaze to the ceiling. “Probably because I was the last one up and, uh… forgot to untie the rope on the rock slab. Dead giveaway. But let’s not dwell or assign blame for things we can’t change.”
Reid folded his arms across his chest and muttered, “And you guys thinkI’mthe weak link in the group. That honor belongs to the plant princess over there.”
Cass snarled. “Anyway. They know we’re here. One of them flashed a light through the tunnel. And I heard them talking. What do we do? We can’t go back that way.”
Bowen slung his pack over his shoulders and peered into the tunnel. He cursed under his breath. “No, we can’t. But they won’t come through either. It's too narrow to strike an offense. Whichever side goes through first would be at a disadvantage.”
“So we’re stuck.” Reid pulled the spectacles from his face and nervously wiped the lenses on the hem of his shirt. “They can wait us out for as long as they want, days, even.”
“You mean let us starve to death?” Cass asked.
