“Yes.”
That one word held no inflection.
“That bad, huh?”
She shot him a look. “The admiral was thrilled to find out the Constitution revered throughout the galaxy is a fake.” She let out a long breath. “That’s why I came in here looking to get drunk.”
“No transfer?”
“No, no transfer, Justyn. I’ll be lucky to get another promotion.” A thin smile. “Looks like the edge’ll be my home for a long, long while. My dad will be thrilled.”
Yep, Justyn hated those damned shadows. And damned if he wouldn’t do anything to make them go away. He stroked his thumb along her jaw. “You think the real document is still out there?”
“I doubt it. It’s been thousands of years since it left Earth.”
For a brilliant, vibrant second, Justyn imagined it—the Constitution, lying somewhere, waiting for some adventurous soul to discover its resting place.
He gripped her shoulders. “Let’s find it.”
“Find what?”
“The US Constitution.”
Her mouth dropped open. “Are you crazy?”
“No. Come on, Nissa. It’s out there somewhere.”
She shook her head. “No, the odds are itisn’t. It’s probably dust.”
“Don’t you want to make sure? Imagine if we actually found it.”
She paused, and he could see her thinking. He didn’t want this woman to get a transfer and leave the edge. But…well, a larger part of him just wanted to see her happy.
Besides, if he lured her on a treasure hunt, they’d get to spend a hell of a lot of time together. He’d get a chance to convince her to take a chance on him.
She ran a hand over her head. “This is the most lunatic idea I’ve ever heard.”
Justyn shrugged. “I don’t know, I’ve come up with some crazy schemes before.” He smiled. “And most of those actually paid off.”
A reluctant smile. “I’ll bet.”
“Except for this one time…there was this Gaian dancer, a lastite explosive, and a bar fight.” He shot her a wicked grin and pointed to his forehead. “That’s how I got my scar.”
“Do you take anything seriously?” She shook her head. “You can’t expect me to drop everything and go gallivanting around the galaxy.”
“Come on, Nissa. Take a chance. I happen to know the galaxy’s best treasure hunter, and his treasure-hunter brothers, and his astro-archeologist wife. They’ll help us.”
Nissa looked torn, then her face turned serious. It was what Justyn called her “captain” face.
“I have a job. I have duties and?—”
“Responsibilities. I know.” Disappointment was a bitter taste in his mouth, but then an idea sparked. He gave a careless shrug. “Well, I’m going after it.” He started to turn away. “Make sure you get your CMO to take care of those ribs for you.”
“Wait!” She grabbed his arm and yanked him back around. “What do you mean you’re going after it?”
“I enjoyed our mission to Alchemia. I think treasure hunting is kind of fun. And if I find the Constitution, it’ll be very, very lucrative.” He raised a brow. “More so than say…smuggling. If I was inclined to smuggle.”
A crease appeared between her brows. “You’d give up a priceless artifact for just the finder’s fee?”
