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“Batta, you did it!” Tag exclaimed. He held up the glowing blue stone between his thumb and forefinger to examine it against the moonlight.
The rumors were true!
Before Onnika’s eyes, the ghostly, luminescent blue stone subtly shifted to a lovely rich violet. It was said to be among the rarest stone in the known universe, changing color depending on the surrounding light. Tranzinite: the true treasure of this planet.
The ritual of a job well done commenced with the men slapping hands high in the air as they howled with glee.
“I knew you wouldn’t let me down,” Tag said.
This had been his real reason for coming here. With the right buyer, Tag and his crew could live as kings for the rest of their lives.
Onnika had no idea what that meant for her and Caryn. Would they be set free, or would the nature of their incarceration merely change? Knowing Tag, he’d never let them go. He enjoyed the security of their gifts too much, especially Caryn’s. Her tendency to always choose the right path had proven invaluable to him.
Case in point.
The gemstone glowed brighter still, and Onnika was drawn in for a closer look. Soft pinks melded into aqua and teal. Deep purples mingled with rustic reds. Facets in the center caught the light and refracted glittering gold specks, creating yet another color dimension. “It’s beautiful.”
Laughing, Tag tossed the Tranzinite into the air and caught it tightly in his fist before shoving it into his right pocket. “Set for life, boys. Set. For. Life.”
Caryn sidled up to Onnika. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” A shadow of pain still ghosted up her spine, but it was a sensation she’d grown accustomed to. “So tell me. Do you still not believe in your own abilities?”
Caryn was the only one who wasn’t convinced her magic guided her toward the most advantageous path. Rather, she believed her magic was based on a much simpler concept, such as luck. Any decision might work in one’s favor if luck was on one’s side. However, they’d run into quite a lot ofbadluck over the years: Tag and his merry brood, for instance.
In answer, Caryn lifted her arm and shook the torque on her wrist. “If my magic always led me in the right direction, would we be stuck with these?”
Onnika glanced down at her own set of cuffs. “Mm. Quiteunlucky, I’d say.”
One corner of Caryn’s mouth twitched. Her humor was short-lived, her mouth falling back into a frown. Caryn blamed herself for their situation, when really, Onnika was the one at fault.
Something skimmed across Onnika’s subconscious, a feather tickling the back of her mind. Her head whipped around to scan the horizon.
Noting the sudden change in her demeanor, Tag gripped her elbow and pulled her close. “Sensing something, Oni?”
Of course Tag knew the specifics of her power. He’d forced it out of her one day while threatening Caryn at knifepoint. If she hadn’t come clean, he’d have slit Caryn’s throat right in front of her. She’d known that because her magic had revealed his ruthless intentions. That was the essence of her gift: reading an individual’s truest intent. At least that was the best way she could describe it. It wasn’t like mind reading, or even seeing the future. It was sensing within a person a strong desire combined with the motivation to act on that desire.
Right now she was getting a taste of something, or someone, on the hunt...and a malignant excitement. Eyes wide, pulse pounding, her voice came out in a whisper. “They’re coming.” The paid militia, charged with guarding this land. There were many of them, all racing toward them, no doubt armed to the teeth.
Shoving her away, Tag commanded the others, “We have to move.Now!”
His urgent tone was all the prodding they needed. Everyone sprinted in the direction where they’d left their shuttles. As they footed it past boulders and crevasses, the roaring engines of land vehicles rose from behind.
“Batta,”Tag shouted, “what do we do?”
“What do you think?” Caryn yelled back. “Keep running!”
Duh, Onnika thought. What else could they do?
The grinding engines grew louder. Having fallen behind, Baker ditched his pack filled with priceless minerals and then bolted past her and the others.
“Coward,” Onnika crowed. But when the sound of gunfire echoed across the land, she and everyone else dropped their packs, too. A bullet whizzed past her head. Gasping, she lost her footing, but at the last second, she caught her balance and lurched forward, pushing her legs hard against the rocky terrain. More bullets zinged by.
She glanced over her shoulder. Two vehicles raced toward them, kicking up sand and dust in their wake. They wouldn’t be able to outrun them. “Caryn, we could use a little of that luck right about now.”
“Uh.” Caryn glanced around. “I’ve got nothing.”
