“Of course there is.” Jaden muttered as he led the way, Vicken following.
The short passage leading to another door was cold. Jaden wondered what other mechanisms Sven had hidden to make it so and what those mechanisms would’ve done had they still been active. Even though Sven didn’t like cages, he’d done a stellar job creating this one.
Steel reinforced the door at the end of the passageway. Jaden reached out to search for a hidden handle, but the door slid open. There must be a sensor in the panel, Jaden thought. He and Vicken remained on the threshold, inspecting the room.
Inside, an antechamber allowed visitors access to a small lounge area. On the far side, a sheet of glass—or some other transparent material—separated the antechamber from Tarise’s room. No attacking unsuspecting people entering her quarters. Sven really thought of everything.
Relieved to find Tarise curled up on her bed and facing the opposite direction, Jaden took advantage of her inattentiveness and studied the room. He couldn’t find a way into it. That didn’t mean there wasn’t one. Sven had to have put Tarise into the chamber somehow. A quick glance told Jaden Sven had crafted the room to provide comfort without sacrificing security.
He guessed Sven had made the soft furnishings of materials that could only be severed with a knife—if that. He had welded the furniture to the floor, so Tarise couldn’t loosen any bolts and use them or the furniture as tools. The bathroom in the background had a metal sheet for a mirror. And Sven had molded the fixtures as part of the room itself. It was a veritable fortress.
Glancing at Vicken, Jaden noticed the man’s appreciation as he reached the same conclusion. Catching Jaden’s stare, Vicken said, “Shall we?”
Chapter Twenty-Five
There had to be an intercom transmitting sound from the antechamber into Tarise’s room because the moment Vicken spoke Tarise abruptly sat up and turned to face them. Hurriedly, Jaden stepped back into the passage. Ensuring he hid his mouth behind Vicken’s body, he whispered so he would not convey the words to Tarise either by sound or lip reading. “Before we do, know Tarise is a genius. Don’t underestimate her.”
“Understood,” Vicken murmured. “Anything else?”
The threat lurking in his eyes almost had Jaden feeling sorry for Tarise. Almost. Then he remembered Kayla so lifeless on that ice, and the thought of Tarise going up against Vicken was gratifying. “Nope. Take it away, boss.”
They marched into the room. Jaden averted his eyes so Tarise couldn’t make eye contact. It didn’t mean he couldn’t feel her tracking him into the room. When he reached the glass wall, he stopped and stared at her. Tarise’s face was sullen, her body language belligerent. Jaden’s blood heated.
Noticing Jaden was finally paying attention, Tarise sneered. “You’re welcome.”
Jaden’s blood heated several more degrees. How dare she? “Weren’t you the one who put her there in the first place?”
Tarise’s eyes were calculating. Jaden was relieved Vicken was here. He had so much more experience with this kind of thing. Not wanting to sabotage whatever Vicken planned, Jaden stayed quiet, shaping his face into a bored expression. If she thinks she’ll get any attention from me, she’s mistaken.
His apparent disinterest had the desired effect. Anger flashed in Tarise’s eyes. “I thought you’d be grateful I brought your precious Kayla back to you. I shouldn’t have bothered. It seems you don’t care for her as much as I thought you did.”
The outright lie had Jaden fighting for self-control. That, and Tarise was baiting him. She knew his tendency toward losing his temper. She didn’t know Kayla was helping him master it. And he would make Kayla proud. Sweet, precious, Kayla. Hardening his resolve, Jaden worked at maintaining his bored expression. To sell it further, he faked a yawn. “Vicken, do you have anything for her? I’ve seen enough.”
Vicken grinned. “Yes, no point wasting time here. Let’s go.”
Jaden was so astounded by the grin he almost lost his tenuous control. Forcing the energy that would’ve given him away into walking back to the entryway, he heard Vicken following.
They were almost to the door before Tarise said, “Wait.”
Jaden kept right on walking. If they were to succeed at selling this to someone as intelligent as Tarise, they would have to make it believable. When Vicken’s footsteps didn’t falter either, Jaden knew he’d played the hand as he should’ve.
“Please!”
This time, Jaden heard Vicken stop. “What do you want? There’s nothing you could say that would help at this point.”
His voice was colder than the ice they had found Kayla on. It cut the air, a knife intended to cleave whatever arrogance Tarise still possessed. It worked. Jaden heard the sob, even though his continued footsteps had taken him almost to the exit.
“Jaden, please! I realized I shouldn’t have allowed Zubiaba to take her. I tried to help her. After she fell through the gate, I went after her with a Gaptor. But I couldn’t find her. Please, let me help.”
That she hadn’t said sorry or apologized was uppermost in Jaden’s mind. She had no remorse. She only wanted Jaden’s attention. Reminding himself he couldn’t trust her, Jaden allowed a pause before he turned. “Do you honestly think I believe you? After what you did, I doubt you’ll ever have any of our group’s trust again. Not for a long time—a very, very, very long time.”
It was the straw that broke the camel’s back. As though she couldn’t bear to hear the disgust in his voice or see the condemnation in his eyes, her hands covered her ears, and she closed her eyes as the sobs heaved out of her.
“Enough of that,” Vicken spat. “If you have something to say, say it. Or we’re out of here.”
With an audible, ragged inhale and between sobs, Tarise blubbered, “I can tell you where you’re supposed to go.”
Jaden froze. Of all the things she could’ve said, this was unexpected. Allowing himself a moment to school his face back to a neutral expression, he feigned disinterest. He leaned against the back wall, crossing his legs and folding his arms. “Is that a fact? And where should we be going?”
Tarise sniffled. “You’re supposed to find the last artifact, right?”
Jaden didn’t acknowledge that. The less she knew about their planned movements, the better.
Defeated, Tarise waved a hand in the air, her head drooping. “Okay, I know you have to. But you need a general location before you can find it, right?”
Somehow, Jaden swung himself off the wall and towards the door. He tossed the words over his shoulder. “If you’re just going to ask questions and speculate, we’re done.”
“No, no, please!”
The shriek was desperate enough. Jaden faced her, his expression unyielding. “You have two minutes to convince us to stay.”
Tarise looked undecided, as though she wasn’t sure whether she should remind them she had “saved” Kayla or whether she should give up her only leverage. When she imploded on herself, her body shrinking, Jaden knew which way she had decided.
“Fine, you win. You’re looking for some place with tons of volcanoes. Zubiaba referred to them as ‘The Fire Lands,’ but I worked out what we call it.” She took a quick look at Jaden’s face to gauge his reaction. Finding no mercy, she huffed, “Terratalunga.”
Jaden turned to pace, the only way he could hide his shock. It can’t be that simple, can it? Dipping his head, he hoped it would hide his relief that she had divulged the information. He marched back and forth several times as though considering her words, all the while composing himself.
When enough time had passed that Tarise would think he believed her, Jaden faced her. “When did you hear him talking about this?”
Tarise looked startled. She hadn’t expected the question. Her eyes darted around the room as though searching for an answer. Jaden tensed. What lie is she going to tell now?
“It was right before I left. He was in the comm room, speaking to one of his minions here in our world. I’ve never see
n him that angry. He was ranting about the medallions being taken. Saying you should never have been able to find them.”
She paused. Was she trying to remember or stalling so she could fabricate more tales?
“There was a lot of cursing and yelling. All of it directed at the idiots who’d been unable to keep the medallions safe. Then he said something like, while you may have recovered the medallions, you hadn’t yet worked out where the Fire Lands were.”
Jaden’s skin itched with all the lies she’d just told. How had Slurpy been able to talk to his minion if Jaden’s team had destroyed all the Gaptors in that nest? Sure, Zareh’s device might not have registered a lone Gaptor or two as a nest, but was that feasible? Then there was the part about the Fire Lands. If she had heard that right before she left, how had she been able to work out it was Terratalunga between then and now? Time to turn up the heat.
Jaden’s face was implacable. “How is it you can now spill Slurpy’s secrets without that brand on your hand burning a hole through you?”
Although she tried to hide it, that tiny quirk of her lips gave her away. That minuscule smirk that showed she thought she was superior. It had always warned Jaden when she thought she was pulling one over on the rest of them. A sure sign he couldn’t trust whatever words came out of her mouth next.
Tarise waved an airy hand meant to encompass her prison. “Don’t you know? In here, I can get away with anything. Sven designed the space so well, I don’t think even Zubiaba can reach me in here.”
While the explanation was plausible, Jaden listened to that inner voice that had sounded alarm bells. True, Sven was a genius in his own right. But those little warning signs spoke to Tarise having an alternate answer. One she didn’t want them knowing. Like she was here on his bidding, pretending to give them information. Or for some other dark purpose.
Satisfied with his own answer, Jaden shrugged nonchalantly. “If you say so.” Keeping his expression neutral, Jaden watched her like a hawk. The little nibble on her lip gave him his answer. She wasn’t sure whether he believed her.
Jaden was so focused on Tarise he’d forgotten Vicken was there until he spoke.
“You’ve had your two minutes. We’re done here.”
So saying, Vicken marched to the door. As if by magic, the door slid aside, allowing them to exit. Jaden followed Vicken without a word or backward glance. Sven must’ve been watching them. Jaden hoped he’d recorded the meeting. It would allow Jaden to further analyze Tarise’s actions.
Only when they were back in Sven’s workshop, sealed off from Tarise and away from her too-keen eyes did Jaden allow himself to relax.
Vicken put a hand on his shoulder. “I’m impressed. You did well in there. I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again: if you’re ever looking for a job, come see me first.”
Jaden grimaced. “You don’t know how difficult that was for me.”
“Difficult or not, you pulled it off. Even I believed you wanted her to become a worm in the woodwork, fading into obscurity.”
“What happened to you taking the lead?” Jaden croaked.
“You had the background with her to rile her up, which you did. After that, I thought I would let things play out. Seems it was a great choice. Because you’ve known her for so long, you read her like a book. I wonder if she’s even aware of those micro-expressions of hers.”
Jaden ran a weary hand over his face. Of course Vicken had noticed. But that only made his question more pressing. “If we had her where we wanted her, then why did we leave when we did?”
“She needs to stew on her uncertainty about whether you believed her. It will make her more desperate. Desperation leads people to say and do things they ordinarily wouldn’t.”
“And you think that might make her give up something else that’s valuable?”
“What I know is Kayla told us not to trust her. I intend to take that advice. If you and the crew go to Terratalunga, I’ll be going ahead of you to clear the way. Just in case Tarise has some other dastardly plan on the back burner.”
Vicken’s face was grim, and the set of his shoulders told Jaden he wouldn’t convince the man otherwise. “In that case, thank you. I’ll feel safer knowing someone with your experience has gone ahead of us.”
Vicken’s smile was pure evil. Jaden shuddered to think what would happen to anyone—or anything—that got in his way.
“Sure. Where else can I put my skills to such excellent use?”
The glee in his voice only reinforced Jaden’s opinion of the man and his gratitude that Vicken was playing for their team. Repressing thoughts of Vicken’s abilities, Jaden said, “Time to study a map, then, and set things in motion. Somehow we have to find the real place we’re supposed to be going to. Ruling Terratalunga out if it’s a trap is a start.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Kayla didn’t want to, but it was time. For the last few minutes, she’d been enjoying the warmth and comfort of this bed. But now the weight, someone leaning on the bed, pressed into her again. Not that the person was heavy. It was that her leg wasn’t hurting anymore.
Opening her eyes, Kayla found Jaden’s head lolling against her leg. His mouth was half-open, his eyes closed under the strands of hair that had fallen over them and his handsome face relaxed in sleep. It only made the black rings under his eyes more pronounced. Had he not been sleeping? What had he been doing while she’d been gone?
Unable to resist, Kayla reached out and smoothed that dark blonde lock of hair away from his face. As if her touch was electric, Jaden’s eyes snapped open. Those wonderfully deep blue eyes stared back at her, endless pools with their dark rims and dark centers. She had missed them. And that mouth, curving into a slow smile.
“Kiss me,” Kayla breathed.
Jaden’s astonishment was absurd, and Kayla laughed, but the sound died as she saw his gaze fly to the other side of her bed—and her parents. Awake and watching her. Heat suffused her face as color stained her cheeks.
“At least we know you’re okay,” her dad said dryly.
Even her mortification couldn’t dampen her sheer joy. Kayla’s grin was irrepressible. “Hi, Dad, Mom.” She lifted her arms toward them and it didn’t surprise her when her mother rushed in and embraced her. “It’s wonderful to be home again.” Over her mother’s head, she saw her father’s face. “What’s wrong?”
Her father shook his head, then wrapped his arms around Kayla and her mom. Kayla didn’t rush the hug. She wanted to feel every minute. Bask in this bliss of being loved. All so she could remember this moment and be thankful for it. Treasure it in her heart and hold it close as a reminder the next time she stepped into danger. Because this, their mission, wasn’t over. She had glimpsed it on Jaden’s face in the split second he let it slip, then again on her father’s face before he held her and her mom.
Kayla turned her head when Jaden moved off the bed. He situated himself a respectable distance from it. Then he stood there, watching them, first scrubbing his hands over his face, then running them over his arms before looking like he wanted to pace. Kayla smiled, and his fidgeting ceased.
The way he stared at her told her he still didn’t truly believe she was there. A moment later, Jaden’s face split into a smile. That wonderful, gorgeous smile that made her bones melt.
As if her parents sensed her attention had wandered, they drew back. Kayla directed her eyes to them. “Dad, are you going to tell me what’s burning through your mind?”
Sadie scowled at Vicken and smacked his arm. “I told you not to let her worry.”
Vicken just smiled back at her. “With you as her mother, do you think anything escapes Kayla?”
Sadie gave Vicken an incredulous stare—then chuckled. “No, I suppose not. Sweetheart, before your father drops his news, how are you feeling?”
“Considering I haven’t thought about that since I opened my eyes, I suppose I must be fine. Nothing in my body is screaming for attention. Nothing’s hurting.” Kayla glanced at
her arm and put a hand under the sheet as she explored her leg. “Huh, it’s healed. I’m guessing Atu worked his magic on me?”
Since she had directed the question toward Jaden, he answered. “You bet he did.”
As if speaking his name had conjured him, Atu appeared in the doorway. “I thought I heard your voice. How are you feeling?”
Kayla beamed. “For the second time, just fine. And I’m sure that’s thanks to you.”
Atu dipped his head.
“Really, thank you! Come here, so I can give you a hug,” Kayla ordered.
Tossing Jaden an impish grin, Atu did as she’d asked. When Kayla had dispensed the hug, Atu stepped back. He glanced at Jaden, the smile still playing on his lips. “Now that Jaden is about to eat me alive, how about I make a run for it and get the others so you only have to tell your story once?”
Kayla chuckled, then sobered. “Before you do, how bad were my injuries?”
“Not as bad as they could’ve been.” Atu glanced at her, his eyes holding questions. “Few people survive a ‘pod crash. How did you manage that?”
Kayla frowned, trying to remember. Then it all came rushing back. “I think I almost didn’t. When I regained consciousness after the crash—” Her eyes suddenly widened, and her hand flew to her neck. “My medallion! I lost it! I think Slurpy took it.”
Jaden’s hands reached Kayla before Atu’s could. “It’s alright. We’ll get it back. Atu will tell you not to stress about things.”
Atu rushed to reinforce his statement. “I shouldn’t have to tell you how to take care of yourself after the trauma you suffered. You know what you should be doing. And Jaden’s right. If you allow yourself to get stressed, it will cause problems. And how will Taz feel when I tell her you’re sabotaging your healing?”
Kayla couldn’t believe she hadn’t thought to ask about her glider. Then again, in her defense, she hadn’t been awake that long. Kayla moved again to sit up. “Where is she? Can I see her?”
Jaden put out a hand and eased her back onto her pillows again. “You can see her if you behave. The sooner you get your rest, the sooner you can see her.”
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