by C. Litka
02
And a round after our arrival in Chasm Lake I watched KaRaya and her blue-eyed gambler wander down the strand towards the barge from the engine room door. We still had to land near the old smoke house, a good walk from the bustling Chasm Lake Street, since the stand remained clogged with abandoned barges. They pulled up alongside and KaRaya introduced me to her "friend", DeVere.
I jumped down and wiped the charcoal dust off my hand with a rag and grasped his forearm in greeting.
'Nice to meet you,' I said, and undeterred by KaRaya's dark glare, added, 'Going prospecting, are you? Last time we were here, we heard whispers of a big strike over on the Horn Mountain side. With most of the prospectors already digging in Lormia Flats, it might be a canny move to try the other side.'
He laughed politely. 'I think, Chief, there's gold to be found just about everywhere, if you know where to look.'
'Aye, I suspect you're right. If you play your cards right.'
'Wilitang, you're steering close to the rocks,' KaRaya muttered darkly.
'Oh, I'm just enjoying my new role.'
'You won't be for long, Chief, if you keep that course.'
I shrugged, and turned back to DeVere. 'Raya and I have a partnership of sorts. Nothing romantic, but we look after each other. I'm afraid that I'm part of the deal - whether she likes it or not.'
He smiled and nodded, 'She mentioned that. And you needn't worry. I like girls and I go out of my way not to hurt them. I want to live to a ripe old age.'
'Right,' I said, and bit back a remark about how I didn't think that wanting to live to a ripe old age and being a gambler in a gold-boom town was exactly compatible. KaRaya gave me one last dark look, and they hopped down to the strand and set out for Chasm Lake. I watched them in the twilight and shook my head. Still any thought of mine would be the pot calling the kettle black.