Page 48 of Jace

“Once we assess the risks,” Jace said, looking from her to the baby and back again.

“By the time he’s old enough, we’ll know this place like the back of our hand,” she said. “And besides, I guess there won’t be any trees here for predators to hide in by then.”

She frowned as she looked around and he wondered if she felt as he did, troubled by the idea of removing so much life.

“What’s this?” she asked eagerly, crouching to study a tiny stone protruding from the soil next to a tree trunk.

“Looks like a fungus,” he said. “Those can be toxic, don’t touch it.”

“It looks almost like a pearl truffle,” she said, her voice soft with wonder. “Look at the color of it.”

He came closer and crouched beside her to examine it.

“I’m going to dig it out with a stick,” she decided. “If we can get a signal out here, we’ll have it analyzed when we get back, just in case.”

“Didn’t someone just auction one of those for some obscene amount of credits?” Jace asked, remembering something he’d seen in the feeds.

“Yes,” she said, smiling at him. “I read it in the feeds, and there was a holo-image, that’s why I noticed this.”

“Well, I doubt it’s a pearl truffle, but we can bring it back for analysis anyway,” he told her. “If it’s not toxic, it might be delicious. Just don’t touch it.”

She grabbed a stick from the ground and gently dug the dirt from around the little fungus. It was lumpy and golden beige in color.

He pulled an empty cell from his pack and turned it inside out to lift the thing out of its hole. He turned it right side out again and sealed it without touching it.

“I’ll put it in the pack,” he told her.

“Our little mystery,” she said, winking at him.

He was glad that she was happy. She seemed to have a positive outlook on everything except herself.

Why would she think bad things happen to those who care for her?

But he knew these insecurities didn’t really need to be based on anything. Time would show her the truth.

Nothing would dare harm her, as long as he drew breath.

18

Susannah

Susannah followed Jace toward the sunlight. They had been exploring all morning, and he had mentioned bringing supplies for lunch.

Her belly was grumbling, but her feet felt great. The new boots were doing their job, protecting her from the uneven terrain and keeping her comfortable at the same time.

“Lunchtime,” Jace announced as they stepped out into a clearing.

It looked like something from a children’s holo-vid to Susannah. There was lush blue-green grass, nearly knee-high, dotted with tiny pink flowers. On the far side of the meadow, sunlight glinted off the exposed glass and metal of a saucer-type craft that had clearly wrecked here many years before. Waxy green vines with glorious orange blossoms exploded out of the cracks and openings in the ship, making the whole thing look like a strange bouquet.

“That craft probably took out the older trees in this area,” Jace pointed out. “It must have spun in on the landing.”

Susannah nodded, wishing no one had needed to die to make this pretty clearing.

“Let’s sit on the rock,” Jace suggested, pointing to a huge mass of granite-like stone that was mostly smooth on top. “We don’t know what’s in the grass. I’ll carry you.”

Her heart pounded like a bass drum, but she allowed him to lift her in his arms and carry her and Zeke effortlessly to the stone.

“Here we are,” he said, setting her down and then leaping up to join her.

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