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t at spot off limits?
Ayep. Tenack chugalugged his whisky before loudly smacking his lips. He set his glass on the bar
and motioned for another.
Swill licked his own lips, winced, then glared at Tenack. W y are we digging t ere? Besides to
break a rule.
Perhaps Swill was smarter than Gemini had given him credit for. There was a reason behind where
the digging would be, but not one he intended to reveal. It s a good place to start, is all. This will
be your first bit of trouble. Don t worry, there will be plenty more to come. Big trouble.
W at are you going to be doing? W ile Tenny and I get into trouble? Causing some of your own?
Swill took another sip of the liquid in his glass. Even that made him wince. Did he eat through a
straw? Might be the only way to get past his wounded lips.
Gemini grinned over his glass. Getting on Zelda s good side.
* * * * *
Amory rubbed the sweat from his face. Even with the chill always present in the mine, the exertion
made him stay hot. Unless he was trying to sleep on his tiny bunk. Then, the chill would rattle into
his bones.
How many heartstones had he found the last two weeks? Plenty. How many had glowed for him?
Not a one. Several had been claimed by other people. Once, he d had a man walk by as he d
excavated, and the stone had glowed. Amory had thought it must be his. Until the man walking had
rounded the corner, and the light had gone out. Amory had yelled for the man to come back, he had,
and the glow had returned. If only that had been his. Not someone else s to claim.
Everyone digging shared heartstones with everyone else. They all had hopes of finding their own.
The little space he d been given to dig in was tiny. The dirty bunk he d been given to sleep in had
hardly enough room for him to turn over. He d spent almost all his platinum on this one bid to find
his heartstone. If he didn t find it, he had no idea what he d do.
Zelda and Bren would stop him from digging the instant he ran out of platinum. So unfair was the
heartstone trade. Took platinum and luck to find one s heartstone. And sometimes, the two didn t
coincide.
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He had started to think maybe he wouldn t find it here.
In which case, he was fucked. Instead of being fucked.
Amory? A deep, throaty voice called his attention.
Prickles ran down his neck, as though something poked him.
Zelda.
Her voice did something to his insides. And he didn t like it one bit. She wasn t Tania; he shouldn t
be reacting to her this way. What? His uncontrolled reactions to both Zelda and Bren had him
acting snappishly to them both. He needed to get control and stop his actions. Now rather than later.
You have a call on the space com. I intercepted it for you when I heard the message come through.
Zelda quirked a brow at him as if challenging him to say more. Your father.
Amory looked down at his grimy hands to avoid meeting her eyes. Dust from the rock covered him
with a coat of grit. He had two fathers. As his mother was mated to two blond men, his genetics had
never been clarified. They must be checking to see how his search was going. Both of his remaining
parents knew what a heartstone and lack of one meant. They d tried to help him as much as they
were able to. Thank you. I d like to take it.
He lifted his head to meet her gaze. She hadn t had to bring him the message herself. He d noticed
since his arrival, he had received more personal attention than anyone else at the mine. Most dealt
with underlings, not directly with Bren or Zelda, although Zelda was much more involved in the
mine than most owners usually were. She held the mine in a tight grip.
Perhaps his fathers could raise his flagging spirits. The ones that told him he was never going to
find what he sought. The ones that told him his platinum would run out before the Fates ever granted
him what he needed.
Zelda held up a hand. You can t answer like that. She shook her head. Come on. You need to
clean up first and then answer the com.
But& He didn t want them to wait on him.
They ll wait. I told them you were busy digging. She took several steps before turning and
motioning for him to follow.
His mouth closed before he turned her way. Refused to let his eyes get drawn in by the sway of her
hips. How did you know that s where I was?
Because that s where you always are. Your quarters are on this wing? I can send the com into
them. You can take the call there.
He nodded.
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