Page 39 of Through Uncharted Space
Dare sucked in a breath. It was a perfect star map, some parts of it familiar to him, and along it was an orange glowing line leading the way to the golden planet where the Atocha Treasure rested.
The man’s face lit up. “You’ve done it. Here is the map to the treasure of the Atocha. It does no good lost beneath the waves, where no one can see it. Captain Fisher was crazy and wrong to hide it away. But be warned…many of the crew believe it was the treasure that sent the captain crazy. That the treasure is cursed.” A faint smile. “So, what are you waiting for? Go find it.”
The recording flickered and blinked off. Dakota unclicked the orb and slipped the chain back over her head.
Meela looked at them. “Did you find what you needed?”
Dakota nodded with a wide smile. “Absolutely. This was so much more than I’d hoped for. Thank you.”
Meela’s brows drew together. “You plan to find this cursed treasure?”
“I don’t believe in curses,” Dakota said.
The librarian’s troubled gaze moved to Dare. “Sometimes, going after things that glitter and promise so much pleasure isn’t always the right thing to do. Sometimes the greatest treasures can be found in the small things.”
Dakota made a sound. “Tell that to my empty e-cred account.”
Meela shook her head and smiled again. “Come, Vero instructed me to show you to his vacation home. Darkness is falling, and it is too late for you to return to the city. He assured me that the house is clean, and well stocked.” The older woman grimaced. “Thankfully, he doesn’t choose to visit it much.”
As they exited the library, Dare and Dakota stopped to take in the beautiful vista below. Night was shrouding the city in shadows. Lights had flickered on, in colors of blue, green, and white. It was gorgeous.
Meela led them down a narrow street, and it wasn’t long before she stopped in front of a three-story home. It was made from the same ubiquitous white stone, and covered in white latticework that was entwined with plants. It had lovely wooden doors that were carved in a floral pattern.
She unlocked the door and waved them inside. “There you go. Thank you for visiting, and I hope you enjoy your stay on Sulla, despite the less-savory side to our world.”
Dare watched as Dakota grabbed the woman’s hands. Interesting. He knew she wasn’t one who touched a stranger easily.
“I hope things change. That they get better for you.”
Meela’s smile looked tired. “I pray you are right. Goodbye.”
She left them, and Dare and Dakota moved through the open-plan home. The living area was beautifully appointed, with large glass windows giving stunning views of the city below.
“I need to contact the Nomad,” Dare said.
She nodded, and wandered closer to the windows, running her fingers over the backs of the plush chairs in the room.
He touched his ear. “Rynan, are you there?” His earpiece would relay through the shuttle’s systems.
“Dare, how’s the trip? Everything okay?”
His brother’s deep voice made him smile. “Fine. Look, we need to stay the night. We headed out of Sion to a secondary library…and we found the information we were after.”
“Good on the info, bad on the fact you have to stay on that planet longer.”
“I know. But we’ll be out of here first thing in the morning. Any luck finding whoever the hell sabotaged our engine?”
Ry made a growling sound. “No. We managed to get a grainy image off a security cam, but there’s no way to identify whoever the bastard was.”
Dare hated knowing the saboteur was somewhere aboard his ship. “Okay, well, keep your eye out. Dakota and I will be back in the morning with the part and our destination.”
“Is it going to take us far off the convoy route? Do we need to meet with the other ship captains?”
“It doesn’t look like it’s too far off. We’ll assess when I get back. It’s in the convoy contract that we may need to adjust our route, so if we do, I’ll talk with them.”
“All right. See you in the morning.”
Dare looked back at Dakota. “We should get to bed and get some rest. We’ll need to leave first thing in the morning. The quicker we get out of here, the better.”
