“We were betrayed by someone on our crew,” Celeste said as they reached the elevator and stepped in.
Jeth scowled. “He was never part of our crew.”
Celeste ignored the comment, still focused on their savior in red. “He’s working for Soleil Marcel.”
The woman paled, even beyond her natural fairness.
“How did you know we were trapped up here?” Jeth asked as the elevator began to move downward. He leaned against the back rail, feeling the need to steady himself.
“I didn’t. I received a message from one of Hammer’s men a few minutes ago that something was going wrong with the mission.”
Jeth blinked. How had Hammer known?
“This person who betrayed you—does he have the stone?” the woman asked, her gaze shifting from Jeth to Celeste, then back again.
“We don’t know.” Jeth glanced at his watch. More than twenty minutes had passed since he’d dropped the ruby down the pipe. That might’ve been enough time for Flynn to find it down in the sewer, but there were a lot of environmental variables at play.
“You have to get it back.” A tremor echoed in the woman’s tone.
“No we don’t,” Jeth said. “It was a fake.”
Her eyes seemed to flash as she glared at him. “Foolish boy. It’s not a fake. It’s just not a ruby. There is no name for what it is.”
Jeth frowned, unsure if this was good news or bad. Bad, he decided, because if she knew the stone wasn’t really a ruby, Hammer likely did, too. Which meant he would still want it. “We’ll do our best to find it.”
The woman exhaled, and her hands shook as she smoothed the front of her gown. Jeth tried to feel sorry for her but couldn’t quite manage it. She was a traitor, after all, same as Danforth.
The elevator arrived at the ground floor, and she led the way out, taking them down several hallways before stopping in front of a closed door. “This will lead you out to the eastern wing. Can you find the rest of the way on your own?”
Celeste nodded, adjusting the front of her uniform in an attempt to disguise the damage.
“Good luck.” The woman turned and headed back the way they had come.
Celeste opened the door and stepped out into a large hallway bursting with activity. A chaotic parade of servants swept past them, most carrying trays lined with desserts. Celeste dove through them, not caring about the dirty looks and curses tossed at her. Jeth followed, wincing at how much attention they were drawing. Any one of these people might get suspicious about what they were up to. Still, they didn’t have time for the usual charade they would’ve employed in this situation.
In moments they were through another door and stepping out into a courtyard. Celeste headed right down a narrow walkway that dumped them out on an open lawn, the manicured grass more dark blue than green in the moonlight.
Jeth was so turned around he had little sense of where they were or if they were heading in the right direction, but Celeste grabbed his hand and pulled him forward, confident of their path. He fell into place beside her, wishing they could make a run for it. But that might draw more attention, this time from security. As it was, he wasn’t sure if the cursory handholding would be enough to convince an observer that they were just two teenagers looking for a cozy make-out spot. Jeth tried to put a little swagger into his gait, playing it up. He was the noble in this situation, after all, and Celeste the lowly servant.
The ruse must’ve worked, since no one had sounded the alarm by the time they arrived at a copse of trees growing up along one wall of the palace. Jeth knew the sewer entrance was hidden just beyond. He blinked as he stepped into the shadows of the trees, struggling to see in the darkness. He spotted Shady and Flynn lying motionless side by side in the grass next to the sewer entrance. Danforth and his band of traitors had come and gone.
Jeth knelt beside Shady, determining at once that he wasn’t dead, just unconscious. Relief rushed through him as Celeste confirmed the same about Flynn.
“Wake up, Shady.” Jeth shook him so hard his head bobbed back and forth. He kept at it for several minutes while Celeste worked on reviving Flynn. Once stunned, a person could remain unconscious for an hour or more if left alone. But increasing the flow of blood to the brain could speed up the recovery process.
Finally, Shady let out a groan and opened his eyes. He spotted Jeth and made a face. “What happened?”
“Think you can stand?” Jeth rose to his feet and held out a hand.
Shady pulled himself up, limbs shaking. He clutched his temple and moaned. Waking up early from a stunner left one groggy and with a wicked headache. “Somebody hit me from behind.”
“That would be Danforth.”
Shady gaped. “You’re kidding.” His look of disbelief turned murderous as he realized that Danforth must have made off with the Heart of the Universe. “I’m going to kill him.”
“Take a number.” Jeth turned to help Celeste with Flynn. He’d probably been stunned after Shady, and with his lower body weight, the effects would last longer. Jeth wrinkled his nose at the stench coming off Flynn’s bio-suit. He’d been down in the sewer, all right.
They kept at it, while Jeth filled Shady in about what had happened with Danforth.
“So, what do we do now, Boss?” Shady asked. Flynn was still unconscious, but he’d made a couple of noises, a sign he was coming around.
“We’ve got to get back to the truck, see if Lizzie’s there. Then we’ve got to figure out where Danforth’s headed.” Jeth fixed his gaze on Shady. “Think you can get Flynn awake while Celeste and I move out?”