Chapter Ten

VEN

I closed my eyes, shutting out the view of the cargo hold. With my vision cut off, I could smell a faint stuffy odor. The shuttle had taken a long space flight recently, and they hadn’t had the time to recycle the air. When I drew a deep breath in through my nose, I caught a whiff of Emmy’s scent. The fragrance was both sweet and foreign in an intriguing way.

“A ladle? You mean, like a spoon for dishing out soup?” I stared at her blankly, knowing my face was a mask of disbelief.

She sighed, looking down at her knees which were drawn up to her chest. The position of her legs crushed her breasts and made them temptingly bulge up out of her bra.

One of the drawbacks of tall, skinny women is that they have small breasts. All of my former women had been deficient in their chest. I couldn’t stop staring at her breasts, which rose and fell as she breathed. My mind wondered what it would feel like to hold her plump mounds in my hands and take one red bud into my mouth. What color were her nipples?

Did I want her nipples in my mouth? Wasn’t this woman crazy? If I was honest with myself, I had to admit that I wanted her breasts and much more. But I couldn’t let myself get carried away with Emmy. I was sure she was more trouble than she was worth. I just needed her to stay with me for a year as I had planned with Montana.

After we had finished our time together, it wouldn’t matter if she needed to go somewhere for work or personal business. We had to live in the same residence. It was a big house, and we wouldn’t get in each other’s way.

I reluctantly drew my attention away from her breasts. How could all this nonsense be because of a magical spoon?

She gave me a rueful smile. “If it weren’t for the Silver Mestolo of Zelia, or informally, Zelia’s ladle, I wouldn’t be here right now. I would probably be working in a museum on Earth, cleaning dirt off arrowheads.”

“Emmy.” I tried to restrain my temper. The woman was irritating but simultaneously so attractive that I didn’t know what to think. “Try to say something that makes sense soon, or...” I broke off, not sure what I would do, but imagined it would involve our bodies pressing together.

“Or what?” She glared at me with a challenge in her eye.

I knew Montana would never have looked at me like that. She would have agreed with me. I always selected a particular type. Genial, agreeable, wanting to please...that sort of woman. Not the kind to openly challenge me and push my buttons.

I decided to start over. “Please allow me to rephrase myself. I don’t know how long we have. I’m not that smart, and I would like a clear explanation.”

“The Silver Mestolo. It’s a word in an ancient Earth language that means ladle. The first woman who discovered its existence was a famous archeologist from Earth named Zelia. It’s made from filaden, one of the strongest elements in the galaxy. Even if you dropped a spaceship on it, the Mestolo wouldn’t be crushed.” She trailed off when she saw the look on my face.

“It’s a serving instrument. I get it. But why does everyone want it?”

“Morley believed it could cure any disease. It contains a large concentration of Higgs boson particles. On Earth, we think Higgs boson particles are the source of matter and life.”

It took everything within me not to smile. This human was talking about Higgs boson particles like they were the first ones to discover them. The commonly accepted name for them was Trovveqs.

Emmy mentioning Trovveqs meant she was highly educated...for an Earth woman. I wondered how intelligent she was. She was much different than I had imagined Montana. I had anticipated conversations about riding and making small talk with my wife, not speaking about physics.

“The Zelia's ladle has a higher concentration of these particles, and the theory is that it can enhance the life of anyone who drinks from it,” she finished. “It may be able to heal patients previously thought to be incurable.”

My mind was only partially listening to her words. The other half contemplated Emmy’s education. Even though she came from a primitive planet like Earth, apparently she was one of its most highly educated inhabitants.

I had old feelings of inadequacy from when my aunt repeatedly told me I was stupid. I couldn’t help it. Whenever I found myself around people smarter than me, I felt like an idiot. I tried to focus on what Emmy was saying, but I had a terrible feeling in my gut.

At the same time, I fixated on her soft, pink lips. Perhaps if I kissed her, she’d stop talking about Higgs boson particles and bringing up my old issues. But I couldn’t kiss her because I wasn’t going to get involved with her.

What kind of guy couldn’t handle having a woman who was smarter than him? A pathetic one.

EMMY

I tried to ignore how close Ven was to my body. I knew I owed him an explanation. I couldn’t sum up everything in three sentences. He was getting annoyed with my vague statements. I had to start at the beginning, or the motivations of the people involved would be confusing.

His arm was touching me, and I could feel warmth and tingles at the point of contact. When I was this close to him, I couldn’t deny the attraction. In fact, I could hardly focus on my story. Energy rose in my torso and spread out, making me feel giddy. I forced myself to concentrate on how I had ended up here.

“Everything started when I was still a little girl. My mentor and teacher, Morley, began searching for Zelia's ladle. He had been searching for it for about twenty-two years when I met him. I was a graduate student in archeology at the top of my class.”

Ven wrinkled his nose. I realized I probably didn't need to add the part about being the best.

“He hired me to work with him when I finished school. I started as an assistant and worked my way up.”

“Because you both became obsessed with a utensil?”

I scowled. “We weren’t obsessed,” I said, objecting to a word that implied I was nuts. “We were enthusiastic.”

He stared at me.

“Persistent?”

No response.

“Okay, driven. But not obsessed.”

“You sound like treasure hunters to me.”

I pressed my lips together. That was the most insulting thing he could have said to me. I didn’t like to be called a treasure hunter. It made me feel gauche. Treasure hunters were classless money-grubbing jerks. I thought of myself as a sophisticated archeologist. With a single comment, Ven had implied that Morley’s work was an obsession, and my assistance said the same thing about me.

I resolved to control my temper.

“Morley pieced together many clues about the ladle. He worked on it between paying projects until he had enough information to start an expedition. We were close. We narrowed it down to a single planet and thought a mountain concealed it. I got sick and had to go back to Earth. Morley continued without me.”

I glanced up at him quickly. Did he think I was a coward? I wondered if he had anything to say but he only lifted his chin, indicating for me to continue.

“Once I had recovered enough to speak again, we talked every day. We discussed his progress and tried to decipher the riddle of Zelia's ladle. One day was different.”

I didn’t think about Morley's death often, but whenever I did, I choked up. I tried to pull myself together. I knew Morley wouldn’t want me crying over him. I couldn’t help it. I missed him so much.

“He was a father figure to me. I never knew my dad.” I didn’t know why I needed to explain my emotions, but I couldn’t stop talking. Ven patiently waited as I wiped my eyes.

“He called me one day with a cryptic message and then the men who were chasing him...” The tears were falling again. “They caused a cave-in somehow and killed him. I never heard from Morley again. Morley died, and all his knowledge vanished.”

I sat silently, absorbed in my memories and thinking about my loss. I wasn’t the only one affected. Morley’s death hurt the archeological community as well.

“Everything wasn’t lost. You’re still here. Part of Morley lives through you.”

I stared at the floor. “That’s right.” I lifted my eyes again. “The last transmission he sent me held a key to finding the ladle. It has something to do with the Stone Goddess of Heralla.”

“And you want to get it?” His tone sounded condescending.

“I don’t want to. I’m going to. Morley entrusted me with information that could find the artifact and save descendants of the Great Race all across the galaxy. Nothing’s going to stand in my way.”

“Do you think an old ladle is going to save people?” He looked at me like I was nuts. “Let me guess. It makes a magic soup.”

I tried to explain patiently, remembering that everyone didn’t have the same knowledge I did.

“Sort of. There is supposed to be an abnormally high concentration of Higgs-Boson particles in the ladle's metal. Legends say it can cure almost any ailment.”

“Really.” He looked skeptical.

“Yes. That’s why Morley was interested in it. He wanted the ladle for his brother who had an incurable disease. Medical science has made fantastic advances, but there are still neurological diseases that our doctors can’t cure. Even if Zelia's ladle can’t fix everything, it should provide medical researchers with fresh ideas.”

“If what you’re saying is true, it would be amazing.”

“I know. Morley knew this brother would eventually become a vegetable if he didn’t find it. His brother was the most important person in the world to him, even after they had a falling out.”

“That must have been difficult.”

“I don’t know much about it, to tell you the truth. Morley rarely spoke about his brother. I knew he was hurt, but even after whatever happened, Morley still wanted to find the ladle.”

“So who were the guys chasing after him? Am I right in assuming they’re the same men who were trying to take you?”

I nodded. “Those were Abel’s men. He’s another person looking for Zelia’s ladle. He’ll do almost anything to get it.”

“Who’s Abel?” Ven looked confused again.

“Abel wants to keep the silver Zelia's ladle and keep it for himself. He’s the one who sent the men to me. There’s one more thing.” I hesitated, bitterness filling my heart as I remembered.

“He killed Morley.”