The questions ran through his mind as he inched closer. This was the center of power. This was where the voice in his head came from. He could feel it now like a buzzing in his brain.
As he placed both hands flat against the mound, a tingle ran up his arms and through his body. Then the buzzing vanished and his mind was clear. He banished all thoughts and opened himself.
Blackness closed around him, but he wasn’t afraid; he welcomed it, and then he was flying through the darkness toward the truth.
Chapter Seventeen
One minute, Callum stood outlined against the gray-green rock, and then he vanished.
Tannis felt like crap, but she pushed herself to stumble after him and came to a halt in front of the narrow fissure. It was dark inside, and the place pulsated with energy that seemed to simultaneously draw and repel her. She edged forward, her stomach churning as she got closer.
A last step took her inside, and she stopped abruptly, backing away as nausea rose in her throat. She whirled around, dropped to her knees, and vomited. For long minutes, she remained, head hanging down, while she gathered her strength.
When she finally looked up, it was to the realization that she was alone. Had Venna returned to the ship? Tannis had been too focused on just keeping up to notice the other woman. Every step a challenge. What must it have been like to be brought here and made to work? She’d come so close to that very fate, and a shiver ran through her.
How did they get the slaves to keep going? What possible motivation could they give to make someone go on, when this would be all they would ever know? Surely, death would be far easier.
Then she realized that wasn’t true. The will to live was amazingly strong, and the human mind resilient.
Still, she wanted to be away from here and back on El Cazador so badly it was like a pain in her chest. Or maybe that was just another shitty reaction to this shitty planet.
She dragged herself along the edge of the cliff a good distance from the gap and leaned against the smooth rock. Alcohol probably wasn’t a good idea right now, but she needed to wash the sour taste from her mouth, so she pulled Rico’s flask from her pocket. Taking slow sips, she relaxed as the warmth spread through her, her stomach settling a little.
Had Callum found anything? Did she want to know? She tried to think of anything that would stop her from going ahead with the Meridian treatment, but came up blank. So what if she would be part alien? She was hardly pure human anyway, and she had always liked the idea of being part snake—something different, unique.
Her dream was so close. Soon she would be truly immortal. One of the exalted Collective.
Where was Callum?
A roar sounded from within the gap, and she startled. She pushed herself to her feet, feeling stronger now after the rest, with the whiskey warming her insides.
Still, she hesitated at the gap. When the sound came again, she swallowed her fear and stepped between the rocks. The darkness closed around her. Each step was as if she pushed through glue, but the noise was continuous now. She knew it was Callum, and she forced herself on.
Finally, a faint, throbbing light flickered up ahead. She followed the glow until she found herself in a wide cavern. As she stumbled into the open, her gaze locked on Callum. He was on his knees, his hands flat on the mound in the center of the cave, a mound that pulsated with violet light.
“Holy freaking moly,” she whispered.
At the words, Callum’s lids shot open. Eyes the same violet as the light that pulsated through the cavern stared at her, blazing with triumph. He appeared revitalized, buzzing with energy, the same energy she could feel wrapping itself around her. She had to get out of there before it sucked her under.
Callum was alive; he could take care of himself. And from the look of him right now, probably a damn sight better than she could. She whirled around and headed down the tunnel, not stopping until she burst out into the open and the bright sunlight.
Leaning against the wall, she breathed deeply, and a moment later Callum emerged. He looked totally wired, a huge grin on his face.
“What is it? What did you find?”
He stopped and she glanced at him. His brows drew together in concentration.
“What is it?” she asked.
“Come on, I’ll tell you on the way.” He looked around. “Where’s Venna?”
“I have no clue. I lost her somewhere along the way. I’m guessing she’s gone back to the ship. But to be honest, I don’t really care if one of your aliens came down and ate her.”
He grinned again. “I get the impression you don’t like her.”
“Really? Actually, I think she’s a fucking bitch. But is it a problem she’s not here?”
“No. I have the coordinates of the last cache. We don’t need her to find it.” He seemed to pull himself together. “Let’s go get that Meridian treatment for you.”
Taking her arm, he hurried her away. Tannis did her best to keep up, but there was no way. “Slow down, Callum.”