Carl looked through the report Jinx had given to him. Her numbers were usually right on target, and this report didn’t appear any different.

“Yeah, it looks sound. I’ll request this inventory from OmniLab in the morning. Is there anything else you needed?”

Jinx leaned across the desk. “Actually, yeah. You look like crap, Carl. What’s going on?”

He chuckled at her frankness and leaned back in his chair. “It’s nothing. I’ve just got quite a bit on my mind.”

“Would that something have dark hair and green eyes?”

When he didn’t reply, she said, “I’m not trying to pry. Well, maybe a little. But ever since she left, you’ve been pretty cranky. I was wondering if you wanted to talk about it.”

He sighed and pushed the tablet away. “Not particularly. She’s gone, and that’s all there is to it.”

“Aha, I was right.” Jinx grinned, waving her finger at him. “But I think you’re wrong about that. I saw the way you two looked at each other. Hell, everyone in this camp did. Why do you think Lisia got pissed off? Sparks were flying every time you two set foot in the same room. She’ll come back.”

He hoped so, but he wouldn’t count on it. Even though he’d made some headway with her, he hadn’t been able to alleviate all her reservations about working in a trader camp. In fact, with the latest OmniLab development, it had just complicated issues. “We’ll see.”

Jinx rolled her eyes. “Can you honestly picture her living up in those towers permanently? I mean, hell, she wasn’t here for long, but she didn’t strike me as the type to enjoy complacency.”

Carl smiled at her words. “I suppose you’re right. I’ll see her in a few days when I head to the towers. She seemed convinced she would want to come back by then.”

Jinx nodded encouragingly. “I wouldn’t doubt it.”

The door to Carl’s office beeped. He pressed a button on his desk to admit Xantham. The dark-skinned man entered the room. “Boss, we’re picking up Veridian’s bike on the radar. He’s got two other OmniLab vehicles with him too.”

Carl frowned, uneasy at the news. “That soon? Something must be wrong. Was Kayla with him?”

Xantham shook his head. “Not unless she’s on an OmniLab speeder.”

“All right, thanks.” Carl left his office and headed toward the entrance to meet Veridian. The ruin rat barely glanced at Carl when he entered and hung up his gear. He shoved his hands in his pockets, visibly upset.

“Veridian? Is everything okay? I wasn’t expecting you back so soon. Where’s Kayla?”

“Yeah, it’s fine. At least, I think it’s fine. I don’t know.” He ran a shaky hand over the top of his head, frowning as though something confused him.

“Come on in and have a seat,” Carl suggested, motioning for Veridian to follow him to the common room. He slumped down in a chair looking more than a little lost. Jinx handed him a hydrating pack, and he drank it automatically. Carl frowned. He didn’t know Veridian well, but this wasn’t like him. “Why don’t you tell us what happened, Veridian. Where’s Kayla?”

“I don’t know. We got there, and she met her mother. That seemed to go well, although Kayla was a little freaked out. Then we went to dinner. I don’t know what the hell happened after that.” Veridian crushed the hydrating pack in frustration and tossed it on the table.

Jinx sat beside him. “Did something happen at dinner?”

Veridian shrugged. “I don’t know. I got caught up talking to one of the potential traders. I shouldn’t have left her. Kayla and Alec disappeared at some point. Seara, that’s Kayla’s mother, came over to me after dinner and asked me to accompany her back to her family’s quarters. We sat around for a while talking and waiting for Kayla to come back. Suddenly, Seara got this strange look on her face, jumped up in a panic, and ran out of the room.”

Veridian scratched his head and continued, “Seara came back a little later with Alec. She was quiet, and it looked like she’d been crying. Alec said Kayla started remembering things. He told me Kayla wanted to be alone for a while and asked me to come back here.”

Carl frowned, his unease growing. “You didn’t talk to Kayla?”

Veridian threw up his hands in frustration. “No. Alec said she didn’t want to talk to anyone. Next thing I knew, I was on my speeder heading back here.”

Carl shook his head. “This doesn’t make sense. There’s no way Kayla would have told you to leave. She’s always been adamant about not being separated from you.”

“I thought so too. But maybe remembering her past changed things? I don’t know. It seemed to make sense at the time.”

Carl drummed his fingers on the table. Jinx rested her hand on Veridian’s arm. “Veridian, why don’t you call her and find out if she’s okay?”

Veridian pulled out his commlink, but Kayla didn’t answer. He sent a message asking her to contact him and closed his commlink. His shoulders slumped. “I shouldn’t have pushed her. She told me she didn’t want to go to the towers. I should have listened.”

Jinx shook her head. “I’m sure everything’s fine. She’s probably just sleeping. You can try her again in the morning.”

Hope filled Veridian’s eyes as he raised his head. “You think so?”

Jinx offered him a reassuring smile and nodded. “Yes. You should get some rest too. You look exhausted. We’ll find out what’s going on. Don’t worry.”

“Yeah. I guess.” Veridian stood and muttered a goodnight before heading out of the room.

“Anyone else think this reeks?” Xantham said when he was gone.

Carl nodded. If there was one thing beyond reproach, it was Kayla’s loyalty to Veridian. “Kayla wouldn’t have sent him away. I don’t care what she remembered.”

“Maybe you should go to the towers a day early,” Jinx suggested. “Go check on her and find out what’s going on.”

“That’s not a bad idea. We’re low on inventory anyway. I could use that as an excuse,” Carl mused. “In the meantime, we should get some rest. Maybe Kayla will call Veridian in the morning and straighten this out.”

They murmured their agreement. Carl said goodnight to the group and headed back to his office. Pushing aside the inventory list Jinx had given him earlier, he pulled up a copy of Kayla’s OmniLab contract. He stared at her picture for a long moment and then shut it off in annoyance. He was acting like a lovesick teenager.

You were the one who encouraged her to go.

Mentally kicking himself, he headed to his bedroom. He pulled off his shirt and threw it on the floor in frustration. Resting his head in his hands, he sighed. Sleep would be a long time coming.