Free The Red Pearl by C. K. Brooke

and shook it, but there was nothing more.
    He frowned. He should have known not to get his hopes up. Besides, he’d already accepted his fate. The key was gone. They would never…
    “Rob.” Antonia pointed. “What’s that by your shoe?”
    He looked down. Glittering in the sunlight was none other than the copper key to Thad’s prototype. Breathless, Rob snatched it up and leapt onto his dog in a wild embrace. “Maverick, my hero!”
    Antonia folded her arms, although she smiled. “Oh, of course. I rescued you from a venomous snake and spotted the key, but Maverick is clearly the hero here.”
    The man grinned, happier than he’d felt in days. “You too, Annie.” He pocketed the key. “Well? What are we waiting for?”
    The girl laughed, hoisting up her bag, and the three made off in the opposite direction, energy renewed.

    IT WAS AS THEY’D LEFT it. Grateful, Rob flung himself onto the horseless carriage and kissed it. “Thank the gods.” He opened Antonia’s door, seeing her inside, and hurried to the driver’s seat. “Ready, Annie?”
    “Ready.”
    He jammed the key into the ignition. With a sputter, the motor began to rumble. He laughed, exhilarated. Finally, he thought, fortune seemed to be turning in his favor. Wen and Adams were in for a surprise.
    “Axacola, here we come.” Slamming his foot on the pedal, Rob set the vehicle into motion. It bumped over the rocks, emitting a trail of smoke in its wake. Meanwhile, Antonia gathered her long, flying hair and tied it back with a ribbon.
    Rob spoke his mind before thinking better of it. “Your hair looks nice pulled back like that. I can see your face better.”
    She grinned. “Thanks.”
    “Just thought I’d tell you.” He shrugged, returning his focus to the dry land ahead. “That way, when you set off to meet your Elatian knight in shining armor, you’ll know how you look best.”
    She lifted her chin at this, a wishful gleam in her eye. Rob couldn’t help but smile to himself. He was glad she still clung to her dream. After all, what sort of empty future awaited a person without a dream?
    They were still in high spirits when they parked the carriage for the evening. “I’ll refuel her tomorrow.” He yawned. “For now, let’s see what we’ve got to eat.”
    Antonia helped him gather a ration of food, although they’d few water bottles remaining. After dinner, they reclined on their bedrolls, counting the night stars and relaying stories of them. Antonia impressed him with her extensive knowledge of astral lore; she seemed able to recount the mythology behind every constellation.
    “Do you believe it all?” Rob rolled onto his side to discern her face in the starlight. “The stories of the gods and stars?”
    She gazed out to the shadow of the mountains. “I’m not sure,” she confessed. “Do you?”
    No one had ever asked him such a question. He scratched his bristling jaw, pondering. “I believe there is…something more out there. Though what, I know not.”
    Antonia looked thoughtful. “Perhaps we may never know.”
    They fell silent, watching as the landscape blackened around them. “How’s your hand?”
    “Fine.”
    He was content to hear this.
    “Rob?” Her bedroll rustled. “Are you certain your map is…really the map?”
    He closed his eyes. “Positive.”
    “But how can you be sure?”
    “I just am,” he insisted, perhaps a bit too firmly. But he did not like the dangerous waters this conversation was approaching.
    “But how?” she repeated, sitting up. “If it’s so ancient and rare, then how did it come into your hands?”
    “Antonia…”
    “Did you pay a lot for it?” Moonlight reflected in her inky pupils. “If you did, you may have been swindled for a fake—”
    “I paid nothing for it,” he barked. “And it’s not a fake. Now go to sleep, and don’t worry yourself about it.”
    Antonia squinted at him. “You know, you reacted similarly the last time I brought this up,” she realized.