“Would you like to take someone to assist you?” he asked.
Evan instantly thought of Miguel. How she would have loved to recruit the March Mining security guard to be by her side, but that wasn’t what Omar meant, and the suggestion would be wholly inappropriate. Moreover, while Emberton did not seem overly concerned about their timeline, she knew that if the team hadn’t made any significant discoveries—any significant Talaiotic discoveries—by the end of the year, their grant money would evaporate. “No, you need your people working. The mapping should be easy. It won’t take me long.”
“Excellent. Keep me apprised of your progress. I’ll reach out to Joseph Nabeel and set up a meeting.” As a dismissal, he dug his phone from a deep pocket and began scrolling his contacts.
She turned to go, but Emberton called her back. “Evangeline.”
“Yes?”
“Be careful in those caves,” he warned.
She assured him she would and set to work on her long list of tasks.
After the golden box had been documented and stored in the safe in Dr. Emberton's rooms, Evan returned to her quarters, gathered her gear, and prepared to set out. Map-making was a far cry from a compass, binoculars, and a spring divider. Her cartography equipment was in the form of a portable scanner and software. As she was zipping her bag, a gentle fist tapped on her door.
“Evangeline?”
She looked up and found a fairy of a girl standing in her doorway. Her copper hair hung over her shoulder in a long braid. Evan could tell they were about the same age, but with her jeans, backpack, and hoodie, the woman could have passed for a middle-schooler.
“Can I help you?” Evan asked.
“God, I hope so.” The woman bounced into the room and sat at the desk chair, balancing the backpack on her lap. She blew out an exasperated breath. Evan liked her immediately.
Rocking forward on the chair and pushing up on the balls of her lime-green Converse, the woman asked, “Do you happen to remember a guy saving you from a stingray?”
After thirty minutes and phrases including the behest of the United States government and decorated US Navy SEAL, Evan gave Twitch permission to use her Zodiac; apparently, this woman's colleague, a man named Cam, needed it for a critical mission. After they exchanged contact information, Twitch thanked her and said she’d be in touch.
With her equipment packed and ready, Evan headed out on her mapping expedition.