In any other circumstances, she would have pulled back quickly from the too-intimate contact. But something inside her hadn’twantedto pull away from the big Monstrum, despite the fact that he had obviously been uneasy with the situation. She had lingered there until he had actually lifted her up and put her on her feet again.
What’s wrong with me? Why would I want to make him uncomfortable like that? He saved my life—I ought to be more grateful.
Well, shewasgrateful, she told herself. But somehow that gratitude seemed to translate into the desire to touch or be near the big Monstrum, even though he hadn’t in any way invited her to do so. She felt drawn to him—which was ridiculous. She didn’t evenknowhim.
“Yes, I was told that you have an affinity for rocks and crystals and other geological formations.”
The deep, purring voice of Commander Rarev broke Lucy’s train of thought and she focused on the Monstrum behind the desk instead of the one sitting at her side.
“An affinity for rocks? You could say that I guess,” she said, smiling politely. “Though I’m not sure why you’d be interested. Do you want me to give you a course in Geology?”
“No, no—nothing like that.” Commander Rarev shook his head, his golden mane ruffling with the gesture. “We have a unique problem here aboard the Monstrum Mother Ship that I hope you can help me with. But I cannot be certain until I make a test.”
“A test?” Lucy frowned in confusion. “I’m not sure what you mean.”
“You’ll understand soon. Here—would you please put this on?” Reaching across his desk, he held something out to her—a scrap of dark fabric.
Lucy leaned forward and took it from him. Examining it, she saw it was a blindfold.
“Why do you want me to wear this?” she asked, frowning.
“My reasons will become apparent very soon,” Commander Rarev assured her. He came around the side of his desk and Lucy saw that he had a black velvet bag in one of his large hands. What was inside? She had a feeling she was about to find out.
Shrugging, she slipped the blindfold on. It had an elastic band in the back that fit around her head nicely and she couldn’t see a thing with it on.
“All right,” she said. “I’m ready. Now what?”
“Please hold out your hand,” Commander Rarev instructed.
“All right, but I hope whatever you’re going to give me isn’t alive,” Lucy said, holding out her right hand, palm up.
“Not in the sense that you’re thinking,” the Monstrum Commander said. “I am going to give you a series of rocks and crystals to hold. Please tell me if youfeelanything from any of them.”
“Feelanything?” Lucy frowned. “Well…okay. Though I have no idea what I’m supposed to ‘feel.’” It sounded more like a job for her Aunt Delilah—who was a Wiccan who specialized in healing crystals—than for a Geologist.
“You’ll know it when you feel it. Here is the first,” Commander Rarev said and something cool and rough was placed in her palm.
“Hmm…” Lucy rubbed the stone between her fingers and noticed its sharp, angular edges. “Some kind of crystal, I’d say,” she remarked. “Of course I can’t tell you what kind unless you let me look at it.”
“Not yet—please keep the blindfold on,” Rarev said. He took away the first stone and gave her another. This one was cool and smooth.
“A pebble—maybe one that came from the river?” Lucy guessed. “You can tell it’s been worn smooth by the water.”
“Very good. Now try this one.” Rarev removed the pebble from her hand and put another angular rock into the center of her palm.
Lucy started to feel it and then gasped.
“Oh! What in the world?” she exclaimed.
For the rock hadshockedher. Not in a painful way, though—it was more like a tingling sensation that ran through her fingertips all the way up her arm—kind of like an electrical current.
“Do you feel it?” Commander Rarev’s deep, purring voice was tense with excitement.
“Yes, I feel it! What is it?” Lucy was dying to take off the blindfold but she didn’t want to ruin his experiment—whatever it was.
“You may take off the mask and look,” the Monstrum Commander told her.
Lucy pulled off the blindfold and looked down at her hand. There in her palm was a deep red crystal about the size and shape of her thumb. It looked like rare ruby quartz to Lucy but the really unique thing about it was that it wasglowing.