Among Galactic Ruins by Anna Hackett Read Free Book Online Page A

the Sea.” A serious
look came over his features, making him look older than his
eighteen years. “Now, the Sea is full of dangers, so don’t go off
the path. The desert is filled with sand traps that can swallow an
entire herd of ballo beasts. Not to mention the wolves.”
    “Wolves?” Lexa asked.
    “Yes. Desert wolves. Don’t worry, they don’t
attack during the day, and for the nights, I have a deterrent
system.” He patted the packs hanging from his beast. Then he nudged
the ballo forward. “Okay, let’s get moving.”
    With the bright-blue sky stretching overhead
and the suns warm on her back, Lexa soon adjusted to the shambling
rhythm of the ballo she was riding. It wasn’t that different from
the horseback riding she’d done as a girl. Dathan told her the
ballo beasts were herbivores and ate any and all vegetation they
could find…with a special fondness for the sweet date fruits that
grew on the trees at the planet’s oases.
    Damon cursed under his breath every so
often, and while he looked comfortable enough on the ballo, he
didn’t appear to enjoy riding. She smiled. It was kind of nice to
see him not be perfect at something. Made him seem more human.
    She watched the town shrink behind them, and
the dunes grow from small mounds to giant, incredible mountains of
sand. Excitement was a low-level hum in her blood. Finally, she was
on an honest-to-God treasure hunt. She loved working in the museum,
loved handling, restoring and studying priceless artifacts, but…an
adventure like this was something she’d hoped to do for a long
time.
    Hours later, they traveled through a valley
between two enormous dunes. Lexa stared around in wonder. Up at the
windswept peaks of the dunes, and down at the trail beneath them.
It was a paler color than the rest of the sand, beaten down by the
hooves of who knew how many animals over the centuries. She
imagined vast caravans of ballo beasts moving through here, people
heading off on adventures, colonists off to new lives.
    Ahead, something nestled into the side of
one dune caught her eye. She sat up straighter on her ballo.
Ruins!
    “The Temple of St. Theresa,” Dathan told
her. He moved easily on his ballo and looked like he’d been riding
for years. “Said to have been built by the very first Terrans to
ever land on Zerzura. Some say she founded the cult of the Orphic
priestesses and other legends say she was the one who brought the
Fabergé egg here.”
    “Fascinating,” Lexa breathed. She couldn’t
tear her gaze off the remains of the graceful columns spearing
upward. What must it have looked like in its heyday?
    She moved her head and saw Damon watching
her.
    “You’re eyeing those ruins like other women
eye priceless gems,” he said.
    “I like gems, too.”
    He snorted. “Yeah, if they came from some
ancient empress’ crown, or from some priceless Terran
necklace.”
    She smiled. “Well, that would just be a
bonus. All girls love as least a little sparkle, Mr. Malik.”
    Lexa knew she would have been showered in
gems if she’d entered the loveless, stuffy marriage her parents had
wanted for her. She stared at the ruins, her blood pumping from
being on this adventure. This was much, much better than all the
jewels in the galaxy.
    She thought of the men her father had always
forced her to socialize with. Smart, for sure, but mostly pretty
boys. They wore the latest suits, got manicures every week and
spent more time on their hair than Lexa did. Without her permission
her gaze strayed to Damon.
    No pretty boy here. He was good-looking, but
he also had that fascinating edge that drew a woman in. He was
dangerous, of that she had no doubt, but he was also a protector.
She’d known that when he’d saved her last night, and again this
morning, when she’d found him sitting outside her door.
    She tried to dredge up the annoyance that
had sparked between them the first day they’d met in Marius’
office. For some reason, it proved elusive.
    At that