Ahead, Laris dropped from her horse to reach out slowly within a small jumble of recently cracked rock. Prauo came trotting back to stare at her find. She cradled it in her hand and showed it to them, eyes wide with pleasure.
"I saw the sun catch it. Look, isn't it pretty?"
Storm glanced at the cat's-eye gem. "It's valuable too."
"Oh," she hesitated then held it up to him. "It was on your land."
Storm realized that both his wife and brother were glaring at him. He shook his head. "Finders keepers."
Logan took it from her carefully and turned it over in his fingers. "That last frosty night, it would have split the rock this was in." He touched her arm. "Storm was teasing. It's pretty but it's the green ones which are really valuable. This is gold. It isn't a large stone either. It would take ten or twelve of them to make a green one's value. But it's yours. You found it. Just don't start digging holes like a Djimbut to see if you can find more."
Laris took the gem back. She admired the gold color with the black line like a pupil which split it in two. She pointed. "Is that why they're called cat's-eye stones?"
"Yes. Look." Prauo had moved to her side and was looking to see what his sister-without-fur had. "It would look just like one of his eyes if it was purple," Logan pointed out.
Laris nodded. "But I'd rather he had his own eyes than I had this. It's very pretty though." It was, she thought. And Dedran would have it from her as soon as he saw it and once they were away from Arzor. "What's a green one worth?" If this one was still quite valuable it might give her a chance to escape. She could keep Dedran from knowing about it if she was careful.
Logan thought a moment. "Don't see many green cat's-eye stones. But I think the last good-sized one went for about five thousand credits on the market. That gold one would be worth around a hundred credits maybe, considering the size."
Laris kept her face blank but Storm saw the sudden glitter of her eyes. That had surprised her. To a camp child a stone worth only a fraction of the value Logan had quoted on a green cat's-eye gem was still real riches. He was right. To Laris it meant jumping ship and still having enough to survive at least a half year on the stone's price. It could mean safety, freedom from Dedran and the guild. The guild wouldn't look for her. And they might keep Dedran moving on, too busy to turn back and seek her out.
Smiling, she dropped the stone in a pocket. She nudged her horse up alongside Logan's mount and continued an earlier conversation. Tani dropped back with Storm.
"Has Brad found out any more about her?"
"Nope. He's still chasing through Ermaine's bureaucracy. They closed the refugee camp they had there about seven years ago. Just over a half year after Laris was shipped out. They claim that a lot of the records were dumped after five years."
"Claim?"
"Uh huh. Brad thinks they're holding out for a bribe to look."
Tani smiled unpleasantly. "Let me at the com when we get back," she said, referring to the ranch's method of communication, not only locally, but also planet to planet. "Aunt Kady would enjoy lighting a fire under a few bureaucrats. The ark's important to most planetary governments. Aunt Kady asks, Aunt Kady gets. And if I can tell her we've got tissue samples from two Terran dogs she hasn't found before, she'll get those records if she has to go there herself. I don't think she has many carra samples either."
Storm knew Tani's Aunt Kady. She was a scientist. Nothing deterred her when she was on a trail. And it was true she'd be delighted about the dogs. He touched his mount into a canter to catch up with Laris and Logan. He addressed the girl.
"Would Dedran mind having a scientist take tissue samples from your carra as well?"
"I don't think so." Laris frowned. "Why would they want to?"
Tani had caught up with them. She explained how Terra had created a space-faring ark with beasts and embryos in stasis, with huge tissue banks, all to save Earth's flora and fauna if the worst happened. "And it did. But the ark was safe," Tani said softly. "Now my aunt and uncle seek out other Terran animals or rare ones from other worlds and take samples to hold. She'll be so pleased about the dogs' samples you got us already but carra are quite rare too."
"What if something happened to the ark?" Laris was fascinated.
"Then we'd still have the samples. They split those into three. Two others go to planets with groundside storage facilities. They're held in those as well. Lately Uncle Brion's been talking about increasing the groundside places to five. That way it would be even less likely everything could be destroyed."
She started to tell Laris about her days on the ark. Then how she had come to Arzor. The girl listened, wondering if she should say anything about the rumors Dedran had heard. But she didn't know who'd told him. Maybe he wasn't supposed to know. Tani and Storm had said nothing and it sounded like an exciting tale. Surely if it was all right to tell it they would have. In the end she listened with interest but asked few questions and those carefully chosen.
The next week passed quickly. Then there were only a few more days. Dedran had commed the ranch to say they would up-ship in five days. The call had come in late one afternoon, insisting Laris must be back well before the ship's departure to see to the animals. Few of them enjoyed takeoff. Some started becoming agitated early as they understood that the time was coming. She could have another three days.
She hoped Brad would hear from the Ermaine camp before she had to go. Tani had taken samples of tissue from the carra and sent those and the dog tissue to the ark. Kady hadn't received them as yet, although she had mentioned getting the message asking her to interrogate Ermaine's people. She'd replied she'd do her best and that was the last they'd heard.
Laris sighed. Perhaps even a scientist who knew people still hadn't enough influence to open those files. She dimly recalled some strange events at the camp shortly before she was transferred. It was likely that there—as in many places during and after the war—there'd been corruption. The people involved wouldn't want records found. And others wouldn't want such events exposed. It could reflect badly on the current government. Besides, would all of this be worth the effort? She was in the ranch house the next evening when she decided to ask the one who'd know.
"Mr. Quade, if Tani's aunt does get the camp records opened, what could you find?"
"Your full name for a start. I had a search done in Kowar. They have no record of you as other than 'Laris.' No last name in their records. But many of the camp's records simply list the adults of the family who arrived and note 'with three minor children,' giving only the children's first names.
"If we had your full name we could track that. Once we had the full records we could trace how you came there and from what planet." He looked at her kindly. "It takes time to do that sort of thing, Laris. But governments thrive on records. They're there somewhere." He paused. "I know it seems like a long time to you. But it's only ten or twelve years. A few seconds to a planetary government."
The girl twisted her hands together. "There were some things that went on..." Her voice trailed away and Brad Quade understood.
"In the camps? And you think some people in power now might not want to remember them? That's very likely. But I can make it clear to them there's no legal trouble in mind. Don't worry. I know you have to leave soon. I'll get the circus schedule and spacegram any information that comes in. Or won't Dedran like that?"