Lyk nodded sympathetically. “I’ll be sure to put out word among my contacts to be on the lookout for the necklace you describe. Just one more question. Your sister seems to think that someone in my gang stole it. Could you inform me as to why that is the case?”
The blush now covered most of her face. Evie glanced down at the table, then at her sister, before putting her eyes back on his. “I… I was at the market near our room when… um, two men,they took the necklace. The one who grabbed it… he had… had the tattoo. A black bird.”
“Where was this tattoo?”
“On… on his… his hand.” She pointed to the area above her right thumb.
“I see.” Lyk stood. “I think I might be able to get to the bottom of this. I’ll assemble all of my men in the corridor outside the mess, and you can point out the one that took your necklace from you. I’ll see to it that it is not only returned to you but that the perpetrator is severely punished.”
He glanced at Allandria, who was watching him with hooded eyes. “If you’ll both follow me, let’s go solve the mystery of the missing heirloom.”
CHAPTER 10
ALLY
Twenty men were arranged in a line outside the mess, each standing straight and looking forward. Celdrake stood in the open door to the mess, his arms crossed. Behind him, Ally could see the men of Rigellus’s crew looking on with interested expressions.
Lyk walked the row of men, making eye contact with each of them. As he strode briskly, she couldn’t help but admire his form. He was so well made, as if fashioned by a sculptor instead of nature. The man would be sheer perfection if he wasn’t a criminal.
He came to a stop in front of Evie. “Could you point out the man who took your necklace?”
Ally was surprised when Evie bit her lip nervously. “Well, I, uh, I can’t exactly remember.”
Feeling protective, Ally stepped forward to stand between her sister and Lyk. “She was probably so traumatized by the robbery, she’s blocked out the memory.”
“I understand,” Lyk said, his tone full of compassion as he stared down at her sister. “Then we’ll have to rely on your description. The man had a raven tattoo on his right hand.”
Turning back to his assembled crew, Lyk barked out an order. “Men, I want you to expose your raven tattoo, wherever it is on your body.”
There was some shuffling among the men as they went about revealing their markings. Some removed shirts. Others pulled up pant legs. One man removed his pants entirely to reveal a large raven on his upper thigh. A few held up their hands.
Lyk asked the men with raised hands to come forward one by one. Ally watched as the men showed their tattoos when requested. The first had a raven on each of his knuckles. The second had a flock of ravens on the back of each hand. And the third had a large raven that covered most of the back of his left hand.
Ally frowned. Evie had described a tattoo that was smaller, with specific placement. None of the tattoos displayed her matched her description.
That doesn’t mean he’s telling the truth. He could have told the perpetrator to hide out in his quarters, for instance.
The words her inner voice spoke were true, but a tendril of doubt crept up inside Ally’s belly. Evie seemed more nervous than usual. Ally wanted to chalk it up to her being around so many people after staying cooped up inside for months, but she’d not been so nervous at the spaceport, nor boarding Rigellus’s ship. Something was going on here.
“Could you perhaps be mistaken about the positioning or size of the tattoo?” Lyk asked politely.
Evie, eyes wide, stammered before shaking her head.
Ally, still protective of her sister, again interrupted. “My sister is a little overwhelmed at the moment, no doubt with fear of seeing her attacker again. I’m going to insist that she be allowed to rest somewhere comfortable.”
Lyk failed to hide a smile, which irked her. “Of course. If you follow me, I’ll take you to the quarters I mentioned earlier.”
Ally wanted to cuss him out, but she was in a bind. She’d have to accept those quarters and the possibility of being locked inside them while she figured out what was going on with her sister.
Lyk led them to a well-appointed chamber almost as large as his own. There was a sitting area, a small dining table with two chairs, a private bathroom, and two beds with comfortable-looking mattresses. It was a far step above their room on Gamma-17 and even rivaled her old bedroom back on the Rings.
“Please make yourself comfortable. And let me know if you run out of snacks.” Lyk winked at her as he shut the door behind himself.
Ally rushed forward to grab the door, but before she could, the telltale sound of the locking mechanism engaging clicked softly.Damn.
Evie wandered forward, fingering the expensive-looking duvet on one of the beds. Ally took a deep breath, not looking forward to the confrontation with her sister. Still, something about her story didn’t seem to add up.
“What happened that day at the market?” she asked softly.
