“I told you this so at least you would know the truth. That’s my gift for your help.”
She could see what it had cost him to reveal this secret. The internal conflict etched his face and tightened the muscles in his body. “Thank you,” she whispered. “I think my gift was much less painful to give. I’m now in your debt.”
“No more debts. We’re even.”
“So what will you do once you get home?” Her serene expression told Mercer that they really were even. “Will you find some new adventure to occupy your mind and help you forget about me?”
“I’ll never forget you, but no more adventures,” Mercer said. “I’m teaching mine rescue in Pennsylvania in a few weeks. After that, I hope to be heading to Greenland as part of a scientific expedition. Compared to what you and I have been through, it’ll be a cakewalk.”
Selome studied his eyes, a secret little smile on her lips. “In all of your questing, have you ever really found what you’re looking for?”
Mercer considered for a minute. “It’s not the goal that interests me, it’s the quest itself.”
“In that case, promise me that for our last week together, I am your sole quest.”
He did.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jack Du Brul is a graduate of the Westminster School and George Washington University. Trying to add as much adventure to his life as he does to his novels, Du Brul has climbed Masada at noon, swum in the Arctic Ocean off Point Barrow, explored war-torn Eritrea, hiked in Greenland, and was gnawed on by piranhas in the Amazon River. He collects zeppelin memorabilia, and when not writing or traveling (twenty-three countries and counting), he can be found in a favorite chair with a book and a brandy. Jack Du Brul lives in Burlington, Vermont.
