DECISIONS

Countless emotions swirled around inside Trenna, and she couldn't lock onto just one of them. She was mad because of her dumb luck at finding the stone, but curious about what it was and why Galbatorix wanted it. She was scared because of the leering soldier still fresh in her mind, but pleased that something exciting was finally happening in her life. She felt unnerved at the mysteriousness shrouding the stone but was also entranced by its beauty. All of these emotions seemed to create a new one that had never before existed until now.

Then Trenna hesitated. She was a good liar. She could easily pretend she'd never seen the stone except for in the picture the soldier had shoved in her face. Whatever the stone was, she could just leave it there and it would end up being someone else's problems.

I should, her anger, fear, and nervousness told her inside her head. But at the same time her curiosity, pleasure, and admiration told her Take it. Bring it back and hide it somewhere. No one will ever know.

The sky was dimming and Trenna was still in the tree, trying to decide what to do. Sern would come out to look for her if she didn't figure it out soon. Trenna snapped a small twig off from the branch beside her, then cautiously prodded the stone with it. There was no reaction.

Taking a deep, Trenna reached forward and snatched up the stone in one swift movement. To her surprise, it was very warm, as if it had been in the sun instead of in the shadows of tree branches.

Sern can sell it. We'll make some money and be rid of it for good, she told herself firmly as she worked her way down the rest of the tree. There was no way she was hiding it. It would only cause her and Sern trouble, more trouble then just economic problems. If Galbatorix wanted it, then it had to be dangerous in some way. Even if it wasn't, the army would come after her. Once again, Trenna shuddered at the memory of the soldier, still fresh in her mind.

After Trenna was back on solid ground, she hurried back towards Carvahall, her eyes darting away, every sense alive, ready to react immediately if another soldier appeared. She escaped the woods without any trouble but didn't allow herself to relax until she'd passed through a throng of people again, who were leaving the now closed trading tents.

Sern's tent blended in perfectly with the dark blue of the now starry sky. Trenna wouldn't have seen it if Sern hadn't been standing in front of its flap, packing up his wares.

"So, who'd you spend the day with this time?" he asked as she approached, the stone hidden in the pocket of her holey jeans.

"Oh. I, er, played with, um…" Trenna desperately searched for a name in her head of someone she'd met here in the past. "Micha," she finally said, having given up and creating a name. "I just met her today, she's great."

Sern nodded, not seeming to notice how Trenna had stumbled over the words.

"Did you make any money today?" Trenna asked, buying time as she tried to think of a believable story of how she'd acquired the stone in her pocket without mentioning that Galbatorix was searching for it.

A smile crossed Sern's face. "Yes, I finally sold that ruby. Made quite a bit off of it too," he added, holding up a handful of crowns.

"That's good," Trenna replied, shuffling her feet. Come on, you've had to come up with harder stories than this!

Sern dropped a sapphire into his deer-skin pack, then studied Trenna for a moment.

"You're not as…talkative as usual."

Trenna was tongue-tied. C'mon, c'mon, think of something… She searched her mind over and over, but still couldn't think of anything convincing to say. Running through her mind once more, she found the truth. At the back of her head was a small voice.

Trenna, stop lying to yourself. You don't want the stone to be sold away. You want to keep it. It has to be special if Galbatorix wants it so badly.

Trenna's hand immediately flew to her pocket. The stone was still there, a heated lump against her leg. Normal stones weren't this warm, not even when they were in a cozy pocket. She squeezed her eyes shut, pondering what to do.

"Trenna?" Sern looked very concerned now.

Trenna's eyes snapped open. "I'm fine. It's nothing, Micha and I just didn't find much to do." She'd made her decision. There was no going back now.

Her father looked sympathetic for a moment, then went back to packing.

Trenna found it essential to hide the stone as quickly as possible. She found her own pack, stowed away behind Sern's stall, then stuffed the stone inside, figuring she'd do something with it later. Perhaps it would be useful when she actually discovered what it was.

"Come help me take down the tent!" Sern called from the front of the stall, where he was still standing.

Trenna obediently dashed to assist her father, sure that the stone would be safe in her pack, out of sight.

If only she'd known that stones as special as hers wouldn't find an obstacle as flimsy as a deer-skin pack to be a problem.