A couple of heavy swats to the bedrock around the crystal released it from the wall of the mine. I placed it carefully in the container hanging at my hip.

One more down and I was still alive.

My face stayed dry thanks to the mask, but sweat dripped down behind my ears, falling onto my neck. I wiped it off with my shoulder as I took a few more steps around the edge of the mine.

I’d descended six of the ten mining levels so far. The dirt had been carefully blasted away from the crystals during the excavation process, leaving the shards exposed along the walls. Each level had fewer and fewer viable crystals. Some I tested, but most Carl instructed me to avoid. I’d only filled two of the ten containers, and I was more than halfway through the mine.

I paused at another grouping.

“How are you doing?” Declan’s smooth voice was a balm on my frayed nerves.

My tank top was soaked through, and it wasn’t just the heat. “I’m hanging in.”

“Good work, kid. You’re doing great,” Carl said.

“He’s right, you know.” Declan’s voice was soft. “You’re doing great.”

Great. That was such bullshit. I must’ve been a good actress because on the inside I was slowly losing it.

Carl said something about energy bars on the ship when I first came out here, but I didn’t understand why I’d need them. He’d told me that the mask lasted for twelve hours. I was supposed to stay here until either I’d harvested enough crystal or the mask ran out, but I honestly didn’t think mining would take longer than a few hours, which meant I’d never need one of those energy bars or the full twelve hours from the mask.

I was so unbelievably wrong.

Mining was more time-consuming than I could’ve possibly imagined. Since I didn’t plan on taking any unnecessary risks, I was stuck out here for nine more hours. Also known as an eternity.

“Your temp’s pretty hot,” Declan said. “And your blood pressure is through the roof. I need you to remember to breathe.”

I grunted, and I hoped he realized how ridiculous his observations were. Was my heightened blood pressure really a surprise?

“Hurry up, Martinez. You’re running out of time, and you’re only twenty percent complete.” The voice never identified himself, but I knew that it had to be one of Jason’s guys. He’d been nagging me to move faster for the last hour, probably hoping that he could goad me into making a mistake.

I ground my teeth to stop myself from saying anything. I couldn’t afford any distractions, especially from this guy. Not when a mistake meant blowing myself up.

“Just take a breath. You’re doing great.” I took a minute to soak in the sound of Declan’s voice.