Delilah just sighed.
“Oh.”Kieran blinked.“That’s…good that animals’ blood works.Better than people’s.”
“So we have another curse to deal with—that’s all fine and good,” Ariel said, yawning loudly behind their hand.They shook their head, as if trying to get the sleepy fog out of their brain.“But it’s also the middle the night, and I’m exhausted.I can change our route again before bed to try to shake off any more potential attackers, but how do I know I’m not going to get drained in my sleep?”
“Ariel, come on—” Kieran started.
“No, they’re right.I understand.”Sebastian sighed.“If it makes you all feel better, you’re welcome to lock me in my bedroom until you decide what to do.I should be fine for a few days after draining that man.Plus, the doors are hickory—even in my other form, I can’t break them down.”
“You know what kind of wood the doors are made of?”Briar repeated, wrinkling her nose.
Kieran nearly snorted.“Oh, he knowsa lotabout wood, trust me.”
Everyone at the table stared at him in horror.
“I—I mean literally!He whittles!Goodness, get your minds out of the gutter.Anyway, locking him up feels wrong—”
Despite the situation, Sebastian managed a small laugh at that.“It’s okay, Kieran.Really.”
“We could always vote,” Briar offered.“Everyone in favor of locking Sebastian in his room until we figure out what to do next?”
Everyone at the table other than Kieran and Sebastian raised their hands.
Kieran crossed his arms.“Fine.But let the record show, I think this is overkill.”
“I guess we can decide that if we get to the Mirrorveil Woods in one piece,” Ariel said.“Now, I need to go to the control room and change our path.The rest of you should get to bed.”
With that, everyone nodded, and Kieran worried at his lower lip with his teeth.It was wrong to imprison Sebastian, wasn’t it?He’d made it this far without hurting any of them—why would he now?
As if reading his mind, Sebastian shot Kieran a soft look.“Really, it’s okay, Kieran.I’ll be fine.”
Kieran pursed his lips, frowning.But after a moment, he realized he had no other choice but to agree.
Even if he hated it.
Chapter Twelve
Kieran spent the rest of the night tossing and turning in bed, unable to sleep with the adrenaline still coursing through his body.Every creaking sound and innocuousthumpfrom the ship’s hull turned into another troop of mercenaries come to kill him.When he did finally fall asleep, he had nothing but nightmares of swords against his throat and gleaming red eyes.
When he woke, dawn had just begun to break.He felt wide awake.Realistically, he should try to get a few more hours of sleep, but he wasn’t sure if he’d be able to.Not with the way he’d fallen asleep thinking of Sebastian and woken up to the image of him with blood in his hair and the most shame-stricken expression Kieran had ever seen.
I should check on him,he decided.If I were him, I’d want someone to talk to after last night.
Kieran got dressed, tied his hair back with a piece of twine, and crept out into the hallway.He could hear snoring coming fromDelilah and Briar’s room.Having lived with them for months now, he was all too familiar with the fact that they were both extremely deep sleepers, which was probably a good thing considering how loudly Delilah snored and how much Briar talked in her sleep.
Kieran quietly went to Sebastian’s door.Light shone out from underneath—either he was awake or he’d slept with the lights on.Kieran pressed his ear to the door, listening for movement.Indeed, there was the faint sound of humming, paired with ascrape, scrape, scapesound Kieran didn’t recognize.The humming, though—he knew the melody.It was the tune of a love song Kieran had heard on the radio many times, the lyrics telling the story of a young man who fell in love with a traveling witch.Kieran loved that song.For a second, he just waited, listening to the low vibration of Sebastian’s voice.
Kieran raised his hand to knock, then stopped.Perhaps he should bring a sort of peace offering.I could try to catch him a bird to drink from.Then again, I don’t know how to catch a bird, much less kill one.
Just the thought of slaughtering a bird made the back of his throat tighten.Okay, maybe not something with a heartbeat.He does still drink normal things along with blood, right?
Coffee,Kieran decided.I’ll make coffee.
Downstairs in the kitchen, Kieran brewed himself a coffee, then paused, wondering what Sebastian might like.He seemed to enjoy sweeter foods.Nodding, Kieran poured steaming coffee into a mug, leaving room at the top.He grabbed some cinnamon and sweetened condensed milk, mixing them into the coffee.Thenhe spooned in a bit of frothed milk, topping it with a sprinkle of sugar and more cinnamon.It smelled absolutely divine—sweet and creamy and bold all at once.
When he was done, he brought both mugs back upstairs, careful not to spill on his white shirt.Once he was back in front of Sebastian’s door, it occurred to him that he didn’t have a free hand to knock.He went with his first instinct and gently kicked the door three times.
His heart raced.He couldn’t exactly pinpoint why—he wasn’t scared of Sebastian, even after last night.And he wasn’t usually the type to get nervous talking to people.But there was something about Sebastian that made his knees feel like jelly.
