Am I?
I twist my mouth. “What about Leo?”
“Ah.” Merrick leans back, stretching his knee out with a groan. “His parents were both twos.”
The Caelumnai marks. A knot forms in my stomach. “And?”
“They were both conscripted on the same day, when Petyr made the announcement that they would now conscript by tier. Maybe… three years ago now,” Merrick murmurs. His eyes follow Leo as he runs past us, Riordan sprinting after him and begging for a reprieve. The boy’s laughter filters back. “Conscription is not optional. And since both were taken at the same time, Leo was left behind. I found him, and he stayed with us. When the time came to do the crossing, he refused to be left behind again.”
An ache springs up in my throat. “You took care of him.”
Merrick’s eyes slip back to mine. Heavier. “I did not have the opportunity to raise my own children, Selene. I carry that regret with me, for I would have liked the opportunity to be a father. Very much.”
My heart squeezes, and my eyes prick.
Leo barrels into Merrick then, nearly knocking him off his stool as he wiggles beneath his arm, his face flushed and sweaty. “Help—it’s awraith.”
“Merrick will not save you,” Rio growls as he approaches, his hands up and curved to mimic claws. Leo giggles, burying his face in Merrick’s side as Rio creeps around. He waggles hiseyebrows at me, and I bite down on a smile. “Wraiths eat little boys like you for breakfast.”
He snaps his teeth together, his hands diving for Leo at the same time that Callan’s bellowed voice carries across the deck.
“Wraiths!”
Then screaming. Piercing, shrill screams that burrow into my head as I slam my hands over my ears, staggering to my feet and knocking the stool from beneath me. Merrick jerks to his feet, face paling. “Leo—get below!”
What in the name of Ellas—
“Everyone inside!” Callan roars. “Now!”
Rio appears in front of me, all amusement wiped and a sword in his hands. “Quickly, Selene. Stay with me.”
I follow his steps, my head twisting as we race for the top of the steps. “What’s happening?”
“Wraiths!” he shouts over his shoulder, glancing back.
His eyes widen. And in the reflection of his scarlet iris, there is spreading darkness.Wings. And my own face as those wings spread out behind me; far, far larger than my own.
“Get down!”
Rio’s weight slams into me, taking us both to the floor as I lose the air in my chest. My shoulder smacks into the wood, Rio landing on top of me.
Cool air gusts over us as something swoops, before pulling away. Gasping, I roll onto my side as he pushes off me with a hasty apology. “What in Ellas arewraiths?”
He grabs my arm, pulling me to my feet and pushing me toward the stairs. “Go!”
But he doesn’t go that way. He sprints past me, and I whirl at the cry in his throat.
Esme is pressed back against a set of crates, her face ashen as she slowly reaches for the swords at her back.
Horror swamps me at the creature that hovers in the air, blocking her way.
Travelers tell many stories. Of heroes, and legends, and gods. Many of love, although those never interested my sisters, since we could not understand them. But of all the stories, the ones spoken to strike fear into the hearts of those listening were always my least favorite.
And this thing—thiscreature—looks as though it’s been torn straight from the lips of a Traveler on a dark winter night. As though it’s climbed up from the abyss below our feet to stalk and hunt and feast and drag its prey back down into the darkness.
It looms over Esme. Eight, maybe nine feet, shoulders bony and hunched and curved. Torn, broken wings flare out, jagged, razor-sharp edges slamming into Rio and sending him sprawling across the deck. Indecision and fear lock my feet into place.
He does not get up.
