But as they neared Trayterre Isle’s main island, the tendrils of white fog parted, and an entirely new world opened up, formed by high, jagged cliffs and dense forests. Augustus couldn’t think of a single land that compared. Boulders protruded from the shallow waters all the way up to the sparkling, pebbled beach. The twisted, gnarled forest whispered ambiguously of an ancient past, while almost begging entrance.
Come, it seemed to say.Let me tell you everything I know.
It also said,We shall determine later if you are free to leave.
Augustus refused to turn back. Whether the voices were real or tricks of his imagination didn’t matter—Selene was here, and something ancient waited with her.
He envied Gus his wings. The dronsian would see her first; maybe he’d found her already.
Augustus would appreciate some kind of signal saying so. Knowing Gus, he would stay with her. She was the one he was bonded to. Augustuswas just the man who put up with that tongue flopping around, that big, goofy smile, and those wide, innocent eyes.
Augustusmissedhim.
Damn the gods...that was incredibly inconvenient.
Selene was going to love this.
A smile stretched his mouth. She was alive, and she was close, and he was going to see hertoday. He couldn’t believe it. That crafty, gorgeous woman escaped an extremely dangerous ship of pirates. She was nothing short of amazing.
“Nervous?” Lili asked, coming up beside him. She pointedly eyed thetap, tap, tapping of his fingers on the railing. “She might still be pissed at you. She’s likely to slap you first, then kiss you after.”
A breathy laugh shot from his chest. “I’ll take her in any order she comes in. But yes, if you must know, the way I left things sits heavy on my mind.”
Half a smile pulled at her mouth—she hadn’t summoned a full one since finding her father’s remains. “She loves you, mate. You have nothing to worry about.”
Augustus knew that. It didn’t make him any less anxious to spill the apologies Selene was owed. More than anything, she had to know he regretted every stupid thing he’d said.
Lili’s humor evaporated, and she turned to scan the small ship they’d acquired. A small crew of Okosian sailors managed the wheel and sails. The rest of them—the Rangers, the Blades, Felix, and Pavle—hung about in huddled conversations. All the people who had refused to waste a single minute without laying their eyes on Selene. Anxious to reach her.
Maybe not so much the Rangers; they simply followed Blaze wherever he went. And Blaze went where Augustus did. It was like old times, for goodor bad.
Augustus’s stomach twisted. He’d let things go too far with Blaze, and he would have to tell Selene everything. About the kiss, the way he hid the prophecy… He couldn’t begin to guess her reaction. He’d betrayed her on several levels. A slap was the least of his concerns, though he was preparing for at least one.
“I have more to worry about than you realize,” he admitted aloud, swiping a hand through his wind-knotted hair. “I kissed Blaze.”
Lili jerked upright and nearly barreled into him to get closer, anger contorting her face. “Say that a-fucking-gain? You didn’t. Tell me you fucking didn’t.”
“It was a goodbye,” he said. “But that won’t make it easier for her to hear.”
“Then you use your words, mate, not your godsdamned tongue.” A sharp, dark laugh bubbled up from her. “Selene always was too good for you.”
Lili started off.
“Hey!” he shouted at her back. “What’s?—?”
She spun back, hands fisted. “Are we all just pawns in the game to you?”
Augustus’s mind emptied of all words. He didn’t recognize his own best friend or the blatant rage emanating from her.
“All our lives, you’ve just decided the path and put us on it,” she continued. “I was young and stupid to think—” Tears climbed into her eyes and spilled over. “We weren’t ready for this.”
“Ready for what?”
Lili’s arms shot out as if to encompass the world. “This. You a captain, me a sailing master. We walked away as if we didn’t need them, and you made me believe that was true. Well, you were wrong. We are young and stupid, and you couldn’t make that more obvious every single day.”
Everyone within earshot had paused to listen and stare. A line had burrowed between Blaze’s eyes, and Augustus sent him a slight shake of the head. If he came over now, this would get much worse.
“I know, Lili. I already know all of this.”
