“Let’s go!” Caleb shouted as they crossed the gangplank.
Adara and Dominic glared daggers at him.
A blur of white hair rushed past. “They’re here! Hoist the anchor!” Vesper shouted, rushing to help Tyson and Desmond with the windlass.
Zephyr stood at the port railing, his high-pitched voice shouting a warning. “Hurry, the guards are coming!”
Shouts and the clanking of armor drew closer. Tobias set her down gently on the main deck and went to help the Andreilians make quick work of departing from the dock. Ace refused to leave Dominic’s side, helping him walk to the quarterdeck. Ace took hold of the helm as Dominic lifted a shaking hand. A gust of wind whipped Adara’s hair, filling the sails. She glanced toward Dominic, who gritted his teeth as he worked his magic for them to escape quickly. The water churned beneath them, a strong current pushing them out to sea at an unnatural pace.
“Pherra!”one of the dockworkers shouted.
“Leave them to the Plagued Sea. It’s where their kind belongs,” another replied.
The string of profanities aimed at them faded as the distance betweenThe Lykrenand Gierok grew wider. Adara pressed two fingers to her wrist, her chest, her forehead, and prayed they’d survive another journey across this cursed ocean. “Itryla al rone yi mon taka.”
Asher’s nimble fingers worked diligently over the mutilated skin of Adara’s forearm as she told the others how they defeated the Whisperer. Zephyr listened intently, the young boy’s eyes wide with fascination at the dramatic flare she added to her words as her story went on. She had silently questioned the extent of how much Andreilia’s enchanted water affected them all, wondering if it was simply their bodies that didn’t age or if it was their minds as well. Yes, it was clear some had gained wisdom through experience and the lifetimes they’d lived. Considering that they all still acted the way they physically appeared, Adara assumed that their eternal youth was exactly that—never aging.
Silas and Niran sat in their circle as well, anxious to know how they barely escaped death, intrigued by the way Adara hardly winced as Asher stitched the lacerations on her arm. Only thirteen and fourteen, they were still so young compared to the others, and Adara wondered how they’d survived the journey to Andreilia in the first place.
Silas shook his head, auburn hair swaying. His moss green eyes flickered between her and the small wood carving of a wolf he’d been adding finishing details to. The freckles across his face scrunched with his nose in concentration as he whittled.
A notebook sat open in Niran’s lap. His inky black hair matched the dark charcoal drawing he’d been creating of the Whisperer as Adara described what she saw once she finally tore off her blindfold. Adara leaned over to inspect his creation, giving him a nod of approval, and his glacial eyes lit with gratification.
Caleb and Tobias approached with another kit of medical supplies, the latter handing bandages to Asher as he finished suturing Adara’s wound.
“So you fought that thing completelyblindand only came out with a few scratches?” Caleb inquired as he joined them, sitting on the forecastle deck.
Adara flexed her fingers, wincing at the ache shooting through her arm as Asher finished wrapping the bandage around it. She held up her arm, a thin layer of blood already staining the white dressing. She would heal quicker than any human, thanks to the experiments in the Shadow Empire, but she still hated the inconvenience of her dominant hand being in so much pain.
“I’d hardly call this just a scratch,” Adara replied. The damned thing had sunken its fangs deep into her arm, tearing muscle and sinew. She was only glad it hadn’t shattered her bones.
“Hey, at least you’ll get a badass scar and a good story out of it,” Caleb said with a shrug.
“At least you’re not dead,” Silas said bluntly, the corners of his lips tilted up.
Adara breathed a laugh. “At least I’m not,” she said.
A grunt of pain drew her eyes to the quarterdeck, where Dominic stood, still commanding the wind and sea to bring them to Andreilia faster. His face was twisted in agony and anger at Ace, who appeared to be trying to reason with him.
She rolled her eyes. “But Dominic will be soon if he doesn’t let anyone help him.”
Chapter 17
Aceclosedhiseyes,pinching the bridge of his nose and shaking his head in annoyance at Dominic, who refused to let him tend to his wounds. He had no time to rest. The longer they were at sea, the greater risk they had of meeting their demise, like every other poor soul insane enough to sail across the Plagued Sea. Besides, his magic would heal him . . . eventually.
He grimaced as Adara approached, glancing between him and his second. She lightly placed a hand on Ace’s shoulder,whispering something in his ear. Ace shot her a look of doubt but took his leave nonetheless.
“Would you rest for a moment and let me help you. You’ll do us all no good if you bleed out before we get back to Andreilia.” Adara scowled.
The sails shuddered under Dominic’s magic, unsteady and weak. His breathing grew heavy, and sweat beaded on his brow. “We need to get back as soon as possible. I’d prefer not to be stranded in the middle of the Plagued Sea and end up as lykren bait,” he grumbled through gritted teeth.
Rolling her eyes at him, Adara walked past him.Good.Hopefully, she’d go to her berth and sleep the rest of the way back. That way, he wouldn’t have to deal with her reprimanding him.
Something hit his ankle, sweeping it out from under him. As he fell backward, Dominic reached out to grab anything that would catch him. Both hands wrapped around Adara’s uninjured arm as her fingers wrapped around his throat. His feet caught purchase on the wood, supporting the lower half of his weight. But his upper half, bent back and halfway fallen to the deck, was at Adara’s mercy. His grip on her arms bolstered his weight, and Adara’s grasp on his neck was firm enough to keep him from crashing to the floor. “Let me help you, or I’ll keep choking you until you pass out, then I’ll tend to your wounds while you’re unconscious and I don’t have to hear you whine,” Adara said. Her fingers dug in more for emphasis.
A shrill whistle sounded from the main deck, all eyes on them.
“Get a room!” Caleb shouted.
