He barked out a laugh. “Why would I need to do that when I have such a handsome face?”
“A face that you’re using magic to keep handsome?”
He feigned shock. “Are you saying I wouldn’t be this handsome if I were older?”
I drew back and rolled my eyes. “I’m saying there seems to be a lot of magic in this world, at least compared to mine, and you shouldn’t look as young as you do.”
“How much magic was in your world?”
My good humor faltered, and my words came out in a hushed whisper. “None, but it still had its charm.”
He cocked his head to one side and studied me. “You left someone behind.”
I dropped my gaze to the ground and bit my lower lip. “Yeah. . .”
“A lover?”
I choked on a bitter laugh and smiled up at him. “No, no one like that. I have a brother.”
There was a touch of relief at the corners of his lips. “I see. Baba may be wrong, and someone in the four seas knows a way to get you back. That would be another benefit to sailing on my ship.”
“I’m still thinking about that,” I reminded him. I couldn’t help but look at the eyepatch.
He reached up and brushed a finger over the cloth. “You’re curious about this.”
I flinched. “It’s kind of hard not to notice. Barreto said he didn’t know what was under that. Does that mean you got it after you left the island?”
A tension appeared on his lips, and he led me down the road. “Your guess is right. I acquired this patch after I set sail.”
“You lost it in a fight?”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because you’re not bragging about it.”
He chuckled. “I’ll have to be careful what I say around you.”
“You’re not saying how you lost it.” I paused and stared ahead of us with pursed lips. “But I suppose I don’t have any right to ask. We only just met, and it must have been painful.”
“It was.”
There was a strange mix of emotions in his words, like he was telling the truth but holding something back. I took that as a hint and sighed. “Well, however you lost it and however old you are, I feel I need to thank you.”
He lifted an eyebrow. “For what?”
“For offering me a place to stay,” I pointed out as we passed through the unfamiliar territory. “Without that, I wouldn’t have anywhere to go.”
“You could stay with Baba and her famous cooking.”
I looked up to find his eye twinkling down at me. “I like Cook’s food better.”
“I’m very glad to hear that.”
Chapter 23
We returned to the quaint cottage and had just stepped onto the path when a terrible scream came from inside. My eyes widened, and I whipped my head up to Torvus, who stared at the door. “That sounded like Ramaro!”
We rushed down the stones and tumbled into the cottage. Torvus had taken the lead, and he paused just inside. That meant I collided into his back and had to grab his sides to keep myself from falling.
