The shadow of a bird glides over the deck. I glance up to see its silhouette pass across the warm, afternoon sun. It’s big enough that I furrow my brow. Is it a roc, or the same one that’s been pestering the ship? It screeches, sending a shudder down my spine. Definitely the same one. Salt spray settles over the ship as the bow plows through the Adamaris Sea. From the stern castle deck, I can see all around us. Up ahead an island looms. Large, and jagged, like a sea creature floating on the waves. Odi leans on the ship's railing just in front of me, her eyes focused on the comings and goings of the crew below, hair tangling by the wind. There’s something in the way her foot bounces up and down on the spot that has me itching to reach for her. She’s nervous.
I know she’s been to this island before. Spent hours digging, but her father and his crew never had the keys that we have in our possession, so this is newto her and I.
Boots clatter on the stairs. Otto bounds up, grinning wide. “Cap,” he says, giving me a quick nod before turning straight to her.
The ship's wheel hums under my hands, steady as the tide. I know I shouldn’t eavesdrop, but something warm in my chest shifts when I see Otto sidle up to Odi’s side. For once he’s not all restless energy. It’s the first time they’ve had a chance to talk quietly since Nisse became known.
Odi glances at him, and when he softly bumps her arm with his shoulder, her body relaxes. “I should’ve told you,” Odi says quietly, so low I almost miss it over the creak of the rigging. “About my father. About who I am.”
Bear shakes his head fast, dark blond shaggy hair whipping about him. “There’s nothing to forgive, Odi,” his voice carries easy, unburdened. “You’re not him. You’ll never be him.”
My admiration for the young man only grows deeper as I witness the patching of open wounds between two people. Odi’s shoulders ease, but I’ve yet to see her smile.
“How can you be so sure?” she says quietly.
Otto reaches out and squeezes her hand. “Because you’re too good at looking out for others to be anything like that bastard.”
With a flurry of limbs, Odi throws her arms around Otto’s neck and pulls him into her embrace, her shoulders shaking. Otto’s face turns beet red, but he wraps his arms around her just as fiercely.
I grip the wheel tighter, fighting back the tears. I didn’t think I could be prouder of the passionate cook in front ofme, and then he goes and speaks truth, folding her in his arms while she chokes back the pain she’s carried her whole life.
“Land ahoy!” Tavi shouts from the crows nest.
The crew scramble to the side of the deck to peer over. We’re close enough to the island to sink the anchor and gather the row boats.
Bear scurries off back down to the galley, but not before he winks at me. I shake my head with a grin as Odi comes to stand beside me. I wrap an arm around her waist and pull her closer. “Are you ready to get this treasure?”
She looks up at me, fear and excitement swirling in her eyes. “I am, if you are?”
I lean down, brushing her cheek with a faint kiss. “Let’s go together.”
An hour later, sand crunches under my boots as we make landfall. The island is small, but wild. Roots from vivacious green trees claw up from the ground, wrapping around jagged stones. Gulls cry overhead, like a warning. The air here tastes different, heavier, like it knows the treasure it hides.
I split the team up into two groups. The first group stays on the shore with the boats, keeping watch and the second sticks with Elio, Tavi, and I. Odi leads the way.
After walking for a while, she turns to me, her brow pinched, hands on hips, viewing the surroundings. “I swear it was around here.”
“Cap!” Elio's voice cuts across the tension in the air. “There’s a cavern here—runs under. Looks like itleads somewhere.”
Odi and I glance at each other before going to meet him at a rocky rise where the ocean carves at the island. The drop isn’t far, but it’s steep, and at the bottom, water flows under the rock
I glance at Odi who is already staring at me, her dark hair whipped by the salt wind. “The tide must have flooded it. When I was here last, I was able to wade in.”
Aqua water laps at the decline, stones turning slick with the sea. We’ll have to swim under. It's an inconvenience, but not for me. I’ll happily take any opportunity to take Odi into my arms.
Elio and Tavi hover beside the edge. I throw them a glance. “Watch the crew.”
They nod in unison, and then I leap the short way down, landing in water up to my chest. I raise my hands up for Odi, letting her know I’ll catch her. She sets her legs over the edge before pushing off and gracing me with a splash. With a low chuckle, I scoop her up into my chest. Her arms loop around my neck and I fight the urge to bury my face in her hair. “On three?” I murmur, walking us deeper.
She nods, the grip around my neck tightening. “One, two . . .”
I press a gentle, but quick kiss on her lips. Something to distract her. “Three.”
We plunge. The noises outside muffle into silence as the cold water takes us whole. I shift, propelling into action with the flick of my tail. Its crystal-clear blue water. Nothing lurks at the bottom in the shadows, and for once I’m glad I don’t need to be looking over my shoulder.
Odi’s sea stone hardly has time to bubble up as light blooms ahead, shimmering pale as we break into a hidden cavern. With another powerful flick of my tail, I haul us up towards the surface. Together we break it, and Odi draws in a deep breath, rivets of water spilling down her face.
“Well done, little doe,” I say, grinning down at her like a smitten schoolboy.
