Reyla.
My restraint, the careful control I’d maintained despite the storm lashing inside me, snapped. The need to eradicate this threat slammed down hard on my patience. Without another word, I fed more power into the air, lifting him effortlessly even as wild curses spilled from his mouth.
The crew kept their distance, wary and respectful. They attended to their tasks, not turning this way. The cabin boy, new enough that he hadn’t learned all he soon would, gaped at me in stark terror.
I held the man above the deck, whipping wind against his face, turning his curses into garbled nonsense. His eyes widened, panic clawing at his bravery when he realized what I planned to do. His eyes went wild, but there was something else there too, a flicker of resolve that no amount of pain or fear would break. I wanted to grind that resolve into dust. Let him know his sacrifice was pointless, that his every action had no meaning.
Come after me, if you will, but no one touched my wife. There would be no mercy for those who wanted to harm her.
I clenched my fist harder, forcing my air magic to whip out and tighten around his throat enough to turn his sputters into gurgles.
Yes, he understood now.
I flung him toward the sea and pivoted as he fell.
The captain stood not far away, watching with a grim, satisfiedsmile curling one corner of his mouth. At my nod, he turned and lifted his voice. “Do your jobs well, and you’ll make it to the shores of Evergorne safe and sound.”
Even the cabin boy jerked away, focusing on the bucket and mop by his feet.
I let the wind die down to a whisper and released my magic back into strands of mist. What was left of the shells settled back where the cabin boy might’ve left them.
Tired. I was so very tired already.
A subtle sound to my left caught my attention, and I spun.
Reyla stood at the top of the stairs; her wide gaze fixed on me.
14
REYLA
The moment Merrick told me to leave the deck, Lord Briscalar latched onto my arm. He kept peering back as he hurried me down the stairs. I wanted to look back myself. No, I wanted to be on deck, watching whatever Merrick planned to do.
Would he lash through the crew like Ivenrail, making them pay for what could be a mere accident?
At the bottom of the stairs, I wrenched free from Lord Briscalar. I’d go with him—for now, but I would not be treated in this manner.
With a grunt, the lord steered me toward my suite as if I was a misbehaving child. Not yet, but give me time.
“What’s happening up there?” I asked.
“It’s not my place to say,” he squeaked, his gaze anywhere but on mine as he urged me toward my cabin door. He openedit with magic, and with a thrust, sent me inside. I spun but the door slammed in my face. The lock clicked, and I didn’t bother to test it. If nothing else, Lord Briscalar’s magic was superior to mine.
I stared at the wooden panel with fury simmering in my chest. Farris pressed against the backs of my legs, his whimper breaking through my frustration.
What in all the fates had happened up there?
I couldn’t shake the image of Merrick’s skin tightening beneath his muscles as if it had become something more like armor as he latched onto me and flung us onto the deck. The memory of his touch, the protective way he’d shielded me, warred with my need for answers. Had it been an accident or something more sinister?
Biting down on my fingernail, I knew I couldn’t afford to sit and wait for someone to give me information. Answers wouldn't be served on a silver platter, not here, not among the fae, and I suspected, not from Merrick.
My pretty gown now felt like ropes coiling around my body, a reminder of the queenly role I was supposed to play at Evergorne. If something attacked, did they expect me to hide?
Fuck that.
I obeyed no one but myself.
I tore off the dress, the fabric dragging over my skin. Tossing the gown onto the bed, I raced to the closet and pulled out my favorite leathers, grateful Lord Briscalar had only cleaned them and not thrown them away.
