Drosselmeyer nodded slowly. “That aligns with what I know as well.”
He said nothing more. Celesta and Sienna shared a look of long-suffering before Celesta sighed. “And? Are you going totell us what that is? By the realms, you wizards certainly have a knack for withholding information at the most frustrating of times.” Though her words were harsh, there was a smile in her eyes. Sienna had witnessed enough interactions between the two of them to know that this was a common complaint.
“We share what is needed when it is needed.” Drosselmeyer’s eyes twinkled with mischief in return.
“And the time is now, and the information is everything you know about the Flying Dutchman.” Celesta reached into a skirt pocket and pulled out a small parcel wrapped in brown paper. She opened one end to reveal the red and white ends of peppermint sticks, which she offered to Sienna.
Sienna took one and stuck the end in her mouth, savoring the sharp, minty sweetness as it danced over her tongue.
“So,” the queen continued, speaking around the candy stick in the corner of her mouth. “Why is the captain here? If he’s not a villainous pirate, what is he doing, besides makingwavesin the sailing community?”
“As to what he is doing, you’re guess is as good as mine,” Drosselmeyer answered, ignoring her pun. “But to answerwhyhe is here, the short answer is that he is cursed.”
Sienna blinked in surprise. “Cursed? How?”
“And by who?” Celesta added.
Drosselmeyer rose from his chair and strode towards one of the open windows with his hands clasped behind his back, his robe billowing out behind him as he moved. He stared out at the rocky shoreline as he spoke. “From what I have been able to piece together, the Dutchman came to our realm under some sort of agreement with Queen Nyx.”
Celestas’ nose wrinkled. “Of the Night Court?”
“The same. This was many, many years ago—nearly fifty, I believe—when they were still in exile. I don’t know exactly what Nyx expected of him, but whatever it was, it seems he eitherwas ignorant of the details or else had a change of heart once he entered Faerie. Nyx was less than pleased, and she burned his boat and cursed him and his crew to wander the seas in a miserable half-existence.”
“What do you mean?” Sienna’s voice reflected the horror that filled her eyes.
“The reason for the Dutchman and his crew’s ghostly appearance is that they are neither fully here nor in the human realm, but somewhere halfway between.” Drosselmeyer turned. “I’m not entirely sure how she managed to do it. My initial hypothesis was that she had help, but Koschei would have been the only one with enough musical and magical knowledge to do such a thing, and he was still stripped of his powers during that time.”
“Then how?”
“I don’t know,” he sighed. “Which is part of the reason for my search. What’s more, I don’t know what the effect of such a curse will have on a human, or if it’s even possible to lift it. I was hopeful that we might find some more information here that would allow me to locate him.”
Celesta snapped her fingers. “If Enna saw his ship yesterday as Doryss was coming to shore, it’s possible that they might have seen something. We should ask him. Or Devri, if he’s not around.”
Sienna gave her friend a knowing smile. “You just want an excuse to sample some of Devri’s cookies, don’t you?” Celesta had an unfailing weakness for sweets.
The queen tilted her nose pertly in the air. “Of course not. If I’m going to visit her bake shop, I might as well sample the cakes and pastries, too. It’s such a shame that she’s not closer to Iysen. I’ll have to ask her to pack a box of extras for me to take home.”
The mention of boxes jogged Sienna’s memory. “Oh!”
Drosselmeyer and Celesta responded to her sudden outburst with looks of surprise.
“I found something else yesterday. I was going to write to you, but now that you’re here, I suppose I can just tell you. Do you remember the caves?” Her question was directed at Celesta.
“The ones by the tide pools?”
“Yes. I was exploring them yesterday, just for old time’s sake, and I found a pile of crates hidden away in one of them.”
Both of her guests perked up with interest at this news. Drosselmeyer’s eyes were sharp. “Do you have any idea what was in them?”
She shook her head. “No. None of the boards were loose enough for me to pry off, and I didn’t want to break anything trying to open them. But they all were stamped with ‘Hollander’s Emporium’ on the outside.” She looked back and forth between the two. “Does that name sound familiar to either of you?”
Celesta tapped her chin thoughtfully. “I can’t recall ever hearing it. But what if we went and took a look around now? Dross might be able to open one.”
The wizard nodded somberly. “I would like to see for myself. I haven’t heard of that particular name before.”
Sienna rose, collecting the empty dishes and dropping them into the sink. “Alright. The tide should be low enough by now to get inside. Let me write a note for Papa in case he comes home while we’re out.”
Chapter five
