A flicker of memory: Destin pressing a flask into my hand on a cold night after the hunt went wrong. Thatcher standing guard over me in that cramped port cell when the magistrate swore I’d hang. Storms, blood, betrayals… and still, they’d been there. Still, they called me Captain.
Destin’s voice broke the silence. “You look like death, cousin. But you made it back.”
I nodded, then looked up at him. “Thanks for keeping the crew together.”
He pursed his lips, his eyebrows furrowed. “Just kept hoping by some miracle you’d be alive, and here you are.”
The heaviness weighed between us. Then I took a breath. No time to be sentimental.
“What news?” I asked again.
“Sereth received word of our ship’s attack.” Destinhanded me a paper. “She thought you were dead. We all did. She’s coming to help out.”
I read it quickly.
My Dearest Captain Alaric Galeborne,
I am relieved to hear of your safety.
Dearest? Relieved? Since when did she care about my safety?
Please remember our promise. The twins must be delivered to the King of Corallure, along with the sealed letter.
Best,
Her Majesty High Queen Sereth of Moanalei Kingdom
Crumpled it in my hand. Typical. Cold. Dismissive. Relief that didn’t reach the heart. Why was she coming?
The twins.
And, as if reading my thoughts, Destin said, “We found them, Alaric.”
“Well where are they now?” I frowned, but my tone never reached the roughness it was before. What did Malia do to me?
“They said they’re under orders from Sereth to find a witch here.”
“A witch?” I shook my head. There was only one witch around here, at least that I knew of…
“Unbeknownst to us all, they’re witch hunters,” said Destin. “They wouldn’t tell us much, but from what they did say, Sereth has trained them. They hunt and kill witches. When Sereth’s messenger came with a letter for us, he asked for the twins. We told them we couldn’t find them, so he went off looking for them. Sounds like he had a message for them too.”
Thatcher suddenly appeared and folded his arms. “We found them though, and we got bits of their message from him.”
“How long ago?”
“Yesterday.”
“What did he tell them?” I demanded.
Destin spoke first. “They refused to come with us because they are under orders from Sereth–”
“They’re looking for a witch,” Thatcher cut in, then pulled up his sleeve, revealing a large gash, which had mostly healed. “The girl gave me this when I tried to detain her. I don’t doubt their abilities. Lilo said they weren’t obligated to stay with us.”
The cut seemed intentional, like Lilo could have gone deeper if she wanted, but she only sliced his skin. A warning.
“So she wants me to take the twins to the king and queen yet Sereth gave them their own separate orders?” I shook my head. Things were not adding up. Wouldn’t she have commanded them to return to me immediately?
Destin made a face. “And speaking of witches, sounds like they’re going after the witch here.”
