Kairen approached from the side, his dark hair nearly auburn in the sunlight, golden eyes bright as he joined me. His arms crossed as he watched the crew, neither of us needed for this particular work.
“Is Rena settled?” I asked, breaking the silence that hovered between us. His head dipped, ringed fingers flexing.
“Yes, the potion you brewed for sea sickness has her sleeping already.”
“Drowsiness is an unfortunate side effect for that particular remedy.”
We fell back into silence, the cry of the gulls high overhead as though singing the words we could not say. My feet shifted, eyes catching silver and green as he sought me out. I saw the way his gaze narrowed, body tensing and shook my head.
“You can ask what you’d like to know, Kairen.”
His head turned, dark waves shifting with the movement. His hair had grown longer over our journey, falling into his face as he gave me a tight smile.
“Are you sure? It appears as though we have a tense audience.”
My attention drifted back to Roan who still watched the interaction, wariness lining every muscle.
“Are you two still bickering?”
A laugh sounded, startling me. The prince’s head was tipped back, white teeth gleaming in the rays of sun that shone over the planes of his face. He basked in it as though he were sun and flame incarnate.
“Roan and I were boys together.” His smile stayed fixed, voice wistful. “I was the third-born son, so my father didn’t care much for who I kept company with. We played together when we were little, trained together when we grew older, bled together when we became men. He’s been my ally in every corner of life, a constant. And I in his.” His hand flexed again, jaw ticking. “Until now. Until you, and I have to admit I've had a hard time coming to terms with it.”
I picked at my nails, careful with my words. “His life has been in dedication to a throne which stole everything from him. Should he not be allowed some freedom in his choices where it’s possible? Him caring for another doesn’t make his care for you any less.”
“He beat me until my face wasblood—”
“And you burnt me until the skin melted from my back. You both made mistakes.”
A sigh fell from his lips as he appraised me, the tension easing from his body as though my words drained away whatever ill will he harbored within himself. “Perhaps you’re right.”
My shoulder brushed his, a peace offering before I said, “Do you wish to speak of what happened with Wraith?”
“Bran said he claimed it was a human creation, that myfamilycreated it to further the divide between Luanthians and Solerians, so they could be the only ruling power.”
“What do you think of that?”
A frustrated hand tore through his hair, his lips thinning. “I don’t know what I believe anymore.”
My shoulder lifted. “As much as I don’t want to believe it, it would make sense. An illness blamed on Luanthian magic appears and then half a century later, the Luanthian nobility is slaughtered and Solerians take sole control of the kingdom—could that merely be a coincidence?”
“There’s still the possibility it was created by the demon princes?”
My head dipped, conceding as I let out a sigh of my own. “That’s still a possibility. One positive in the ocean of negatives we’re currently drowning in, it’ll be easier to find a cure if it was something of human creation. If we can find a way to replicate and study it, I could find a remedy.”
“You would want toreplicateit?”
“In a safe, secure environment where it could be studied and never released, yes.”
“That sounds like it has a million chances of going horribly wrong.”
My mind was heavy, tired. “Do you have a betteridea?”
“I havemanyideas, Potion Maker,” his crossed arms tightening the barest hint, “and none seem like a good option.”
“Then let us go north and find whoever this Misha is and see what we discover there, the quest isn’t yet over.” I tried to be comforting, but still there was an underlying awkwardness between us. I saw then his gaze drifting to Roan, his jaw tightening.
“Have you tried speaking with—“
