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Vanessa continued, “That’s our cue. Ayla, you really pushed your arrival to the last minute. You should have seen Zayne brooding with worry.”

“I wasn’t—”

Ayla snickered. “Sorry to worry you.”

Her eyes glinted in the sunlight, warming me. I still couldn’t believe she was there. “Why did you come?” I asked.

“Well, Port Saundyrs is a little dull, don’t you think? All that dancing seems a little tiresome compared to the adventure you have planned.”

I raised an eyebrow. “I thought you liked the dancing.”

“The Firewolf matters more. Now”—she pointed to the rope still tying us down—“should we get this adventure started?”

I was reminded of our chat on the merchant’s ship. Her eyes had the same gleam. The confidence was a good look.

Hell, having her along could be fun. A teammate would be better company than my ghosts and memories. I inhaled, taking in her scent—spicy and sweet, tart like cherry—and my tongue swirled within my mouth.

She grinned, ever the flirt.

I chuckled, the laugh a welcomed relief.

Will she compromise me?The thought rose unbidden and unwanted. This wasn’t a playful adventure. It wasn’t fun and games. Eleanor was depending on me. Our lives were at stake.

I needed Ayla as a guide, not as a friend. There was no room for errors. No space for distractions.

My laughter died, and my lips turned in a frown. Growing up, I had learned to mask myself, to keep my motivations safe, my reactions secure. I relied on that training now.

“Let’s go,” I said, and with mechanical motions, I unfastened our boat. The rope slid onto the deck, filling our silence with awhoosh.

Vanessa climbed into her crow’s nest. “To the Isle of Shadow?” she asked.

“To home,” I agreed.

13 | The Ash Between Them

Ayla

Hot or cold—I didn’t know who Zayne intended to be. With his frown, the warm day turned clammy, and my adventurous optimism felt silly.

For a moment, he had smiled. It was a glimpse of who he could be—not the Shadow Prince, but someone eager to live despite his duty. I thought hewantedto play.

He had the slightest of chuckles, so quiet and serious. He shifted suddenly, like the sound of his own laughter had startled him.

If I’d been raised in exile, would I be serious like him? Instead, I had been an irreverent child, lost in her conflicting role of royal bastard. I laughed to escape, and he couldn’t safely chuckle. He was the Shadow Prince, and I was a mistake.

As Vanessa led us out of the docks, he stood rigid at the bow of the boat. He didn’t look back at me.

Whatever.I had worked hard for my positive attitude, and I would not let him take that from me.

I reached for my pack and retrieved my new phonograph. It was the whole reason I had been running late.

The fae good was composed of two parts: a small brass horn and a thick crystalline mount. The mount held a gigantic library of music, and under the direction of magic, it could play any of the encoded songs, tunes blaring through the horn. It was portable music.

Since operating it required magic, it was useless south of the Rift. However, the moment I heard it, music streaming from the merchant’s store, I knew I had to have it. Music that played at will—exactly what I needed to keep my fears away. Unfortunately, I couldn’t even operate it myself. Not without magic.

“Hey, Zayne?” I asked. “Can I ask a favor?”

He looked at the phonograph and frowned. “Really? That’s what you bought?”