Page 5

Had he been below deck this entire journey? I couldn’t have missed him.

Now he stood near the stairs, though not quite like I remembered. Oh, he was still dark and devilish and handsome, but his swagger was gone. His cockiness replaced by focus, his dark gaze turned cold.

Today, he was a male of action, prepared for whatever lay on the other side of the fog. He dressed as finely as the day before, but today he wore leathered armor—stamped and sewn with design. His sword swung from a belt, but now I wondered at his true weapon, shadow magic.

When his gaze flicked my way, I knew he recognized me. He glanced at my armor and weapons, my confident posture. He smirked.

He knew I had been bluffing. I felt naked, caught pretending. Too soon, moving with fae speed, he stood at my side.

“You’re not exactly the demure, pretty lady I met last night… Are you?”

I shrugged, rolling my shoulders, working the sudden fear from my body. Just because he recognized me didn’t mean he knew who I was.

“Not now,” I scoffed. I checked my weapons, acting busy. Sword at my waist, daggers at my thighs, quiver at my back, bow in my hand… and fae princestillat my side.

“Why are you still here?” I snapped. “Isn’t therebettercompany for you?”

Calm, calm, calm…I sighed. I’d been on edge for days.

His grin faded as his playfulness vanished. “Don’t worry, I’ll leave as soon as we cross the Rift. I have other means of transportation.” He pointed to a small boat stored against the side of our much larger vessel. It was a fae boat, operated by magic and not suited for travel south of the Rift. “Do you really want me to go away?”

My stomach pitched, a wave of nervousness giving way to intrigue. The night before, he had been acting too, and I wanted to get closer. Entertaining him for a few minutes couldn’t be that dangerous.

“You can stay,” I replied.

Zayne

I felt guilty.

Nobody deserved to be near the Shades. I should know; I had lost far too many to their forces: my parents, my nursemaid Sandra at the shore, and now my sister, Eleanor.

This female didn’t deserve to be here, to witness what would happen to me. She’dhelpedme with the handkerchief, and the sight of her on this boat twisted my stomach with guilt.

At least Eleanor had shadow-stitched protective magic into the handkerchief. I didn’t know how her shadow-stitching worked, but it was powerful. I had already given this female the best I had.

If everything went according to plan, the fight would follow me. Once I boarded my boat, theUmbral Star, and crossed on my own, everyone on the merchant’s ship would be safe. I would face the fight alone.

Threads of my magic leaked past the Rift, creating a low current of power. The hum came as a relief.

With my magic, I could sense the Shades—their empty existence, the scent of death and rot ruining my other senses.

They lurked underwater, hiding their sensitive bodies from the light. There were more of them than I expected, and their bodies pressed against each other, becoming a dense mass of moving dead.

This would be different from last time.

It had to be.

This time, the fight was far from Inarus, their master. Since then, I’d studied necromancy, practicing my descent into the Underworld. It would be easier to overpower the necromancer controlling them.

And this time, Iwantedtheir Brand, a gray blemish that would overtake my soul. Once I had their Brand, I would banish them.

Simple. I had everything planned. I was prepared.

But seeing her, catching her scent of cherries, spicy and tart and sweet… She sparked with life, and I was on a deadly quest.

Finally, she answered, “You can stay.”

She shrugged and considered the foggy horizon with a frown. The other mercenaries shifted as we approached. Mirroring the others, she removed her cloak, revealing the leather armor beneath, the material creased and worn but oiled and well-made.