Page 5 of A Spell of Bones and Madness (Nostos #2)

Howling wind left over from a storm whipped in Ember's face, salt peppering her skin as she made her way over to the nauarch and Kristos. Arms folded, Kristos arched his brows up with a questioning gaze at Ember’s harsh stomps across the deck.

She liked the older man, though it hurt to speak with him.

His demeanor and aura were so distinctly similar to Iason’s, even the way his eyes sparkled with pride when she whispered some backhanded comment about Ajax under her breath.

But Ember had decided she would no longer get close to anyone new, not anymore.

Not after the man that had been by her side her whole life, the one that gave her the courage to even be the Prytan in the first place, had fallen before her eyes.

So instead, Ember diverted her gaze to Leighton, tightening her scowl and acting as if her task was an utter inconvenience.

Leighton stood at the base of the main mast, attaching some sort of mechanism to Thalia to hoist her to the top.

His sleeves were rolled up, revealing spiraling tattoos, runes she did not understand, all patterned around a compass rose.

It was intricate and stunning, and admittedly, Ember was jealous.

The men and women of the Spartanis all received a tattoo after completing their first battle—something that symbolized the bravery they showed against evil.

Ember never had the chance to prove herself, to be marked with such a reminder of her own courage.

Never would she have that chance. She wondered if Leighton’s marking held similar meaning, or if perhaps it was just the brand of a pirate who spent his life on the seas.

“Gods, it took you long enough, Ember.” Leighton snatched the halyard replacement from Ember’s hands with a bit too much force for her liking, especially when he had barely seen the light of day since they left Alentus.

“We need to fix this right away. The Nostos can't sail at the speed we need her to with only the smaller sails.”

Ember bit her bottom lip and started to pick away at her nail beds.

He was right though, they needed to make haste to their final destination.

Where were they even going? No one had informed her of the isle where they would make port.

There were not enough supplies to make it all the way to Skiatha, or so Ajax told her, but to stop at one of the smaller isles would allow time for The Hydra or one of King Athanas and King Edmund's ships to catch up.

That was, if they were even still following them.

The two kings had what they wanted now, at least as far as Ember knew.

Alexander, the Prince of Nexos, was locked up in the Alentian dungeons, and they had run off the only people who could contest their usurping of the throne.

Ember's blood began to boil under her skin once more.

Grabbing the mechanism from Leighton, Thalia showed no signs of fear to be scaling such a tall pillar with only a rope as her safety.

Instead, a bland look flashed across her face as she tied the rope around her waist. “Is someone going to haul me up, or are you both going to stare aimlessly at nothing all day?” Thalia waved her hands in front of them both.

Clearly Leighton was distracted by something as well.

Leighton pulled firmly on the rope as Thalia scampered up the small wooden planks nailed across the mast. The way her long nails dug into the sides, Ember doubted the seer needed the rope to help her up at all.

She dangled at the top for a few moments, stringing or tying knots or something before slowly descending, kicking her way back from the mast with each plank of wood she passed.

Crew members came over to get orders from the nauarch before hoisting the mainsail back up with the repaired halyard.

“Now that we have the mainsail fixed, do we finally have a waypoint?” A faint breeze blew from behind the princess, the looming presence of an unseen person standing behind her sent goosebumps rising along her arms.

“Yes,” a familiar voice replied. “We have a set destination.” Katrin brushed the wind-whipped tendrils of her wavy brown hair behind her ears.

Her face was pinched, and it looked like she needed a bath.

Sweat dripped from her brow despite the chilled autumn air, and her fists were planted firmly on her hips.

Ember had not seen much of her sister since the day they boarded The Nostos .

She hadn't wanted to see anyone—well, that is anyone except Leighton—so Ember had let her be.

But it looked like the tides had turned.

That her sister had cried enough tears for their home, for their people, for the man she left behind.

“And where exactly are we going?” Ember asked.

A determined grin crossed Katrin's face. Turning toward the eastern horizon, Katrin inhaled a long breath, closing her eyes as the spray from the waves peppered her skin. Ember could have sworn a low rumble sounded in the skies as her sister opened her eyes and said, “We sail for Nexos.”