Page 43 of A Storm in Every Heart (Enchanted Legacies #2)

R elief washes over me the moment that Odessa and I board my ship.

As a boy, I used to come down to the harbor to watch the fights. Partly, it was out of defiance, partly boredom, and in a large part it was a desire to see something different from my comfortable life within the walls of my gilded palace.

I certainly saw something different.

I’ve seen enough to know exactly how dangerous the harbor can be, and that’s how I know I don’t want Odessa anywhere near here.

Unfortunately, I’m realizing in real time that I’m entirely weak to giving her whatever she wants. She probably could have asked for the Hydrattan crown jewels, and I would have found a way to get them for her.

I’m fucked, but I can’t bring myself to care.

Standing on the deck, I lean against the cool metal railing near the ship’s bow. The vessel remains docked, yet Odessa beams with delight.

Everything about her has changed since we boarded the ship. She seems relaxed and happy. Her hood has fallen back, revealing her bright eyes and flushed cheeks, as the brisk, salty sea breeze whips little curls out of her braid and away from her face.

“What does Stormbreaker mean?” she asks cheerfully.

I furrow my brow, frowning at her. “My name?”

She turns to smile at me. “Yes, of course I know it’s your name, but what does it mean?”

I’m not sure I’ve ever told anyone the origin of my name before, but suddenly the words are tumbling from my lips and I can’t stop.

“It’s my mother’s surname from before she married my father.

Her family are known for their magical talent.

For centuries, they would help hold the tide back from the city during large storms. We have walls for that now, but the name stuck. ”

She nods. “I’ve always wished I could use magic like that.”

“Can’t you?” I ask.

“Not really. Maybe I could if I was trained as a child, but I never knew anyone who used magic until I went to Vernallis.”

I bite my lip. “Do sirens have magic?”

She looks sideways at me, and to my surprise, she snorts a laugh. “How long have you been waiting to bring that up?”

I let out a sigh. I wonder how it would have gone if I’d asked her the same question before we were on the ship and she was clearly in her element. Probably not nearly as well. That’s good to know. It seems my plan worked and I am getting to know her after all.

“Sorry,” I say, smiling back at her. “One of my father’s advisors said something about it, but if you don’t want to talk about it…”

“It’s fine.” She waves me off. “It’s not as if it’s a secret I can hide.”

She flushes lightly, and my eyes trace over her almost unnaturally beautiful face. No, of course she wouldn’t be able to hide what she is. Even before Magnus told me, it was all too obvious that there was something unusual about her, I just didn’t know what it was.

“I didn’t know until someone told me,” I admit. “I’ve never seen a siren before. There are a lot of them in the waters around the palace, but I was always kept well away from them.”

“That’s probably a good thing. From what I’ve heard most aren’t very friendly.”

“You’re friendly.”

She snorts. “I wouldn’t go that far, but I know what you mean. For example, I’m not likely to make you jump off this boat to your death.”

I raise a curious eyebrow. “Could you do that?”

She frowns, looking uncomfortable for the first time.

“I’m not sure, maybe.” She bites her lip, looking as if she’s not sure if she should elaborate, so when she does I feel as if I passed some nebulous test. “For a few years now I’ve been able to sway people my way when it comes to small things, but for obvious reasons I’ve never tried anything as serious as drowning.

Even if I wanted to do that, it’s not as if I had anyone to teach me how it works. ”

I find myself leaning closer to her, hanging on her every word.

I’ve always thought sirens were monsters—far closer to wraiths or vampires than they were to Fae, but Odessa is quickly changing every preconceived idea I’ve ever had.

“Have you met other sirens?” I ask.

She shakes her head. “My mother, I suppose, when I was very young, but she left and I don’t remember her.”

“Left…not died?” I hedge, fairly sure that this has taken too serious a turn and I should try to steer it back toward something light.

“She went back to the ocean,” Odessa clarifies. “That’s…normal for sirens, I think. They—we—don’t usually stay on land for very long.”

“What about you?” I can’t help asking, thinking of Magnus’s comments about the landlocked sirens in the ancient courts of Ellender.

She shrugs. “I’ve never been in the ocean before.”

I raise my eyebrows. “Never? How is that possible?”

“Even though we lived on a ship, my father was very careful not to let me go in the water. I think he believed I might not come back…and maybe he was right, who knows? After he died, I went to Vernallis where we lived hundreds of miles from the nearest sea.”

“How did your father die?”

“Drowned himself,” she says bluntly. “That’s how the legend goes, isn’t it? Men who love sirens always go mad and drown in the end.”

Her eyes narrow on me like she’s searching for something in my reaction. I get the feeling I’m being tested, but I’m not sure how.

“I’m sorry that happened to you,” I say quickly. “I shouldn’t have asked.”

She presses her lips together in a flat line, and I can’t tell if she’s disappointed in my diplomatic response, or simply saddened by the memory of her father. “It’s alright, it was all a very long time ago.” She shakes her head and gives me a brittle smile. “That’s enough about me, though.”

“I’m not sure it could ever be enough,” I blurt out. “I enjoy listening to you talk about yourself.”

The side of her face turns pink, and she ducks her head, letting her hair fall in a curtain between us.

“You’re very blunt, you know. I’ve never met anyone who just said how they feel so clearly.

” She frowns, like she’s thinking. “Maybe it’s because you’re a prince.

You’ve never really had to hide your feelings or opinions from anyone. ”

I bark a startled laugh. “That’s not true at all.”

“It isn’t?” She sounds skeptical. “So you’re telling me that the average courtier would correct you if you said something rude?”

“Well, no,” I admit. “But you’re giving me way too much credit. I absolutely can’t just go around saying whatever I want. I rarely talk to courtiers at all.”

She turns sideways, leaning against the side of the ship to look at me. “Really? Why?”

“Because I’m an arrogant asshole, obviously.”

She smiles. “Maybe a little, but not nearly as bad as I expected.”

I snort. “That’s a ringing endorsement coming from you. I might faint from so much praise.”

Her smile widens. “I have very discerning taste. But really, why don’t you talk to anyone?”

“Because I have nothing to say. I’ve never been good at polite small talk, and it’s not as if I can be completely open with any of them about real topics.”

Her eyes flash with interest. “Tell me, then. What's something you can’t talk about with courtiers?”

My stomach churns. “I can’t say that I’m here tonight instead of safely in the palace.”

She frowns. “That’s not what I meant, and you know it. Tell me something real.”

My gaze meets hers, and this time I know for certain that she’s testing me, I just don’t know how to pass. She wants to hear something real—something unrestrained—but I’ve been trained my entire life never to lose control like that. I’m not even sure I know how.

“I don’t want to be king,” I blurt out before I can stop myself.

She rolls her eyes. “Yeah, sure. Who would want to rule an entire kingdom? That sounds awful.”

“No, really.” I widen my eyes, hoping to make her understand. “I don’t. I never have.”

Her eyes narrow. “I didn’t think that was the kind of thing you had much of a choice about.”

“I don’t. My parents spent years trying for a son because Hydratta probably wouldn’t accept any of my sisters on the throne.”

“That’s stupid,” she says bitterly. “There are other kingdoms that are ruled by queens. The throne of Thermia has passed from mother to daughter for generations.”

“I know, believe me. If Serena wanted to be queen, and the kingdom would accept her, I’d be more than happy to step aside, but that’s just not how things work here.”

“Why don’t you want to be king?” she asks, seemingly taking me more seriously.

I suck in a breath, falling silent as I think.

This isn’t the kind of thing I’ve ever told anyone. My family doesn’t talk about our feelings, I’ve never had a tutor or advisor that I was especially close to, and all my friendships have always felt slightly hollow. Like, if I weren’t a prince, I’m not sure they would look twice at me.

Subsequently, there’s never been anyone I could tell that I’ve felt this way for a long time, and I’m not sure how to explain it now.

“I don’t think I would be good at it,” I say finally.

“Most royals aren’t very good at ruling,” Odessa says. “No offense.”

“Yeah, but most of the time they don’t realize it. Like, I doubt Thorne will have any idea of what a bad king he’ll be when he eventually takes the throne. He’ll probably think he’s an amazing ruler and everyone loves him, even if your entire country goes up in flames.”

She snorts. “Probably, but let’s not jinx it.”

“Sorry.” I smile. “Thorne is a bad example because he’s genuinely an asshole. I only meant that I would know I wasn’t a good ruler, which would make everything so much worse.”

“What makes you think you’d be a bad ruler?”

So many things.

I hate diplomacy and playing politics, and I’ve never been able to pretend to get along with someone I didn’t like.

I like being alone, or spending time with a few close friends, rather than mingling in crowds or throwing parties.