Page 27

25 AELIA

Knots twisted in my chest as Baylis and I walked to Conrad’s sinking dive. Why couldn’t I tell Tharan I loved him? I wanted to, but the words stuck in my throat. What if we died and I never got the chance to say it?

The smell of rotted wood and ale stung my nostrils as we entered the bar.

I concealed the sapphire containing the song hanging around my neck. This was not the place to flaunt wealth. Although, after my show of strength the other day, I doubted anyone would be stupid enough to trifle with me.

“Ladies,” the bartender said with a nod.

Conrad sat in his room, sharpening a dagger, a toothpick between his teeth, while two longswords lay on his bed.

“That was fast,” he said, not bothering to look up from his task.

“I always deliver on time,” I said, pulling the sapphire from around my neck and dangling it in front of Conrad’s crooked nose.

A glimmer of excitement flashed in his brown eyes.

“You are impressive. I can see why Tharan likes you.”

I snatched the sapphire back into my palm.

“Will you take us to the Island now?”

His eyes flitted between Baylis and me.

“What about the monsters guarding the Island? Did you take care of those, too?”

“We don’t have anything to worry about.” A lie I hoped would come true.

Conrad cocked his head at me. “You got the queen of the Undersea to just… call off her monsters? After hundreds of years? How, pray tell, did you manage that?”

“Well, there is a tiny matter of me needing the song when you’re done with it.”

“Done with it? That’s not our deal.” He rose to his full height. Muscled shoulders, broad and thick from hundreds of years on a ship, rippled under his black linen shirt.

I sucked in a breath, praying he wouldn’t see my nerves.

“Yes, well, we can discuss that after we are safely on shore.”

He leaned down so that our faces nearly touched. I could smell the smoked salmon on his breath. A piece of unruly ebony hair fell over his good eye.

“If you try to cheat me out of the song, I will gut you like a fish. I don’t care if you are Tharan’s beloved. I will burn that bridge if I have to.”

I swallowed the fear pooling in my stomach. The heat of a dagger burned beneath my chin.

“Have you ever wanted revenge so badly you could feel it in your bones? Every heartbeat was a testament to your survival, and every day was an opportunity to get one step closer to vindication?”

“What?” His brows arched with intrigue.

Conrad was trying to intimidate me, but I wouldn’t allow men to scare me anymore. I had walked through fire, through death and pain, and come out the other side. I would not be frightened by this sea captain. I’d seen real monsters, and Conrad was not one of them. Nevertheless, I still had to convince him I was as confident as he was. Strength respected strength.

I moved the dagger closer to my chin so that the tip drew blood.

“I have dreamed of nothing but revenge for five years. I have envisioned killing my enemy in every way, shape, and form. I am fueled by bitterness and hate alone. Do you think I would jeopardize that over something as trivial as a song?”

“You surprise me again, Mind Breaker. There is more to you than meets the eye.” His smile was as handsome as it was twisted.

“If you want to shake on it. I will.”

“I will not risk my life or my magic. I have been burned by a bargain before.” Conrad sighed, rolling up his sleeve to reveal the black veins of a bargain breaker.

“Which party broke their end of the bargain?” I said, touching my arm where my own brand had been.

“Not me. It’s why I need the siren’s song. I, too, have a vendetta to fulfill.”

“How are you not dead?”

Conrad pointed to vials of potions on his nightstand.

“A concoction of tinctures slows the spell. Doesn’t stop it but slows it for a time.”

A whisper of sympathy nudged my heart, but I dared not show it.

“Then we understand one another.”

“Let me gather my crew. Meet me by my ship, The Salty Bitch —the one with the black cherry hull in the harbor and the big-breasted woman on the front.”

“Charming,” I said.

Not daring to turn my back on him, I slowly backed toward the door.

“I hope you brought weapons.”

I stared at him in disbelief, pulling my cloak to the side, revealing a sword and my dagger.

“We’ll need more than that.”

“Do you not have weapons on your ship?”

He arched a brow. “Well, that’ll cost extra.”

My mouth fell agape.

“I already killed the siren queen to get you your song.”

“Yeah, well, I don’t have it yet.”

I could break into his mind. I could make him help me for free. No, no, I couldn’t slip back into the mercenary. I had to stay the diplomat. It wasn’t just about me now. Although there was a part of me that yearned to show anyone who tried to take advantage of me just how powerful I really was.

“Fine,” I huffed, digging into my pocket for gold. “How much?”

“More than you have in your pocket. I’d say 10,000 pieces of gold will do. I can at least buy a new ship if the monsters destroy this one.”

My mouth flattened into a straight line. I needed him, and he knew it.

“Fine,” I hissed through gritted teeth.

“Meet me at the docks with the coin in two hours,” Conrad said, returning to his work.

Baylis and I left the decrepit bar and headed up the steps to the bustling harbor.

“We’ll need to get you a bow.”

“Excellent,” Baylis said with a gleam in her eye.

We walked through the busy streets to the bank, where satyrs and halflings counted large stacks of gold and jewels behind solid iron bars.

I filled out a deposit slip before handing it to the teller.

The halfling with a mop of blond curls looked between me and the slip multiple times. “This is quite a large withdrawal, Lady Springborn.”

“Yes, I know. Is there a problem?”

“No, no, ma’am, not at all.” He hopped off his stool and hurried to the back. He returned with a velvet sack filled with gold coins. “Just sign here, and you will be all set.” He slid a piece of parchment through the opening in the bars, and I quickly signed my name in big swooping letters. “Here you go, my Lady. Have a good day and thank you for choosing Free Cities Bank.”

I smiled, grabbed the velvet sack, and tucked it into my cloak. Baylis and I headed for the blacksmith, where Tiernan, the giant with a bright orange beard, greeted us warmly. “Aelia! You haven’t been to see me in quite some time. How have you been?”

“Uh, well, that’s a loaded question,” I chuckled. “I’m fine but busy as usual.”

“Well, as long as business is good.” He pounded a hammer down on a burning blade. “Be right with you.”

Baylis examined the bows hung on the wall.

“These are all excellent. But that’s the one I want.” She pointed to a bow made of pearlescent metal.

“Aethril, an excellent choice,” Tiernan said, pulling the weapon down. “I’m happy to string it for you. What are you thinking? I have Arachne silk as well as chimera tendon.”

Baylis tapped her finger on her lip, mulling over her options.

“Let’s do Arachne silk. It’ll last longer.”

Tiernan nodded.

“Very good. Let me string this right quick, and I’ll be back shortly.” He slipped into a doorway I thought would surely be too small for him.

Baylis and I perused the selection of fine weapons hanging on the walls of the shop. The smell of molten metal filled the air. Tiernan was known all over the continent for his fine craftsmanship, and he showed it off proudly.

“I’ll feel better with a bow in my hand,” Baylis said.

“Me too. Who knows what the guards on the island will be like.” I ran my hand over the tip of a battle axe.

“They haven’t been used in hundreds of years. They might be useless.”

“Doubtful, but I like the optimism.”

Tiernan returned, holding the strung bow.

“Give her a try,” he said, pointing to a target at the far end of the shop. He handed the bow and an arrow to Baylis, and she promptly nocked it.

“Too easy.” Turning, she fired an arrow out the open double doors, hitting a pigeon perched on the roof of the neighboring building. The creature toppled over, rolling off the roof onto the nearby butcher’s stand. The man with a long mustache gasped but, upon seeing the bird was fresh, pulled the arrow from its neck and began to pluck the feathers out.

“It’ll do,” Baylis said, turning to Tiernan and giving him a friendly smile.

He nodded, and I handed him a stack of gold coins.

“Come back any time, ladies.”

“We know where to find you.”

We left Tiernan’s shop and returned to the harbor, where we easily found Conrad’s ship. With its black hull and voluptuous maiden spearheading it, quite hard to miss.

I stood by the ramp leading to the ship. Conrad approached, followed by twenty of the roughest-looking sailors I’d ever seen. Everyone looked like they had been in multiple fights the night before. Blood stained their shirts. Whether it was theirs or someone else’s, I couldn’t decipher. Some of the men stumbled as they walked.

“Lovely day for a sail,” Conrad said, reveling in the breeze coming off the bay. He wore a long black coat with red accents and a large-brimmed hat with an exotic red feather.

Baylis and I smiled politely at him.

“Yes,” I said, examining the sky for ominous clouds, but saw none, only the blue of a crisp winter day. Across the bay, the Island of Fate sat still and menacing, unnerving me.

Baylis and I boarded the ship, and the crew prepared to sail. The smell of seawater wafted up over the bow of the ship. I hoped Ursula had delivered my message, and that Calliope would not enact her revenge too swiftly.

We took our places behind Conrad and pushed off from the dock. Rocks piled in my stomach the farther away we got from shore and the closer we got to my mother and the monsters waiting for us.

“The sea is calm today,” Conrad called out, looking through his spyglass. “Even around the Island. Your plan must have worked.”

“How can you tell?” I yelled over the blustering wind making my hair a tangle of knots.

Conrad pointed a finger toward the Island.

“Usually, a dark ring of water encircles the Island and never calms, no matter how tranquil the water is. That ring is gone.”

I allowed myself a moment of triumph. My plan had worked, at least for now.

“Settle in, ladies. It will take us a few hours to reach the Island.”

Baylis did her best to keep her composure. The sea did not agree with her, and her skin turned a greenish hue.

“Why don’t you sit down?” I ushered her onto a bench.

Even on a calm day, waves rocked the ship violently. I borrowed a bucket from one of the crew members in case Baylis’s breakfast decided to reappear. Anticipation made my blood run quicker as we approached the Island. I tried not to be nervous—tried to think about getting the information and leaving as fast as we could.

“Everyone, hold on! We’re reaching the outer ring!” Conrad called to his crew.

I held my breath.

Nothing.

I scanned the water for any sign of monsters.

Still nothing.

The boat glided through the water; sails unfurled.

I let out the breath I’d been holding in.

“Pull in the sails. We’re going to dock!”

Baylis and I gripped the polished wood of the boat as it glided in beside the dock weighed down by encroaching flora.

Conrad lowered the anchor, and the men set about their duties.

“Welcome to the Island of Fate,” Conrad said.

I looked out at the vast, overgrown island. Birds called to one another, and the smell of pine carried on the wind. I swallowed my fear.

“I wish Tharan was here to tame this growth.”

“I don’t think you need to worry about it.” Conrad pointed to where the thick bush rustled. Two eternal soldiers emerged dressed in pearlescent aethril armor. They stopped when their feet touched the wood of the dock. Placing the tips of their swords in the soft soil, they awaited our arrival.

I took Baylis’s hand in mine.

“Let’s go.”