Page 44 of Death’s Kiss (The Order of the Tide Raiders #1)
“ K erau!” I exclaim in shock before promptly throwing my arms around the male.
He smells the exact same as when he left, like rain-soaked pine. Kerau squeezes me tightly in return while chuckling into the top of my head. “Hey kid,” he mutters by way of greeting.
It’s harder than I care to admit to break away from him but I force myself to before peering upwards.
Selfishly, I’m relieved to find that he’s more or less the same as when I last saw him.
Same burnished gold hair, still resting just above his shoulders.
Same chiseled face and easy smile. Maybe a few more scratches than before, and a bit more muscle. Like he needed any more.
“Is that a new scar?” I ask, squinting, to inspect the white line slicing through his upper lip.
He laughs before rubbing a sun-tanned hand against the mark. The familiar rumbling sound triggers an ache somewhere deep inside. “New to you , maybe. I earned this thing almost a year ago now,” Kerau answers teasingly .
His vivid eyes study my face briefly before glancing down to my dress and back with a glimmer of something too intimate to acknowledge. Something that makes an old version of me raise its head once more. I work hard to ignore that former, very reckless, Merena.
“What are you doing here?” I have to shout the question over the music growing ever louder.
There’s a flash of incredulity that crosses his features. “I got your epistle.”
I stare at him, taken aback. Kerau looks at me in turn, as if it should have been obvious.
Raiders, now careless with liquor and heady with the unruly vibe of the revel, begin bumping into us left and right. Those dancing have gotten into the heathenly sway of our night’s traditions and the floor around us quickly becomes a lust-filled battlefield.
“Let’s talk somewhere more private,” I advise.
Kerau nods, allowing me to lead the way back through the pit of hellions. Raiders part for us easily now and at first I don’t understand why but then I look back and take in Captain Tharos again. Really take him in, beyond the male I used to know more intimately than any other.
Kerau wears the unmistakable white dress uniform of TideLord Regis Raimbaut.
His captain's cape reflects a striking cobalt and a jewel-studded sword I’m sure he’s never had before is strapped boldly to his side.
On his right hand, he has an impressive ring that declares him a TideLord's captain, and I catch the shine of a new sapphire earring dropping from his left earlobe.
Due to his good looks and elemental affinity, Kerau has always been intimidating.
He’s always been seen as quite a dangerous force among us northerners.
Honestly, that’s what most attracted me to him in the first place, all the way back in level four.
But now— now he looks like someone to give deference to.
Someone that any TideLord with half a brain would be worried about.
Should be worried about .
I mull this over while swiping two silver goblets from the tables we pass, teeming with wine and liquor of every shade. My crew is completely scattered. Some are on the dance floor, while most of them are no doubt exploring what other pleasures this revel has to offer.
Spotting another passageway at the opposite end of the main tented area, I take Kerau's hand in mine and tug him in the direction of my thoughts. His expression hints at a nostalgic sort of amusement when allowing me to drag him through the opening, extending out to a stretch of many smaller rooms.
We pass by a few alcoves with more drinks and refreshments. Others contain groups of raiders loudly chatting and laughing. Even more are filled with shadowed couples. The sounds emanating from those rooms, in particular, are seedy enough to make my neck burn.
I hear the deep rumble of Kerau’s easy chuckle behind me, intensifying that burn.
My gaze snags on the last room we pass in our search for privacy at the unexpected sight of maddeningly messy obsidian hair.
I spot Captain Agni lying lazily along a plush settee with a roll of burning spices sitting between his lips.
His head, adorned with the still-skewed halo, rests in Corvina’s green velvet-clad lap and she softly strokes the edges of his face.
Voices belonging to raiders from both of the two southern captain’s crews carry out from inside the room.
It sounds like they’re playing some sort of card or dice game, if I had to guess.
Agni tips his head back further into Corvina’s lap to laugh freely at something said by someone I can’t see.
Her hands run idly through his maddening waves as she too laughs in response.
There isn’t a way to explain the feeling that runs through me at the sight of it.
Captain Agni’s gaze then slides over to the open entrance, where I’ve evidently frozen without realizing.
There’s a gleam in his amber eyes that tells me something a bit more potent than usual is in that smoldering bit of paper.
His mouth curves up sinfully when spotting me, just before Captain Tharos takes a backward step towards my halted form .
Olsson's attention moves over to Kerau, who now also resides in the small doorway exposure. In less than a blink, an unreadable mask swallows his aristocratic features whole.
I forcefully yank myself from whatever unexplainable trance I’ve fallen into and turn to Kerau, who gives me a playful tug towards the room next door.
He flashes one of his handsome grins, the kind that never fails to ensnare me and I laugh when he teasingly crooks a finger in silent motion for me to join him inside the private alcove.
I don’t miss the way in which the last of Agni’s embers wink out as I follow.
The room we enter is the smallest I’ve seen by far.
It’s much more private and intimate than any of the others and filled to near bursting with a single, high-backed, circular couch.
Two small tables reside within the center and I set my cup atop one as Kerau places his on the other.
He then motions with a grand wave of his hand for me to slide into the tiny seating arrangement first and I laugh again before obliging him.
The previously consumed liquor makes my mirth come easier.
Once I’m situated, Kerau closes the tiny room’s makeshift door.
It's really just two heavy bundles of decorated garlands that he unties, allowing it to shield us from any prying eyes or listening ears.
It almost appears as if we could be inside one of the Luminalia halos.
Except for the translucent ceiling opening up wide to the sparkling winter night above .
“So, Captain Boreas,” Kerau teases, emphasizing my new title while sliding into the circular cushioned arrangement. His tall and well-built frame is comically large in the tiny space.
“So, Captain Tharos, ” I mimic, hoping he can’t hear the spike in my heart rate as we’re forced into such close proximity.
His gaze travels over my dress again with something bordering on hunger and a buzzing kind of energy fills the small space between us.
The sort that has the power to lead us into dangerous territory if not carefully monitored.
“You got my note,” I say, reminding us both as to why we're in this close-quartered situation.
Kerau swallows thickly with a nod. It seems like it takes a bit of effort for him to pull away and plaster on a casually friendly smile. He leans back into the cushioned seat before saying, in agreement, “I did, and I thought it wise we talk in person. Hence my presence tonight.”
“Why?” I prod. It comes out a bit rudely so I’m quick to add, “I didn’t mean to bother you or draw you from your captaincy duties. I just—I had a few questions and I didn’t—I couldn’t think of anyone else who might be able to answer them.”
I take a sip of my wine, despising the pitiful truth in the words I was about to utter.
Didn’t have anyone else to ask.
Kerau’s gaze finds me again after having been studying a spot along the wall.
His mouth twists, like he’s having a difficult time selecting exactly the right words.
After a moment, he begins with, “You asked about being an elemental,” and I nod.
“You wanted to know what all that entails. First, tell me why.”
His calming scent of cloudy skies fills the space between us, encouraging me to ease into our old pattern of trust. “There’s another competitor in the trials, another captain." My voice is low as I think of said captain’s presence in the room next door. “He’s an elemental.”
For some reason, it comes out sounding like a confession .
Kerau has leaned in closer and he dips his head low before divulging quietly, “The one from the South Order, we’ve heard.” I glance at him in surprise and his eyes harden a touch before continuing. “They say he bends fire to his bidding.”
I nod, watching his thoughts churning inside those shocking irises. My eyes dart around our small enclosure uneasily before deciding to let Kerau in on the driving reason behind my epistle.
“But that’s not all he can do. I’ve seen him in the trials and he—” With Kerau's' attention so focused on me, I pause to find the right wording.
“We had to tame kelpies as our first task and his was a bit more chaotic than the others. It spewed this lighting and he—I watched him grab onto it . He was able to manipulate lightning the same way you can—he can use it as a weapon.”
Kerau’s brows raise up to his hairline.
“I don't understand it but I’ve seen it twice now. I’m sure of it,” I affirm with the shake of my head.
His head is angled down towards the Luminalia halo that he’s removed and now spins around between his hands idly.
I watch as his expression morphs from surprise into contemplative thought that borders on worry.
My fingers trail through the top layer of my dress fabric, playing with the embellished crystals while he gathers his thoughts.