Page 45 of Enchanted Shadows (The Enchanted Kingdom #6)

W e couldn’t even make it more than a few hours sailing before something strange occurred. I tore my eyes off Kessara and looked to the ship, seeing men pointing, looking through spyglass devices to get a better view. Calix was talking with the captain, barking some sort of orders.

Ships were known to get lost at sea, but the realm had been rid of pirates decades ago. Having two ships so close together away from the docks was unusual.

My magic was burning hot beneath my skin as I rallied for whatever might be needed, hot enough that Kessara drew her hand back as she watched it work beneath my skin. But as the ship came closer into view, I sighed with relief.

I waved to Miles, who came back over. “Yeah?”

“It’s ours.” Since travel to Dra Skor and back had become more common, Krew had invested in safer ships. This was one of the two new ones. I’d seen it at the docks, but I knew Esta and Keir were departing for Dra Skor today too, so I assumed it was for them.

“It’s Wylan’s,” I yelled up to Amos who nodded his head.

But before I could really explain any more, my magic flared as a spout of water reached up out of the water, wrapped around my body like a rope, and tugged.

I was airborne, heading to the other ship. Water drenched my waist and spit at my face enough that I wished I had some sort of protection for my eyes. I could’ve tried to reach out and cut the water rope handling me with my own power, but I also recognized who was doing this.

I landed on the deck of the other ship gently, placed right onto my feet like I had closed my eyes and just shown up on the other ship.

I looked to Fern first. “Please don’t do that again.”

But as my eyes wandered this ship, the wood shiny and sleek, I noted that there were too many familiar faces aboard.

“Sorry, sir,” the lieutenant of Team Two told me. “We were ordered to follow at a distance unless something happened which warranted outing ourselves.”

“Which was?” I asked.

He gestured to Fern. “We found your training team all hiding aboard.”

“Like hell are they sending us back,” Sam snapped.

I groaned. Damn Krew and his protective ways. He’d sent another ship to tail us, make sure that we got to Agria safely. And then my team had taken it upon themselves to sneak aboard.

The Lieutenant added, “We didn’t think they should be a part of this at all. They aren’t even done with their training. So initially we thought we’d return them to Wylan and come back. This ship is fast enough that we would make up time and catch up. But the women are insisting they stay.”

I hadn’t just taken one Wylan team, I’d somehow wound up with three. Which only weakened the front at home.

Jessina stepped up to me, hands on her hips. “You told us that protecting Kessara was our first mission. We are here to do exactly that.”

Sam pointed to the Agrian ship, black and jagged where ours was smooth and light. I suspected Agria liked black ships so they couldn’t be spotted in the night. “Kessara is our sister. Like hell are we letting either of you go alone.”

“We aren’t alone,” I reminded her gently, though I wasn’t sure I could blame her for being upset. If someone had tried to separate me and Krew in our training, I would’ve done the same thing. “I have all of Team One aboard that ship.”

“This is our mission,” Vivian snapped. “That you gave us. Also, wouldn’t it help prove to her mother that she is part of our team? If she can see us with her own eyes?”

The lieutenant added, “They raised hell when we tried to turn around. Said to take them to you.”

I looked to the sky for a moment, knowing I needed to get back to Kessara. I’d been gone two minutes, but in that two minutes, I was sure Calix was trying to get to her. “Get us closer to the other ship. I need Amos Reyes,” I told the lieutenant. He turned to relay that message to the ship crew.

“I can do that for you,” Fern grinned.

“Yes, but a heads-up would be agreeable,” I told her.

Within five minutes, Amos was standing beside me. “What’s going on?”

I put up a sound barrier. “The team of women feel loyal to Kessara and are taking my words of keeping her safe as their first mission to heart. I need to know if they would be safe in Agria. Will the queen raise a ruckus if they are found out?”

“Not if she knows they are there for her daughter. Despite what Kessara believes, her mother does care for her.” He shrugged. “She’d rather welcome Kessara’s friends than your team of trained men.”

“They won’t feel threatened if we show up with twelve extras? ”

He smirked. “They should be, but no, not if you spin it that they are Kessara’s team. I think even telling the queen that they snuck aboard the ship would work in your favor. Prove to her that the team exists and is quite close.”

“I’m going to be too busy to make sure they stay out of trouble,” I admitted.

“Say no more. You are protecting my charge; I will protect the team.”

I let out a sigh. “I don’t know that they are really ready to take on being ambushed in a different country.”

He shot me a grin. “Lucky for you, I know all the best ways to hide within said country.”

There were too many damn variables. If it weren’t for what Viv said, they’d already be on their way back to Wylan. “We are really doing this?”

He gave me a nod.

With a shake of my head, I let the sound barrier fall.

I turned to Jessina, her eyes wide and hopeful.

“You’re in.” Over their screeching, I added, “Amos is your general for this trip as I will be otherwise preoccupied.” I looked at my sister specifically.

“No sneaking around. Do whatever he says. This is not a game. I’m not thrilled you pulled this little stunt at all.

There is enough at stake without adding this. ”

“Yes, Commander,” she said, head held high.

The others agreed.

By the time I made it back over to the other ship, compliments of Fern again, though I could have easily done it myself, I was left wondering if that had been the correct decision or not. Team One had volunteered for this, as had the Slay Sisters, but I wasn’t done training the latter.

I guess they’d have to learn on the ground, real life experience.

I found Miles standing at Kessara’s back, his sword drawn as Calix stood ten feet off .

“Am I seeing this correctly?” she asked me.

She could have used her shadows to take her over there, but she hadn’t. And I somewhat wondered if she was testing Calix or something.

“Yeah. Your team snuck onto that ship. That ship which was to follow us to return us back to Wylan in a few days. I had to decide if we are allowing them to come along or if we’re sending them back to Wylan.”

“And?” Calix asked.

“And Amos thinks that the queen might need proof of the fact that Kessara is on this team of women, so what better proof than their presence?”

Calix’s head went back. “So all of them are coming?”

I looked into Kessara’s eyes as I said, “They took me telling them that protecting you was their first mission seriously.”

She smiled.

A derisive snort. “And you expect Agria to just put up rooms for all of them? Take care of all of them?”

“Calix,” Kessara argued, “they’re my friends. There’s plenty of space at the castle and you know it.”

He tried to reason with her. “It’s just an inconvenience to bring so many extra people with us.”

She tipped her head up to look at the sky. “Can you stop pretending like you really care if the staff has to make up a few extra rooms? You’re just mad it will make it harder for you to kill my husband. Which, by the way, as loyal as the team is to me, they are also loyal to him.”

Miles shot Calix a guilty grin and wiggled his fingers at him.

“Killing him isn’t the only way to make this—” he gestured between the two of us, “arrangement end.”

“Whatever you are planning, I’m never going to agree to it,” she told him.

He took a step toward her, but Miles sidestepped between them. “We need to talk,” Calix told her from around Miles. “Privately.”

“Whatever web of lies you are about to spin to me, I truly don’t want to hear it,” she snapped. “I’m married. There is no ‘we’.”

“Kess,” I said gently.

Her eyes immediately found mine.

“He is going to corner you eventually. I’ll put up a sound barrier and the two of you can talk.”

“I don’t want to talk to him,” she snapped again, this time at me.

“You might as well get it over with,” I argued. “And I’d rather it be here out in the open where I can trust he won’t be fool enough to hurt you.”

She inhaled deeply and looked again to the skies before agreeing.

As they walked toward the middle of the deck, I readied my magic. “If I see her under any sort of distress, if I see any sort of shadows, I will drop this barrier and take it from your skin.”

He put his arms out defensively. “I haven’t ever hurt her.”

“Physically,” Kessara clarified. “Let’s just get this over with.”

Despite it going against my every urge, I put up the barrier and let them talk. I had no doubt Calix was back to sucking up to her, complimenting her, trying to get her to remember what they had and all the times he had swooped in to save the day.

I saw her stay strong, her shoulders back as she squared off with him through my green sound barrier. As the minutes ticked on, I saw her sharp intake of breath when whatever he said surprised her, and saw the tension in her, how rigid she went.

When she wiped at an eye, I’d had enough being the understanding husband. I dropped my magic and moved in.

She held up a hand. “I’m okay.”

“You don’t look okay,” I argued.

Calix continued, “Please, Kessara. Think about what I said. It would be good for all of Agria. I don’t blame you for wanting to run away. I don’t even blame you for trying to forget your old life and marrying this guy, but we both know this isn’t really you.”

And just when I was about to force his mouth to shut up, he left, walking for his room in the ship.

“Quick question,” I called to his back.

He turned slowly, looking over his shoulder.