Total pages in book: 100
Estimated words: 93948 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 313(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 93948 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 470(@200wpm)___ 376(@250wpm)___ 313(@300wpm)
Siobhan opens her mouth, but I find myself speaking before she has a chance to. “Don’t be a stubborn bloody fool. Of course I don’t want you dead.” I point at Siobhan. “Change of plans. You go with him. You heal fast enough that you can survive a lightning strike. If it’s coming, you take it over Bastian.” I don’t like giving the order, would take that responsibility if I could, but not even I can heal as quickly and thoroughly as Siobhan can.
Bastian flinches. “What? No! I don’t want anyone else to be—”
But she’s already nodding. “Consider it done.” She takes Bastian’s shoulder and leads him toward the netting stretching up to the crow’s nest. It’s not the most challenging climb under the best circumstances, but these are hardly that. I’m not worried about him falling; even if his strength fails, Siobhan’s won’t. She’ll keep him safe.
I don’t even bother to pretend I only want him safe in order to save my crew. How my mighty pride has fallen in just a few short days. It would bother me more if we hadn’t spent most of that time on the brink of death. I watch them climb for a beat and then hurry to the upper deck. Bowen stands tall next to the shielded circle, Evelyn at his side. She’s already starting to demonstrate signs of strain from holding the shield over the amplification circle. This magical rain is a real bitch and a half.
I take a breath and do a quick internal dive into my magical stores. They’re still not fully replenished. Normally after experiencing magical burnout, I spend a few days babying myself. Resting a lot, eating plenty of food, drinking lots of water. There hasn’t been the opportunity for any of that. Oh, I ate, shoving food into my mouth between hurried meetings with my crew. And I managed to catch a few hours of sleep earlier, but my stores are not as full as I’d like them to be.
I nod at Evelyn. “Stick to the plan even if I go down.”
She looks like she’s about to argue, but I step into the amplification circle and then it’s too late. It’s time.
Chapter 17
Siobhan
As bad as the storm was on deck of the Audacity, up in the crow’s nest it feels ten thousand times worse. I keep a fistful of Bastian’s tunic in my grip as I haul him over the edge and we hunker down in the relative shelter. I hadn’t thought Nox was being dramatic when they said we very well might be struck by lightning, but up here, it’s certainly believable.
I don’t ask Bastian again if he can do this. We’ve come too far for that question. Instead, I ask, “What do you need from me?”
His light brown skin has gone a little green, but his expression is determined. “I need you to hold me steady so I can put my full concentration behind the glamour. I won’t be able to react in time if the ship tilts.”
“I won’t let you fall.” After some consideration, I grab a length of rope left from whoever was up here last and wind it through the rough slats in the wood. I loop one arm through the secured rope and one around Bastian’s waist, pulling his back to my chest. We’ve stood like this a thousand times, but that was before. Before the fight, before the rescue, before everything changed. I’m achingly aware of everywhere we touch and all the words we threw into the space between us, hurt and angry. We might very well die tonight, and there’s so much left unsaid.
“Siobhan…” I can barely hear Bastian over the shriek of the wind and rain, but his tone says his thoughts have mirrored mine.
“I’m sorry. I’ve said it before, but I truly mean it. You were right. You’ve been right this whole time. I’ve let my fear get in the way of what needs to be done. I’m sorry I held the entire rebellion back, and I’m sorry that I punished you when you rightfully called me out on it.”
He half turns so that he can see my face. Amusement lights his dark eyes despite our circumstances. “Is this a deathbed confession? Are you trying to ensure there’s nothing left unsaid between us since we’re probably going to die?”
His humor centers me the way nothing else could. I drag in a breath, some of the weight pressing down on me disappearing, and give him a little squeeze. “We’re not going to die. I won’t let you fall, and Nox will ensure the ship remains safe. Between the two of us, that’s as close to a guarantee of survival as you can get in these circumstances.”
“I suppose it is.” Slowly, inch by inch, he relaxes back against me. It feels so good that it’s almost enough to distract me from things happening below us. Bastian won’t form the glamour until we’re hidden from view, and Nox and Bowen seem intent on making that happen. Even as I watch, an uncanny fog appears above the water, perfectly resistant to the rain, and spreads like wildfire. Within seconds, it covers nearly a mile’s distance on either side of the ship and rises until I can no longer see the sea in our wake.