part0011

Emma had led them to the quarterdeck, where they could see the damage for themselves. Taverns that once lined the docks were now burnt, their insides gutted like a rotting whale that had turned up on shore. Kelia’s nose twitched, the lingering scent of sulfur tickling her nostrils.

It was quiet…too quiet. Kelia never liked the phrase silent as the grave, but it seemed applicable here. The once roaring island that had been filled with debauchery and sin was snuffed out with unforgiving fire. The Sea Shadows did not have a place reserved for them, and the rest of the supernaturals, to go in order to feed and procure illicit objects and other proclivities society would no doubt forbid.

“The ingredients,” Emma said, the words carrying more weight than any two words ever should. “I need to find Adelaide. Need to make sure she still has the ingredients.”

Kelia furrowed her brows, surprised Emma could only think of ingredients at a time like this. An entire island had been set on fire—similar to what the witches and Drew had done to the Queen’s Isle de Sangre—and all Emma seemed to care about was a concoction.

“If Adelaide is even alive,” Drew muttered.

Kelia couldn’t decipher his tone. She understood Adelaide was his aunt, but he seemed a bit abrupt about the fact that she was still alive. One could not choose family, even in the afterlife, it would seem.

“Sunset is not for a few hours,” Emma said. “I need to—”

“A goddamn island was burnt down in the same fashion we employed on Sangre,” Drew said. His hands balled into tight fists, and he stood at the helm of the ship, his body facing Emma’s. “I will not have you risking your life to see my aunt about a concoction.”

“Do you not care if she still breathes?” Emma asked.

“I can almost guarantee that she does.” Drew paced the quarterdeck, his steps light and quick. Although his posture seemed relaxed, almost dismissive, Kelia knew Drew well enough to know that if he was pacing, there was something he was concerned about. “Adelaide is a slippery witch and cheats death with every breath she takes. Today is no different. Tomorrow won’t be either. You will wait until I allow you—”

“Allow?” Emma growled.

Kelia was just as shocked as Emma appeared. Hadn’t they made more progress with Drew than that by this point?

“Allow,” Drew repeated, his voice louder. “Allow you to leave. Allow you to scour the island. Allow you to run on your mission for supplies. I am still captain, and no one is to do anything without my explicit say-so. Do you understand?”

Drew all but stormed off, leaving the quarterdeck and heading back in the direction of his room. Kelia and Emma followed down the stairs, but when Emma tried the door leading to the main deck, it wouldn’t budget. She let out a startled cry and tried again, this time with more force.

Again, it remained immovable.

“I could break down the door, if you’d like,” Kelia offered.

Emma whirled around and shot Kelia a sharp glare. “That concoction is for you,” she snapped. “You still have the Siren’s blood inside of you.”

Kelia swallowed as she remembered the taste. It was a sweet poison that wreaked havoc on her body yet had been tantalizing on her tongue. She shuddered and shifted her gaze out the back up toward the quarterdeck.

She headed back up the steps and stared out over the sea.

“What are you doing?” Emma asked, following up behind her.

When Kelia turned back, the angles on Emma’s face were still sharp with intensity, but the fight inside of her seemed to have dimmed.

Kelia let her fingers trace along the helm. For a moment, she wondered if Sirens were following beneath Drew’s ship in silence, reporting everything back to the Queen.

“Much is on my mind,” Kelia admitted.

“So Drew has said.” Emma hugged her torso, the gentle breeze teasing her dark hair from its harsh braid. Kelia remembered when she used to wear her hair in braids. Now, she preferred it long and free, just as she felt. “You know what his plan is then, I presume?”

“Regarding the Queen?” Kelia asked. “I know he wants to kill her, but he has yet to train me.”

“He’s caught in an unusual predicament,” Emma said. “He resists you because he feels guilty for what he did to you. He knows he should train you, but he’ll avoid it for as long as he can.”

Kelia clenched her teeth and pulled her arms back, curling her fingers into tight fists.

“So,” Kelia said slowly, “to clarify your point, you are telling me that Drew is avoiding the mess he made simply because he feels guilty?”

“I suppose that sums it up,” Emma said. “That’s my opinion, anyway. But I’ve known him a long time. And I think even you know him well enough to know what I say sounds true.”

Kelia shot back down the stairs and toward door. Drew might not like what she was about to do next, but he’d like it a lot less if she took control of the ship, which she could easily do seeing as he’d locked them on the quarterdeck.

Instead, she grabbed the knob and ripped the door from its hinges. She didn’t even have to try. From there, she dashed across the deck of the ship. She had never felt she was capable of running this fast before. It almost felt as though she was flying. Her feet barely touched the ground—at least, she did not really feel them touch the ground.

When she reached Drew, he was standing at the head of the ship, hands gripping the rail. She launched herself at him and knocked him flat on his back, then let her weight drop into him so, for a moment, he too could know what it felt like to have the wind knocked out of him.

“You have yet to help me because you are racked with guilt?” Kelia demanded. “Do you not see me as your equal? Someone you respect as you respect yourself, your crew, even your witch?"

Emma came running up behind her but froze as she came nearer to the pair.

Drew narrowed his eyes. There was no amusement in his brown eyes. Any warmth she remembered completely vanished. He spread out his arms, pressing his palms into the deck of the ship and pushing himself up.

Kelia fell back and hit her head on the floor with a loud crack. She grinned as pain shot into her head, and she reached up to rub the back of her head with her hand.

“Who do you think you are?” he demanded. “I’m the bloody captain of this ship. Just because you are important to me does not mean you have any right to attack me, especially in front of my crew. Did Emma put you up to this?” He glared at the earth witch, who shook her head, before his gaze fell back to Kelia. “Simply because I want her on the ship until I can accompany her to Adelaide’s? The island is not safe. I don’t care who or what you are.”

Kelia felt lectured at this point, and the worst part was, in this case, he was right. As her captain, she should not treat him this way, especially not in front of the crew. But her untamed nature apparently came with more than just blood lust. Her emotions were harder to control right now as well.

“When will you train me?” she asked, keeping her voice down.

Drew locked his ankles around her waist and flipped her over to her back, then rolled to come out on top of her. There was a flash of desire in Drew’s eyes, clear in the way he looked at her, the way his eyes dropped to her lips and lingered, the way his body pressed into hers.

“I will train you on my own time,” he said.

“Your own time?” she asked. “I want to be trained now.”

“You do not always get what you want.”

“Clearly!” Kelia all but shouted.

Emma had backed away now. If she was even still around, she was out of Kelia’s periphery.

When Kelia spoke again, her voice was low and crisp. “Do you think I want this? To become a creature of night, stuck on this blasted ship until sunset? Of course I don’t! I would not have made that choice for myself, but that choice was taken from me.” She clenched her teeth together. Earlier, she said she would. Now, she was sure she would rather die than be a beast. She hated conflicting feelings, hated not knowing how she truly felt about what she was. Would she ever make a clear decision on it? She could not say. But she was unhappy. And she most certainly would not discuss this with Drew. “But I will not possess these great powers without knowledge of how to use them.” All of her frustration and anger melted away, only to be replaced by desperation. “I am begging you, Drew. Take the time to teach me so I can be great. I cannot do this without you.” She knew he mentioned doing this before, but he might stall. He could change his mind just as easily as she could.

His body pressed into hers, the weight of him molding against her body. She couldn’t help the shudder that ripped across her core, and she closed her eyes for a brief moment, trying not to linger on the thought.

“All I want is the ability to defend myself,” she said through gritted teeth. “That is all I’m asking for. Why is that so difficult? I don’t want to burden you or this ship. I want to be able to defend myself; I want to be able to save myself. I don’t want to need you all the time.”

Drew leaned closer and cupped her cheek in his hand. His thumb played with her bottom lip—a ghost dancing across it. She swallowed, careful to keep herself from sucking the thumb into her mouth. There was a time and a place to let Drew know she desired him, but if she did that now, she would not get the respect she needed.

“I want you to need me," he admitted in a low voice.

She could feel his breath on her face, and she stilled underneath him. Her entire body was still set aflame, and yet, goosebumps erupted across her body. The tip of his nose caressed her cheek, and she nearly sobbed, wishing he would kiss her. She needed to feel him the way she had before. She didn’t understand why, but she had this burning desire to feel him in a way only she knew she could.

“I need to be able to fight for myself,” she said around the pinching feeling in her throat. “I like knowing that, if it came down to it, I could save you ." At Drew’s silence, she quickly added, “Not that you need saving, but I like knowing I could if you did.”

Drew pulled his fingers back from her face and caressed her exposed collarbone before resting his hand on his thigh.

“And, yet, here I am, on top of you, and you’ve done nothing about it,” he said. “How am I expected to believe you want to train when you refuse to fight at the first opportunity I’ve given to you?”

Kelia opened her mouth to respond, but Drew placed his index finger over her lips.

“You want to train, don’t you? Then do what I’ve already taught you. Show me you can retain my lessons, and then I shall train you when you want me to. If you cannot get me off of you, then you will wait until I am ready.”