“How did you know?”
He’s already moving to stand behind me. His hands grip my waist as he heaves me up onto the bottom railing.
“Throw your arms out!”
With my face towards the sea, my arms spread wide, and Lachlan’s sturdy chest behind me, a laugh bubbles up from deep within my belly.
I revel in the feeling of flying across the ocean.
And just like that, all my anxiety about the day melts away.
A booming laugh echoes from behind me and Lachlan buries his face into my neck.
“I wish I had a camera to capture the look on your face. But alas, I’ll just ha’ to burn this moment into my mind forever.”
His words send butterflies fluttering around my ribcage, and my smile grows.
We’re going to be okay.
Being on the water fills the void in my chest. I needed this. I needed the salt air wind propelling us over the glittering sea; the whitecaps breaking in the distance, and the shanty tunes the crew sings while they work. I needed the adventure.
Standing vigil at the bow, I admire the vastness of my realm. Before it had seemed like a tiny island, but now the richness of its cultures adds a dimension, I hadn’t appreciated enough when I first got here. Dragut takes up the railing beside me and tips his chin towards Lachlan, who is receiving instructions at the helm of the ship as he steers us.
“This isn’t the first time he’s commandeered my ship.”
“And it probably won’t be the last,” I reply, looking over my shoulder to admire the joy shining in his eyes.
It looks natural as he turns the helm, like he was always meant to be a pirate. The sun shines on his dark hair, a few lighter strands looking sun-kissed already. His forearms flex and the tanned skin gleams a light bronze. Sensing my stare, heglances toward me, a mischievous smirk tugging up the corner of his lips. A pirate, indeed.
“So tell me what I missed when I was avoiding the mainland.”
I eye him suspiciously. “You honestly don’t know?”
Dragut shakes his head. “The sea is my mistress, and she’s a jealous one at that. You’ll rarely find me on land, my queen.”
I grin, looking back out at the water, understanding his words a bit more than I would ever admit.
“Odessa was being impersonated by an asphidra. The deception was orchestrated by Julius. They added asphidra venom to quartz, magnifying the power of the venom to obstruct our magic. I killed the imposter, but Julius escaped and plans to launch us all into the Great War.”
He stiffens at my words. “An asphidra, you say?” I nod and he grumbles, “They’re more treacherous than the kelpies.”
“You’ve seen a kelpie?” I ask, my eyes widening.
“Of course. There are a few of them in these waters. You need to be careful or they’ll drag you under. Many a sailor has lost their lives to those creatures.”
“There are kelpies—here?” I ask, studying him closely for any signs that he’s teasing me. But that shadow I saw in the water before we found Luna springs to my mind.
Dragut spits over the rail. “This is a magical land and with it, there are magical beings, my queen.” He turns back to me, confusion marring his brow. “No one has told you about all the creatures that live in your realm?”
I shake my head and the wind tugs at my braid. “I was led to believe this place existed only in my parents’ stories. I was raised in the human realm. And no one here could tell me anything. The books were burnt, and the elders killed off.”
His lips curl into a snarl, and an emotion I can quite place dims his eyes before it falls away. “Most of being a pirate—Imean a naval commander—is knowing the stories. A lot of history is passed down in stories.”
A cloud floats across the sun, casting the deck in momentary shadow. Dragut’s expression mimics the darkness that overcomes us.
“In these waters and all waters from the magical realms to the human one, you’ll find a number of magical beings. The kelpies are some of the most monstrous, sometimes taking the skin of water horses and sometimes wearing the unnatural skin of man. They lure animals and people alike to the water, where they’ll eat them, slowly.”
A cold wind rips through the loosened sails, stalling our momentum, and sends them flapping violently. “Tighten the rig! You useless—” The sails catch and hold the wind, sending us propelling swiftly over the water again.
