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Twenty-Two
Leon
Bright light broke through the darkness past the docks, calling the swarm that descended on the people here. The darkthings screeched, taking flight, and all of them moved toward those beams of pure sunlight.
“What is that, Captain?” Havoc asked.
Elon landed on the deck, shadows surrounding him. “That is the swarm and the last place your beloved was. Her scent trailed away from the fight.”
“Are you sure?” I asked.
“She’s bleeding. The scent is unmistakable.”
“I need to get to her. The rest of our crew and the king’s men can handle whatever creatures remain. Stay with them. Make sure whoever needs help gets it.” I turned to Havoc, and though he frowned at my decision, he clamped a hand on my shoulder.
“Leon,” he said. “This is unlike anything we’ve faced before. Splitting up is unwise.”
“I’ll return. You help whoever you can. Get any wounded to Lily’s.”
He nodded and I jumped off the ship, using the water to catch my steps and volt me over the burnt piers toward the grass. When the wave plopped me on the ground, I took off running. Darkthings screeched in the sky and wounded lay scattered, crying, and burning, the acrid scent of charred flesh mixing with the salty air.
I focused my mind on one thing: finding Havana.
One of the benefits to being half mer was the ability to use my senses on land as well as the sea. Azalea’s blood had a unique scent to it and one I searched for while moving through the carnage. Mixed in with the normal coppery tang of blood was a hint of something sweet, almost floral, the scent unmistakable from that day when we fought the lichen.
Wind rushed around me. Beams of light shot into a mass of the darkthings cutting them like a school of fish. Most of the swarm flocked in this area while more stayed by the docks feeding on the dying. Far up the hill, Azalea fought beside Acaden, Lark nowhere to be seen, which was very unusual. Had he fallen?
The mercenary turned her head toward me, a slight nod over her shoulder as if she knew exactly why I was running in this direction.
If there was one thing Azalea and I agreed upon it was protecting the Oasis. It was part of the reason that we disagreed so much. She thought the Oasis was hers and I knew it was mine. She may have acted like the island’s queen, but I was its king and soon I’d have enough coin to validify that claim.
Lark appeared out of the woods, running full speed.
“Have you seen—”
We cut each other off, saying the exact same thing.
“She’s hurt, but okay,” Lark said, slowing to a stop. “Azalea?”
I nodded over my shoulder. “Fighting those darkthings.”
With the salute, he took off and I ran faster.
My heart pounded with fear and anticipation. Havana was okay, but what was she doing here? I didn’t have room to be angry at Lark for leaving her because honestly, I didn’t want her fighting those monsters. If she was hurt, I wanted her as far from the docks as possible. As I crested the hill, moonlight cascaded like a beacon directing me to the human who sat by a tree sobbing.
“Havana!” I yelled.
She lifted her head, her eyes widening and then she jumped to her feet stumbling as she ran forward. We crashed into each other, and I lifted her into my arms, hugging her and kissing the side of her head. “What were you thinking? Are you hurt?”
Tears streamed down her cheeks. “I couldn’t sit by and do nothing. Those creatures are here because of me. This is all my fault. I should’ve never left home. The docks are destroyed, lives lost.”
I held her face in my hands. “Don’t blame yourself. The darkthings are the ones to blame. They deserve your anger, not yourself.”
I kissed her, wiping her cheeks with my thumbs. Pulling back, I examined the gashes and scratches of her clothes blisters marred her wrists. “What happened?”
“Azalea took the dampeners off, but she had warned me it would be painful.”
I took one of those wrists and gently brought it to my lips, kissing the inside of her palm. “I should never have let you jump off that ship.”
