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She smiled at him, even though he couldn’t see her. “I love you, Grayson,” she whispered. She slipped her hand into his limp one, and his fingers curled around hers.
Holding onto her, even in sleep.
Chapter 53
Tyrell
Tyrell’sheadwasablazing agony, and his heart beat too fast.
Mia was gone. Even without the soldier’s hurried report, he knew she’d sailed away with Grayson.
The soldier who had found him in the harbor-master’s office continued his report, but Tyrell barely heard him.
Fates, he should have taken her immediately out of the city. He’d been a fool to linger. He’d wanted Grayson dead—preferably in a way he could claim was an accident or necessity, so Mia and his father would both believe him. He’d stayed so he could end Grayson, and now Mia was gone.
His pulse roared in his ears. He grimaced as he shoved to his feet.
The world spun. He grasped the edge of the table, breathing too hard.
The young soldier eyed him warily. “Your Highness, perhaps you should—”
“I need a ship,” he gritted out. “Now.”
The soldier hesitated. “Prince Tyrell, that was—”
“NOW!” he roared, ignoring the vicious spear of pain that stabbed through his brain.
The man darted out of the guardhouse.
Tyrell stared at the chair where Mia had so recently sat. The stew he’d set before her—now cold—remained untouched. He grabbed it and threw it at the wall, snarling a curse as the bowl clattered to the floor.
He’d lost her again. She’d left him—again. Grayson had taken her.
Again.
He kicked the chair and shoved the table. He yelled until his lungs burned, and then he stormed outside, stumbling once. His head was killing him, but that hardly mattered. He didn’t know how long it had been since Grayson had taken the coward’s way out and had those men ambush him, but their lead couldn’t be too great.
Outside, the mist had thickened into a dense fog. Several soldiers hurried up to him, as well as the harbor master. The man was pale as he approached. “My prince, I’m afraid it’s no use. Pursuing them, I mean.”
Tyrell glared. “Why?”
The man flinched from his furious bark. “The fog, first of all. And they took Syed Zadir’s ship. He’s a Mortisian pirate. He docked under another name, of course, but I glimpsed his ship sailing out of the harbor. TheSeafireis the fastest ship on the sea. You won’t be able to catch him—even without the fog.”
Tyrell’s very bones vibrated with his rage. “I don’t care. Get me the fastest ship in port.”
The man winced. “It won’t be enough, Your Highness. I’m sorry.”
His hand fisted. He wanted to lash out at the man. Strike him down. But despite the anger flowing through him, the man’s words finally penetrated.
Tyrell had been raised as a soldier. He knew when to give orders, and when to listen to the expertise of other men. The harbor master knew ships and the sea. He knew this Zadir, and Tyrell did not—other than the fact that one day, the pirate Zadir would be punished for the role he’d played in taking Mia away from him.
The truth settled on his soul like the first bitter frost. Mia was gone. He hadn’t been able to stop her from leaving Ryden. He would not be able to catch her. Not by ship. Not before she reached Mortise.
Tyrell’s gut clenched, and he ground his teeth. “I need a horse.”
A soldier darted away.
Tyrell looked toward the sea, though he could barely discern the open water through the fog. His hand slipped into his pocket, and he fisted the silk ribbon he’d carried with him since Mia had left. Feeling it was a comfort—almost like touching her, because her fingertips had run over the length of it.
