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I shook my head. “He passed out as soon as he got into his room.”
Henrik nodded, satisfied. “He’s not a terrible person, really. Truly. He’s just incredibly naive and has no sense of good andevil. He sees a goal and he goes for it. He doesn’t think about the consequences.”
I leaned over the rail, looking at Henrik’s face instead of up at the stars with him. From the side, his nose was straight and proper, much like Henrik himself; his cheekbones high on firm on his rectangular face. It amazed me how his face reflected his character, and I wondered which one had been shaped first. He caught my gaze, looking back at me with confusion.
“What?” he asked.
“Why are you tworeallyat odds with each other?” I asked. “Every time you stand in the same room together, I feel like someone is going to get stabbed.”
He laughed, leaning back and continuing to look at the sky. “It’s that obvious, is it? Yes, we have some bad blood between us. We want the same thing, but we have very different views on how to get it.”
“What do you want?”
He didn’t answer right away, the wind blowing through his hair as if to encourage him to share his thoughts.
“We both want the Eros,” he said after a moment.
“You as well?” I asked, surprised.
“Aye,” he said. “Myself as well. And unfortunately, you’re the only one who can make that happen. I wish I was able to ask you for your assistance properly, but it seems I’m too late now.”
“Adrian said it was for money, but I have a feeling that it’s not the same for you.”
Henrik laughed. “That’s where you’re wrong. I’m in it for the money as well.”
I raised my eyebrows in confusion. “What do you mean? I can believe that Adrian would want a get-rich-quick lifestyle, but that’s not who you are at all.”
He swallowed, looking at me as if he was deciding whether or not to tell me anything further.
“Tell me?” I asked sweetly, trying to encourage him.
He puffed out some air before running his fingers through his hair. “Our mother is sick.”
The words hit me in the chest. Hard.
“And our father,” Henrik continued, “is unable to work to help her. His arm was crushed in a carriage accident, and no one will hire a cripple. I was working in the navy to share the financial burden, but my crew never felt comfortable with me. The king was always wary of my…talents.”
He looked at his hands.
“They thought you were a shaman, didn’t they?” I asked.
He nodded. “They said I’d bring the devil on the king eventually. They said it like it was a joke, but I always knew it wasn’t. It took me years to prove my worth as a navy officer. But then…”
He stopped, shaking his head like he had water in his ears. “Forget it. Why am I telling you all this? It’s not important.”
He held his head, starting to walk away. I grabbed him and pulled him back.
“Of course it is,” you replied. “I get it now. You were released from the navy because they didn’t trust your gifts. But if you find the Eros…”
He nodded to himself. “I can prove I’m not insane. I can present it to the king and perhaps get my job back. If I don’t…”
His eyes drifted with his words, down to my hand on his arm, and suddenly my fingertips burned. I slowly released him and held fast to his jacket around my shoulders instead.
“Henrik, you’ve shown me kindness in this situation, and I want to return the favor.”
His eyebrows matted. “What do you mean?”
I took off the coat he lent me and handed it back to him. He took it like it was a foreign object he had never seen before.
