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“The spirit world is hardly so disorganized. There’s always a system of balances.”
I held my head, the information hurting my brain. “This is too much to understand this early in the morning.”
“Then take this soup up to the first morning shift. They’ve been waiting awhile.”
I grabbed the bowls and put them on the tray, resting it against my hip as I looked at Luc one last time. He knew I was staring at him — I could tell by his unusual stiff posture — but he didn’t seem interested in looking back at me. Not having the time to address the issue, I sighed loud enough to let him know I wasn’t done with this conversation, then went up the steps.
The crew was quieter these days than they had usually been. It seemed to be a reflection of both Adrian and Henrik, who had turned quiet since we were attacked by Jacques and his crew. Part of Jacques’s crew had already surrendered and accepted tobecome part of Adrian’s crew, which I was told was normal for captured ships even though I thought the disloyalty was rather pathetic.
Henrik was on the first shift this time, and he barely acknowledged me as I set his food on the table. He had never been so silent with me, even when we had first met.
I stood over him as I put down the soup, waiting for him to acknowledge me. He didn’t. I cleared my throat, but he still wouldn’t look at me.
“How have you been?” I asked, my voice weakly breaking the silence between us.
He looked up at me, his eyes a mix of innocence and bitterness in a way I hadn’t seen before. I swallowed as he held my gaze, but he broke our eye contact with an ironic laugh.
“I’ve been busy,” he replied flatly.
“I’ve barely spoken to you in five days,” I said. “You haven’t come to the deck at midnight like you used to.”
He pulled his soup to his mouth. “Mind your own interests.”
I opened my mouth to reply to Henrik’s cold comment, but someone spoke before I could.
“Who put a scorpion in your bed?” Adrian asked, walking to the table. “You spent the last few months training her in sword fighting behind my back, and now you want to act like this?”
Henrik huffed, drinking more of his soup. Adrian looked at me with a half smile.
“Take Luc with you today to feed the prisoners,” Adrian commanded me. “Henrik and I have other important business to attend to.”
“Do we?” Henrik asked. “I wasn’t aware of anything.”
Adrian pointed over his shoulder to the glowing red light that was moving toward us.
“We should reach that light within the next week,” Adrian said. “I want to discuss the preparations for landing with you.”
I put a hand on my hip. “You almost sound like a real captain.”
“That’s because Iama real captain, princess.”
He gave a weak smile and winked.
Henrik chuckled darkly. “You want my help now?”
“As much as I’ve studied, I know I don’t have the knowledge you have,” Adrian replied. “I’m not good with books. You know that.”
Henrik stood from the table. “So now I’m supposed to save your ass? Like I’ve been doing for our entire lives?”
“I need you to teach me. This spirit world nonsense doesn’t make any sense to me on paper, but I know you can teach me what I need to know.”
Henrik ran his hand through his hair, his wild, bitter smile taking over his face once more. He shook his head to himself. Adrian swallowed, his jaw ticking as he faced the rest of the men.
“We’re drawing close to the Eros, gentlemen,” Adrian announced. “Make sure to be ready for anything. Listen to Henrik’s instructions from here on out. Whatever he tells you to do, I want your full cooperation. Is that understood?”
The menaye’dand went back to their breakfast. Henrik stared at Adrian with skepticism, the tension between them sweeping through the air with the sea wind once again.
“I’m asking for your help,” Adrian said in a low voice to Henrik. “I have no one else to depend on.”
