Grig looked to Osius, who cleared his throat. “One of the men we paid back at the port was just here. He rowed all night to tell us that Ceren and his men are looking to commandeer a ship.”
My blood whooshed in my ears. I had known Ceren might come for us eventually, but I had hoped we’d have more time. I thought of the vision, of the blood staining Ceren’s pale lips, and I knew this wasn’t about Talin. Revenge could wait; he was coming for me.
“I suggest we leave immediately,” Osius added. “While we still have the advantage of time.”
“I have to go back!” I blurted. “I promised I wouldn’t leave without saying goodbye to Father, and I can’t go without telling Zadie.”
A muscle ticked in Talin’s jaw, but he nodded. “Very well, but we have to move quickly.”
“Thank you,” I said, squeezing his hand.
“Grig, Osius, you’ll wait with the ship.” Talin slipped into his role as commander seamlessly. “We’ll be back as soon as possible. Be ready to sail when I return.”
I rowed us back to Varenia as fast as I could, my mind racing as I thought through what I needed to gather and wondered how quickly we could get back to Talin’s ship. In the end, there was really only one thing important enough to bring with me.
“I want my family to come with us,” I told Talin.
His brow furrowed in response. “Nor, you saw how small the ship is. It can only carry five or six people safely. Between the captain and the crew member, Osius, Grig, and me...” He trailed off as my face began to fall.
I swallowed the lump in my throat. “My mother put on a brave face for you, but the situation is more dire than you know. There are babies starving. My father is out there risking his life to provide for us. I may not be able to help the rest of Varenia, but I can’t just leave them to die.”
“Nor—”
Talin reached for me, but we were close to my house, and I leaned away to grab on to a pillar. I rushed up the ladder, convinced Talin was wrong. My family was small. We’d find a way to fit.
“What is it?” Zadie asked as I pushed through the trapdoor.
“Ceren’s men are close. We have to go to keep them from coming to Varenia. But...” I looked to my mother, who bravely lifted her chin without even knowing what I was about to say. “Is Father back?”
Zadie shook her head. “Not yet.”
My heart sank at the realization that I would not be able to keep my promise to wait for Father. How could I leave without saying goodbye?
Talin had emerged through the trapdoor behind me, and he placed his hand gently on my shoulder. “I’m so sorry, but we have to go.”
I looked at him, sure he would change his mind about bringing my family when he saw the anguish on my face.
“If we take them, we might not be able to outrun Ceren’s ship,” he said quietly. “It would put them in even more danger.”
Mother stepped closer to me and touched my forearm. “You should go, Nor. Your father would want you to be safe.” She swallowed thickly. “I want you to be safe.”
“I can’t leave you,” I said, my voice breaking.
She nodded. “Yes, you can.” Tears streamed down her cheeks for the second time in as many days, and I felt the part of me that had hardened against Mother’s cruelty begin to crack. She placed her forehead against mine. “I was wrong to doubt you before. I won’t make that mistake again.”
Tears welled in my eyes, and before she could stop me, I wrapped my arms around my mother and squeezed her as tight as I could. She hadn’t embraced me since I was a child, but slowly, I felt her arms come up around me.
“I’ll stay,” she said. “And wait for your father. We’ll be fine.”
I released her and nodded, even though I knew we were both pretending. I could see my fear reflected in her eyes.
I reached for Zadie’s hand and bit my lip to keep from sobbing. Leaving my parents was almost too much to bear; I could not go without my sister.
But Zadie’s back was straight, her chin set at the same stubborn angle as Mother’s, when she looked at Talin and said, “Nor and I together weigh little more than one man. I’m sure you can find room for both of us.”
Mother stepped next to her and took a shuddering breath before nodding once.
To his credit, Talin didn’t even attempt to argue. “All right.”
“It’s going to be dangerous,” I said to Zadie, though relief coursed through me. “Ceren will come after me.”
“I won’t lose you again, Nor. Besides, I have to find Sami.” She turned to Mother. “Are you sure you’ll be all right without us?”
Mother, once again cool and self-possessed, folded her arms across her chest. “Of course we will.”
Zadie and I each kissed one of her cheeks, and for a brief moment, she pressed her hand to my face, her finger brushing over my scar. It was the first time she’d touched me there since the incident. A soft sob escaped me as her hand fell away. I hadn’t realized how much I’d needed that one simple gesture.
“Nor, please.” Talin was already at the trapdoor, holding it open for us.
I nodded and turned away from Mother, afraid that if I looked back, I wouldn’t be able to leave. Our relationship would never fully heal, but I was grateful that this time, at least, I had the chance to say goodbye.
As I dropped into the boat next to Zadie, I looked up at the horizon and gasped. Beyond Talin’s tiny ship, a much larger ship loomed, and a fear I hadn’t felt since I ran from New Castle washed over me.
Ceren’s men had arrived.
“How did they get here so fast?” I asked.
“Ceren must have commandeered a galley manned by dozens of oarsmen—and paid handsomely for it,” Talin said through gritted teeth as he rowed us toward his vessel. “It’s far faster than a sailing ship.”
Faster, I thought as I took over the rowing for Talin, but I could tell from its long, low design that the ship was not meant for sailing far out to sea. If they planned to chase us, they would be at a disadvantage, especially if we encountered any large swells.
Fortunately, Talin’s men had brought his ship as close as possible, and we reached it quickly. Though I had just been aboard, I hadn’t properly taken in how small it really was, a sloop with only one mainsail. Talin was right about one thing: we couldn’t have taken any more passengers.
Within minutes of our boarding, the sails had been trimmed, and we were pulling away from Varenia. I hadn’t expected to leave again so soon, and I was filled with a mixture of regret and longing for a place that no longer felt like home. As I turned back to catch a final glimpse of the village, I saw someone emerge from the governor’s house. I wished I’d had the chance to explain everything to Sami’s parents. Instead, I would forever be a liar in Kristos’s and Elidi’s eyes. But we would find Sami, and perhaps that would be enough to prove I’d never meant to hurt them.
Osius approached Talin and handed him his spyglass. “You’d better take a look,” he said, pointing toward Varenia.
“Damn it,” Talin hissed, lowering the glass.
“What’s wrong?” I asked. “What did you see?”
Talin handed me the spyglass wordlessly. I raised it and focused on Varenia. A boat containing about a dozen men had left the galley and was heading toward Governor Kristos’s house. I focused in on the smaller vessel and gasped when I saw who was at the bow.
As if he’d heard me, Ceren’s pale head swiveled toward our ship. Even from this distance, I had the sense that he knew I was watching him. And somehow, even without the spyglass, I had the strange feeling that I would have known he sensed my presence, too.
“Can we go any faster?” Talin shouted to the captain, but he only shook his head.
“Why would he come himself?” Zadie asked, clinging to the railing for support.
I could see that Tali
n was cursing himself for not leaving Varenia sooner. Any minute, Ceren would return to his ship and come after us, and we might not be able to outrun him.
But, to my surprise, Ceren’s small vessel remained where it was, and several more boats had set out from the ship to join his. I was about to raise the glass again when something caught my attention in the corner of my eye. “No,” I breathed, my stomach dropping. The Varenian fishing boats were returning.
Heart pounding, I found myself waiting—and suddenly hoping—for Ceren’s boat to circle back to his ship, but, to my horror, he instead continued moving toward the dock. As he disembarked, I remembered too late that Governor Kristos was with Father, so the figure I’d seen come out of the house could only have been Elidi.
“What is he doing?” I shouted, running along the railing. “Turn us around! We have to go back.”
In horror, I watched as several of Ceren’s guards disembarked and began striking down Varenians. Moments later, they were herding the villagers into their small boats, as if...
“They’re taking the Varenians!” I screamed.
“What?” Zadie ran up beside me. “Why? I thought he was coming for you and Talin.”
“So did I.” The fishing boats were getting close to Varenia. I groaned, wishing Father and the others would turn away. But of course they wouldn’t, not now that they’d seen Elidi and the other Varenians were in danger. I turned to Talin and grabbed him by the front of his tunic. “Please, we have to go back.”
Talin looked down at me, a muscle ticking in his jaw. “We can’t, Nor. It’s too dangerous.”
I briefly contemplated wresting the ship’s wheel out of the captain’s hands before acknowledging that I would be quickly overpowered.
“Please,” I cried. Realizing they weren’t going to listen to me, I started to peel off my skirt, ready to leap from the ship and swim back to Varenia on my own.
It was Zadie who stopped me. “Nor,” she shouted, grabbing my shoulders. “You can’t go back. Even if you made it, Ceren would capture you and take you back to New Castle.”
The thought made me weak in the knees, and I slid to the floor, bile burning the back of my throat. “But don’t you see? He’s taking our parents. He could throw them in the dungeon, just like he did to me. Gods, he could do even worse things.”
Zadie sank down next to me. “We don’t know that he has our parents. We have no idea what he’s planning. But we can’t stop him, not without help.” She pulled me against her, cradling my head in her lap. “You did the right thing, Nor.”
I shook my head, but she continued to shush me and stroke my hair. “All I’ve done is put everyone in danger, including you,” I said.
“You didn’t put me in danger. I chose to come.”
I glanced up at her. “But you have no idea what you’re getting yourself into.”
“I know I’m heading toward Sami, and I’m with you. I also know Mother and Father are stronger than you give them credit for.”
How could she be so calm about leaving the Varenians to face Ceren alone?
I studied my sister’s hands, browned from the sun and callused from rowing. The village had turned their backs on her, and she had managed to help take care of our family despite severe injuries. She was not the girl she’d been, I reminded myself.
And neither was I.
6
Zadie and I passed the afternoon in silence. I didn’t want to speculate on our parents’ fate and cause her more worry, and I suspected she felt the same. As the sky grew dark, I glanced up at the stars to orient myself. We were heading northeast, toward the shore. Zadie had fallen asleep, and I rose carefully so as not to wake her, then went in search of Talin.
He stood at the prow, staring into the darkness, but he glanced back at my approach.
“Are we heading to the port?” I asked, stepping up next to him. “Everyone in Ilara will be looking for us.”
He sighed heavily. “I know. But what choice do we have?”
He was right. The ship didn’t have enough supplies for a long voyage, and anyway, Talin had to get back to his mother. “Where do you plan to look for troops?”
“We’ll start in Meradin,” he said. “It’s well forested and fairly neutral territory. My father did a poor job of ensuring their loyalty, due to their proximity to shore.”
“Speaking of loyalty, where is the crew from?” I asked. One man was at the wheel, the other trimming the sail.
“I hired them at the port market.”
“Are they trustworthy?”
Talin glanced at the captain from the corner of his eye. “Only as far as they are greedy. I paid them half up front. They’ll get the rest when they deliver us safely to shore.”
I nodded and rubbed my arms to warm them against the cool night air.
“Are you cold?” He looked past me, to where Grig and Osius stood. “I have a cloak somewhere.”
“I’m fine,” I lied, not wanting to burden him more. Guilt for leaving my parents and fear for their safety soured my stomach. I glanced at Grig, who was clinging to the railing and trying valiantly not to be sick. I understood how he felt.
“We’ll get you some traveling clothes at the market, along with the rest of the supplies we’ll need,” Talin assured me as Osius approached us.
“Apologies for the interruption, but I was thinking that we’ll need to get to the horses right away.” He turned to me. “I know you can ride, but what about Zadie?”
“She can’t,” I said. “She’ll have to ride with someone else.”
Osius nodded. “She can ride with me, but we’ll need another horse, unless you’d prefer to ride with Prince Talin.”
“I think I’d prefer my own horse,” I admitted, hoping I didn’t offend Talin. “Riding double isn’t exactly comfortable.”
Osius bowed. “Of course, my lady.”
Talin and I stood in silence for several minutes, mulling over our own thoughts. “Nor,” he said finally. “I’m sorry we couldn’t take your family.” He chewed the corner of his lip, then added, “I’m sorry we couldn’t take everyone.”
I leaned back against the railing. “I know it was impossible. And my mother wouldn’t have left without Father. But I can’t help feeling like I abandoned them to a monster.”
He ran his hands through his hair in an attempt to smooth it, but he quickly realized it was hopeless and let his arms fall. “I know, and I am sorry. I had no idea he wanted the Varenians. But even if I’d guessed his plan, we couldn’t save them all. Believe me, if it were possible, I would have.”
I knew he was telling the truth and that his remorse was genuine. But it didn’t make leaving my parents behind any less painful. As much as I didn’t want to fall back into Ceren’s hands, it was almost more frightening that he hadn’t immediately come after us, because now we had no idea what he would do next.
Tentatively, Talin reached toward me. “I promise I’ll do everything in my power to make sure my brother never hurts another person again, Nor.”
I looked up into his blue eyes and knew he meant it, even if it was a promise he couldn’t keep. I placed my hand in his, and he released a sigh before pulling me against his chest. His warmth made me realize how silly I had been, stubbornly refusing his cloak.
“It will be a few more hours till we reach shore,” he said. “You should sleep.”
“I’d rather stay with you.”
He rested his chin on my head. “Good.”
* * *
Despite my best intentions, I was swaying on my feet within an hour. The nearly sleepless night with Talin, followed by the tumultuous day, had left me exhausted. Talin carried me back to Zadie and settled me next to her, where I slept until I heard the cries of so many birds it could only mean one thing: we had reached the port.
Zadie stirred beside me, her hair a knotted mess,
her clothing damp and wrinkled. She pushed to her feet and rubbed the sleep from her eyes.
Grig, Osius, and Talin stood nearby. Talin helped me to my feet, smiling as I blinked blearily at him. At some point, he had draped cloaks over Zadie and me, somehow fastening the clasps without waking us. He pulled the hood up to shade my face, then did the same with his own. “We should be as inconspicuous as possible.”
“I’m going to give the captain the rest of the payment,” Osius said. He turned and bowed to Zadie. “I don’t believe we’ve been formally introduced, my lady. I’m Osius, former captain of the king’s guard and—current status as a wanted man notwithstanding—your humble servant.”
She blushed and held out her hand for him to kiss. I couldn’t help remembering the moment I had met him and how I’d found the gesture awkward and mildly humiliating. Zadie had always been better suited for this than I had.
Talin nudged me with his elbow as I took his arm. “My lady,” he said with a grin. We approached the gangway arm in arm, with Zadie and Osius behind us and a very relieved Grig bringing up the rear.
I had never been to this part of the port before, and it was even more crowded and overwhelming than the market. I turned to Zadie, who was taking her very first steps on land, and my heart clenched at the uncertainty on her face. She had never expected to leave Varenia, not after I went in her place. She had never even wanted to. I recalled my own first steps, which had been overly cautious and unsteady—and I’d been in far more peaceful surroundings.
“You may be ill,” I warned.
She smiled weakly. “I remember. Land sickness. But it’s worth it to find Sami.”
“This way.” Talin escorted me away from the docks and into the street. “Our horses are stabled at an inn nearby. Grig will see to them while Osius procures weapons.” He turned to Zadie. “Come with us,” he said, holding his arm out. “We’re going to find you ladies some proper attire.”
Kingdom of Sea and Stone Page 5