Maybe she was.
The ship continued to slow. Kat let out a long moan and her face scrunched up.
A solid ball formed in the middle of his gut, causing his mouth to go dry. It wasn’t Robert who was slowing down the ship.
It was Kat.
The ship tilted downward, floating as if a hand were beneath it, guiding it toward the horizon ahead. They were free of the clouds now, but the rain still pounded down on them.
Kat gasped and sweat trickled down the sides of her face. She let out another moan, an anguished look crossing her face, her eyes now shut. A trickle of blood appeared beneath her right nostril.
“Kat!” Stephen yelled. He placed his hands on either side of her face. “Can you hear me? Don’t do this! Don’t—”
Kat collapsed. Stephen caught her beneath her arms as she fell. Her eyes rolled up into her head just as the ship crashed, sending them both flying back. The rope went taut, and pain shot through Stephen’s waist and back.
Kat landed on the deck first. Stephen threw out his hands and knees, catching himself just before landing completely on top of her. She didn’t seem to notice. In fact, he wasn’t sure if she was conscious anymore.
The airship shifted, then went still. The rain had turned to a gentle drizzle across his back and head.
Stephen took in a deep breath and stared down at Kat. Men burst from the galley and started running toward them. From the opposite end of the ship, Robert used the handrails to vault down the stairs in one go. Stephen ignored them. “Kat?” He swept his thumb over her lip to remove the blood beneath her nostril. Her face was even more pale than usual. His gut clenched. How much had she exerted herself?
Robert was the first to arrive. He knelt down beside Stephen. “What the blazes just happened, Stephen?” he asked as he pulled out his dagger and began to saw away at the rope.
Stephen pressed his lips together and didn’t answer. Robert’s question confirmed his own thoughts. Kat had brought them down, not Robert.
“Was that her?” Robert whispered fiercely. The rope gave away. Stephen maneuvered to the side. “Did that woman really just land my airship? With just her mind? Is this the power you spoke of?”
“That was amazing, Captain!” someone shouted behind them.
Robert pressed his lips together, his one good eye burning furiously at Stephen.
“Spectacular landing!” another sailor called out.
Stephen shook his head slightly, his eyes pleading. Don’t tell them. Please.
Robert stared at him a moment longer, then his shoulders slumped. “I won’t say anything to the crew,” he said quietly. “But we need to talk. Later.”
Stephen nodded and turned back to Kat. He placed an arm beneath her head and another beneath her legs and stood up.
“Another story for the books,” Anders said, beaming down on them. “And quick thinking on your part, Mr. Grey, tying yourself and the lady to the mast. When the rotor cut through the rope, I thought you were both goners.”
Robert tucked his dagger into the sheath at his side and stood. He turned and faced the crew. “Thank you, men. However, though we might be on the ground, we are far from safe. Anders?”
Anders straightened. “Yes, Captain?”
“I need three groups of men. One to assess the damage. One to prepare for any enemies who might have followed us through the storm. And one to scout out the area where we landed.”
“Aye, Captain.”
Anders turned and started barking out commands to the sailors.
Robert wiped his face, his hand following his chin to the back of his neck.
Fitz came puffing up beside them. He bent over and placed his hands on his knees. “How is the lady?” he asked, turning his face upward.
Stephen glanced at Kat, now cradled in his arms. She was still out cold. “I’m not sure. I need to get Miss Bloodmayne away from this cold and rain.”
Robert’s face turned dark. He said something under his breath and Stephen was sure the words were not fit for polite company.
“Take her back to the captain’s cabin. A few of the crew need stitching, but when I’m done, I’ll come by with my medical box.” Fitz stood and headed for the galley.
“All right.” Stephen adjusted his hold on Kat. Even with the bulkhead gone, the cabin would at least provide shelter and privacy. As he stood, he was struck again by how small and light she was, and yet she had just landed an entire airship!
That kind of power had to affect her. Everything in life came with a price. They hadn’t had a chance to talk, not since the incident in Covenshire, then the Tower, then getting away. But now that they had crashed who knows where, maybe they would finally have a chance to speak. Both of them.
•••
Stephen lowered Kat onto the bed and took a step back. He couldn’t leave her in those wet garments. Hesitating at first, he unlaced her boots and pulled them off, then stared at her corset. He shook his head. He didn’t have a clue how to take the intricate garment off. She would just have to stay in her damp clothes.
He felt a presence behind him and looked back to find Robert standing in the doorway. Nearby, rain drizzled past the broken glass where the bulkhead used to be. Beyond, dune grass and boulders dotted the gray landscape.
“It’s one thing to hear about such power, and another thing to experience it.”
Stephen turned around. “Believe me, Robert, I know.”
Robert crossed his arms and stared past Stephen. He shook his head. “And the Tower did this to her?”
“I don’t know about the Tower, but I know her father had something to do with her being this way. I’m not sure to what extent, yet. We”—Stephen rubbed the back of his neck—“we haven’t had a chance to speak.”
“I’m not sure if I should be amazed or terrified. We were going down. I did everything I could to keep us afloat, but the Lancelot had taken too much damage and I couldn’t control her. And then . . .” He raised his hand, palm up. “The ship just floated down and landed on the nearest island.” He snapped his fingers. “Just like that.”
Stephen nodded. He had watched Kat do it.
Robert rubbed the rim of his eye patch and brushed his hair back, then sighed. “I lost a good man, but considering the danger we were in, I’m thankful the rest of us are alive and in one piece.”
“I’m sorry to hear that, Robert.”
He shrugged, but Stephen could tell the loss weighed on his friend like a dark shroud. Abruptly, Robert met Stephen’s eyes. “I don’t like the fact that someone like Miss Bloodmayne exists. And that it was the Tower that created her”—he waved a dismissive hand as Stephen opened his mouth—“or near enough. She’s a possible weapon in the hands of the city council. I know the council. I work for them. But I only do it for the gold, and for the people here, those fighting in Austrium. For our countrymen.”
“What are you saying?”
Robert pressed his lips together. “If she was with anyone else but you, I would leave her right here and move on without a second thought. She is dangerous.”
Stephen’s face darkened. “So that’s your decision.”
“No, because you’re with her, and there is a chance to cure her. And the fact that she wants to be cured. If she didn’t, then . . .” He shrugged.
“Then you would maroon her.”
“She’s a monster. An abomination of nature.”
“She’s a scared young woman.”
“And that is her saving grace.” Robert raised a finger. “There is still some humanity left inside her. She hasn’t become power hungry and used her power to attain more power. Perhaps we should be thankful that whatever the Tower did to her was performed on a woman like her, on someone who wishes to do good.” He gave his friend a long, shrewd look. “But is it changing her, Stephen?”
Stephen glanced back. Kat looked so small in the bed, enveloped in the oversized coverlet. Only her head could be seen. His gut clenched. Yes, it was changing her. There e
xisted two Kats, the smart, beautiful, kind Kat, and the scary Kat.
Robert sighed again. “Since I started running the blockade, I’ve been putting some pieces together. I’m not sure why, but it seems the city council instigated this war with Austrium.”
Stephen frowned. “That’s not how it was reported. The council said Austrium struck first.”
“Yes, overtly they did. But something happened before, something that made Austrium retaliate. There’s a story floating around with the other privateers that our council was responsible for that explosion in Emberworth.”
“That’s a serious accusation. Do you have any proof?”
“Nothing concrete, just bits and pieces I’ve overheard during my travels.” Robert placed one arm across his middle and tapped his chin with his other hand. “The last thing this war needs is people who can do what Miss Bloodmayne can do. If she could land my airship, who’s to say she couldn’t tear an airship out of the sky? Or worse?”
Stephen swallowed. He hated to admit it, but Robert was right, and his friend didn’t know half the things Kat could do. She would be a formidable force on the warfront, or on any front, for that matter. But could she be controlled? He’d watched her unleash that power. There was something primal about it, instinctive, and she said her abilities were somehow attached to her emotions.
“Anyway.” Robert turned toward the door. “I should return to my men. It’s going to take a couple days to repair the Lancelot enough to limp off this island. I appreciate what Miss Bloodmayne did. She saved my crew. That means a lot to me. And in return”—he let out a long breath—“I will do whatever I can to help you both.”
The tension along Stephen’s back gave way. “Thank you, Robert.”
Robert gave him a firm nod and left.
Stephen turned back toward Kat. He wasn’t sure how long she would be out this time. She had slept for hours after the Covenshire incident. Perhaps this time it would be no different. This power—whatever it was—took everything out of her.
He brushed her hair back and remembered her words on the deck as she’d hit his chest with her fists. Why? Why did you leave me at the Tower?
“We’ll talk once you’re awake,” he said quietly. “And I hope you can forgive me.”
Chapter
12
Kat felt like she had been trampled by a dozen horses. Every muscle hurt, every limb. Even opening her eyes caused her to wince. She coughed and slowly sat up, rubbing her eyes as she did so.
After taking a deep breath, she mentally took stock of her body. How much damage had her power done this time? She paused and massaged the area above her heart, pressing her fingers against her damp blouse. The numb area had expanded. Now it was an invisible fist-sized hole in her chest.
She pulled her legs up and wrapped her arms around her knees, her throat tight. Was she losing her soul? Was that what the numb area was? Nausea boiled up inside her. How much time did she have before her soul completely disappeared? What would become of her? Would the monster inside finally take over? Would she watch, helpless, as the creature lit the entire world on fire?
“Father, why did you do this to me? Why?” She curled her hand into a fist and held it against her breast. She didn’t cry. Instead, she stared down at the scarlet bedspread. She recognized the coverlet. It was the one from the captain’s cabin.
She glanced up. Sure enough, she was back in the cabin, only now the glass bulkhead was gone and a gentle wind blew through the jagged gap. Outside, light green dune grass waved along the breeze. The air smelled different. Smoky and salty.
Kat paused. Yes, she could hear the surf. Her mind flashed back to the storm. If they were on the ground, that meant she had succeeded in landing the airship on that bit of land she had sensed before passing out.
Well, at least one good thing had come from using that power. But it had cost her. She again fingered the area above her heart. Oh, yes, it had cost her.
It had cost her another part of her soul.
The door opened behind her.
Kat pulled the coverlet up over her legs and looked back.
Stephen stood in the darkened doorway. His eyes widened at the sight of her. “Kat, you’re finally awake.”
Kat didn’t answer. Instead, she watched him cross the room toward the empty table nearby. She pressed her lips together. Her research was gone, along with the maps and navigation instruments. All of it had flown out the broken bulkhead during the storm. Only the table and chairs remained due to the hooks in the floor.
Stephen unhooked one of the chairs and pulled it up to the bed.
Kat stiffened at his nearness. Her emotions were a jumble inside her at the sight of him. One moment hurt, another anger, then joy. Sweet and bitter at the same time. How could that be possible? How could she still long to see Stephen, yet hurt at the very sight of him?
The rush made her dizzy.
Stephen sat down and leaned forward. “How are you feeling?”
Confused. Mad. Terrified. But she wasn’t ready to share that yet, so she went with an easier answer. “Tired.”
He nodded. “You’ve been unconscious for two days.”
“Two days?”
“Yes.”
Apparently her human body could not handle the power she unleashed. That meant she was still human, right?
“If you are up to it, I would like to answer the question you asked me during the storm.”
Kat looked up, puzzled, until her memories caught up. During the storm she had pounded on Stephen’s chest and asked him why he had left her at the Tower.
She sighed and tugged on the bedspread. Part of her wanted to dismiss Stephen. She wasn’t sure she was ready yet. She had just come through an ordeal and still felt weak, not to mention distracted by the lingering fear over the numbness spreading across her body.
But she also wanted answers, and he was willing to give them to her now.
“Yes.” She stilled her hand and looked up. “I would like that.”
The confidence on Stephen’s face melted away as he ran a hand along the back of his neck. “I don’t know how much you know about my past, or how much you followed the Herald over the last few years.”
Kat frowned. “The Herald?” She shook her head. “Not much. I rarely read it while I was at the academy.”
Stephen nodded and dropped his hand. “I was engaged two years ago, to a socialite. Her name was Vanessa Wutherington.”
She scrunched up her face. At the gala on that harrowing night Ms. Stuart had died, Marianne had said something about Stephen breaking off an engagement.
Stephen sat back and turned his attention to the dunes outside. “Just before the wedding, I found her with one of my colleagues, engaged in . . . intimate activities.”
Her frown deepened. Intimate . . . oh! Heat raced across her face. Had the Herald written a story about that? Words jumbled up inside her mind, but none of them seemed like an appropriate response, so she remained quiet. But her heart was breached just a little by his vulnerable admission.
Stephen sighed, never turning to look at her. “Apparently the affair had been going on for a while. I was shocked . . . hurt . . . deeply.” His hand clenched across the arm of the chair. “I broke off the engagement, left the police force, and became a bounty hunter.
“I lived alone for two years, going about my work, never truly realizing how much that event had colored my life. Then I met you at the gala, and the next day you approached me about a job. You’re the first woman I’ve let into my life since Vanessa.” He glanced at Kat from the corner of his eye.
She sat rigid on the bed, back straight, hands tightly held across her lap. When Stephen said he wanted to talk, she’d had no idea how much of his life he was going to share with her. This . . . this was deeply personal.
Stephen went on. “The moment we met, I slowly began to open up. I wanted to find out what had happened to my aunt. I also wanted to help you. You were different than most of the women I’d met.
And then . . .”
A breeze blew through the missing bulkhead and a bird warbled outside.
“And then?” Kat said quietly, her cheeks still flushed.
“And then I saw what you did to Jake, Piers, and Rodger back at the inn in Covenshire.”
Kat let out her breath. It all came back to that. The fact that she was different. No, not different. More than different. She gripped the coverlet tight between her fingers and savagely twisted the fabric. She was a monster.
“And I found out about the bounty on you.”
Her fingers halted and her head shot up. “What? What bounty?”
“A bounty was placed on you. That’s why Jake and the other bounty hunters were after you. When I found out about the contract, I assumed only one thing: that you had lied to me.”
“Who set the bounty?” she asked, her throat tight.
“The World City Council. And . . . your father.”
The flush disappeared from her face, leaving her light-headed. “What did the contract state?”
Stephen cleared his throat. “The warrant stated that you killed two young men.”
She felt sick. “But Ms. Stuart said I didn’t kill anyone.” She looked down at her fingers and began twisting the coverlet again. “I-I burned someone when I—”
She had never told Stephen about that night. About Blaylock or the fire she had ignited at the gala.
“Stephen, I never lied. But I didn’t tell you everything.” Kat licked her lips, trying to work some moisture back into her mouth. “Ms. Stuart—your aunt—instructed me never to tell anyone about this power inside me. I did do something that night at the gala. I—” She swallowed hard. It all came back to that night. Ms. Stuart would still be alive if she hadn’t set the fire. And she wouldn’t be on the run now.
She let out her breath slowly. “I lost control. I set one of the hallways on fire. There were young men there, men from the academy, and they were hurting my friend. I couldn’t stand by and watch them do that to Marianne. But then it took over. The monster inside me.”
She glanced at him from the corner of her eye. “Can you see why I didn’t want to tell you about myself? About this power? About why I am searching for Dr. Latimer?” She watched him, half afraid of what she would see on his face. “I’m a monster.”
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