Total pages in book: 154
Estimated words: 144411 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 722(@200wpm)___ 578(@250wpm)___ 481(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 144411 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 722(@200wpm)___ 578(@250wpm)___ 481(@300wpm)
“What do you want?” Ramsay asks, his gaze cold, his voice iron.
“Nothing,” she says with a bright smile. “Now that you’re both here, I have all that I want.” She eyes the skeleton crew. “You must pardon me, my darlings, but I’m afraid I’ve grown weary of you. You’re no longer part of my destiny. No, I’ve seen my destiny now in Thane’s crystal ball.”
Ramsay stiffens at that.
“And my destiny is here,” she adds simply. “As soon as I saw the vision, I knew what my gut was already telling me, that I have business aboard this ship. Naturally, I slowed the wind. Perhaps you’ll notice we were just sitting out here, waiting for you.”
“You have no business here,” Ramsay says with a jerk of his head. “Your business is with your skeleton crew on the Norfinn.”
“Bones,” she says, drawing out his nickname. “If I leave, then there will be no one to lift the spell. Your crew will sleep forever.”
“Then wake them,” he says, grinding out the words.
Her smile becomes coy. “You know how us witches work. We want a favor in return.”
“Well?” he asks impatiently.
She tilts her head. “Last time we were at an impasse, you offered yourself. That won’t do this time. I know what I want. The woman who wants to be a mermaid. You give her to me, and I give you your crew back. You keep her to yourself, and your crew will be at rest forever.” Her gaze slides to mine, the copper in her eyes glowing, thoroughly enjoying this.
I gulp, feeling the weight of this decision. Ramsay is hesitating, panic and pain swirling in his eyes as he looks at me. He doesn’t want to pick me over his crew, and he doesn’t want to pick his crew over me. Last time we were in this exact predicament things ended in mutiny and I won’t have that happen to the Nightwind again. My life is certainly not worth all the lives of his crew, especially the children.
“I’ll go,” I say quickly, looking Nerissa right in the eyes. I keep my chin up, my voice steady, and walk toward her. “It’s fine.”
“Maren, no!” Ramsay cries out, trying to reach for me, but Nerissa pins him in place with her gaze.
“She has volunteered and that is binding.” She grins at me, a pretty but menacing smile. “Perhaps she’s the one I wanted all along.” She holds out her hand for me. “Come now, my raven-haired child. We have much to discuss.”
“Wait,” I say, looking behind me at the crew. “I’m not going anywhere until you lift the spell. I need to know I can trust you.”
She sighs and then shrugs. “Alright, but when I lift the spell, it will awaken Sterling as well. He’s hanging in chains around the corner, but he can be awfully loud.”
“Who put him in the chains?” Ramsay asks.
“Your crew did. He’s a mutineer, after all, and your crew is loyal.”
Then she waves her fingers at the hold and both Ramsay and I watch with bated breath as they slowly begin to stir, limbs twitching, eyes fluttering.
“It will take them some time to come out of it,” she explains, then reaches down and grabs my hand. It’s surprisingly warm and soft.
But I pull back. “And I want another favor,” I tell her. “Our mate Sedge fell victim to the curse. He’s waiting on the Norfinn right now. I need you to reverse it. He didn’t deserve it, not even a little.”
She looks put-upon but she just closes her eyes and snaps her fingers. “There. Give it a few hours and he should be fine.”
“What about us?” the skeletal quartermaster asks.
She laughs, rolling her eyes to the ceiling. “You? Why on earth would I reverse your curse?”
“Because it’s been twenty years,” one of them says. “Don’t you think we’ve suffered and paid enough?”
“You know what you did,” she says, voice hard. “You know what you deserve. I delivered justice.”
Then she sighs, her shoulders softening a little. “I will free you from your curse,” she says and as they all gasp in shock she raises her palm, tiny golden starfish etched on her skin, “but you will not be able to leave the islands to which you are tethered. Your ship will always keep you there, if another ship happens by, you’ll just be brought back by force of the gods. You will live there for the rest of your lives, which are now painfully mortal and short. You will only reside on my island, which is still uninhabited, so people will be safe from your ways. I doubt you ever learned any of your lessons.”
Then she closes her eyes and snaps her fingers again. “Now go,” she says, eyes open and blazing with golden flames. “Go back to your ship and set sail before I change my mind. And make sure to hand Sedge back over to his ship where he belongs.”