Page 86 of Sea's Secret

“That is all I know. It commands respect and fear, so that I will have a crew who will work for me.”

“You know, Prince Peter’s crew respects him.”

“He is their ruler; they have to or will be thrown into prison. I have no such power over a crew. When I took over this ship, it was my reputation as The Cruel Hand that kept this crew in line.”

“No, Peter was the reason they have not fought you, why they did not release him and Captain Willaim,” I said. I figured he had not truly known how much Peter had done to try and placate his crew so that he could get closer to his brother. I had asked Peter over and over again if I could help him–even in the earlier days aboard the ship before Dominick had released him–even though it went against Dominick. Peter told me over and over again, to Captain William’s annoyance, that he was going to give Dominick time, and that he did not want to act rash. He even went as far as to say he appreciated the break from being the perfect prince as he leaned his back against the wall of the tiny cell underneath the ship’s deck, where he had been placed.

“Peter?” Dominick asked.

“Everyone from his crew attempted to release him and Captain William. He ordered them to obey you, telling them he ‘needed a break.’”

“Why would he do that?” Dominick’s brow creased with confusion.

“You are his brother. He wants to know you, not fight you.”

“I never wanted to hurt him, but I have a plan,” he said with determination.

“I know. But, you are a good man,” I said and watched as his rigid shoulders relaxed as he let out another long breath.

“It is so strange seeing him again. I want a relationship with him, but I'm not sure I can.” He looked down to his hands–his gloved hands–cursed hands, hands that I so badly wanted to heal for him.

“He wants that, too, Dominick. What happened to you? How did you get so separated from him and from your family?”

There was a long silence. Dominick did not look at me, but I waited. I waited, hoping he would explain.

“My mother, she sent me away when I was a lad, sent me off with my Uncle Veeto and the Crimson Blade. It was horrible. He locked me up without food or drink unless I did as he asked. He would force me to torture people, over and over again. So many times, I begged the Ancients to just kill me, but I still woke up each and every single morning. I was near to tossing myself overboard for the sharks, when Sands came aboard the Crimson Blade. He gave me hope for a goal and a future, away from Veeto.”

“Dominick,” I said, a tear dripping down my cheek. I walked to him from behind the desk. Slowly, I touched his face, and he looked into my eyes. His eyes made me tremble. So much pain and sorrow locked inside of them. I wanted to obliterate it all. He would not know if I tried a little to help him. I wiped at my cheek, then quickly pressed my tear to his cheek.

Heal, I sang within my soul’s melody, reaching out with all my power. I wanted to probe into him and search for his soul’s melody, find it, hear it, and connect to him and to who he truly was. But I knew humans had not used souls’ melodies for hundreds of years. I thought I heard a slight hum inside of him, but I was distracted when he took his gloved hand and pressed it to my hand, there on his cheek, locking me there. His head moved down closer to mine. His body moved closer as he took a few steps, our bodies only an inch apart.

I then heard the hum inside of him again–a piece of his soul’s melody, clearly trying to reach out to mine. He did have a melody. That brought me hope and reassurance; Dominick was good. He may have been made to do bad things, but his soul was good. I looked up at Dominick, and I began to caress his cheek. His hand was still pressed against mine but not enough to restrict my movements.

How much you have endured.

How much you have gone through,

I sang with my melody and with my voice.

I traced the scar on his cheek, that one symbol of his pain that made him appear even more

fierce and uniquely himself. He sucked in a breath as I gently touched the marred skin.

“What is this from? Will you ever tell me?” I whispered.

He closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath.

“I can’t, Meria, not yet. I need–” he said deeply with a grit to his voice that shook me to my core. He closed his eyes and bent his head down.

I tugged his face in front of mine and caressed his jaw, his cheeks, and every inch of that handsome face until he finally opened his eyes. I quivered as I realized those stormy eyes, beautiful, dark, fathomless eyes, held even more pain than I had ever seen before. I did not want to remind him of something so painful.

“You do not have to tell me. Take all the time you need,” I said.

He nodded. “Thank you. I want to–”

“It’s okay, I promise. I will be here when you are ready,” I smiled. “But, Dominick, I want to help you with your pain. I can help take it away,” I said, caressing his cheek, wanting to tell him about my tears and how they could accentuate my touch, about my ability to remove his curse.

“No,” he said, taking a step back and breaking the vulnerable bubble between us. His walls were up again. “Don't ever try to take it away; I can handle it. I have for my entire life.”

---