Page 75 of Voice of the Ocean

Raiden excused himself to go find new pants, causing raucous laughter to erupt among the crew.

“But, Highness!” Bastian protested, his tankard spilling over one side, “why deny us the simple pleasure of a fine pair of legs?”

Another round of laughter sprung up, which grew tenfold when Raiden took off his shirt and threw it in Bastian’s face. Celeste wished she could say she had averted her eyes. But she had not. She drank in his lean, muscled body as he swaggered away, rewarding her with a light smack from Kiyami.

“Keep your eyes in your head, Cel!” her friend snorted.

A blush burned her cheeks as she trained her eyes on her cup of honeyed wine, absently patting the Admiral on the head.

The night passed by until one by one the crew started drifting to their bunks. A yawn escaped Celeste’s lips, her lids growing heavy. And when even Raiden’s reappearance did nothing to rouse her, she finally decided to drag her body to bed.

She was halfway to the officers’ quarters when something in the water caught her attention.

Not entirely trusting her eyes after a night of drinking, Celeste moved to the railing. That’s when she saw her.Nerissa. Glowing faintly with her bioluminescence. The Sea Witch bobbed in the wake of the ship, staring with a white-toothed smile. Celeste started, then threw a look behind her to see if anyone else had noticed. But the few remaining crew were preoccupied with a new game. Apparently, Torben wanted this new pair of pants too, even if they were entirely too long for him.

Sucking in a breath through her teeth, Celeste crept around the back of the ship, positioning herself as far from the others as she could. When she was certain no one was there to overhear her, she turned to the Sea Witch.

“What do you want?” Her hushed voice sounded strange, even to her own ears. Hoarse from underuse. The crescent upon her wrist prickled faintly, and Celeste rubbed it with her thumb. Had she really almost forgotten about her bargain? Was that why the witch was here?

Nerissa drew closer, ink-black eyes unblinking. “You have not called upon me. Are you not finished with your task?”

Celeste swallowed, throwing another look over her shoulder before answering. “I—I do not need to change back yet.” Guilt washed over her as she said it. She wished she could ask about her family, but she knew better than to seek information from the Sea Witch without expecting to pay a price.

“Really? How interesting.” The witch’s smile was knifelike, as if with one look she could read all of Celeste’s guilt. Every betrayal of her heart.

“Is that why you’re here?”Please let that be all, she prayed, rubbing her hands against her hips.Please do not ask for your favor. Not yet.

The Sea Witch waved a hand. “I like to check on my investments.”

A cry rang out. Celeste’s head snapped around in time to see Torben seize Raiden’s second pair of pants. Her shoulders dropped. False alarm.

When she turned back to the water, there was nothing but seafoam. Nerissa was gone. Uneasiness settled in Celeste’s stomach as she scanned the night, looking for any sign of disturbance. When she found nothing, she drifted back to her room, hoping that the next time she saw Nerissa, it would be the last.

* * *

When the day arrived that they were to reach the current’s mouth, it began to rain. The wind, which had been so fair throughout their trip, turned punishing. They had to take down the sails for fear of them being shredded. And with the wind and rain came rough, choppy waters. The great ship tossed back and forth, at the mercy of the waves. It was all Celeste and Kiyami could do to keep the ship on course to enter the current.

“It’s only a storm!” Raiden shouted over the roar of the wind, attempting to reassure his shivering crew. “It’ll pass eventually!”

But as the day dragged on, the crew had to take turns going belowdecks to warm up and change clothes. This far from shore, any sickness could mean death. The Admiral was kept downstairs in Raiden’s quarters, much to his dislike, and was only let out a couple of times to relieve himself. It was a miserable day. TheRed Revengemoved so slowly that they weren’t able to reach the current as planned. Celeste considered it a blessing. Navigating the strength of a powerful current with a ship this size would have been difficult enough, let alone during a storm.

The next day, Celeste awoke to a soft knock at her door. She groaned. Between the ship tossing her about all night and her continued nightmares, she’d hardly had a moment of sleep. Beside her, the Admiral yawned and stretched, sticking his paws in her face. Then, with a cute little flop, the dog curled belly-up beside her. Since Port Velluno, the Admiral slept with her every night. Although she wanted to believe it was because the dog liked her best, she had a sneaking suspicion that Raiden was purposefully sending the animal to her in an attempt to help her feel safe. And although she would ordinarily find the gesture embarrassing, she couldn’t deny that the dog’s presence helped. Each time she woke sweating after another dream of being abandoned on the shore or cut apart by a human guard, the warmth of the dog steadied her.

Another knock rattled the door.

“Celeste,” Raiden hissed, “knock twice if you’re awake.”

Heaving a sigh, she obliged.

“Good. Get dressed.” A pause. “Something warm.”

It was then that Celeste heard the patter of rain against the window. With a sigh, she rose to her feet and pulled off her nightshirt. With fumbling fingers, she slipped on her underclothes and her white dress, deciding against adding the corset. Even though it was stylish, she’d likely have to change out of this outfit and into another one to keep from catching a cold. She ran her fingers through her long hair, carefully detangling it before she braided. With the winds as they were, it’d be easier to have it kept away from her face. She wove the braids into a knot at the base of her neck and secured it to her head using some pins she had found in Valencia’s things. It didn’t feel strange using them anymore. Perhaps it was a sort of payment for what the Pirate Queen had done to her.

That night felt so far away already.

At last she opened the door, the Admiral leaping upon his owner with a joyful bark.

“Quiet,” Raiden ordered. The dog obeyed, dropping to all fours and sitting stoically.

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