Page 122 of Of the Stars and Sea

A muscle feathers along his jaw and I can see the argument reflect in his eyes, but he says nothing. Instead, he slips his otherhand behind my back, pulls me in close and brushes a tender kiss across my lips.

“This is not the end,” he promises and I feel my heart breaking because I cannot vow the same to him. Too much doubt roams in my mind, so I kiss his cheek and blink back the burning tears in my eyes.

When we part, I stand at his side and ready myself for the battle ahead.

“He’s gaining on us,” Zaos says, stealing a glance over his shoulder. He readied the gunners, telling them of Grayson’s plan to evade for as long as we can, hoping to get to open water before we take our shot.

I look up and see the wind starting to shift in our sails. The large swath of fabric whips back and forth, and we start to lose our forward momentum.

“Damn these cursed waters,” Grayson mutters under his breath as he looks behind us. Blythe’s ship is close. Only three stone isles separate us from him. His sails are tight, the southern wind filling them. It won’t be long until he’s upon us.

“The current is taking hold of us,” Zaos says right before a loud groan sounds and I’m rocked forward, my chest crashing against the railing. I nearly topple over the edge, but Grayson grabs ahold of my waist, pulling me back. An ominous shudder runs through the ship and the right edge starts to dip low.

“What the hells?” I say.

“We’ve run aground!” someone shouts from below and I scan the main deck.

“Oh my gods! Tommy!” I scream, watching him swing upside down, with his foot stuck in the rigging.

I move toward the stairs, but Grayson keeps his hold on me. “Rowenya, don’t!”

“Grayson! He needs help!” I jolt out of his arms and run down the stairway. Keeping my eyes on Tommy, I hear booted footsteps behind me as Grayson follows. The ship rocks violently to the side, nearly rolling over and capsizing completely.

I trip at the bottom of the stairs, landing hard on my hands and knees. The wooden floor bites into my palms, but I find my footing and start running toward the foremast. The sharp angle of the deck rolls my momentum forward and I have to slow myself before I trip again over a rolling barrel. It darts right past me, knocking into one of Grayson’s men. He lets out a ragged moan, but I don’t stop. Not as Tommy’s leg starts to slip through the roped netting.

“Tommy! Hold on!” I yell to him, still too far away.

“Rowenya! To your left!” Grayson’s voice booms and from the corner of my eye I see another barrel rolling straight for me. Stretching my body out, I dive over it, tucking myself into a roll. The hard floor meets my back but I keep my chin secured to my chest. Colors swirl together as the world spins around me, but I somehow land on my feet and keep running forward.

“TheReaper!Starboard side! TheReaper,she’s gaining on us!” Screams erupt all around me, but I don’t spare a second to look.

“Fire at will!” Grayson’s low voice commands from somewhere behind me, but I don’t stop for him either.

The ground shakes beneath my feet as cannon fire erupts. My knees ache from the fall, but I keep propelling them forward. Tommy reaches up, trying to grasp onto the net. His fingers reach around it, but they slip and his tangled leg drops a little more as the top half of his body swings down.

I finally reach the bottom of the rigging and start climbing up. “Tommy, I’m here! Don’t move!”

“Rowenya!” he cries out, his voice cracking along with my heart.

“Hold on!” I tell him as another round of cannon fire blasts through the air, but this time, no quake comes from beneath me.

“Take cover!” someone yells and I roll to the side, clasping onto the netting as a cannon ball shoots right past me. I watch as it soars through the air, hitting a stone isle in the distance with a thunderous boom.

I gasp. Dark shards of stone explode into a storm of chaos. A sharp ringing buzzes in my ears and the world seems to still, if only for a moment. Large pieces of stone slide into the white-capped water.

I squint my eyes against a glimmering light along the horizon.

Steeling myself, I swing myself back around and start climbing again. Shaking my head, the ringing subsides.

“I’m coming,” I say to Tommy, but my breathless voice doesn’t carry.

Peering up, I see tears trailing down his red face. With shaking hands, I focus on the net. Hiking my knees up high, I move as quickly as I can.

“R-Rowenya . . .” I hear his stuttering plea, nearly shattering all that is left of me. I blink back my own tears, shoving memories of Raven from my mind as I climb and climb and climb.

“This is not the end,” I tell myself, borrowing Grayson’s words. Borrowing his strength to keep me going. Another round of cannon blast fires and I’m not sure which ship it comes from as I finally reach Tommy. Frantic, he swings forward.

“Don’t!” I scream, as he misses the net and his leg slips, his boot is now the only thing preventing him from falling to hisdeath. Reaching my arms through the netting, I grab onto his leg with my right hand and reach for his swaying torso with my other. “Grab onto me!”

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