Page 62 of The Withering Dawn
“People was walkin’ around like nothin’ was wrong, too,” Aleksi added. “I’m not keen on staying, either.”
“That’s plenty to convince me,” I grunted, hopping into the boat and taking an oar. “Where to then?”
“Who knows. Let’s go where the wind takes us.” He reached into the satchel filled with treats and pulled out a folded piece of paper, tossing it in my lap. “Maybe take up bounty hunting.”
I unfolded the paper and found a sketch of a man with the word “Wanted” written in large letters above him. The sketch was somewhat vague, but from what I could tell, he was an able man with long, woven strands of hair and a deep scar or wound on his chest.
“Vidar Woelfson,” I read. “Four hundred. That’s a hefty bounty.”
“Aye, it is.” He snatched the paper back and stuffed it back into his pack. “I’ve heard of him. He’s a siren hunter. Wonder what he did to earn a bounty like that.”
“We’re not bounty hunters.”
“No, but we could be. Might be exciting.”
“Then we hunt easier bounties. That’s Bone Heart. Most ruthless hunter of our time,” Aleksi pointed out.
Aeris finally looked away from Dornwich, her interest turning to our conversation.
“Even I’ve heard of him,” she said, wrinkling her nose. “Men on the island talked about him. He’s killed more sirens than anyone.”
I could see her hugging herself like the thought alone made her uncomfortable. I hated it. I wanted to kill the man just for existing when I saw the way it made her feel.
“No,” I said to Cathal. “We don’t need money, remember? We have Antonio’s riches. We are free men,” I smiled. “We can do whatever we like.”
“Right, right. I’m just thinkin’ ahead to when we get bored,” he laughed. “Suppose we could just laze about until then. That’s alright, too.”
When we boarded the Amanacer, I was reminded how sparse my crew was. Perhaps going to another port to find new crewmembers was a necessity, but the thought of welcoming strangers onto my ship with Aeris aboard made me seethe. I couldn’t trust anyone. Not after so many of my men had betrayed me. And it didn’t seem likely that we would find a trustworthy crew that would accept a siren when sirens were more hated in those parts than anywhere.
I groaned internally as I helped my men prepare the ship for our voyage. By the time we pulled up the anchor and dropped the sails,Aeris stepped out of my cabin, clothed in the dress I’d gotten her. With Nikolas at the wheel and Aleksi in the crow’s nest, things were getting back to normal. Or, as normal as they could be. I smiled at Aeris and walked to her side as she settled near the railing. That illusive smile graced her full lips again and I couldn’t help mimicking the expression.
“Ready?” I asked.
“For what?”
“For everything. For freedom. For being mine. For not knowing what will happen next.”
“Yes,” she grinned, tilting her head to one side. “As long as I can call you mine, too.”
“Oh, you won that right the first time you saved my life. And if not then, then perhaps the second time. And definitely the third.”
She moved closer, her shoulder touching mine, and laid her head against my shoulder.
“You saved mine, too. I’m excited to know you, Nazario.”
“You know much more of me than anyone ever has. And now we both get to find out who I am without that monster following me everywhere.”
The ship started to speed up as if the wind was finally on our side. As if the world was righting itself. The waters were still dark and filled with terrors, but the Amanacer would carry us through. I trusted her to do that and I trusted the boys. And now I trusted Aeris. I had everything I needed.
“We are going to carve out a place in this ugly world, you and I,” I said. “I know that.”
“I trust you.”
“Are you glad now that you decided to board my ship?”
“Yes. I don’t recognize that place,” she gestured toward the water. “Where I feel safe is here.”
“Good.”
