Page 16 of The Withering Dawn
“How do you know those names?” I said.
“You said both in your sleep,” she whispered. “But I have also heard the names when you talk to your men.”
My chest burned at the thought. I swallowed, trying to get control of myself, and slowly dropped my hand from her slender neck. I could so easily break it. In theory, at least. Sirens were supposed to be stronger than men. More resilient. Hunters carried bronze blades and loaded their pistols with bronze slugs to defend themselves. They soaked their swords in hemsbane and drank hemsbane tea so their blood flowed with the herb that no siren could stand. They took precautions. And yet there I was thinking I had things under control because Aeris appeared small.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered softly. “Leo was important to you, then.”
“It doesn’t matter who he was to me.”
She quieted after that, her arms dropping to her sides. Her eyes, however, remained fastened to mine, and something between us seemed to twist and tangle until I feared I would not be able to look away if I did not step back. So I did. I stepped away from her as if shewas a venomous snake painted in beautiful colors. Her gaze looked… caring. Genuine. Desperate.
And tortured.
I saw a bit of myself in those green pools. A bit of myself from many years ago. A version of myself that I had come to hate for a long time and it startled me.
“I would rather die than be forced into another cage,” she said. “I believe the hint of kindness you’ve shown me, whether misplaced or not, has frayed the last thread of my will. If a man like you can sell me to another cruel captor for a few coins, then there truly is no hope left and I suppose that’s made the idea of death a bit easier for me to stomach.”
“Why did you not flee when I gave you the chance?” I pleaded.
“Because I am a fool.”
She slouched as she said those words like it shamed her to admit. We locked eyes and for a few beats, I felt like she was seeing far past the barriers I was so used to putting between myself and others. Her brow relaxed. Even the tension in her shoulders eased as if she had found peace in those fleeting seconds. I rested my hand on my knife, ready for anything, when she finally stepped toward me. I pulled the blade from its sheath, but before I could use it, she hooked her hands behind my neck and lifted on her toes to press her mouth to mine.
The kiss was soft and careful like she was fighting herself. But then she relaxed into it with a content sigh.
It was tender. Slow. I hadn’t kissed a woman in a long time. Years. I’d fucked plenty of them, but this… this was different. We were barely touching and yet I felt closer to her in those fleeting seconds than I had to anyone before.
But it was all too brief.
When she drew away, I found myself reaching for her but stopped. She opened her eyes to look up at me. Serenity washed through her gaze, stealing away all the tension, tears, and heartache that had plagued her only seconds ago.
I furrowed my brows, wanting to ask so many questions, but my tongue wasn’t working.
“I’ve never kissed a man,” she whispered, her tongue licking over her top lip. “If this is the last I see of you and this world, I wanted to know what it felt like.”
Her kiss lingered on my lips like the cool touch of fresh mint leaves. I reached up, gently taking her wrists and pulling her hands from my face, but I couldn’t deny that my body had enjoyed her touch.
No one had ever touched me so gently. So carefully.
I slid my foot back and put some space between us before gradually backing out of the cell. I glimpsed the cold mug of bone broth and dry meat still sitting on the floor as I did.
“Eat, muñequita,” I said to her, slowly closing the gate and twisting the key in the lock. “You need to eat. Your fate is not sealed. I assure you of that.”
Looking defeated, she backed up and slid down the wall to the floor, pulling her knees to her chest.
Licking my lips and the remnants of her kiss, I turned and found Henry standing halfway down the steps and by the way his eyes were narrowed at me, he’d seen at least some of what transpired. In one hand was his leather medical bag and in his other was his notebook. I eyed it suspiciously.
“Henry,” I greeted.
“Captain. It’s morning. I was thinking I would give our prisoner a checkup.” He cleared his throat, straightening his worn, gray vest. “I have never studied something like her. I was wondering if—”
“She’s wounded,” I cut him off, throwing Aeris another glance. “But I don’t think she’ll let you look at her.”
“Well,” he scoffed. “She is a prisoner. We could use the irons—”
“She will heal,” I said, the thought of putting her in irons making me uneasy.
I’d heard that sirens healed quickly. Her regrown tongue was proof of that. And I didn’t want Henry poking and prodding at her. He was a good doctor, but even I knew that his curiosities sometimes gotthe better of him. He’d tried to slice up more than one corpse during his time on my ship and always seemed rather depressed when I denied him the chance.
