Page 52 of Of Vows and War: Special Edition
“We have arrived at Isle Shifter, Li,” he said to her. Excellent. We would be rid of him yet.
Blue gave me a quick glance and slowly mouthed, “I win.” Then she walked away.
***
Lian seemed more prone to anger now that her giant pet was away with his pretty little princess. Did she love him? Was she jealous?
I was not sure why I cared other than boredom.
That and Dima had jumped off the deck three days ago, so I was horny and bothered.
“No you idiot, it is like this,” I signed to her before slapping her hands and showing her again. She had beaten me four out of five times since our first fight, her willingness to play dirty surprising me. The only reason I had won the second time was because she was unprepared and sad after Henry left.
They had hugged for ages despite the fact she did not seem like much of a hugger at all.
“You are moving your hands too fast, you bitch!” Her face went red as she yelled, her hands trying and failing to properly sign what she was saying. She sent a gust of wind towards the fire Jazmine was starting on the fae rulers’ boat, making the entire ship burst into flames around us. Jazmine, with her hair the same color as the violent red flames she constantly lit and her ebony skin, was a beacon. Which would most definitely put a kink in our plan. We had to move quickly before we were sighted. So I grabbed them both, portaling us back to the Abaddon.
When our feet hit the deck of my ship once more, Lian ripped her hand from mine. I tried not to let it feel like a rejection. She was just a pawn in this game I was playing with her prince. It was not like she mattered. Not really.
Still, I smirked at her and demonstrated again.
“Thought,” I signed.
“Thought,” she fiercely signed back.
With a nod, I reached forward and mussed her short blue locks. She swatted me away, flashing me her middle finger before standing and making her way to CJ. I had reluctantly allowed them to talk. They worked well together, and we moved at far greater speeds with Lian’s help. That and she seemed…lonely. Like she was not used to not having someone she loved nearby.
“You cannot like her,” Bek signed as she stepped in my line of sight. I huffed, swatting her hands away from me.
“I do not, so there is no problem. Plus, I can do what I want. Do not mistake our friendship for power. I am the captain, Bek.” Her mouth turned down, and her fists bunched at her sides as I signed. I walked away, knowing she would follow, but immensely uninterested in the lecture.
When we made it to the helm, I shooed Fatima away and took control of my ship. Fatima was all too glad to go, the bare side of her head revealing the tattoos she had gotten done after we stumbled upon her all those years ago. The other half of her head still had a bit of her hair left, the brown strands cut short.
“I am not kidding, Perdita.” Bek was in my way. Physically and metaphorically. Who cared if I wanted to fuck Lian? I had wanted to fuck Bek when I first met her, and that turned out just fine, if not a bit disappointing.
“I am not kidding either, Bek. Get out of my way. Go tell Lian and CJ that we need to speed up. That ship will be burnedcompletely very soon, and we need to be there when the queen searches for new transportation.”
With that, Bek stomped away. I caught sight of Lian staring at me from her place on the deck, lying to myself that I was simply looking at the first sign of Isle Healer in the distance.
Yes, Blue, stare away. Watch me do what I do best.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Asher
Hot. It was so incredibly hot on Isle Healer.
The isle itself was a stunning testament to the circle of life. We had seen so many farms as we passed through the Healer Lands. Their warden, Sandres, had told us that their crop season was mostly over, only those few that could withstand high temperatures still thriving as summer bore down on us.
Sipho had spoken of his home—our home, he would call it—often enough that I felt as if I knew it already. Even all these years later, I could still hear the faint echo of his voice as he described his father’s farm and his favorite lake. He had truly loved his home, and I found myself loving it too.
Bellamy would like it here. He would have listened as I spoke of Sipho and helped me craft new dreams that he would help me bring to life.
“The male you know in your mind is not real, Strange One.”
“Why do you have to come along and steal my joy? You never used to do that,” I noted, crossing my arms as I glanced down at where Wrath sat upon the dying grass, licking a paw.
I had escaped the dinner, which was going rather well in comparison to the hostility at the table that resided in the Single Lands. Still, I hated this game. I was no longer the docile pet that Mia and Xavier had trained me to be. I could not sit, stay, and speak when directed. I was more than that.
