Page 21 of Across the Sapphire Sea
At a loss for words, Elias could only stare.
Valeri’s heavy gaze matched in intensity.
Elias blinked, clearing his head. “You never answered my question.”
“Didn’t I?”
“How often will you dri—”
Valeri stopped him with fingers over his lips. “Shh, don’t fret over that. I didn’t bring you here to drain you dry.” He took his hand away and gestured to the food. “Finish eating, have a wash, and get dressed. I must tend to the horses.” And with that, he shrugged on his cloak and left Elias alone.
Valeri’s words felt an awful lot like commands. Not that he was wrong, those tasks were exactly what Elias planned to do, but he’d hoped his days of being ordered about were a thing of the past. He wished, perhaps in vain, for Valeri to treat him as an equal.
Could he be Valeri’s equal? His mind cast doubts. Could a person be equal to one whom they feared? Would he always fear Valeri as much as he desired him?
With a sigh he focused on the bubbling water rather than the churning feeling in his chest. A scrub would do him good. And with hot water. Such luxury…even if he did have to answer to a demon to get it.
6
Elias, Present, 1432 Common Era
The solid feel of land beneath his feet eased the stirring in Elias’s gut. Grateful for a break from the seasickness, he bent side to side, stretching his back and legs before reaching up with his arms to stretch them too.
Valeri had escorted him off the ship at nightfall amid the hushed whispers of the sailors. The crew were becoming suspicious after all. Elias caught the wordsdemon, night stalker, andcursed, but he was so eager to get to dry land, he paid them little attention.
Elias heaved in a deep breath of salty, coastal air as he took in their surroundings. The small port town of Rauma sprawled before them, bathed in the darkness of the waning moon. Piles of seaweed had washed ashore in the storm. The pungent stink of fish filled their nostrils. Valeri grimaced in distaste, which drew a chuckle from Elias.
“Don’t care for the smell?” asked Elias.
Valeri led them farther into town. “No. Do you?”
“I’m in too good a mood to care.”
Repairs would be finished sometime tomorrow afternoon, so they had the entire night to explore. Come early morning, they’d return to the ship.
Valeri strode confidently along the main cobbled road. Elias admired the way he carried himself, head held high, shoulders back, chest proud. Dressed all in black, he’d blend in with the night were it not for his gleaming chestnut curls.
Elias could never walk like that; he’d feel silly trying. Not that he slouched or appeared timid, he kept his back straight and his eyes forward, but he was ordinary. Just another man on the street. Valeri stood apart: mysterious, magnetic, and exceptional. Elias was caught in the tug of his orbit.
Low wooden buildings clustered at the center of Rauma. Oil lamps burned at thresholds and in windows. Valeri would be looking for a pub with an inn. Elias grabbed his wrist.
“Don’t kill anyone.” If there was a silver lining to being stuck on a boat at sea for weeks, it was the absence of this particular argument. Elias never wanted the humans they fed on to suffer, but Valeri…well, sometimes he did.
Predictably, Valeri rolled his eyes. “I’m not planning on it.”
Those weren’t the words that would soothe Elias’s fears. “Promise me, please, or I’ll go back to our donors. I don’t want anyone to die on our account.” When Valeri hesitated, Elias repeated the plea from his soul, squeezing Valeri’s fingers. “Please, lover?”
Valeri scowled but agreed. “Fine.”
“Thank you.” Elias had little sway over Valeri, and what power he did have was tenuous. Each small victory must be relished. Each battle chosen carefully.
They’d found a pub, brightly lit and with boisterous sound spilling out onto the streets. Valeri held the door open for Elias. The room they entered was too small for the amount of people it held, but the jovial atmosphere made up for the cramped interior. Fishermen crowded the tables and lingered at the bar. A fire blazed under a hearth along the far wall.
The barmaid eyed them from across the space, taking in their nice clothes, shining boots, and well kept hair. She made straight for them. “Good eve m’lords. Ale?”
Elias let Valeri answer for him while he studied her. A tall woman with straw yellow hair, intelligent brown eyes, and plump pink cheeks. The sort of woman Valeri might choose for a meal, depending on his mood, but it seemed he had another agenda.
“No, thank you, m’lady,” said Valeri with a suave bow, turning his predatory charm on her without shame. The combination brightened the flush across her face. “Do you have a room with a bath? Or a sauna, perhaps?”
