Page 108 of Found at Sea
“Step away from him,” I ordered, placing my hand on the hilt of my sword.
The man tsked. “Now, now, Captain. You are in no position to make such demands.”
“What is your name?”
“That matters to you not,” he answered.
“You have no need for him,” I said, keeping a brave face and calm demeanor even though I was screaming on the inside. “Release him and we can discuss what you’re truly after.”
What that was, I wasn’t sure, but I’d do anything to get my boy away from that dagger.
“Wrong you are again, demon of the sea,” the old man contradicted, still holding the blade to Fletcher’s neck and grinning. “You see, I am an admirer of beautiful things and a collector of rare items. This red haired beauty will make a fine addition to my collection. Hair like his is so uncommon. Like fire.”
“You cannot have him,” I snarled.
“I do not take without giving in return.” The old man adjusted his stance, only slightly, to reach for something around his neck. When I laid eyes on what he held, my knees nearly buckled beneath me. “Glorious, isn’t it? Not an ordinary shell by any means.”
The mark on my chest tingled as I stared at the conch. The tingling then grew to a burning, an irritating sensation that made me claw at the area. That was evidence enough for me to know it was the one I’d been seeking.
Fletcher glanced at the necklace before moving his frightened gaze back to me. He tried to say something, but the blade was so close to his neck that the movement caused it to cut into his skin. He yelped as a thin streak of blood ran down his pale neck.
“Stop!” I exclaimed, stepping forward. But I halted when the old man stepped back at my advance…nearer to the cliff’s edge with Fletcher still in his hold. “Release him.”
Those who seek it must pay the cost, the seer had spoken.
The cost was Fletcher’s life.
“A heart for a heart,” the old man said before his grin widened. “This is the answer to your curse, is it not? The only thing that can save your wretched soul.”
“How do you know of my curse?”
“You’re asking the wrong questions, demon. And I grow weary of this discussion.” His one pale eye focused on me. “A heart for a heart. Speak the words and I take the boy and the conch is yours. Your curse is lifted. Fail to do so and I take my leave, taking the conch and your only chance at redemption with me. Do we have an accord?”
“Kellan,” Fletcher said in the kind of heartbreaking tone that caused tears to well in my eyes. “Do it. I’ll be okay. It’s the only way to lift your curse. Please.”
After the seer had told me a price would need to be paid, and she’d hinted that Fletcher would be the cost, I’d deliberated on what choice I would make.
But as I stared at Fletcher in that moment, I knew there was no choice. No other alternative. A life without him was a curse in itself, and I’d rather have him for a few more days than lose him forever. Being a shade, I’d lose him anyway, but at least he’d be alive and well.
Free to follow wherever the tides of life took him. Free to fall in love again and build the life I could only give him in dreams.
“No,” I answered both of them, glaring at the older man. “Take your damn conch and release the man I love. I’d rather suffer for eternity than spend just one day without him. I’ve made my choice.”
A searing pain burrowed into my chest, in my heart, and I yelled from the pain of it. My knees hit the cold grass as I slumped to the ground, and it felt like my heart was set aflame, burning from the inside out.
“Kellan!” Fletcher shrieked. The man let him go, and he ran to me. He wrapped his arms around me and cried, “Why did you do that, you daft pirate?”
Pulling him against me, I pressed my face to the side of his hair. He smelled of pinecones and smoke from the fire, as well as his own sweet scent that not even the most beautiful of flowers compared to. The pain in my chest had subsided, but I still felt weakened by the intensity of it.
“Because I love you, you foolish bird,” I answered him. “And when the time comes, I will face my curse with a smile, knowing you’re safe.”
“That’s the first time you’ve said you love me.” Fletcher looked at me with watery eyes before grabbing my nape and tugging me in for a kiss. His mouth trembled, and he leaned his head to mine. “I love you too.”
Suddenly remembering we weren’t alone, I glanced back up at the old man.
Except…he was no longer old.
His once long and untidy silvery hair now flowed like the smoothest of waves down to the middle of his chest. The lines that’d marred his once wrinkled face were gone, and in their place was a face sculpted by the gods—smooth, creamy skin and blue eyes that appeared as if he had the sea within their depths.
