His eyes darted around the empty room before he answered. “If I had not told you the whole truth you would have found holes in my explanation and not trusted me. My intent is to do exactly as the princess ordered, and the king’s instructions do not prevent me from accomplishing that, or both. It does not explain why a patch of ice is here on a warm day, in a location that caused my silent approach to be revealed.”
My eyes looked at him in a more appraising manner. He stood shorter than me but wider. We were within a few years of the same age, yet he acted with confidence beyond those years. Besides, neither Elizabeth nor the king would have hired him unless there was more to him than I saw. I ignored the questions about the ice and my magic. “Who are you?”
“Just a man humbly serving his crown.”
That was not the whole truth. “If I wore my sword, for which I’ve earned some reputation, and drew on you, what would be the outcome?”
“I would take it from you and spank your bottom with the flat of the blade.” His answer had been confident, immediate, and believable, despite my training. Few could compete with me, yet I believed him. It hadn’t sounded like a boast.
My lips curled into a grin. “And yet you cannot stand upon the deck of a ship in a calm sea?”
“Almost as if you had a hand in my downfall, Damon.”
His response was too quick. I acted confused. “My back was to you.”
“So, it was. Have you noticed any other cold places on the deck?”
“I can’t say I have. Now, is it your intention to skulk around for the entire voyage watching over us like a nanny and her charges?”
“It is.” He paused, then continued. “Ignore my attention. Don’t draw attention to me, but you can discuss this conversation with Kendra, and suggest that she seek me out if she senses any danger. Princess Elizabeth asked me to relay her pleasure that the two of you managed to book passage.”
“And she will wonder at the two girls. Tell her that their mother died in a storm and they have no relatives in Dire—a condition we couldn’t ignore. If she has any suggestions, we’d love to hear them.”
“I cannot approach her any more than you.” Will shrugged as two elderly men, each carrying a glass filled with amber ale, entered the salon while talking too loudly, and disagreeing on the speed of a racehorse. Each seemed ready to back up his beliefs with wagers of gold. Their red faces and veined noses told of years of distilled spirits. They ignored us. We ignored them, and each other.
Will gathered a handful of food, as if that was his intention in entering the passenger lounge, and quietly slipped away without notice. I’d wager neither of the two men could identify him if asked, he blended in so well.
My thoughts of a nap fled. Kendra and the girls were walking near the door that led to the salon. I went down the narrow stairs and emerged almost beside them, drawing a questioning look from my sister.
“A cabin went unclaimed. I purchased it.”
Her face lit up. “Show us.”
A few minutes later they were giggling and cooing at the new cabin. Each girl had claimed one bed, leaving Kendra with none. That would soon get sorted out with two small bodies in one bed and Kendra in the other.
I, on the other hand, looked forward to swinging alone in my hammock, but in truth, that didn’t seem like such a bad outcome. I would have the tiny space for myself, the room above my face to breathe, and no other small body crowding me. I wouldn’t have to exit the cabin so another could use the chamber pot at night. No, it was not all bad.
We moved their belongings, and my weapons to the new cabin and I strung my hammock to nap the afternoon away and allow my mind to clear itself of the tangle of interconnecting thoughts confusing it. The idea that my magic worked again made me feel at peace and confident.
Also, having Elizabeth on the ship was reassuring, as was the furtive presence of Will. While she hadn’t spoken to us, I knew she would when the time was right. “I owe myself a nap. Any objections?”
Kendra smiled sweetly in the way that sisters often do when about to torment a brother. “No, go right ahead. I don’t mind watching over these two trouble-makers while you sleep your days away.” Her hand indicated Emma and Anna.
I tried to duplicate her simile. “I thought you might feel that way. Enjoy your spacious and dry bed while I swing in my damp hammock. Alone.”
“You don’t have to be alone. I’m sure Emma would enjoy a nap, too.”
Before she could convince me to allow the youngest to accompany me, I turned and retreated out the cabin door, down the passageway, and out into the fresh salt air. The breeze was brisk. The idea that there always seemed to be a breeze at sea occurred and was dismissed as too complicated to consider until later. I strolled the port-side deck all the way to the bow and back, saying hello to fellow travelers and watching for any who acted in a suspect manner.
There was nobody recognizable, despite that there were only about sixty travelers on the ship. The breeze whisked us along so fast I heard the sound of water rushing past the hull. The ship had very little movement, other than tipping to one side—but it remained tipped and sliced through the water like a sharp knife.
Making my way to the tiny bow-cabin reminded me of how dank, dark, and small the lower deck was. I ducked to avoid beams, and when I opened the door, rivulets of water trickled between the boards of the hull and dribbled into puddles at any obstruction. My fingernail raked off the surface of wood that had rotted while my other hand unhooked the lower hammock and strung it fore to aft.
While the dreary space could be cursed and deserved to be, in truth in a perverse way, I liked it. The hammock gently rocked me to sleep again. I could get used to sleeping in one. The gentle swishing of the water rushing past kept me asleep long after intended. When I woke, my mind felt refreshed, and I went up to the main deck and walked as I made small-talk with the other passengers. Later Kendra and the girls appeared, and we ate together.
By the third day, I was ready to leap over the side and swim for shore, just to have something different to do. The walks on the deck were about the same distance as across our apartment at Crestfallen Castle, without exiting the door. There was no intrigue, nobody to match wits with, and Elizabeth steadfastly ignored us. There were no books to read, no music to listen to, and the conversation with other passengers was shallow and dull.
Not that I longed for a fight with my sword or needed to practice using my new bow. I wished for a ride on my horse, a run in the hills, or a stroll along a mountain stream. Instead, I found myself huddled in my dank excuse for a cabin. If not for Emma and Anna, I might have thrown Kendra to the fishes and kept the other cabin for myself.
The girls kept my mind active with their constant questions and interest in the smallest details. Children had never interested me before. Others were generally rambunctious, self-centered, uneducated, and boring. The pair of orphaned girls were different. Not only did they look like us, but their antics were also intelligent and amusing, and I found myself looking forward to being with them again when we were apart for any length of time.
Their smiles welcomed and warmed me as their eyes lit up at my approach. Still, I wondered about dozens of items, not the least of which was that they didn’t seem to miss their parents. Perhaps that was unfair for me to say, but it was the truth. I couldn’t speak their language, nor them mine, but I would have expected sadness, tears, or wailing from children their age.
By the fourth day, even the girls were weary of the dull routine and bland food, too. Their language skills had expanded to vocabularies of hundreds of common words, most of which identified items or mattered when eating. The girls ate portions exceeding the size mine, yet they remained thin as willow switches.