A Hero of Realms
Page 45
She smiled to herself bitterly. I wondered if she was thinking of her fiancé, the man she was so opposed to marrying that she would rather risk her life escaping. The man her father would surely force her to accept once she returned.
There was an awkward silence, as I had no idea how to respond. I had too much weighing on my mind to be able to think much about her apparent attachment for me. Even if I hadn’t, River held my heart. Every part of it. As attractive and kind as Julie seemed to be, she couldn’t hold a candle to the girl I’d professed my love to. I didn’t want to hurt the vampire either, however. Not after all she’d done to help me.
I realized that I hadn’t mentioned River until now. Perhaps because the thought of saying her name out loud was painful, since there was a strong chance that I would never see her again.
But I didn’t want to give Julie any kind of false hope. Hope that, even if I did manage to survive all this, I might have some attraction for her, and find a way to cross paths with her again in the future. I had to crush that now, for her sake.
“Julie,” I said, looking sincerely into her eyes. “Thank you. You’ve helped me through what has been the most desperate time of my life. I’ll be forever grateful to you. But I need to tell you that I have a girlfriend, back in The Shade.” I’d thought that talking about River would be painful, but somehow, it was strangely cathartic, and so I continued. “Her name is River Giovanni. I’m in love with her. Deeply, madly in love with her.”
To my surprise, Julie responded with a smile. “Oh, I know about River.”
I cocked my head to one side. “What?”
Her smile widened and she looked fondly at me. “I heard you mention her the other day, when we were camping outside the dragon’s cave… I’m pretty sure you fell asleep for a bit, or at least dozed off into semi-consciousness. You were breathing her name. I figured she must be someone you care deeply about.”
I hadn’t realized that I’d managed to fall so deeply into rest, much less that I’d been so audible about what was on my mind.
Our conversation became a bit stilted after that. I stood up and, it being dark now, I walked freely around the deck and stretched my legs.
I remained at a distance from Julie for the next few hours, watching the waves froth and foam. All the while, I tried to ignore my increasing hunger. As the early hours of morning approached, I felt a very different sensation within the pit of my stomach. A more worrying sensation. Like the pangs of hunger, it was painful, but this pain was more intense, more acute. As if someone was drilling a nail through me. I recognized it as the beginnings of the same sensation I’d experienced just before Bahir had left me. Before I’d leapt from the cliff. Before the Elder had regained control over my mind.
Is Aisha tiring already? This was what I’d feared. That she might be weaker than the other jinni and unable to last as long. I shut my eyes tight, summoning every ounce of willpower I possessed, as though willing alone would force Aisha to remain within me.
She can’t leave me now. Not yet.
My fists clenched around the iron railing. I found myself squeezing so tightly that the metal bent out of shape. I held my breath, bracing myself for the pain to worsen. But to my surprise, after perhaps five minutes, it died down. I breathed out a slow sigh of relief.
Perhaps it’s not a sign of her weakening after all. Maybe that was just a temporary glitch. Aisha not paying attention, or something… I prayed that it was true. Everything rested on this jinni. This girl who had so aggravated me on first meeting now held my life in her hands. Her stamina and will to help me was the only thing keeping my head above water.
Swallowing hard, I left my spot and moved back toward the bench where Julie sat.
“I have good news,” she said, sensing me approach.
Good news. The notion was foreign to me.
“What?” I asked, resuming my seat next to her.
She nodded straight ahead. I looked out toward the ocean and spotted the outline of an island.
“That’s The Tavern,” she said. “Uma’s island wasn’t so far at all.”
I hadn’t expected the journey to go so smoothly. We hadn’t even stopped to let the dolphins feed yet. I felt almost suspicious of this stroke of good luck.
“And now… your father’s ship?” I said. “Where do you think that is?”
“We need to sail around a bit more and try to find it,” she replied, speeding the dolphins forward.
We traveled closer to the island, and then we began to move around it. By the time we’d reached three quarters of the way around its circumference, I’d spotted a ship in the distance. Of course, The Tavern was a hub for supernatural creatures, and large ships in these waters ought to have been an everyday occurrence. And yet…
I pointed toward it.
“Oh, my,” Julie said in a hushed tone. She stood up and peered out over the dark waters toward the looming vessel. “That’s it. That’s my father’s ship. I was right that he would still be in this area.” Nervousness filled Julie’s face as she tightened her grip on the reins. She gulped, her breathing growing more uneven.
I felt bad for her being forced to return to what she’d described as a miserable and downtrodden existence, but there wasn’t anything else I could suggest. She’d made this decision herself and the only thing that I could think to do was thank her, which I’d already done a number of times.
The ship was anchored and dark. Not a single light shone through the windows. Julie’s nerves were almost palpable as we arrived right at the base of the ship. She pulled the dolphins to a stop, and then wrapped the reins securely around the metal post in front of her seat.
There was an awkward silence, as I had no idea how to respond. I had too much weighing on my mind to be able to think much about her apparent attachment for me. Even if I hadn’t, River held my heart. Every part of it. As attractive and kind as Julie seemed to be, she couldn’t hold a candle to the girl I’d professed my love to. I didn’t want to hurt the vampire either, however. Not after all she’d done to help me.
I realized that I hadn’t mentioned River until now. Perhaps because the thought of saying her name out loud was painful, since there was a strong chance that I would never see her again.
But I didn’t want to give Julie any kind of false hope. Hope that, even if I did manage to survive all this, I might have some attraction for her, and find a way to cross paths with her again in the future. I had to crush that now, for her sake.
“Julie,” I said, looking sincerely into her eyes. “Thank you. You’ve helped me through what has been the most desperate time of my life. I’ll be forever grateful to you. But I need to tell you that I have a girlfriend, back in The Shade.” I’d thought that talking about River would be painful, but somehow, it was strangely cathartic, and so I continued. “Her name is River Giovanni. I’m in love with her. Deeply, madly in love with her.”
To my surprise, Julie responded with a smile. “Oh, I know about River.”
I cocked my head to one side. “What?”
Her smile widened and she looked fondly at me. “I heard you mention her the other day, when we were camping outside the dragon’s cave… I’m pretty sure you fell asleep for a bit, or at least dozed off into semi-consciousness. You were breathing her name. I figured she must be someone you care deeply about.”
I hadn’t realized that I’d managed to fall so deeply into rest, much less that I’d been so audible about what was on my mind.
Our conversation became a bit stilted after that. I stood up and, it being dark now, I walked freely around the deck and stretched my legs.
I remained at a distance from Julie for the next few hours, watching the waves froth and foam. All the while, I tried to ignore my increasing hunger. As the early hours of morning approached, I felt a very different sensation within the pit of my stomach. A more worrying sensation. Like the pangs of hunger, it was painful, but this pain was more intense, more acute. As if someone was drilling a nail through me. I recognized it as the beginnings of the same sensation I’d experienced just before Bahir had left me. Before I’d leapt from the cliff. Before the Elder had regained control over my mind.
Is Aisha tiring already? This was what I’d feared. That she might be weaker than the other jinni and unable to last as long. I shut my eyes tight, summoning every ounce of willpower I possessed, as though willing alone would force Aisha to remain within me.
She can’t leave me now. Not yet.
My fists clenched around the iron railing. I found myself squeezing so tightly that the metal bent out of shape. I held my breath, bracing myself for the pain to worsen. But to my surprise, after perhaps five minutes, it died down. I breathed out a slow sigh of relief.
Perhaps it’s not a sign of her weakening after all. Maybe that was just a temporary glitch. Aisha not paying attention, or something… I prayed that it was true. Everything rested on this jinni. This girl who had so aggravated me on first meeting now held my life in her hands. Her stamina and will to help me was the only thing keeping my head above water.
Swallowing hard, I left my spot and moved back toward the bench where Julie sat.
“I have good news,” she said, sensing me approach.
Good news. The notion was foreign to me.
“What?” I asked, resuming my seat next to her.
She nodded straight ahead. I looked out toward the ocean and spotted the outline of an island.
“That’s The Tavern,” she said. “Uma’s island wasn’t so far at all.”
I hadn’t expected the journey to go so smoothly. We hadn’t even stopped to let the dolphins feed yet. I felt almost suspicious of this stroke of good luck.
“And now… your father’s ship?” I said. “Where do you think that is?”
“We need to sail around a bit more and try to find it,” she replied, speeding the dolphins forward.
We traveled closer to the island, and then we began to move around it. By the time we’d reached three quarters of the way around its circumference, I’d spotted a ship in the distance. Of course, The Tavern was a hub for supernatural creatures, and large ships in these waters ought to have been an everyday occurrence. And yet…
I pointed toward it.
“Oh, my,” Julie said in a hushed tone. She stood up and peered out over the dark waters toward the looming vessel. “That’s it. That’s my father’s ship. I was right that he would still be in this area.” Nervousness filled Julie’s face as she tightened her grip on the reins. She gulped, her breathing growing more uneven.
I felt bad for her being forced to return to what she’d described as a miserable and downtrodden existence, but there wasn’t anything else I could suggest. She’d made this decision herself and the only thing that I could think to do was thank her, which I’d already done a number of times.
The ship was anchored and dark. Not a single light shone through the windows. Julie’s nerves were almost palpable as we arrived right at the base of the ship. She pulled the dolphins to a stop, and then wrapped the reins securely around the metal post in front of her seat.
