Page 32 of Journey to the Elderoak
“I’d punch you right now if I could reach you.”
“I know.”
“Well?” Ava asked, hoping for more detail.
“All I’m going to say is Cas doesn’t talk about it. It reminds him too much of Elara.”
“Who’s Elara?”
“This conversation ends now. If you want to know details, ask Cas. Though I suggest you don’t. He doesn’t handle that topic well.”
“Okay, fine.”
Elara? Glowing? Did Casimir have other magic too? Was he a hybrid? Questions swirled about in her head as she realized she knew nothing about him. He’d never spoken of his past and other than Raine’s brief explanation about him being orphaned in the war and raised by Raine’s father, he was a closed book.
Was Elara a family member? Or maybe an ex? At the thought of him being with anyone else, a wave of jealousy appeared, which was absurd. Of course he hadn’t been celibate. She’d been with others too. But for some reason the thought of anyone else flirting with him, or feeling the warmth of his body, made her suddenly insecure.
They reached the top and a familiar large hand appeared over the rail. With a huge sigh of relief, she grasped it and let him pull her to the deck. Casimir and Pax stood before her, the latter with a huge grin on his face. Dozens of sailors cheered behind them.
“Princess! Princess! Princess!”
She scanned the group and gave them a smile as Gisela interrupted the celebration.
“Alright, you bastards. Time to get to work and clean this ship up!” She looked at Ava and winked as if she knew how much she disliked being the center of attention.
She turned back to Casimir, who was looking at her withawe, but something was wrong. Bags under his eyes contrasted the pallor of his skin and he didn’t appear to be able to stand, leaning on Pax for support. Her eyes trailed down his body and caught on his hand pressed into his side, drenched in blood.
She rushed forward. “You’re hurt. What happened? What do we do?”
“I’ll be fine,” he said, voice rough and weaker than usual.
Ava looked at Pax for confirmation. “He’s right. He’ll be as good as new. We just need to get him to one of the healers.”
Two out of the three healers they’d brought had survived and were already bustling about as dozens of injured lay moaning on straw mats.
Ava pretended to be unbothered, doing her best to hide the worry on her face, but inside she was terrified. He was hurt. Significantly. As much as Casimir himself and Pax tried to downplay it, it looked horrific.
“Okay, then,” she said with a shaky breath. “Let’s lie him down.”
Raine was already giving the crew instructions while Pax walked Casimir to an open mat a few yards away. He grunted in pain as Pax lowered him.
“I’m going to go see who else needs help,” Pax told her.
Ava sat next to Casimir on the floor, crossing her legs.
His hand slipped from the wound and blood seeped out. Jumping to her knees, she leaned over and placed her palms on it, applying as much pressure as she could manage. Casimir groaned as she pressed harder into his side.
“You promise you won’t die from this?”
He let out a small laugh and winced. “I promise.”
Pax’s voice boomed across the deck. “We need a healer for the general!”
“Be right there,” someone called out.
“What happened?” she asked, blood oozing between her fingers.
“There were too many of them and I was stabbed with a sword,” he said. “Not a very exciting story. I’d rather hear about your adventure in the ocean.”
