Page 183 of Salt in the Seas
“Maybe,” he said. “But if they cursed your mother, they didn’t share that information with me. I have no more answers than you.”
Her heart sank, but she didn’t completely lose hope. “The important thing is there’s a way to break it.” She leaned forward to lower her voice, hating that, for all she knew, the guards might be using magic to pull all this information from her, whether she whispered or not. “The curse is documented in the archives of the Dehvlonian Oracles, but I doubt we have time to find the starbridge and go there before we have to face Mayvus again. But what if we went to the witches? Surely they’ve documented their curses. I might even be able to find the witch I saw in the vision Lady Merinnia showed me.”
Marnok shuddered, and Aeliana’s confidence faltered.
“You’ll be hard-pressed to find your answers among them. They hold no love for the Wyndren family. If they cursed your mother, they’re not going to give you what you want.”
Aeliana let out a huff. “I didn’t expect I’d be able to waltz in and ask them how to break it, but I have to at least try. Maybe there’s some way we can barter with them, or?—”
“No,” he interrupted. “Never make a deal with a witch. It’s far worse than making deals with sprites.” The haunted look on his face left Aeliana silent, but she’d gotten all the information she needed.
As his story had unfolded, she’d thought maybe she could ask Marnok to take her to the witches and help her, but it was clear he wouldn’t be up for the task. This was something she would have to do alone.
“You’re right.” She swallowed down her fears and frustrations, pasting a smile on her face. “If we can’t find the answers among the witches, we’ll need to find another way. In the meantime, I could use your help training. My healing skills aren’t what they used to be.”
He smiled, but before he could respond, a commotion came from the hall with raised familiar voices. As one, Aeliana and Marnok rose, peeking out the doorway to find Gaeren, chest puffed out as he glared down at Enla, who smiled sweetly up at him, arms delicately crossed over her chest.
Gaeren’s hands balled into fists. “I’m not waiting?—”
“You don’t need to any longer.” Enla angled her head in Aeliana’s direction, and Gaeren followed her line of sight, leaving Aeliana suddenly self-conscious about her drab appearance next to an almost-queen.
But Gaeren took two strides in her direction before wrapping her in a less-than-gentle hug, his frustration still fueling his strength. She didn’t even have time to enjoy his nearness or wonder what it meant before he pulled back and snarled at the guards, “Aeliana and I are taking a walk in the gardens, and you two are not invited.”
CHAPTER 70
To Gaeren’s surprise,Aeliana’s guards listened and stayed rooted outside her bedroom door. But it was most likely because his own guards shadowed them through the halls and out into the moonlit garden. After Gaeren speared a single look in their direction, they kept a respectful distance, and Gaeren finally felt free to speak.
“Did my father do anything to you?”
Aeliana’s brow furrowed. “To me? You’re the one he put in prison.”
Gaeren rolled his eyes. “He had far worse disciplinary measures when we were children. I was fairly certain he’d release me eventually and call it a lesson.”
Her eyebrows arched, and he gave a sheepish shrug.
“I could have been wrong, but I wasn’t.”
She glanced back at the guards and lowered her voice. “Enla seems just as much a prisoner. It’s no wonder you had to come back.”
Gaeren steered her through a grove of magnolias, hoping to block out the guards even more. “I hated leaving, but you have dozens of people protecting you. Sometimes I feel like my sister only has me. Besides, I knew you couldn’t really leave. Less than a week away and you’re already back?”
A breathy laugh escaped her lips, bringing his mind back to the night they’d kissed and the way her lips had felt on his. “Somehow, I suspect Enla has plenty of people watching over her. But I understandwhat you mean. She’s your sister. And I’m… not.” The statement hung in the air more like a question.
He wanted to explore that answer with her but not with war looming on two fronts.
“Did you bring Gullet back with you?” he asked instead.
“Gullet?” She frowned. “Maybe he came with my mother, but I haven’t seen him since we left Myndren.”
Gaeren halted his steps, glancing back at the palace. “Gullet arrived before your mother, and I sent him to warn you. We suspect it means Myndren has fallen.”
Aeliana pinched the bridge of her nose as if warding off tears. “If it’s already fallen, why is she still gathering an army in the north?”
“How do you know Mayvus gathered an army if you didn’t get my message??”
She glanced up, her answer coming out distracted. “Durriken went to check the icebergs in the Northern Sea. He showed me a fleet of her ships. We knew we couldn’t pass her, so we had to turn back.”
“A fleet?” Gaeren ran a hand through his hair. “Where is she getting all the ships? Is she able to bring those across the barrier as well?”
