Page 24 of Salt in the Seas
Gaeren rolled his eyes. “And I suppose you opened them.”
“It’s my duty to make sure your ship stays safe in your absence.”
“Well, what did they say?”
His voice deepened as he quoted the missive. “Enla has heard of your valiant efforts to defend our nation’s honor by exposing the dark deeds of Mayvus. Because of your heroic acts, you are both welcome to return, Gaeren as the throne warden and Riveran as his advisor.” He opened a drawer and pulled out two letters, sliding them over in Gaeren’s direction.
Gaeren’s eyebrows rose as he grabbed them. “Riveran can return as well? And what will she do about the X on his forehead?”
Larkos shrugged. “The message wasn’t that detailed.”
Gaeren frowned, pulling out the unusually formal letter. “It feels more like a trap.”
Larkos rubbed the scruff of his beard in thought. “Maybe, but I have to admit it seems genuine. Even before we arrived with our black ship, there were rumors that the king and queen had denounced their connection with Mayvus. I don’t think they’d go so far as to align with the Recreants, but it was still a surprising move.”
“So a genuine attempt to save face, but not exactly a real desire to do the right thing.” Gaeren had thought he couldn’t be more disappointed in his parents, but they still managed to find ways. For most of his childhood, Enla had shielded him from the depth of their oppression, but now that he’d fought alongside the Recreants and seen the ways his parents chose their own safety and comfort over the needs of the Vendarans, he couldn’t go back to being ignorant.
Larkos leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. “You seem even more bitter toward your family than the last time I saw you.”
Gaeren sighed. “I’m not sure I can go back to Elanesse. I don’t trust my family to look out for the best interests of the people.”
They stared at each other for a long moment. It was the response Larkos had likely wanted for the last five years while he needled Gaeren with talk of Recreants wanting a democracy, but now that Larkos was getting it, he didn’t seem as satisfied as Gaeren had anticipated.
“You can still love your family, even if you don’t love their choices.” The older man’s voice sounded foreign with its softness.
“It makes it harder though,” Gaeren admitted. And he wasn’t even factoring in all the ways his parents had favored Enla over the years, or how his father had used his destructive somatic skills as disciplinary measures on both him and Enla. His parents might not want to align themselves with Mayvus, but that didn’t suddenly make them benevolent rulers.
“That it does.” Larkos gave him a sad smile, one more reminiscent of Calia, his wife and bondmate. She would have patted Gaeren on the head and offered him some sweets to go with the sympathy, and his throat tightened with the thought. He was more homesick for Larkos and Calia’s home than his own.
But it was the palace he was being summoned to.
“Is it a command?” Gaeren murmured as he reread the letter. “Or an offer?”
“Probably a little of both,” Larkos said. “We weren’t planning on staying long anyway, but we hightailed it out of there because we didn’t want anyone to connectTo the Deep and Backwith you. Thought we should wait and see if you wanted the connection or if you wanted to remain anonymous.”
“What was it Aeliana called me?” Gaeren asked. “Braggart Brownbeard?”
Larkos snorted. “I’m sure these men could come up with more formidable names if you’re looking to go the pirate route.”
Gaeren picked up the second letter, but it was sealed. “Riveran’s message was too private to read, but mine was fair game?”
Larkos’ grin turned sly. “I’m not acting captain over Riveran’s ship.”
Gaeren clenched his jaw, staring out the porthole at Bamboo Island’s shoreline. He’d thought they’d need to sail around the southern tip of Vendaras to avoid Elanesse. The trip would have taken at least a moon, but they could shave off more than a week if they went by Elanesse instead.
Except his sister would try to change everything.
He’d told Cyrus he didn’t know what his purpose was anymore, and while that was true, he’d come to terms with the idea that his purpose no longer included being a prince or throne warden. He didn’t want to take those titles on again. Not after experiencing freedom from them.
But what if being welcomed back was the only way he could save Enla? He still wasn’t sure which deal the sprite had taken back at Lovers’ Falls. The conniving creature initially agreed to help Gaeren get across the barriers in order to protect Aeliana, but when it suggested Enla would be the one to pay the price for his deal, Gaeren had tried to make another, trading his own life for hers. Riveran had then killed the sprite, so who knew which deal, if any, had been made? Guilt swirled through him as he weighed his options.
“We’ll make for Elanesse. Make a point of accepting Enla’s forgiveness, but then take Rildan home. I can’t avoid my sister forever, but I can’t serve her anymore, either.”
“Denying allegiance to the family of Elanesse could lose you more than your title,” Larkos warned him.
Losing his title sounded more like a win, but Gaeren took the older man’s words to heart, thinking of the sister he still loved, the people he still desired to do right by, the palace he’d grown up in with all its safety and security.
Gaeren nodded. “I’ll tread carefully. Hopefully she won’t make me choose.” He wanted to protect Enla, but there were others he’d made promises to as well. He pictured Aeliana, the light billowing off her skin like she was a Star herself, then the people they’d traveled with and the purpose he’d felt when fighting alongside them. “The cost could be high, but the reward will be far greater.”
