by Caitlin Seal
The ambassador shook her head, but Naya saw the way the corner of her mouth twitched and the little thread of warmth that wove through her aether. She turned to face Naya again. “Well, there you have it. Tren and Baz are both good fighters. They’ve been with our family for well over a decade, so I can testify to their loyalty. Will you take them?”
“Yes,” Naya said, her throat feeling suddenly tight. She exchanged a quick look with Felicia and fought back a grin. A few hours ago, this idea had felt almost hopeless. But now, well, maybe they really could pull this off.
They spent a while longer discussing logistics, then left to place orders at a few shops Naya remembered from her time with her father. Some of the shopkeepers recognized her, and not all of them were interested in offering service to a wraith. But not even that could stanch the hope growing in her chest. Maybe Corten had been right. Maybe doing the impossible was only a matter of practice.
When they got back to the Gallant, Naya was surprised to find Delence waiting for her on deck. Beside him stood a woman in rough sailing clothes with a wide-brimmed hat covering her eyes.
Delence waved Naya over. “Miss Garth. Good, you’re back. I’ve heard the captain will be calling a vote from his crew tomorrow. Meanwhile, I’ve got one sailor from the Lady who’s interested in joining you.”
“All right,” Naya said. She wasn’t sure what good one sailor would be, but she could hardly refuse anyone willing to attempt the dangerous crossing. She stepped closer and peeked under the sailor’s hat. Then her jaw dropped. “Celia?” she whispered.
Celia looked even more exhausted than she had when she’d met Naya at Hal Garth’s house. Her dry lips cracked into a grim smile. “Hello, Blue. Seems you and I will be working together again.”
“How? Why?” Naya turned to Delence. “You said you thought the Endrans took her.”
“I may have speculated,” Delence said. His tone was evasive, but she could sense the smug satisfaction in his aether. “She knew too much for me to be comfortable with Queen Lial getting her. I assumed she would be smart enough to not have stuck around the palace once the trouble started. So when you said you’d met her at your father’s house, I figured that was a good place to search. My men found her hiding in the cellar. And after some…discussion, I’ve agreed to accept her request for asylum—once the two of you return with my son, that is.”
“And you agreed?” Naya asked Celia.
Celia shrugged. “I find myself short on alternatives.”
“She was working for the Endrans,” Naya said, keeping her voice low. “Are you sure we can trust her on this?”
“She knows more about their operations than anyone else I know of in Talmir,” Delence said. “Besides, my offer of asylum was for two. Her brother will be staying under our protection until she returns.”
Celia’s face didn’t so much as twitch at the implied threat, but Naya sensed the dark frustration swirling through the older woman’s aether. “What do you say, Blue?” Celia asked.
Naya stared at her. Corten, Felicia, Baz and Tren, and now Celia. They’d make a strange crew. But she couldn’t deny Celia was talented, and her experience working for the Endrans could prove invaluable in tracking down Bargal.
With an uneasy heart, she extended her hand to Celia. “If you try anything, I’ll throw you off my ship.”
Celia laughed. “Deal.”
Whew. Here we are again.
I’ve always loved reading (and now writing) acknowledgments because they offer a peek into the back rooms where stories brew and a chance to celebrate all the often unsung heroes who reside there. I would not be able to do what I do without the support of my family and friends both inside and outside the book community.
Thank you to my editor, Monica Perez, who helped transform my rambling early drafts into an actual book. Thank you to my copy editor, Jackie Dever, for finding the things I let slip. Shayne Leighton absolutely killed it with this cover, and Jared Blando took my awkward sketches and transformed them into a truly gorgeous map. As always, thank you to my agent, Lucienne Diver, whose support and critiques continue to help me level up my storytelling skills.
Thank you to my family: Mom, Dad, Zach, Aaron, Aleise. All of you have helped shape this book in little ways. Your love and support remind me why I do this. Special thanks to Caroline for reading so many drafts and sharing my enthusiasm for these characters. Thanks in no particular order to Jeremy, John, Paul, Tim, Jack, David, Alex, Mel, and Nick for all the shared stories and tabletop adventures. Thank you to Beth for listening to me whine about every stage of the writing process, and for all the random conversations about books and dogs and life. Thank you to Matt, for everything.
Finally, thank you to all the readers who’ve found their way to this story and made it to the end of book two. I hope you’re enjoying the journey.
PHOTO BY MIC DBERNARDO PHOTOGRAPHY
CAITLIN SEAL is a writer and compulsive reader living in Northern California. She says, “Death is maybe the most personal and universal of all human experiences. I love the idea that there could be something so powerful about an unfulfilled purpose, or the pull of a person’s relationships with those they love, that it would draw them back to the living world.”
When not writing, Caitlin GMs tabletop games, practices aikido, and hunts for portals in old wardrobes.
WWW.CAITLINSEAL.COM
