Chapter Twenty-Two
Castor Aegaeon
The waves slapped against the hull of the ship, and ahead, through the morning mist, the dark cliffs of home finally broke the horizon. The sight should’ve filled me with relief. Instead, it twisted like a knot in my gut.
Salt in my hair, with no tub to bathe in, and not a single decent bottle of wine left on this forsaken ship to dull my senses…
Gods spare me.
It had been three days since Minaeve was crowned the new human queen and Talon took that damned arrow of shadow—the rot eating him from the inside out.
Three days since Skylar and Daxton teleported to Solace to help Shaw fix whatever mess he’d managed to step into this time.
While I was left questioning if my brother—my king—had once again stumbled headfirst into another trap laid by the humans in their elaborate schemes.
I honestly wondered if any of them would make it back to the Inner Kingdom alive.
I heard her soft steps echo across the deck, and I sighed in relief for her patience with me on this voyage.
Even without her voice, she never needed words to be heard.
She came to stand beside me at the bow, her long ebony hair whipping in the wind.
Her gaze found mine, steady, full of the kind of calm I’d never managed to master.
I forced a grin. “Well, love, if I squint hard enough, I can almost taste the wine waiting for us ashore. Tell me Talon’s still breathing. I will never hear the end of it from Skylar if he’s already made his way to the crossing before we make it back to Silver Meadows.”
Her expression shifted, soft but pained. She signed with quick, graceful motions, “He’s alive, but he’s not doing well.” Then slower, with a hesitation that made my chest ache. “Rhea hasn’t slept. She’s trying to keep him comfortable… I’m worried about her most of all.”
I exhaled as a sense of dread for what was to come for the pair settled. “Of course you are,” I murmured.
The sea stretched out before us, endless and cruel, like our looming fate. I reached for Nyssa’s hand, our fingers twining together, settling my racing mind and granting me a moment of peace.
“We’ll arrive in Silver Meadows soon,” I said quietly. “And when we do, I’ll do whatever I can to make him comfortable. Crimson City healers may be able to help.”
Nyssa’s fingers tightened around mine. Her gaze lingered on the horizon, where the dark cliffs of the Inner Kingdom rose higher with every roll of the tide.
She released my hand and signed slowly, “Any word from Daxton?”
The question hit like a stone to my chest. I swallowed hard, trying to smother the dread crawling up my throat. “No,” I said, rougher than I intended. “Nothing yet.”
The silence that followed wasn’t peaceful. It was heavy. I could feel it pressing down on both of us, the weight of all the what-ifs that had haunted these three cursed days.
I turned to her, the words tumbling out before I could stop them, “Marry me.”
Her head snapped toward me, eyes wide, mouth parting in startled disbelief.
“What?” she signed with shaky hands.
I grinned. “You heard me. Life’s too damn short. Everything we’ve seen—everything that’s coming.” I shook my head, stepping closer. “This—what we have—it’s the only thing that’s ever made sense in my centuries living in this world. And I’m done wasting seconds without you. So, marry me, Nyssa.”
She blinked up at me, torn between shock and laughter, fingers half-lifting like she didn’t know what to say.
“Here? Now?” she signed. A soft huff of air escaped her lips in a ghost of a laugh.
“Why not?” I said, letting my grin tilt wider. “We’ve got a captain on board, haven’t we? Might as well put the male’s skills to use. When we land in Silver Meadows, our people will be greeted by the high prince and… princess.”
Her eyes shimmered as the wind swept her hair across her face, and she looked so gods-damned beautiful I forgot, for a heartbeat, about the war waiting across the distant shore.
“Come on,” I said, offering my hand again. “Say yes, Nyssa. Before I lose the nerve, or you start thinking I’m joking.”
Then, as if the heavens parted and the Mother herself smiled upon me, she signed, “Yes.”