Chapter 22
Marc guided me up and down the streets, meandering through rickety cottages and towering mansions.
Trading houses, bars, brothels, and administrative buildings mingled together, sometimes all on the same block.
Random lights spilled out of windows and onto the street, flickering over us like campfires.
Laughter came from the brightly lit windows, and shadows slipped in and out of the frames like a play being performed.
And out there in the dark, I felt a little isolated. My melancholia only worsened when a man struck up a song. He sang in a sweet tenor, hitting the high notes with confidence.
Just like Tim.
I pressed a balled hand over my heart as I thought about my dearest brother. Only a few weeks. That’s how long we’d been separated. Yet it felt like a lifetime. I’d have a lot more lifetimes to live without him, especially if I drank some vampire blood again.
“You have that look on you again.”
Marc’s voice snapped me out of my gloom, and I looked up to find him staring down at me with that bright blue eye. I blinked at him. “What look?”
“The look of someone who’s lost something dear to them. It’s written all over your face.”
I cupped my cheeks in my hand and rubbed them thoroughly. “You don’t happen to know where I can find a face eraser, do you?”
His smile faltered a little, and a strangely haunting look slipped into his eye as he stared ahead of us. “Not one that wouldn’t mar the rest of it.”
His melancholia caught my attention. “Did I say something wrong?”
A bittersweet smile slipped onto his lips. “Nothing you shouldn’t have, seeing as you don’t have my memories.”
A horrible thought crept into my mind. “You’ve seen someone become horribly disfigured, haven’t you?”
“I’ve seen a lot of things,” he mused as we continued down the glowing streets toward the gentle slope that aimed toward the port. “That happens when you sail the world.”
“But does it get any easier seeing them?” I wondered as I tried to catch his eye. “Or does it just get buried?”
“Buried like a floundering ship in a storm.”
I bowed my head and bit my lower lip. “That can’t be easy.”
“It’s life,” he countered in a steady, though soft voice. “You see enough of it, and you get to seeing the worst of it. Otherwise, you can’t say you’ve lived.” He cast his bright eye on me. “Can you say you’ve lived?”
My unfocused eyes stared at the ground as I thought back to all the complaints I’d had. The slow work day. The short weekends. The horrid bosses. They all seemed so trivial now.
A heavy sigh escaped me. “No, I don’t think I have.”
He wrapped my hand in his and tugged on it. I looked up to find him grinning down at me. “Maybe that’s why the gods brought you here. You need to live a little.”
A stifled snort escaped me. “Does that always have to involve strange people and potential kidnappings?”
“Those are the ones you’ll have with me,” he revealed as he drew us down a narrow cobblestone path.
The houses stood close to one another, with the ones on our left at a higher plateau than the ones on the right. A few stone steps led down to a cul-de-sac, and a well stood in the middle. A tree grew nearby, shading the opening and anyone who had to work the crank to gather water.
And then there was the balcony. The houses lower down parted, and a half circle of ground stretched out of the courtyard on our right. A tall railing lined the very end, and a lively vine with purple flowers wound its way through the upright posts.
“But we can have a few of these moments, too,” Marc mused as he guided me to the railing.
My mouth fell open as every step revealed the magnificent view ahead of us.
The city stretched out below, dotted with soft flickering candles and gaslight.
Chimneys puffed away, sending soot and the scent of a late dinner to the wind.
The winding streets looked like canyons etched into the hillside, and the glistening waters of the way stood far below, reflecting the starry sky above our heads.
I draped my arms over the railing and took in the view. “Wow.”
“I’m glad you like it,” Marc commented as he joined me at the railing. His bright eye admired the prospect with the same veneration. “There aren’t that many prospects better than this one, and they’re not around here.”
I cocked my head to one side and studied him. “Are they on other islands?”
He softened his voice, and a far-off look slipped into his eye. “And far away, to the far reaches of the sea, beyond where most people would dare travel.”
“But you’ve been there.”
He chuckled. “I’ve been everywhere, or haven’t you heard of the dread pirate Torvus?”
I snorted and nudged my arm against his. “I’ve heard of this pirate, but I haven’t seen him yet.”
Marc looped his arm around my waist and drew me against his side. His eye took on a more heated gaze. “I should fix that.”
I didn’t have time to react before he swooped down and captured my lips in a deep, passionate kiss.
A warm glow filled my body and pooled between my legs.
I couldn’t help but moan into the kiss. He turned us so we faced each other, and our fronts pressed tightly together.
His hands moved up and down my butt, massaging my muscles and forcing me against his groan.
I could feel a distinct bulge growing there.
I finally broke us apart for air. My cheeks were as warm as hot coals, and there was a distinct feral tinge in his gaze. A crooked grin slipped onto his lips. “That was interesting.” I turned my face away and bit my lower lip. His good humor faded. “Is something wrong?”
“I. . .I’m just not sure.”
Silence fell between us for a moment before his soft voice broke it. “I see.” He stepped back, and a wave of guilt struck me.
“I didn’t mean it that way,” I hurriedly assured him as I wrapped my arms around myself. “I’m just, well, a little overwhelmed right now.”
He folded his arms over his chest, and that sly smile returned. “I could take you and ravish you. I’m quite good at both.”
I choked on a laugh. “I bet you’ve had a lot of experience, but I’m not the ravishing type.”
Marc wrapped his arms around me and pressed himself closer against my body. “I wouldn’t mind testing that statement.”
I set my palms against his chest and fiddled with the front of his coat. “I-I know, but I, well, I’m not sure about tonight. The coffin episode and seeing a new city.”
My would-be lover sighed and drew away. “Alright. You win for this evening. All I ask is that you take off your shirt.”
My mouth dropped open. “Take off my what?”
“You’re shirt. You said you had some dirt on it,” he reminded me with that devilishly handsome smile of his. “This is a very secluded spot. No one will see you undressed.”
“No one but you,” I pointed out.
He shrugged. “I’m fine with that.”
My face drooped, and I spun my finger in a circle. “Turn around.”
“You might need some help.”
“I think I’m old enough to know how to manage a shirt.”
His gaze dropped to my bosom. “I can see that.”
I sighed and stepped away from the railing, where I spun around so my back faced him. “Alright, if you won’t turn, then I will.”
I quickly removed my shirt and flapped it hard in front of me.
A hailstorm of dirt pebbles flew out and scattered across the ground.
I quickly slipped my shirt back on and turned to find Marc at the railing facing outward.
His hands were clasped behind him, and his head was tilted back so he could stare at the stars.
I slipped up to his side. “See anything interesting?”
He grinned, and his gaze dropped to me. “Nothing quite as interesting as what I’m seeing here.”
I snorted and grasped the railing to admire the stars. “Could you teach me a few of the constellations you use to travel by? None of these look like the ones back home.”
“You only need to know a few to sail the islands,” he assured me as he pointed at a teardrop-shaped constellation. A single, brilliant star shone in the center. “That’s Aeloria’s Beacon. The star in the middle is what all sailors use to navigate these southern waters.”
“That’s a beautiful name. Does it have a story to it?”
“Don’t they all?” he teased as he draped his arms over the railing.
“Aeloria was said to be a princess of a kingdom that existed thousands of years ago. She fell in love with a sailor, and they were set to be married when he returned from a dangerous mission. Just as he was returning home, a storm struck off the coast of her kingdom. She could see his ship floundering in the waves, but the crew couldn’t navigate the stars because of the clouds.
They were set to be bashed against the rocks on the shore when Aeloria pleaded with the gods to save her betrothed, even if it meant her life.
The gods granted her wish, placing her in the heavens as the brightest star.
Even the clouds couldn’t cover her light, and she guided them to port. ”
“So they lived happily ever after?” I guessed.
“Not this story. Aeloria had offered herself as a beacon of hope to sailors. She couldn’t take back her promise, and there she is in the sky still guiding sailors after all these years so they get back to their sweethearts.”
My face fell. “Then her betrothed-?”
“Probably wed another. The story doesn’t go any further than his arrival and learning about her being up there.”
I lifted my eyes back to that twinkling star. “Does she really shine when the clouds are out?”
“Always,” he confirmed as he smiled at the constellation. “I’ve seen that star shine through the worst storms you could imagine. She’s led me home more times than I could count.”
“Does she face a certain direction?” I guessed.
“She faces the nearest safe port.”
My mouth dropped open. “So she moves?”
“And is seen differently by everyone who stares at her,” he told me as he pushed off from the railing. “But what do you say to having some fun by mingling with those in high society?”