The Maralyn
Chapter forty
“Well?” Castien inquired as soon as Finn’s feet hit the deck. Wren was in Cas’s arms, her back to his chest, wearing a smile that warmed Finn’s heart. Most of the smoke had dissipated in the winds coming off the Tides, but wisps of it clung to their legs.
Lucianna dropped down next to him at the same time he announced, “I caught her.”
Castien laughed and squeezed Wren tighter. “You lost, dearest. I will take my champion’s prize.”
Wren tipped her head back for Castien to claim a kiss. Finn looked at his wife and smirked.
“Perhaps I should have considered a bargain like theirs.”
She made a face of disgust.
“I would have never agreed.”
The way she had looked at him while up in the sails said otherwise, but Finn did not say as much out loud. He did not want her to think he was teasing at her expense in front of the others. He would save such talk for when they were alone.
“Well, I know Cora was caught. How did you fare, Kelwin?” Finn asked, turning his attention to the lad, who stood near Cora and Petals a few paces away.
The boy grinned beneath his pirate hat.
“I made it across!”
“Very good,” Finn commended, and reached out to squeeze his shoulder.
“Kelwin is Gifted with superior eyesight,” the captain said wryly from where he leaned against a nearby mast, arms crossed. “The smoke hardly affects him.”
Finn chuckled at the news.
“That explains your ability to see the vermi the other night, as well. I wondered about that.”
“Yes, it’s why Captain made me quartermaster. I can spot a ship or monster before the average sailor is even aware of its existence.”
“I made you quartermaster because you’re a good sailor and hardworking apprentice,” Kaiden groused. “Your eyesight was hardly a factor.”
Kelwin smiled and shrugged.
“Either way, it is useful. Especially in games like this.”
Finn glanced at Castien, knowing what he would find.
His cousin had taken on a far-off look. Wren was still nestled in his arms, but Castien was looking at the sky, his eyes flicking back and forth as his Gift worked.
The captain must have noticed what Finn did, because his relaxed stance tensed and he scowled.
“No.” The word was sharp enough to pull Castien’s attention. “The boy stays with me. On the ship.”
Kelwin frowned, looking back and forth between Castien and Kaiden.
“But—”
“No,” Kaiden repeated. “He stays on the ship, or you don’t have a ship at all.”
“I wouldn’t have put him in harm’s way,” Castien said with conviction. “But very well, he stays.”
Kelwin seemed like he wanted to add to the conversation, but one look at his captain buttoned his lips.
Silence swept over the group. Kaiden pushed off the post and stalked toward the wheel.
“The captain is protective over me,” Kelwin stated, his voice barely heard over the waves buffeting the ship. “He lost his daughter to a storm many years ago, and his wife . . . she couldn’t forgive him. He doesn’t talk about her much.”
Finn let out a long breath.
“Tides,” he muttered. “That’s awful.”
Kelwin nodded. “It is. The ship is named after his daughter, Maralyn. They loved sailing together. Until we met, he hadn’t sailed since she died.”
Cora stared blankly at the deck. Petals shifted from foot to foot. Castien held Wren a little more tightly. Finn resisted the urge to step closer to Lucianna, afraid of the pain it would bring if she moved away.
Wren’s expression was curious but gentle as she inquired, “How did the two of you meet?”
“On the docks. I—well, I’m an orphan. And the orphanage I was sent to was awful. They forced all the kids to work the docks at night when no one was around to see.”
Finn’s jaw clenched. Wren looked up at Castien, understanding passing between them. Finn couldn’t stomach the thought that something so dreadful was taking place on their shores.
“The captain found me asleep near some barrels on a night where I’d been too hungry to keep going. He scared me at first, gruff as he is. I thought when he dragged me back to the orphanage that I was in for a beating. But he marched me into Lady Talcom’s office and asked to adopt me.”
Finn ventured a glance at his wife and saw she was smiling. He mirrored her expression. The captain had a soft spot hidden beneath his scruffy appearance and attitude.
“After that, he took me to see the Maralyn. She was in bad shape. We spent about a year working on her, then the next two Eventides taking deliveries to Stonemouth. That’s where the captain is originally from.”
“That makes sense,” Finn muttered under his breath.
Stonemouth was known for producing blunt warriors. They valued loyalty and brute strength. Two of Finn’s academy friends, Kierana and Eindar, were from there, and they would get along swimmingly with Kaiden.
“This is your first time sailing further than Stonemouth?” Lucianna asked. “You’ve never been to Grimhaven?”
Kelwin shook his head. “The captain didn’t like to go far. I was surprised when he said we would accept Prince Castien’s assignment. We’ll pass through Splinter Point to get there, which is where he lost Maralyn.”
If Kelwin’s words hadn’t sobered Finn, the mention of Splinter Point would have.
That area of the Tides was known to chew ships up and spit them out.
It wasn’t impossible to pass through, but most ships tried to avoid it.
Their crew didn’t have that luxury, though.
Time was of the essence, and Splinter Point was on the fastest path to Grimhaven.
“Thank you for sharing,” Wren said after a moment of heavy silence. “I’m glad you and Kaiden are a part of our crew.”
Kelwin grinned, and it hit Finn once again that he was but a boy, at most a year older than his sister.
He wouldn’t let Marina off the boat either.
He hadn’t even let her on it. His gaze lifted to where the captain was staring out at the horizon.
It seemed many members of their crew knew the pain of loss.
While Finn wouldn’t wish grief on anyone, he knew it was the sort of thing that bonded people.
There was a quiet whisper of never again that threaded their hearts and motives to one another.
“Is anyone hungry?” Cora broke into the conversation. “I think there’s fish left. If we don’t cook it soon, we will have to toss it.”
“That sounds nice,” Wren answered. “Family lunch, and perhaps we continue our competitive endeavors with a few rounds of Tidesmark?” She tipped her head back, directing her question to Castien, who still had a hold on her. He kissed her temple.
“A great plan, if I’ve ever heard one.”
“May I help you cook again, Miss Cora?” Petals asked quietly as the group began to make for the nearby table.
“I would appreciate that,” Cora spoke quietly, then, “And you may call me just Cora, if you’d like.”
Finn smiled as he saw Petals blush. He glanced to Lucianna to get her reaction, but his wife’s attentions were elsewhere.
She was a few paces back, looking up at the captain and holding her locket.
His smile fell at the anguish painted across her face.
When her eyes caught Finn’s, he tipped his head toward the group.
“Come on, little thief, let’s see if you’re better at cards than you are at climbing pirate ships.”
A ghost of a smile flickered across her lips.
She let go of her mother’s locket and walked to the table.
Castien went to get a deck of cards from the captain’s quarters.
Petals and Cora disappeared below deck to prepare lunch.
Finn settled into a chair and was delighted when his wife sat beside him.
They had each experienced great pain in their lifetimes.
And the journey ahead would be perilous.
But they had this moment, in the sunshine, with the breeze on their skin.
There was laughter to be shared and food to be enjoyed.
Even here, even now, there was happiness. Finn would not take it for granted.
For he knew all too well that in a breath, it could be snatched away.