5. Hook
Days had passed, and the only progress I’d made toward getting to Never’s world was discovering a host of approaches that didn’t work. Frustration churned inside me like a poison, a sensation that had struck me as I left the sea witch’s lair, and I’d been unable to shake it.
Was that a sign that I was on the wrong path?
I probably could have conducted my search with a little more subtlety, but I’d never been more sure of a goal. Getting to Never’s world and protecting her from Petra and the wicked creature’s vile shadow was all that mattered.
So, what was gnawing at me? Frustration and impatience were at the fore of my current emotional state, but there was something else. It was very much like an itch I couldn’t reach, buried deep inside me.
“Anything yet?” William asked, pulling me from my darkening thoughts.
With my hands on the helm, I shook my head. Since leaving the sea witch and her cryptic message, I’d had my eyes glued to the horizon. The closest the Nassa had come to seeing a storm was a few errant clouds riding high in the sky.
I’d also been trying to reach out to the council of gods who had damned me to this realm. I’d tried to contact them before. Hundreds of times. The result was always the same.
Nothing.
I wasn’t expecting anything different this time around, but that didn’t mean I wouldn’t try. There wasn’t much I wouldn’t give to know the woman who held a piece of me was safe and happy.
“Are we going where I think we’re going?” William asked, casting a wary glance across the deck to the island looming in the distance.
Nidus, home to most of the realm’s land-bound shifters. I hadn’t set foot on the island since Leo’s uncle had accused me of having something to do with his daughter’s disappearance. I’d told him everything I knew about Lily and Wendy in the weeks after she went missing, but I couldn’t give him the answers he wanted. For that, he’d banished me and forbade his people from working with me.
A few of them would, however, still do business with my men. So long as it was done discreetly.
“That we are. Luther might have an idea we haven’t considered,” I said, though I wouldn’t get my hopes up.
“Do you think he’ll be willing to help?”
That was the question, wasn’t it? If it were just me asking for my own purposes, the answer would be a resounding no. But now another of his precious royal family had slipped out of our world, riding Never’s coattails into the human realm.
“With Leo disappearing in Never’s wake, I think we at least have a chance. If nothing, he deserves to know.”
William let out a heavy breath. “Will he care after all the time Leo spent tied up with the demon?”
“He knew why he was working her.” I adjusted the helm, taking advantage of the steady breeze catching the sails. “He only ever wanted to find Lily, and he was convinced someone in the demon’s camp would know something.”
“Did he ever learn what happened to her?”
I shook my head. “That was the only reason he remained at the demon’s side. No one had answers, but if anyone were to reveal anything that could give him a lead, he wanted to be there to hear it.”
A not-so-friendly greeting party was waiting for us on the dock when we brought the skiff in a short while later. To be fair, the Jolly Roger wasn’t the kind of ship that sailed by unnoticed. We’d been able to smuggle black rum by circling round to a remote part of the island and sending my men ashore far from any established villages or docks.
An older gentleman stepped to the head of the gathering crowd, his beard carrying considerably more silver than it had the last time I’d seen him. Shifters had the benefit of their own kind of healing magic, which meant they aged slowly, but they weren’t immortal.
Even in the Nassa.
“You are not welcome on my island, Captain.” Luther’s eyes glittered in the midday sun, highlighting the telltale glow in his pupils that gave away just how unhappy he was to see me.
I offered him a curt dip of my head. “There has been a development with the demon, and I could use your help.”
His expression didn’t change in the slightest. “The demon is your problem.”
“The situation concerns Leo.”
His nostrils flared, but he remained as he was with arms folded across his broad chest. “What news do you have of my nephew?”
“Forgive me, Luther, but it would be best if we discussed this privately.” I motioned to the crowd of people gathered at his back. “And not for my sake.”
A worried expression flitted across his weathered face, there and gone in less than a blink. “Escort the captain and his man to my home,” he said, without taking his eyes off me.
Four men, each carrying some resemblance to the alpha, flanked us. The village looked much as it had the last time I visited. The difference was some of the tension that had been simmering back then wasn’t quite so visible now. Lily had been next in line to lead the clan and govern the island. Her loss had been felt throughout the realm, but a great deal of time had passed. Now, with Leo in the wind as well, there was no telling what effect the news of his disappearance would have.
Luther didn’t make us wait long. He strolled into the room with an air of authority that was undeniable, but I sensed the fatigue hidden beneath the surface. “What news do you have of my nephew, Captain?”
Rather than taking a seat, he stood in front of the chair with his hands clasped behind him and his back ramrod straight. The alpha was one of the oldest members of his clan, but he still held himself with the poise and posture of a man a fraction of his age.
“You are aware he inserted himself into the demon’s camp several years ago, correct?”
He gave me a brief, confirming nod.
“He and I have kept in touch during his time there, sharing information as needed.”
Luther’s brow winged up. So, he hadn’t known his favorite nephew had been talking with me, let alone found his way into my inner circle. I didn’t know whether that was good or bad.
“What has happened?” he asked, showing the first hint of impatience.
“He traveled to the human realm.” I gave him the news in a matter-of-fact tone, doing my best to smother the lingering betrayal coloring my thoughts. There was no telling exactly why Leo had made the trip, or even if he’d truly meant to.
He recoiled ever-so-slightly. “The human realm. How? Why?”
“The demon lured a human boy here to the Nassa, and that boy’s sister followed him here.”
Luther’s eyes narrowed and a dissatisfied growl rumbled from his chest. I couldn’t blame him. The situation probably appeared close enough to Wendy’s appearance that if I were in his shoes, I would’ve been suspicious as well.
“Leo helped us get the boy away from the demon, and I helped the two humans escape back to their world,” I said. “However, during their escape, he was pulled through with them.”
William cleared his throat uneasily, but I didn’t dare a glance over. For the moment, all my focus needed to remain on the leader of the clan.
“So, you came here to tell me I’ve lost another of my family? Is that it?” Luther asked, a thread of anger infusing his voice.
“On the contrary. I’ve come to ask for your help. I intend to travel to the human realm and retrieve him, but I can’t get there on my own.”
Again, William cleared his throat, and I realized the point he was trying to make.
“To be clear, I intend to retrieve not just him, but also the demon’s shadow, which made the trip as well,” I offered.
The alpha’s eyes went wide, then focused on me in that way only a true leader could. “The shadow? I thought it couldn’t leave this realm.”
“This time, I’m afraid, there’s more to it. The human boy carries the blood of a demon within him. If the shadow finds a way to merge with him, it might be able to gather enough strength to break Petra free of this realm. If that happens, every decent being in the human world will be in danger.
He studied me for a long moment. “The human realm lacks magic, does it not?”
Yes and no. There were pockets of magic, if one knew where to look, but it didn’t always stay in one place or behave predictably. But that wasn’t what he needed to know.
“The human woman has an amulet that holds a great deal of power. If the demon takes her brother and the amulet, it could be enough.”
“An amulet? From our world?”
I nodded. There was no point in telling him what exactly the amulet was.
His gaze slipped past me, drifting to some distant space beyond the room we were in before he refocused on me, regret twisting his expression. “If I could help, I would. Unfortunately, we are anchored to this realm the same as you.” He spread his arms. “The same as everyone.”
“Are you certain? There was a time when your clan had a traveler in its ranks. Has no one since shown that ability?” I asked.
He shook his head. “As I said, I would help if I could. I’ve always suspected that Lily was pulled into another realm, but in all these years, I have yet to find a means of leaving this one.”
That was news to me. In fact, aside from Leo, I’d heard most of the clan believed the alpha’s daughter was long dead. It took effort not to let my surprise show on my face.
If Luther truly thought she’d traveled across realms, and Leo believed it too, it was possible he’d made the trip intentionally in the hopes of finding Lily.
I offered the alpha a grateful nod. “That is unfortunate to hear, but I appreciate your time all the same.”
He stepped forward, reaching out a hand and placing it on my shoulder. If he’d been any other member of his clan, save for Leo, he would’ve had to shift to heal from the beating I’d give him for touching me in such a familiar manner. But he and I had a history, and once, a very long time ago, we’d called each other friends.
“If you find a way to bring them back, I will forever be in your debt, Captain. It just about killed me to lose Lily. I’m afraid my position as alpha would be in jeopardy if I were to lose another of my own.” With that, he squeezed my shoulder and walked away.
Like the loyal clan members they were, the four guards reappeared and escorted us back to the skiff.
We were just a few short yards away from the dock when William asked, “Do you think he’s telling the truth?”
“Indeed.” I scanned the island’s gray sand beach as I rowed, noting just a few stragglers watching us from a distance as we maneuvered the wooden oars in and out of the water. “Family is everything to him.”
“Is that it then?” He sounded defeated, but I wasn’t ready to give up yet.
“Far from it. I’ll find my way to the human realm, one way or another.”