Chapter 29 Ariah
ARIAH
“Iwant to go back!” I shout, before hurling chunks of bread and something red out of my mouth and nose.
What did I eat that was red? Thinking over breakfast this morning I vaguely remember a bowl of fruit and the sweet strawberries in the blend. While they tasted heavenly going down they’re wretched coming up.
Hands gather my curls and while I try to push him away, Iann doesn’t leave.
I’m not the only one seasick. I hear Chana throwing up as well, but since she’s been unconscious for a few days, hers is straight bile. Hearing it splatter on the wood only makes me sicker.
“Iann, go. I’ll be done soon.” I try pushing him away but I’m too weak to move him.
He chuckles. “I’ve seen worse.”
He holds my hair tighter as I thrust forward and throw up again.
There is a knock at the door as I settle back into him. Having someone to lean on feels nice, so I guess it’s not all bad that he’s here.
Sallen comes in with a tray and sets it on a table near the bed.
“A few ginger cakes and lemon-spiced ginger tea. It’ll help with your stomach.
” He comes and squats in front of us. “I should warn you both, we will be hitting a storm in a few hours. One of the crew gets these intense headaches when a storm is nearby. He’s an odd one, but he ain’t never been wrong.
” He smiles at me. “If you think you’re sick now—” He catches a look from Iann.
“Anyways, you don’t mind if I steal your chap for a moment? Need to speak to him about something.”
I wave my hand and lift myself up so Iann can leave.
Chana stumbles in after the men get out. “Deean lied,” she says and then crawls into the bed. “This is not going to be fun.”
Getting myself up, I sway with the waves and try not to focus on the movement. I manage to make it to the tea Sallen left behind. The cake sounds disgusting right now, so I take two swallows of the hot liquid.
“Here. Drink some,” I coax Chana, as I work my way to her without spilling a drop.
Her nose scrunches at the scent but she sips, then she and I take turns until the contents are gone. Once finished we throw ourselves into the bed and under the covers.
“How did you know his name is actually Deean?” I ask.
“I know everything.” She moans and rubs her forehead. “Plus, he confessed it to me at the party.”
“You knew before me?”
“I guess. I was unsure what to do with the information, so I kept it a secret. He was pretty drunk when he told me. Something about going to the Queen felt wrong.”
“I understand,” I whisper. “And I was worried about you.”
“I was worried about me too.” She laughs.
“You all thought I was asleep, but I heard everything.” She turns her head to look at me.
“Did you know Sky and Vera like to use his workshop as a personal getaway? Imagine hearing those two going at it and you can’t move.
Good thing I was only out for a couple of days. ”
“Oh no!” We laugh together, the tea seeming to have settled our stomachs.
“You and Iann though”—her words cut out, and for a moment I think she’s fallen asleep—“I approve.”
“Thanks for your approval.” I release a bit of a forced chuckle.
She changes the topic and tells me stories about her home.
How much she misses thornberry tarts and her mother’s spiced rabbit stew.
Most of all she misses her family. A younger brother and sister she hasn’t seen in over seven years, since being abducted.
I couldn’t imagine working for Queen Cayleen at such a young age.
Chana started working as a servant, and when Morrena noticed how silent and sneaky she was, the enchantress offered her a position as a Fox. Even promised her a way out one day.
“Maybe this is her way of holding up her end of the bargain,” she says, yawning between each word.
I don’t know Morrena well, but it seems doubtful; I respond with a half-hearted, “Maybe.”
Tiredness drops on me like an anchor tossed at sea. I wonder if Sallen put something in the tea because my body becomes all too relaxed, so much so that I can’t move.
Chana releases a snore, and the control of my body gives way with it, until I slip away into sleep.
Acontinuous galling tapping pulls me out of sleep. I shoot up in bed and find Chana still passed out beside me.
The porthole of the cabin window flaps with the night’s wind and there is the distant sound of water droplets colliding with the deck.
I search the cabin for a coat and find one in a small cabinet folded up with a few sweaters. There is one I packed in my bag but I don’t see my belongings in here, or a sign that anyone else in our traveling party has been in here.
Leaving Chana to rest, I wander out onto the deck and instantly get hit with a light drizzle.
I hear voices from around the corner and follow the sound of conversation along the side of the boat.
I stop at some windows that lead into a bigger cabin resembling an office as opposed to sleeping quarters.
Through the grungy windows, I see outlines of figures along with lit lanterns.
When I enter, all attention seems to focus on me.
“Just who we were talking about,” Deean says, leaning back in a chair that he balances on two legs.
In the center of the table is a beam of light that casts a map onto the ceiling. The map they discovered.
“We were going over plans,” Iann remarks, suddenly at my side. “How do you feel?”
It isn’t until he asks that I pick up on the movement of the ship.
“I may have put something in your tea,” Sallen admits. “No ill intentions. Just knew you and your friend would do better during the storm if you couldn’t feel it.”
“It passed?” I ask.
“That and a full day,” Sallen says with pride. “And you both made it through.”
“We’ve been asleep for over a day?” I look to Iann.
“Don’t be so dramatic,” Vera interrupts from the far end of the table. “You two would have been vomiting everywhere if he hadn’t. You’re just in time though.” She points to an empty seat. “We’re all curious about what our dear Morrena had to say.”
I follow Iann to the table and take a seat between him and Benny. This is the first time I’ve seen what the anchor depicts. Not only is it a map to help get us to Farella, but there are directions for when we actually get on the island.
“Anytime is good,” Vera says teasingly.
“She wants me to bring her back a flower.”
“If you don’t mind me asking, why you?” Benny says.
I dig my thumbnail into my pointer finger, feeling a slight pressure.
“Morrena pretended to be Rolley. She’s capable of transforming herself to look like someone else.
She got your father to agree to this journey,” I say to Iann.
“She also believes I’m the only one who can see the flowering tree.
Fraya made her conceal it so no one outside Fraya’s bloodline would find it. ”
“You’re a descendant of Fraya Vellen?” Benny sounds confused and amazed all at once. “Are you sure?”
I shrug, not having any evidence other than Morrena’s story.
“Morrena is known for her games. She lives for secrets” Sky says, speaking for the first time. “She could be setting up a trap.”
With the group, I disclose all the details Morrena shared with me the night of the ball and what she is wanting of Iann.
“Father wouldn’t send you here for nothing. She had to have promised him something,” Deean says to Iann. “Sure, he’s sent you to many places, but he wouldn’t risk your safety.”
“Unless…” Chewing on the inside of my lip I try to find the right words.
Iann shifts his body in my direction and probes, “Unless what? What did she say?”
I don’t want to tell him, and with every ounce of hope I pray it’s one of her lies. “She said your mother is sick.” Cupping his knee, I lightly strum my finger over his pants. “I’m sorry.”
Both Iann and Deean become pale. Their faces suddenly drain of blood.
“She could be lying,” Vera whispers, offering the only words of comfort she can find.
Iann pinches the bridge of his nose and clears his throat. “We don’t know for sure, so no need to get worked up.” He pats Deean on the back and his brother gives a subtle nod but keeps quiet.
Sallen, who hasn’t given much input throughout this entire conversation, stands and looks to the ceiling.
With a wooden stick he points to somewhere on the map.
“These are our current coordinates.” He circles a spot in the vast blue area of the map before creating an invisible line that leads to more blue.
“Based on your research, and after speaking with my navigator, I’d say we’ll see the isle in four days or so.
That’s if it truly exists. For all we bloody know, this Morrena gal could have one hell of a trap waiting for you lot.
” My stomach turns knowing I’ll be on this boat for four more days.
“Once we get there, your people can go ashore and mine will stay aboard this vessel.”
“How do we know you won’t leave us?” Sky asks.
“You don’t.” Sallen smiles. “But I won’t. Unless you take too long to get back. Prince Iann predicts it will take a few days to find what you’re after then return to my ship. That’s if the map is correct. If you’re not back in a fortnight, I’ll leave.”
“And your payment for staying?” Vera folds her hands over her chest. “Don’t tell me you want immortality too.”
Sallen’s face pinches like he’s going to be sick.
“And stay in this dreadful world for eternity? No, thank you. If the flower does indeed exist, I want no part in its power. Just don’t forget me in your stories.
Plus, the princes and I have already made a deal and what they are willing to give me and my crew is far more important to me. ”