Chapter 28
Chapter twenty-eight
Koinu
Rose
Little was ever recorded of the cirein-croin, but time has shown them to be remarkably intelligent—social, even—despite their fearsome size and rarity.
— The Mysterious Deep: A Comprehensive Understanding
God, it felt good to be back on The Wraith, surrounded by the sea on either side and not having to pretend to be anything other than what I was.
The salt air ran through my wild curls, blowing them this way and that.
I closed my eyes, sinking into the chaotic rocking of the ship as the crew worked to keep the grindylows off the ship.
“Good morning, Mrs. Smith,” Dilly said.
She stood next to me and brought her spyglass to her eye, searching.
“Any sign of him?” I asked, a strange sense of anxiety floating through me.
“No,” Dilly murmured. “We probably need to be further out. Still too close to people.”
The sooner Koinu showed, the better I would feel. I didn’t know what he did when we made port, but I imagined him to be very lonely. Which was probably ridiculous. Giant sea monsters were likely capable of taking care of themselves.
Not to mention that I had bigger problems than a lonely sea monster. Namely, figuring out how to get a never-before-seen mysterious object from a fabled lost city guarded by an even bigger sea monster.
I turned to rest my back against the ship, staring up at the two flags flying. The one with Koinu struck pride into my heart. The other one- not so much. Apparently, marriage meant compromises.
“Scowling first thing in the morning?” Val said, coming up the stairs. “And they said newlyweds were meant to be happy.”
I raised my hand toward the flag.
“Look at it.” I pouted. “It ruins Koinu’s natural beauty.”
She set her back against the ship, shoulders brushing mine.
“If you want, I can set it on fire tonight on watch,” she said.
I bit my lip, considering it.
“Probably should keep Bash thinking you are still his lackey,” I said.
She scoffed. “I’m no one’s lackey. Unless you ask me nicely, and then I might be.”
I snorted, shoving my arm into her.
“Remember when I thought you were slightly terrifying?” I said.
She furrowed her brow.
“I am slightly terrifying,” she said.
“Like a giant puppy, kind of terrifying,” Dilly said.
“So I’m just Koinu,” she said, folding her arms. “I suppose it could be worse. For example, I could be married to that grumpy idiot.”
She nodded straight ahead, where Bash was barking orders at some poor boy who was likely on his first crew. Bash reached down, picked up a rope with the hook attached to his wooden arm, and demonstrated how to tie a proper knot.
“He’s a quick learner,” Dilly said.
Yes, he was. Maybe it was very wrong or said something about me, but my core lit as I watched him work the rope with his hook.
“Oh god,” Val said.
I blinked several times, trying to push away several ideas that occurred to me all at once. Ideas that were particularly suited to a different company.
“It’s better than when they were literally fucking each other with their eyes and pretending that they weren’t,” Dilly said.
“Is it?” Val asked. “I’m going to go do some hard manual labor.”
I laughed, rubbing at my neck. Getting out of bed was hard this morning. My legs were deliciously sore, and as a matter of fact, most of me was. I could probably use a break, but I doubted that would happen any time soon.
Bash may still be mad at me, but after agreeing that we couldn’t do anything else to stave off my potentially dying three different ways, we found other ways to channel that energy. I certainly wasn’t complaining, given my time on earth was starting to appear considerably shorter than intended.
Either this vow on my wrist killed me, Bash’s insane ex-lover, or a giant mythical Leviathan. I could hardly say which was more preferable, though Ximena was lowest on the list.
As I contemplated my impending doom, a grindylow managed to get over the railing a few feet from where Bash stood.
I reached for the pistol at my side, but I was too far away to take a reliable shot.
Its beady eyes scanned as it lifted up straight to mine.
For a second, it was one year ago, and Billy was teasing me for being as stubborn as a grindylow before one attempted to attack me.
Shouts arose, and with horror I watched as it leapt several feet at a time, leaving a trail of slimy green ooze in its wake. I lifted my pistol and leveled it at the top of the stairs, waiting. It hunched its back legs and launched, my pistol erupting with a large boom, smoke filling the air.
The creature lay twisting and writhing as it made a mournful sound.
Heart beating out of my chest, I reached into my pocket and placed the next bullet between my teeth, metallic biting into my mouth.
I reloaded my pistol and fired one more shot, and just as before, the creature took its last breath, eyes fixed on me.
I crouched down in front of it, acutely aware that there were several eyes on me.
“If another one makes it over the ship, the one responsible is on deck duty every fucking day till I say otherwise.” Bash bellowed.
I used the tip of my smoking pistol to prod at the amphibious creature’s head. Slimy goop clung to my pistol as I pulled it away.
Dilly bent down next to me.
“What sea were you born near?” she asked.
“The North,” I murmured.
“On it or near?” she asked.
I lifted my eyes to hers.
“On it,” I whispered.
Dilly swallowed.
“I need more books,” she said.
I wasn’t sure what was wrong with me was in a book, but if anyone could figure it out, it would be her. She tiptoed around black blood that seeped into the floorboards of the ship and made a small squeaking noise as she passed Bash, who looked positively murderous.
“I’m fine,” I said, still poking at the creature with my pistol.
It seemed to be oozing at an accelerated rate, and green slime clung to my pistol. I raised in front of me, wrinkling my nose as I watched it drip.
“You could have been hurt,” he said.
I followed the drip down.
“But I wasn’t because my husband taught me how to shoot a pistol.” I stood, shaking it off. “Next question.”
“It wasn’t a question, Rosamund,” he said, voice tight.
I placed my hand on my hip and leveled a glare at him.
“I’ve been out here for over a year now, Bash. In fact, some might say I’ve been quite successful at it. So maybe lay off the protective asshole bit?” I said.
His jaw was shut tight, a muscle feathering in it as he considered me. A bit of goop fell from the pistol at my hip onto my boot, and I stared at it, frowning. I was almost convinced just then until that happened.
How unfortunate.
“You have grindylow slime on your boot,” Bash said.
I shot him daggers and tried to shake it off, but it only dripped with an infuriating slowness.
“Billy would have thought this was hilarious,” I grumbled.
“He’d have already planned the reenactment,” Bash said.
I frowned, feeling the tug of loss that wasn’t anything close to what he was enduring. I was spoiled in every way that mattered. The most traumatic thing that ever happened to me was Bash and Oscar being captured, and even that ended with them coming back to me.
“I’m sorry,” I said.
I wished I were better at this. Better at saying the right thing.
Bash nodded, stepping over the grindylow and pulling me into a hug. I melted against him, feeling tension leave my body with his touch. He pressed a kiss to my head that made me feel like we were the only two on the wraith.
“I think this undermines some of your ruthless pirate bravado,” I murmured against him.
He chuckled.
“A risk I’m willing to take,” he said.
“Koinu!” Someone from the crow’s nest shouted.
I rushed to the edge of the ship and felt a knot in my chest loosen as Koinu breached from the water with a loud vocalization, his splash nearly reaching the boat despite being at least fifty feet away.
“Remarkable,” Bash murmured beside me.
My heart swelled with pride.
“He really is,” I said.
Summoned, Dilly, appeared next to us, huffing out a desperate breath before pulling out her scrapbook.
“Do it again, Koinu,” she said, attempting to hold a pencil and a spyglass at the same time.
I laughed and took the spyglass, holding it up to her eye for her while she readied her pencil.
Koinu was a show-off these days.
Sure enough, he leapt from the sea, his blue and green shimmering against the morning sun. He was magnificent. Long body spiralling as his head hit the sea. The long, fan-like fins span high and proudly.
“That’s a real, actual sea monster!” yelled a small voice that was out of place on the Wraith.
Bash groaned, but I moved to the side to make room for the shaggy-haired boy as he practically launched himself over the ship to see.
Bash reached around me and gripped the back of Kit’s shirt, and I fought back a smile that would only earn grumbling from my husband. He may not have asked for a ward, but he was rather protective of him.
“Kit, you arse, I told you to stay below until we were out of grindylow territory!” Val yelled.
If Bash was protective of Kit, then Val was positively overprotective.
“I heard someone shout about Koinu and I needed to see for myself!” he said, voice breathy with excitement.
“Isn’t he beautiful?” Dilly asked, handing the spyglass to Kit.
“Wow!” Kit whispered, mouth hanging open.
Koinu leapt through the water, his bellowing song one of unmistakable joy.
Val came up behind Kit and plucked the spyglass from Kit’s hands and handed it back to Dilly, who took it with a knowing smile.
“Hey, how come–? Kit said, turning to face his keeper.
She pointed one finger at him, lips pulled into a thin line as she bent down to his level.
“What did I say is rule number fucking one on a ship?” she asked.
Kit swallowed hard.
“Always follow orders,” he said, eyes downcast.
Val stood, hands on her hips. “Go help cook with dishes until I come get you. Do you understand?”
“Yes,” he grumbled, sparing one last look for Koinu.
I watched him with a wide smile as he sullenly made his way below deck.
“Maybe don’t swear at the kid?” Dilly half asked with her own grin.
“He needs to learn if he wants to survive,” Bash said, turning back to Koinu.
“Exactly,” Val said, still watching Kit long after he was gone.
“I’ve heard motherhood is a trying time,” I said.
Val shot me her middle finger and left to yell at some poor soul who happened to be in her path.
“It’s kind of adorable,” Dilly said.
“Truly,” I said.
Koinu continued his celebration, and my heart filled with warmth and fullness. There was so much about him we didn’t understand, but the way he followed us and sang was enough that I was fairly certain I would die for him.
“He truly answers to you?” Bash asked.
I snorted. “Not really. He just likes to put on a show as much as Billy did.”
“He really is like a giant puppy,” Dilly said, scrawling furiously like she didn’t have a hundred more sketches like this.
“That was crazy,” Oscar said, coming up behind us. “Did you tell it to do that?”
I rolled my eyes.
“Yes, so don’t piss me off or I’ll tell him to eat you,” I said.
“Damn,” Oscar said, coming to stand next to Flynn.
We watched as Koinu did several other flips, his song joyous and celebratory. I wished I knew what he was saying. I only knew deep down that it was a happy song. Not for the first time, I considered getting in one of the rowboats and setting out to meet him. It was probably a terrible idea.
Probably.
To be fair, I had a history of far worse ideas.
“It feels good to be back, doesn’t it, Bash?” Oscar said.
Bash hummed, leaning forward to rest his arms on the edge of the ship. His eyes were bright with the promise of life that would have brought Billy to his knees. Wherever he was, I hoped he could see it. To see what we’d achieved.
“It really does,” he said.
I smiled, leaning my head against his arm, and Dilly huffed out a frustrated sigh as I lost my hold on the spyglass. I sighed and stood straight, making sure not to mess up her perfect drawing.
Koinu jumped again, this time doing a twist midair, earning claps from the crew.
“Out of grindylow territory,” the pirate in the crow’s nest yelled.
Koinu’s answering song was a beautiful serenade. Without the grindylows to keep off the ship, the crew of the wraith watched Koinu’s dance.
And that was more than enough.