Chapter 63
Aeliana and Velden settled at the stern of the ship, away from prying eyes and ears.
He leaned over the water and inhaled deeply.
Aeliana copied him, breathing in the salty scent.
It was one of the few things that made her feel like memories of the home she’d had with her parents still sat dormant inside her.
“When Sylmar found me,” Velden said, “I was recovering from being a bitter and broken man.”
She scoffed her disbelief, and he held up both webbed palms.
“No, no. Believe me, I was. I had just learned to let a lot of it go in order to move on and be intentional with my choices when he showed up. Even though Sylmar has the unusual gift of being able to hold on to bitterness,” he added dryly, “he pushed me to channel my lingering anger into something productive.”
“What were you bitter about?” she asked, even though the evidence of it stared back at her from his palm.
“I never expected to find a bondmate. Not many women were interested when they realized my heritage. The fear of bearing a child with such oddities kept most from considering me a viable option.”
Aeliana bit her lip, thinking about the charming young man Velden must have been, and how deeply prejudices had to run in order to override that.
“Sariah was the exception. And that was all it took. I didn’t need dozens of women fawning after me, not like Ludo.
When it’s the right woman, one is enough.
Except her father didn’t approve.” His jaw tightened, and he rubbed at his eyes as if shoving away the anger he’d once held on to.
“I’m no longer sure what’s true and what’s a lie, not after Lady Merinnia’s visions.
But whether he cut out her bond or convinced her to do it, our bond was broken. ”
“Then what happened?” Aeliana asked softly.
Velden tucked his hands in his trouser pockets. “They say when a bondmate dies, you feel their death with them.”
Aeliana shuddered, glancing at Iris, whose face still seemed haunted.
“According to her father, Sariah died giving birth to our child.” His jaw tightened with the admission. “He claims I killed her.”
“No.” The ship dipped, and Aeliana’s stomach churned with it. “Even if the first half of that’s true—”
“I know.” Velden let out a strangled laugh. “But the funny thing is that I’m not even sure the first part is true. Lady Merinnia showed me so much of my past. It stirred up the same old frustrations, but she showed me other things too. Things I hadn’t thought possible.”
“Like what?”
“She showed me Sariah holding a child. Not even an infant newly born, but a toddler by the sea.”
Aeliana stilled, the gravity of his revelation hitting her with more force than when the wind had been knocked out of her when she’d fallen to the deck. “You’re going to find him?”
“Her,” Velden said. “It was a girl. The Seer showed me Sariah raising a beautiful little girl. One who could hold her breath underwater for at least an hour.” A smile slowly grew on his face, his eyes alight with wonder.
“One who earned her starlock at the tender age of twelve. One who grew into a young woman who was rumored to be a green-eyed goddess. One who men were drawn to like a siren but feared, because her affinity for water was so great. She could best any of them in the progeny schools with her magic.”
“She sounds like someone Sylmar would have recruited if she existed,” Aeliana said slowly, not wanting to diminish Velden’s hope but feeling certain that if anyone knew of this girl’s existence, it would be Sylmar.
“I thought the same,” Velden said eagerly, “which is why I went to him first. He said he’d heard of her but that she kept to herself.
That she would never take a side in any war or disagreement.
That going after her would be like chasing the wind and asking it to fuel our army.
Sylmar is attracted to power, but he’s also one who goes for the sure thing.
He takes risks when they’re the only options, not right from the start. ”
She frowned and glanced across the ship at the man who’d taken her under his wing, who’d been a mentor who taught with tough love.
She’d hated him at times. And she still suspected the scars on his soul ran far deeper than the ones on his skin.
Scars that might eventually affect his ability to make good decisions if they hadn’t already.
What would he do when they returned to her mother with no clear answer?
She feared he’d side with Emeris and suggest the only way to defeat Mayvus was by taking them both down.
As if he sensed the direction of her thoughts, Sylmar’s scowl deepened, and he shuffled below deck while leaning heavily on his staff.
“I wasn’t a sure bet,” Aeliana pointed out to Velden. “And he went after me.”
Velden studied her closely enough that she squirmed under his gaze. “He made sure you were a sure bet. Don’t you remember what Sylmar promised when we first met?” Velden asked. “About teaching you to get rid of your magic?”
She nodded even though it felt so long ago.
“He can’t do that any more than I can teach you how to excrete water.” Velden held out his slimy webbed hands, letting the water flow over like a burbling spring.
The admission should have made her angry. Somewhere deep down, the words struck a painful chord, but another part of her felt sad for the man aged beyond his years as he carried weight he couldn’t get rid of.
“So he lied to make sure I’d stay?”
“He might seem like the cranky rule-follower, but he’s more likely to cross lines than anyone here if he thinks it’s for the right reason.
You stayed, so he would say that had been the right choice.
He values the outcome more than the motive or method.
He trusts himself to make things happen more than he trusts the Sun. ”
“My mother would say the Sun can still use our shortcomings for a greater good.”
“And Cyrus would say it’s the Stars.” He grinned, and she smiled with him even though it was no longer true. “The point is Sylmar didn’t have information that could help me.”
“So now you ask the sailors,” she said, bringing the conversation back around to what had started her prying.
Velden nodded. “Sailors can be a seedy and yet loyal bunch. But they are also some of the worst gossips around. Almost every single one of them has heard of the green-eyed goddess. Even Gaeren claims he sought her out once thinking she might be you.”
“Me,” Aeliana said in surprise. Her gaze swung to the shoreline even though she could no longer make out individuals, let alone the prince who’d long ago left the docks.
“He’s followed every lead imaginable for the last seven years, ever since he was gifted this ship. If you hadn’t been on the other side of the barrier, he would have found you long ago between his determination and resources. You had no chance at hiding.”
“I wasn’t hiding.” She closed her eyes, imagining a younger Gaeren chasing after every rumor to follow through on his promise to protect her.
“Fine. Arvid and Vera had no chance at hiding you. But Gaeren claims he saw this green-eyed goddess near Seaglass Port. Said she was surrounded by children she’d taken in, children she taught how to fish and care for sea creatures.
They lived off the knowledge she gave them.
But as soon as he saw she was at least five years your senior, he knew the lead was a dead end and he didn’t pursue her further. ”
“We should have gone south instead of north,” Aeliana said. “You could have looked for her. Maybe even found Sariah.”
Velden shook his head. “I’ll find her eventually.
Maybe both of them. I won’t give up. But Lady Merinnia showed me something else.
She showed me all the things she showed my mother—all the things that would come of her using the starbridge.
” He closed his eyes and tilted his nose into the wind, inhaling the sea breeze as if it strengthened him.
“So your mother did know how she would die,” Aeliana murmured.
Velden nodded. “But that wasn’t the last thing she saw. The Seer showed my mother you.”
“Me?” Aeliana squirmed. “That doesn’t make any sense.”
“It makes sense of everything for me.” Velden opened his eyes, which shone bright as he blinked back tears. “My mother saw me aiding you. She saw us changing the world. And she knew her sacrifice would be worth it.”
Aeliana bit her lip and glanced at her hands. She couldn’t handle the confidence in his face—in his words. She clenched and unclenched her fists, feeling even more unworthy of his confidence as she stared at evidence of all the ways she’d failed.
“I will find my daughter someday.” He patted her back, the sticky wetness soaking through to her skin and drawing the sea breeze in to make her shiver.
“Maybe even Sariah. But in the meantime, my purpose is to help you. We’ll figure out the curse and save all of Vendaras.
I won’t let my mother’s sacrifice go to waste.
” His smile wobbled, but he wrapped an arm around Aeliana and drew her in for a hug.
“Recently I’ve thought if I ever had a daughter, I’d want her to be like you. It’s how I imagine her while I wait.”
“She sounds far better,” Aeliana whispered as she squeezed him back.
“Hopefully someday soon we both find out.” He pulled back, patting her once more before squirting her in the face and threatening to ruin the sweet moment they’d shared. “Until then, we need to get you strong enough to wield a sword.”