Chapter 8 #2
So, he was watching me when I changed at the banquet. I’m going to strangle him.
I took one of the clean cloths she left for me—not sure why she left two—and dipped it into the warm water bowl.
Just smelling the steam would have brought a smile to my face, if it weren’t for the discomfort of feeling Reiven’s eyes squarely on me as I moved to pull off my top.
I growled in annoyance, dipped the second cloth into the scented water, and hurled the soaking towel at his face.
Unfortunately, he caught it with his hand, not his pretty cheekbones.
“Be a good cellmate and wash yourself. Don’t look at me.
” I turned away to remove my top, and ran the soothing, warm cloth across my chest. As always, I imagined the invisible fingerprints that marred my skin anywhere I’d ever been touched disappearing with each swipe of the cloth.
The awful smell of Humans melted away, and the warmth did wonders for my achy body.
If his muscles are strained from all the exercise he does, I’m sure the heat of the water will bring him some relief, too.
I slapped myself in the face with my cloth and scrubbed my cheek roughly to force myself to stop thinking like a Siren healer, damn it.
“Why are you so annoying about how I smell? I smell normal,” Reiven huffed.
“In the Abyssal Deep, we can smell things, but it’s muted, not as noticeable as up here. Strong smells are…overwhelming on land,” I begrudgingly said.
That wasn’t the full story, but I wasn’t about to explain it to Reiven of all people.
Despite the enticing spiced wood overtones, his unmistakable smoky scent still reminded me of the Human who stole me from my home.
The man who tricked me into believing he loved me, only to tie me up and sell me.
There were many things that Reiven did that reminded me of Vaetrik Tynedall. Just another reason to hate him.
The sound of the cloth running against his skin halted suddenly enough for me to want to smack myself for listening so closely. He yanked on his shirt as he stood, muttering, “Maybe now you’ll quit complaining, yeah?”
I didn’t bother answering, but I pulled my top on as well.
“Did you know you whimper and cry and toss around in your sleep?” he asked. “It’s aggravating, especially in such close quarters. What, are you afraid of the dark or something, Siren?”
Darkness comforted me when I lived in the Abyssal Deep.
But living in such close proximity to a man like Reiven, on a ship so similar to Vaetrik’s, brought a tidal wave of ghastly memories that made me tremble.
His voice…Vaetrik’s voice constantly echoed in my mind.
Sometimes it seemed to reverberate within the solid wooden walls of the ship, and no amount of covering my ears or hugging myself would make it stop.
“Look at me, pet.”
I focused on the light outside our cell and reminded myself over and over that I wasn’t on Vaetrik’s ship anymore. That no one was going to hurt me like he did. “You would never understand, so don’t bother asking.”
“Trust me, I don’t plan on interacting with you again until we’re out of here.”
That brought me a surprising amount of comfort. I sat back against the wall and rested my chin on my knees. As long as I kept my gaze on the lantern flame, Vaetrik’s voice tended not to invade my psyche, and soon, my eyelids grew heavy.
Sleep was bliss. Free of Humans, free of glowing chains and Druinnic collars.
If I tried hard enough, sometimes my dreamscape would morph into an underwater cave, alight with glowing corals growing from the ceiling.
Bubbles would rise and pop before my eyes, and the cold water would envelop me in the comforting compression of the Deep. Home.
The slam of the door that led down to the brig jolted me awake.
It was morning, apparently, and Ashkade had come to see us. Well, to see me, and to let me out, like the wonderful lad he was. I threw my arms around him as soon as he locked the cell behind me, with Reiven still seething inside.
“Is it too early for me to say I love you, Ash? Because I think I might love you.” I stuck my tongue out at his bodyguard as Ash laughed.
“Oh, I’m not lettin’ you out just to be nice. I have some work for you, if you can sew. Figured we could repair the sail you ripped. They replaced it with the backup for now, but I told the captain it’d be a better punishment for you than bein’ down here. Build some character, y’know?”
No one ever said my stitches were pretty, but hey, they were functional. Besides, I’d do anything to get out of the hold, especially if it meant leaving Reiven behind to rot.
“Ashkade Taleus Synnex, let me out of here now,” he demanded, glaring like a wrongly accused murderer waiting for his end at the hangman’s noose. His arm shot between the metal bars to snatch the front of Ashkade’s vest, but our young companion merely gave him a calm smile.
“Sorry, you’re still in time out.” It pleased me to no end, seeing this frail teenager lay Reiven flat with his carefree words. He sniffed and wrinkled his nose when Reiven drew him closer to the bars with a growl. “Smells like a lemon farm in here, by the way.”
“What if she tries something on you while I’m down here?”
“I won’t try anything, Ash, I promise.” It had only been a half a day or so, but I was going to scream if I had to keep listening to the gentle slap of the waves against the hull without being able to see the ocean itself.
Besides, the oppressive darkness of the hold was going to crush me if I stayed any longer.
“I really don’t mind doing some hard labor to repay the captain for messing up her sail. ”
As I thought he would, he wriggled out of his bodyguard’s grip and motioned for me to follow him. I blew Reiven a kiss behind Ashkade’s back as we left.