Chapter 27
DRAYA
Hazel was less than thrilled to see me when I knocked on her door the following day, and I couldn’t blame her. I’d allowed myself to get far too intimate with her, and had spent the last twenty-four hours trying to calm my tumultuous thoughts.
I had never felt like this about anyone before. Hazel entered my life with the force of the hurricane that lay dormant inside her, and she’d taken hold of my very soul. In a way, I hated it, how weak she made me, but another part of me craved her.
Unfortunately, our tasks ahead couldn’t wait for me to figure out how to deal with these newfound emotions, so I pushed it all aside and strode up to her door as if nothing was wrong.
Hazel did not utter a single word as we made our way to the Queen’s residence, nor as we gathered around the slab of driftwood in the center of our meeting room.
She stayed close to me, flanking my left side, but never close enough to touch.
Commander Adri was already there, along with the Queen and everyone who had accompanied us on our visit to Lord Emerson’s ship.
Maki recounted the events of the journey, which I was grateful for, because the thought of having to repeat what Lord Emerson had said to Hazel made my blood boil.
The Queen was expressionless for most of the story, but her face fell at the mention of the horrendous use of Talassi skin and blood we had discovered in his chambers.
She held her head high and showed little emotion, but I imagined it must have been awful to have her worst fears about her son confirmed.
“Where is my son being held?” She asked, after a moment of silence.
“We don’t know for sure,” Maki said, “but we suspect he may be on Akala Island.”
Her eyes immediately focused on Hazel, who stiffened beside me. She still wasn’t able to shift fully, so she stood on the floor. The rest of us were floating in the water, and it was a bit awkward to have someone just standing there. I’m sure the Queen’s wrath didn’t make her feel much better.
“You mean to tell me that my son was in the same place as you for two years?” Fury laced the Queen’s words.
“I didn’t know,” Hazel responded. “I was an inpatient at the Akala Asylum, bound by their rules and regulations. From what I was told, the only thing on the island was the Asylum. The landmass is quite small, with only a beach, the hospital, and a cliff side.”
“I find it suspicious that you appear to be so clueless, Miss Emerson,” the Queen pressed further. I bit my tongue, my jaw tensing as reminders of the horrendous torture Hazel had endured in that place surfaced in my mind.
“Your Majesty, pardon my disrespect, but I am not clueless.”
My heart skipped a beat, and every head in the room turned as the words left Hazel’s mouth.
“I was subject to all kinds of horrible treatments in that wretched place,” she said.
“But I watched. I listened. I saw things and kept my mouth shut. Something odd is happening on that island, I’m sure of it.
Staff in white coats were everywhere, but only a few interacted with us as patients.
Tunnels and doorways filled the grounds and hallways, though plenty were locked and some led nowhere.
We were only allowed to roam under supervision of our nurses, but mine was lenient. ”
I raised a brow, listening intently as she spoke. Until now, she hadn’t told me many details about her time at Akala, and I was intrigued.
“I spent many nights on the beach, specifically at the end of the jetties that appear during low tide,” she continued.
“Sometimes, when the moonlight shone at the right angle, I noticed an opening to a cave at the end of the longest jetty. For years I wanted to swim to it, as it wasn’t accessible by land, but I’d imagine it may lead deeper into the island.
To the areas one cannot access from outside the hospital. ”
“Emerson’s trade routes show routine stops there,” I offered. “So clearly there’s a port of some kind. It must be on the other side of the cliffs, which would explain why it wasn’t visible from the asylum.”
“He could be using a spell of sorts to disguise the ships, too,” Commander Adri offered.
“Well,” the Queen began, “your task ahead is clear. Make your way back to that dreadful island, and don’t come back without my son.”
We all nodded in acceptance, and the Queen dismissed herself.
The rest of our day was spent drawing up maps and plans, and Hazel gave us a surprisingly vast amount of information.
Her perceptiveness was almost unsettling, and I wondered how much knowledge she’d gleaned of the Talassi since I brought her to the Capital.
My heart ached at the thought of how I’d left her the day prior, but I couldn’t let those feelings take over. We still weren’t positive that she was not an enemy, and I had no idea what to do with a woman besides fuck her.
I’d slept with other Talassi in the past, and of course I’d enjoyed the experience, but it had always been a quick, emotionless chase for pleasure.
Legends painted our kind as sensual beings, and it wasn’t untrue, but I didn’t consider myself to be skilled in that particular set of Talassian skills.
Never in my life had I experienced a pull this intense towards anyone. Let alone a woman who was born human. My thoughts were a jumbled mess, and by the time I brought Hazel back to her room, I was looking forward to returning to my little cottage and having a long, uninterrupted sleep.