Page 142 of The Sea Witch
Alys’s teeth rattled from the force of the impact. They’d break the ship apart soon. “We’ve done nothing to make them angry.”
Ben darted down from the quarterdeck and ran toward one of the guns.
“Don’t fire on them,” Alys shouted after him. She wouldn’t harm any animal or beast unless absolutely necessary. As long as her ship remained intact, she refused to hurt the creatures.
Ben didn’t seem pleased by her order, but he obeyed.
And then...
The creatures swam away from the quarterdeck. They moved to the part of the ship where Ben stood before resuming their attack, battering themselves into the hull.
“Ben,” she shouted.
“I see it.” Experimentally, he ran to the prow. The creatures followed him. And when he sped back toward the middle of the ship, the beasts did the same.
Alys hurried toward him.
“It’s me,” he said grimly. “They want me.”
“They’re not getting you,” she said at once.
“I should—”
“No. There’s another way.” She glanced over the railing. “We can lure them off with something. Food, perhaps.”
Ben rubbed at his jaw, and his markings were still visible along his neck. As she watched, the dark patterns began to fade.A moment later, they were gone, and his skin returned to its original unmarked state.
The ship leveled. Alys looked over the gunwale.
The creatures turned and swam away. They seemed entirely disinterested in theSea Witchas they vanished beneath the water.
Everyone aboard the ship collected themselves, murmuring.
“What the hell was that?” Thérèse demanded.
“I’ve never witnessed anything like it,” Dorothea said, furrowing her brow.
“There’s no explanation,” Susannah mused, as Inés wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders.
But there was an explanation.
Ben turned to Alys and spoke quietly. “My markings, my... magic.” He looked down at the backs of his hands, now free of the patterns. “They appear when you and I are... close. We knew that at Lambert’s, when we kissed to summon my power to help you find the carving knife. And every time we’ve kissed or been intimate, my markings show up.”
His gaze moved to hers.
“At the island of the Weeping Princess,” Alys said grimly, “creatures followed us to the beach.”
“When we were in the room at the inn at Domingo,” he added. “The chickcharney appeared. And when the Redthorn attacked you—”
“You killed him, we kissed, and two creatures appeared. Then, at Lambert’s enclave, a beast attacked the manor. It was searching for someone.”
“For me,” Ben said darkly. “There’s something about my markings appearing when you are near me... It summons creatures, makes them angry.”
She slammed her fist on the railing. “Fucking Luca Pasquale. Taking that book. We could’ve learned something.”
Frustration rose acidly within her.
“I have to return to theJupiter.” His words were both resolute and somber. “Sooner rather than later. I’ll take the cutter and should intercept them soon.”
