Page 87 of The Sea Witch
“I’ve never been to Massachusetts.”
“I’m sure you’d be welcome there far more than I ever was. You’ve been to Domingo Town before?”
“Long enough to be impressed by All Saints’ baroque style and stained glass. The wealthiest local citizens are its benefactors. But I’m less impressed by the shop selling charts and outdated maps that leave off half the known world.”
Alys took a step into the town before Ben pulled her into a remarkably clean alleyway.
“I don’t have the time or desire for a back-alley tryst,” she said flatly.
Something poked him in the chest. A small dagger had appeared in her hand and dug between the second and third button of his waistcoat.
He pointed to a nearby wall, where sheets of paper had been pasted, bearing the likeness of several disreputable men. But he gestured to one in particular, with the wordWANTEDblazed across it. Beneath that was an illustration of a woman, the hair helpfully colored in with red ink. Beneath that, there was a banner proclaimingREWARD FOR INFORMATION LEADING TO THE CAPTURE OF CAPTAIN ALYS TANNER, £200.
“My hair isn’t that shade,” Alys insisted. “Still, two hundred pounds is a flattering amount.”
“You fail to see the significance of that handbill.”
She rolled her eyes. “We’ll use disguises.”
“I can obtain a veil from one of the clothing shops, and we should powder your hair. Also—”
“Ben,” she said, and he quieted immediately. “There’s another way to hide who we are.”
“We?No one is offering two hundred pounds for me.”
“It’s likely that the navy’s also put out word that you’re missing. And you’ve been to Domingo Town before. They’ll know you here.”
He scratched his chin. Even though he was fully bearded now, there was always the chance someone might recognize him. “How are you going to disguise us?”
“Firstly,” she said, crisp, “I’m going to need you to stop talking.”
He shut his mouth. Once she seemed satisfied by his silence, she pressed her hand against his chest and closed her eyes.
Surely, she could feel how, beneath her palm, his heart pounded from her touch.
Yet she made no remark. Instead, her lips moved in a silent stream of words. A soft glow encircled her, shimmering along her skin. He forced himself to remain still as the glow expanded, enveloping him. It tingled along his flesh, as though hundreds of moths alit upon him with delicate legs and fluttering wings.
Her features shifted beneath the glow. Her nose became thinner, her cheekbones lowering, her mouth changing, full lips compressing into a little bow. Her bosom grew rounder and her hair shifted from glossy deep russet to flaxen curls.
More tingling glided over his face. He lifted his hand to touch his features, yet they felt the same to him.
The glow dissipated, the tingling stopped, and she stepped back with a long exhale.
“No more Captain Alys Tanner,” she announced. “Go ahead and greet Miss Abigail Williams.”
“A remarkable disguise,” he said. “What of mine?”
She smirked and nodded toward a nearby puddle. “Tell me you recognize yourself.”
He went to the puddle and exclaimed when he gazed into its reflective surface. A man with waves of tawny hair, wide-set brown eyes, and a pointy nose looked back at him.
“I feel the same.” He touched his face once again.
“Glamours exist only on the surface. Beneath the illusion, we haven’t changed. Here.” She took his hand and brought it to her face, gliding his fingertips along her cheeks and lips. “Feels no different.”
“No different,” was all he could manage, his voice hoarse.
Her movements stilled, and she stared up at him with eyes that weren’t hers, yet beneath the change of shape and color, there was the spark that belonged to her alone, charging the air between them.
