Page 68 of Daughter of the Dark Sea
She wasn’t quite ready to let go of something she couldn’t remember.
“Captain!” a familiar voice boomed from the grand entrance of the parlour room and Kora jolted, swiping her hand from Erick’s.
Samuel barrelled in, his stoic face beaming as he eyed up the feast on the table. “You should’ve told me there’s breakfast. I’d have come sooner, Commodore.” He thudded down next to Kora, piling his plate high as she stared at him stunned.
“Mr Rommier.” Erick’s lips twitched in amusement. “My apologies.”
“Wha-what are you doing here?” Kora spluttered.
“I’m coming with you.”
Samuel smiled down at her as he tucked into his plate of meats and grains. He donned black leathers containing a rare fabric which would protect his body from all sorts of threats—including the scorching heat of the sun. His long wavy hair was tied up out of his face, and his short beard was braided, with silver thread coiled around it.
“I figured a navigational expert would be useful.” Erick nodded at Samuel in a respectable greeting.
“He’s a sailing master, not a cartographer,” Kora muttered.
“What I do for you in my free time.” Samuel nudged her with his beefy elbow and it nearly toppled her out of her chair. “Maps are maps. I know what I’m doing.”
“Captain,” an old voice sounded from the doorway again, and she startled at Aryn’s silent presence lurking by the doors. “I see I’m not the only one.” His eyes pinned on Samuel, who smiled with a mouth full of food, waving in return.
Aryn silently prowled over to the table, taking a seat beside Erick as they stiffly greeted each other, not meeting the other’s gaze. His quiver and longbow were slung across his shoulders, and he was dressed in tan clothing, with a scarf wrapped round his neck and brown leather braces on his forearms. Kora eyed the thin tattoo across his cheek, her own scar tingling.
“Having a second breakfast, Sam?” Aryn’s hazel eyes pointedly looked down at Samuel’s mountainous plate. He’d trimmed his hair since they’d docked, and it was now shorter around the sides and back, whilst still thicker and longer on top. Dark brown strands of hair tousled like waves across his scalp, and his face was clean-shaven.
“Who’s to say it’s only my second?”
Kora rolled her eyes at her sailing master. “So, Aryn’s here because?”
“My skills are valuable in the desert. Archery will be the one of the best defences we have, as well as hunting for food, if we run out. Something I have assured Erick about.” His youthful face didn’t match his wise tone, and it unnerved her.
She nearly choked on her food at the informal address. Bold. Very bold move from Aryn. This archer was becoming quite the interesting character in her crew.
“I promise, that’s it. I’m confident in the four of you.” Erick’s strained smile didn’t reach his eyes.
Kora eagerly gazed towards the entrance to the room in hopes of seeing a tall, dark familiar shadow, but was met with the consistent absence of whom she longed for. He’d said they’d meet at first light, but that’d been nearly two hours ago. Erick followed her gaze and shook his head disapprovingly.
Of course, he wouldn’t allow Blake here unless it was vital. He always sought to keep them separated as much as possible when they were in Aldara, and it added to Kora’s continuous simmering temper. She glared at Erick, followed by a jerk of the chin to her crew at the table.
Protection, my arse. You invited them on purpose.He wasn’t worried about exiles in the desert, he was concerned about Blake getting in her trousers. Their plan for the desert had been sliced to pieces by Erick’s sword. They wouldn’t get a moment of peace together, especially with Samuel as part of the envoy. And Aryn was too insightful for his own good.
“There’ll be more of you travelling back, but travel light, and travel fast. You’ll be a bigger target as a larger group. The rebels will want your resources, maybe even the sentinel for ransom.” Erick averted his stare from Kora, addressing the males.
“I hope this sentinel isn’t completely useless,” she moaned quietly.
Royal sentinels were uppity advisors to the royal family. They lived and breathed by the laws created by the monarchy, and sought to ensure the citizens of their lands abided by them. They frequently travelled across the continent in disguise, returning their findings to the king to advise on how best to enforce the law on heretics and criminals.
In this case, the sentinel was coming to snoop on the islands, the noble houses, and viceroys. Plugging the gap in advance for the king, on the island’s weaknesses and strengths, and to commence establishing new laws for the unification of the islands and continent.
“Aye, I’ve mapped the route already,” Samuel mumbled through food. “We’ll avoid the desert until we reach the border, but we’ll have no choice the closer we get to the south.”
“Just keep away from the Southern Oasis. My scouts say the exiles are getting closer to claiming it.” Erick cast a glance at Aryn, who disinterestedly observed Samuel fitting as many eggs as he could in his mouth.
As the males discussed strategies, Kora attempted to finish the remainder of her food. They had to take the bare minimum with them, to not overload the horses. It was the peak of the summer months, and the desert would be deathly hot, with the Southern Oasis being their only salvation if they ran out of water.
Erick’s hot-and-cold eyes kept flickering back to her, but she moved her fork from her plate to her mouth as if she were a mindless phantom, her mind lost in thought. His observant gaze lingered on her hair, and she was glad to not be havingthatconversation any time soon.
“Wow . . . that lemon ishuge!” Samuel exclaimed.
