Page 43 of Reign of Light
“Hey,” Sig says, her lips tipped up in a smirk. “Lennox is the only one who can put up with Cap, and she wanted nothing to do with him at first. They couldn’t even be near each other. Be happy Taril wants to be around you.”
“Hey!” I cry and pick up a berry off my plate. I throw it, hoping to surprise her with the flying fruit, but she leans to the side and catches it in her mouth, chewing with a smile.
“How are things, by the way?” Auralie asks, turning to me. “Everyone seems happy. Much less growly.”
“If you mean Cap isn’t going to take anyone’s head off anymore, then you’re right about that.” Sig’s eyes widen and her head tilts, as I’m sure the memory of Weston’s fury when I left is fresh in her mind.
“Yeah, well, regular fucking will do that to you. Had to get all that frustration out,” Stass says with a wave of her hand.
“You know, Stass, I want Taril to get a little courage,” I say, “because I can’t wait to poke just as much fun at you.”
Stass looks at me with a half shrug. “As long as someone is getting poked, that’s what matters.” I almost spit out my bite as laughter bursts from the four of us, and rings through the calm morning air. Slapping my hand over my mouth, my shoulders shake with laughter, and my cheeks hurt from smiling so much.
How did I go my entire life without having female friends like this?
The echo of familiar footsteps sounds from behind us, just before Weston’s voice rings out in the ship’s hull.
“Collection crew! Meet on the quarterdeck!” Weston steps out onto the main deck a moment later, and I look over my shoulder at him. He seems much more relaxed this morning. His hair is more tousled than it normally is, and I bite my lip as my eyes drag over the rest of his body. The buttons at the top of his shirt are undone, exposing the hard planes of his chest, and his hem is tucked unevenly into his pants. There’s no vest today, probably because safety is no longer a concern. He doesn’t have to be as heavily armed as he usually is.
As if he can sense it, his eyes catch mine and he smirks before turning toward the bow of the ship. His fingers flick at the group lounging at the far end of the deck, calling them over, before he steps up behind me.
“Good morning, ladies,” he grumbles and leans forward, placing a brisk kiss on the top of my head.
Stassia shoots me a look, and I narrow my eyes at her playfully before Auralie responds cheerfully, “Morning, Captain.”
“Let’s go,” he instructs, jerking his head toward the staircase leading to the quarterdeck. The girls slide their crates back and step away from the table as Weston extends his hand out toward me. I lay my palm on his, and he pulls me to stand before ushering me up the steps in front of him with a hand planted firmly on my waist.
The girls follow closely behind, and it is only minutes before the crew is gathered, standing in a semicircle and waiting for Weston’s next direction.
“You’re not going to tell us something went wrong again, are you, Cap?” Jorn jokes, and he’s met with a few chuckles.
“No, nothing like that,” Weston says with a smile, which is already so different from the energy that surrounds our normal collection crew gatherings.
“Good, because I’m getting a little tired of all the back and forth,” Stassia says, tossing her hair over her shoulder. “There’s too much commotion.”
“I agree, Stass. Hopefully, there are no more surprises. Not now at least,” he says and settles his hips on the railing behind him. “But you’ll all be the first to know if there are. Some of you already know, but we told the Voyagers about the waters yesterday morning and gave them the night to decide if they want to go into the mountain. If anyone wants to help us guide them over, you are welcome to come.”
There are a few nods and hand gestures, and Weston acknowledges them with a single nod. He crosses his arms over his chest before he continues.
“We don’t know if anyone will be deemed worthy, especially with the change in the situation on the island. But since we’re going to beout there, if anyone wants to go out on a shift during daylight hours, it might be different than looking at night.”
“I’ll go, Cap,” Veck calls out, and Eirlich adds, “Me too.”
Weston nods. “You can leave once we get them all inside. Report back if you find anything out of the ordinary. We’re all settling into this new normal, but I promised I wouldn’t stop trying to get you home. Even though I want us all to be safe and happy with how things are now, I don’t want to give up hope.”
“Aww, Cap, don’t get soft on us,” Jorn says. Weston shoots him a glare, but Jorn only laughs heartily.
“The same as we always do, I’ll be waiting for them on the beach tonight. Anyone who wants to gather more of the crew and prep a bonfire, I figured we could all be there for them. Support them. We know what each of them might go through, and this could be the last time we’ll see anyone come out of that mountain. I want to leave it on a good note.”
“I’d be happy to gather some of the crew and get things set up, Captain,” Auralie says.
“Good. Thank you everyone. Anyone who is coming to the mountain, we’re leaving in a few minutes.” Gripping the rail, he leans far over and looks toward the beach, then lets out a huff. “They’re already ready, and from the looks of it, every single one of them is going to try.”
Bodies clamor and footsteps shuffle as we all make our way to the railing beside Weston and peer toward the beach. My eyes fall on the group gathered there; all the Voyagers waiting patiently for us to come.
Weston straightens and gestures toward the stairs to the main deck, giving everyone the go-ahead to move.
“Let’s go see what Dawnlin decides.”
