Page 3 of Sea and Sky
“Please. I have a little girl, she’s the sweetest little thing—”
“What would you do if someone threatened her life or freedom?” Kyler riffled through the wardrobe as the man continued to bleed. So far, finding nothing valuable.
“Kill him.”
“By that logic, you deserve to die. I just have to wait.” Kyler sat on top of the desk and watched. “It could take hours.”
Captain Farol coughed, spurting more blood over the floor.
“Or minutes.” Kyler kicked his legs as if he were a child waiting for a treat.
Captain Farol’s breathing sped up. “Skies, it hurts.” A sheen of sweat glistened on his paling skin.
Kyler couldn’t bring himself to let him die, though. He wasn’t a killer. And if the man was telling the truth about having a daughter, Kyler didn’t want to be the reason she grew up without her father. Kyler swung to the back of the desk and dug around in a drawer, finding the small bowl he saw in his earlier search.
“I’m going to leave you some immortal jellyfish essence. It’ll heal you.” Kyler untangled a glass pendant from the hiding spot in his hair and poured just enough essence Captain Farol would need to heal the worst of the gut wound. The shimmering jellylike glob looked more like snot than anything he ever wanted to ingest, but the substance did the job. Slurp it down and even grave injuries healed.
Twisting the top back on the pendant, Kyler did one final search through the desk. Nothing. Though the gems and letter opener weighed down his shirt, he knew none would fetch enough to finish his pile of coins for his freedom. Captain Vex refused anything other than coin for the bargain.
Needing more to sell off, the jeweled curtains over the bed caught Kyler’s eye. He was halfway there when the door slammed open and another man burst through.
Thick horns curved towards the ceiling of the new dragon shifter. He wore the same type of uniform as the captain, but his color was red. Kyler didn’t know the meaning of the colors, just the meaning of uniforms. And uniforms brought pain.
Abandoning the curtains, Kyler pointed to the bowl of healing essence. “If you want your captain to live, he needs that.”
Captain Farol grunted, waved towards Kyler. “Forget about me, get the mer.”
“I’m not mer.” As if denying his truth made the lie real. Kyler raced to the window at the back of the cabin. But the new dragon shifter after him caught his wrist before he could make it.
Kyler spun, decking the dragon shifter in the face. All that happened was a sore fist and gave an opening for the shifter to take him by the throat. Kyler clung to the thick fingers around his neck and kicked out as his feet rose from the floor.
Nothing was going as planned.
“Don’t fucking kill him.” Captain Farol tried to stand, but cried out, sinking again.
The distraction from the captain bought Kyler time. He freed the letter opener from his shirt pocket. With all his waning strength, he stabbed the shifter in the chest.
Wide-eyed, the shifter dropped Kyler. He staggered back and fell onto the desk. The bowl of immortal jellyfish essence clattered to the floor.
“You might share that if you both want to live.” Kyler nodded to the glowing goo sliding around as the ship groaned and rolled on the waves.
Kyler held onto anything tacked down and made his way to the window, ignoring the shouts of the dying men behind him.
It took a bit of coaxing to get the window open, but in the end, Kyler won. Breaking away the thick glass enough that Kyler could jump to the frothing foam below.
Diving, he realized too late he left his pendant of immortal jellyfish essence in the desk. He cursed himself. It took three days to make a single batch, and he lost his year’s worth.
Freezing water rushed by as Kyler sank deeper and deeper into the churning storm struck sea. He hated storms. A storm is what got him in Captain’s Vex possession.
Kyler’s lungs burned as his gills surfaced slowly at his throat. Eyes stung like a thousand jellyfish stingers had latched onto his face until his second eyelid slid into place. His blond hair fanned out in every direction around his head. Legs fused and elongated, sapphire blue tail fanned out behind him. Thin skin webbed between his fingers. Fingernails became thicker, longer, weapons for the deep sea if needed. His cry released all his saved air. Gills finally flared out to drink in the salty sea, giving him a deep breath. He had wanted to stay human for much longer. But he also needed to get away. Undulating his bottom half, he fled from the ship. Hand over hand, pulling water, he moved quickly.
Doubt for his freedom washed over Kyler. Summer was almost over, and he still needed too much coin. Plus, the patch of scales kept growing, which concerned him.
Chapter 2
PrinceGavinbreathedinthe familiar scent of leather and ink. It was a fresh change compared to the perfumed air through the rest of the establishment that held his private library. Downstairs, patrons paid for release. Upstairs, Gavin studied. Whenever he was home in Lane, anyway. He’d found having a library away from the palace was a good idea. No one followed him to the brothel to look over his shoulder. Of course, he also had a library in his chambers in the palace. He couldn’t be far from his books for long.
He hung his cloak on the hook by the door. Sweat dripped down his back. It was entirely too hot to be so bundled up, but he didn’t want people knowing who he was.
