Page 337 of The Spider Queen
“You first,” Meghan urged, appearing pale.
I grinned but held my tongue. No use teasing Meghan about her fear of water, the sea, and now sailing.
I grasped the rope ladder and scaled up. The ship’s side was at least twenty feet high. My feet hit the deck and I looked around. Whatever spirits commanded the ship, I couldn’t see them.
Bowing my head, I said, “Thank you.”
The sails snapped, causing me to jump. I let out a startled laugh. Even I wasn’t above being spooked.
Meghan jumped onto the deck, followed quickly by Dorian and then Aloysius.
“What now?” Meghan asked.
“Now,” I said, turning my face to the sky. “I ask them to take us to the Island of Mist.”
Chapter 29
“I hate you.” Meghan glowered at me right before she threw herself against the railing of the starboard side.
So far, I was the only one who hadn’t been plagued by seasickness. We’d been on the water for a few hours, clipping along at a good pace as far as I could tell. Not that I’d spent any time sailing when I’d lived in Manhattan, so I really couldn’t say.
I stood at the helm, the wind in my hair, breathing in the salty spray. “No one held a knife to your throat and asked you to come along,” I pointed out with a wry smile.
She glared again and wiped a hand across her sweaty brow. “How long until we’re there?”
I shrugged. As soon as I’d uttered our destination, the ghost ship had immediately set sail, but it wasn’t as though ghosts were good conversationalists and could tell us how long it would be before we got there.
“Have you really never left the desert? I mean, aside from hunting in the forest?”
Meghan shook her head. “Why would I leave? Where would I go?”
“I don’t know. Don’t you have a sense of adventure?”
“Not all of us feel the need to wander, Stella.” She looked like she wanted to say more, but she quickly placed a hand over her mouth.
Aloysius and Dorian came up from below deck. When they’d gone to explore, they’d both been green around the edges. Now they looked like they’d found their sea legs.
Dorian held up a cask. “I don’t know what’s in this wine, but it settled my stomach.”
“Mine too,” Aloysius agreed.
Meghan held out her hand and Dorian handed over the cask. She took a long draught and then clutched it around the neck.
“What else did you find below deck?” I asked.
“Four immaculate rooms, each fit for a king,” Aloysius said with a grin.
“What about food?” Meghan wondered. “This ghost ship has wine, which is great, but—”
“There’s a banquet waiting for us,” her brother interrupted.
“Lead the way,” Meghan said. “And you’re right. This wine is doing the trick.”
“Stella?” Aloysius asked.
“I’m fine,” I said, turning my gaze back to the horizon, to the golden disk that was starting to set. “I’ll be there in a bit.”
Aloysius lowered his voice when he spoke to his sister and told her to go ahead and eat. I heard their soft footsteps as Meghan and Dorian left. Aloysius came to stand next to me and placed his hands on the rail. His hands were so much larger than mine, tanned and weathered, scarred.
