Page 344 of The Spider Queen
By the third day aboard the ghost ship, we were all ready to be on land again. My companions had become irascible, knowing they would have to remain on the ship when we found the island.
Aloysius and I hadn’t spoken since I’d unveiled my entire backstory. In truth, I didn’t know what more I could’ve said. Was I supposed to hide my saga with Lucifer? Was I supposed to deny that even though I felt a burning ball of rage when it came to the fallen angel, I also felt confusion?
At night, while the three of them slept below deck, I remained above. I lay in a hammock and watched the winking stars from above and wondered if the ghosts sailing the ship were using them to guide our course.
On the morning of our fourth day aboard, I felt itchiness underneath my skin and the bangle around my wrist began to contract.
My heart beat in a rapid staccato, and I briefly worried that the pink tentacled sea monster was back and that Poseidon needed to speak to me again, but it wasn’t the case. The sea monster stayed in the deep sea, and the ship sailed along at a steady pace.
But the wind changed and I saw a bird fly across the sky.
“We’re close to the island,” Aloysius said, startling me with his presence.
I jumped, wondering how a desert man walked so silently across wooden planks. It had taken him very little time to adjust to ship life. His skin was even more bronzed. He looked healthy.
I turned my gaze back to the horizon. There was nothing but ocean for miles, and yet I knew he spoke the truth.
“I’m sorry,” he said finally, coming to stand next to me at the rail.
“For?”
“Stella…”
“What do you want me to say?” I asked, turning my body to face him. “Should I not have told you everything?”
He shook his head, his hand playing with the knife at his belt. “I’ve never met anyone like you.”
“What? An empath enslaved to Lucifer?” I teased.
He didn’t smile at my light tone. “I mean it, I’ve never met anyone like you,” he said again as if that explained everything.
And it did.
“I wonder…”
I raised an eyebrow when he didn’t go on right away, urging him to continue.
“I wonder what would’ve happened if I’d met you first.”
I looked away from his intense gaze. The ocean sparkled in the sunlight. I could almost believe we were on Earth and not elsewhere.
“Aloysius”—I paused—“I didn’t even feel desire until I saw him. Not when I was living as a human did I ever feel anything resembling lust. Not for anyone, ever. I thought I was broken. Until him.”
“So you’re saying there would’ve never been a chance for us. Ever…”
I shook my head. “I’m not the one for you. And I wish—” I lurched forward, nearly losing my balance as the ship came to a sudden halt. “What just happened?”
“I don’t know.”
Mist rolled toward us, obscuring our view beyond the ship, and then it parted to reveal a white sandy beach and the trees beyond the shore. We’d found the Island of Mist.
Or it had found us.
I glanced at Aloysius who was staring at the island. His expression was tight with worry.
Exhilaration pumped through me and I was ready.
“Well, that was a bit dramatic,” Meghan grumbled from behind me. Dorian let out a small laugh, but it was riddled with nervousness. It suddenly dawned on me that they weregladthey didn’t have to go on the island. They were adventurous only when they had to be.
