Page 50 of Of Songs and Silence

If I thought Einar was oversized for a human, it’s nothing compared to the newcomer. Navy eyes glare at us from underneath a hood made of scales as his full lips curl back in what is obviously disdain.

Celestial hells.

For all of the Mayima who have been following us since we left Bondé, none have boarded our ship until now.

I draw my metal stars—not because I think they’ll do any good, but because I’ll be damned if I’m taken out without at least having a weapon in my hand. Remy stands beside me, slightly in front but not enough to interfere with my range of motion. His hand goes to his sword hilt, but he doesn’t draw it.

The alarm bells finally quiet as the crew lines up in formation on either side of us, weapons at the ready while they await orders from their king. The Mayima looks both unconcerned and unimpressed. He opens his mouth, but my sister and Einar burst onto the deck before he can speak.

Zaina assesses the situation with a single sweep of her eyes. She doesn’t go for her weapon, though. The Mayima turns to give her the same look he’s giving the rest of us, but stops in his tracks when Khijhana rears forward. She stalks between him and my sister, her lips pulled back to reveal those stars-blessed silver teeth of hers.

He doesn’t look nearly as blasé now.

“Peace, cat-dragon,” he says, raising his hands. “If I had come to kill them, I would have by now.”

Khijhana stops like she understands him, tilting her head to the side as she studies him from head to toe. Still, she doesn’t move from where she is firmly planted in front of Zaina.

“I don’t know about you, but usually, I don’t just board someone’s boat without an invitation unless my intentions are questionable,” I call out over the booming of thunder and the rush of wind. “So, if you aren’t here to kill us, then why are you here?”

A thought strikes me then just as lighting does the water. “Did Natia send you?”

He narrows his eyes at the name, his lips curling back in a snarl. “Natia is in no position to send anyone anywhere.”

He might be talking about her social standing, but somehow I doubt it. Recalling her fear at helping us, a stab of guilt goes through me. Before I can voice my concern aloud, Remy cuts in.

“Then why are you here?”

“Kala—Melodi sent me.”

I hardly have space to register the strange name he called her first because I’m too busy reeling from his flippant words. What the hell does he know about Melodi?

Khijhana growls, and he backs away. I’m not surprised to see Zaina step forward with fire in her eyes.

“What do you know about my sister?” she asks the question before I can.

He shrugs a shoulder.

“That she’s more trouble than she’s worth, at the moment,” he mutters, looking irritably between Zaina and her enormous cat.

When Khijhana stalks toward him once again, he relents.

“Yoursister—who is clearly not blood related to you, seeing as she’s currently inhabiting the Palace of Mayim and you would be very much dead in her place—sent me to deliver the message that she is safe. Though, if I may add my own commentary, that’s not strictly true, not that there’s anything you can do about it from up here.”

Another flash of lightning and the crash of thunder punctuates his words. Before any of us can respond, he continues.

“Of course, no one is strictly safe in Mayim, myself included if anyone spots me on this boat. So I’ll be off now. Consider your message delivered, and I was never here.”

He gives us a small salute and turns toward the side of the boat.

“Wait!” I call, rain pouring into my eyes and mouth as I dart forward. “You have to give us more than that.”

His shoulders sag and he sighs loudly, but doesn’t dive into the water. Instead, he spins on his heel to face us again, even though he clearly isn’t happy about it.

“Even if I wanted to stay to chat with a bunch of humans—and whatever he is,” he gestures in Einar’s direction, casting him a suspicious look, “I have about a minute left before I need to get back into the sea. So ask your questions quickly.”

“You called her Kala,” Zaina rushes to say.

“It means—”

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