across his face. “And lose my reputation as a cynical bastard? What fun would that be?”
I rolled my eyes and shook my head, pretending not to notice the way his gaze traced over my face.
This was the first time we had really spoken to each other since arguing about Riley. The tension hadn’t completely dulled between us, but I was hoping to at least remove the awkwardness it left behind.
“How long do you think it will be before the storm hits?” I asked.
Sawyer and I looked up at the sky, watching the thick grey clouds bring heavy snowflakes and harsh winds.
“Another hour, maybe,” answered Sawyer. “But it’s going to be a nasty one. If it gets bad, we might have to seek shelter here for the night until it passes.”
That made me turn and look at him. “We can’t leave Abby alone that long,” I said sharply. “What if the Vesper gets into her mind again and she hurts Moira? What if she hurts herself?” The image of her attacking someone as strong as Nash flickered through my mind again. Moira was a small, fragile woman with a broken mind and an open heart toward my sister. If the Vesper invaded Abby’s mind and made her react violently again, Moira wouldn’t be able to protect herself. She might not even try.
“We can’t help Abby if we freeze to death,” Sawyer reasoned. “We don’t have the tools to predict the weather weeks in advance anymore. The search will go faster with all of us, so maybe we can miss the worst of it, but I’m not driving the skiff back in the middle of a blizzard.”
I scowled at him, marching away from the helm and sitting on the deck next to Riley. He watched me silently as I folded my arms over my chest.
“Are you all right?” he asked me, shifting closer to I could hear him over the wind.
“I’d be better if Sawyer sped this damn skiff up,” I complained.
Riley glanced at the captain. He returned his gaze to me. “He’s doing his best, Claire. A sterner, saner captain wouldn’t have gone out in a storm at all. But he did so because you asked him.”
I tightened my arms over my chest, refusing to look at Sawyer even though I could feel his golden gaze on me.
“I know you’re worried about Abby,” he continued, “but she’ll be safe as long as Moira’s with her.”
I wanted to believe that, but the knots of worry in my stomach wouldn’t untangle. Abby was barely eating, unable to sleep through her nightmares, wracked with cold sweat and chills, and bleeding red into her irises. She was slipping away from us, becoming something I couldn’t dare think about. I didn’t know how much time she had left, if there was anything Moira could do to delay her morbid transition. If there wasn’t, and the Abby I knew and loved disappeared into something else...
Riley reached across the skiff and gently squeezed my knee. His gentle, trusting smile reassured me. Like the rest of us, he was bundled in a heavy, fur-lined coat and pants, thick leather gloves, and fleece-lined winter boots. His hair was tossed wildly from the breeze around the skiff, his ears, cheeks, and nose rosy from the cold, but he looked content. Happy, even. I managed to smile back at him, grateful for the comfort he was offering me, even if it was hollow in the end.
“Is that it up there?” Gemma asked, shouting over the howling wind.
I turned in my seat to look at the female marauder, then let my eyes slide over the bow of the skiff to the winding road ahead. I scuttled to the front of the ship, holding onto the mast so I could gaze at the hillside estates. The secluded, peaceful part of the city where I grew up.
The elegant gothic homes that once stood on the hills were reduced to splinters. Pieces of shattered stone tumbled down the hill to create a crude path. Oak trees that once stood proud between the houses were now bare, blackened fingers poking up from a desolate earth.
Sawyer tilted the skiff, pushing us up the hillside and past the first line of
I rolled my eyes and shook my head, pretending not to notice the way his gaze traced over my face.
This was the first time we had really spoken to each other since arguing about Riley. The tension hadn’t completely dulled between us, but I was hoping to at least remove the awkwardness it left behind.
“How long do you think it will be before the storm hits?” I asked.
Sawyer and I looked up at the sky, watching the thick grey clouds bring heavy snowflakes and harsh winds.
“Another hour, maybe,” answered Sawyer. “But it’s going to be a nasty one. If it gets bad, we might have to seek shelter here for the night until it passes.”
That made me turn and look at him. “We can’t leave Abby alone that long,” I said sharply. “What if the Vesper gets into her mind again and she hurts Moira? What if she hurts herself?” The image of her attacking someone as strong as Nash flickered through my mind again. Moira was a small, fragile woman with a broken mind and an open heart toward my sister. If the Vesper invaded Abby’s mind and made her react violently again, Moira wouldn’t be able to protect herself. She might not even try.
“We can’t help Abby if we freeze to death,” Sawyer reasoned. “We don’t have the tools to predict the weather weeks in advance anymore. The search will go faster with all of us, so maybe we can miss the worst of it, but I’m not driving the skiff back in the middle of a blizzard.”
I scowled at him, marching away from the helm and sitting on the deck next to Riley. He watched me silently as I folded my arms over my chest.
“Are you all right?” he asked me, shifting closer to I could hear him over the wind.
“I’d be better if Sawyer sped this damn skiff up,” I complained.
Riley glanced at the captain. He returned his gaze to me. “He’s doing his best, Claire. A sterner, saner captain wouldn’t have gone out in a storm at all. But he did so because you asked him.”
I tightened my arms over my chest, refusing to look at Sawyer even though I could feel his golden gaze on me.
“I know you’re worried about Abby,” he continued, “but she’ll be safe as long as Moira’s with her.”
I wanted to believe that, but the knots of worry in my stomach wouldn’t untangle. Abby was barely eating, unable to sleep through her nightmares, wracked with cold sweat and chills, and bleeding red into her irises. She was slipping away from us, becoming something I couldn’t dare think about. I didn’t know how much time she had left, if there was anything Moira could do to delay her morbid transition. If there wasn’t, and the Abby I knew and loved disappeared into something else...
Riley reached across the skiff and gently squeezed my knee. His gentle, trusting smile reassured me. Like the rest of us, he was bundled in a heavy, fur-lined coat and pants, thick leather gloves, and fleece-lined winter boots. His hair was tossed wildly from the breeze around the skiff, his ears, cheeks, and nose rosy from the cold, but he looked content. Happy, even. I managed to smile back at him, grateful for the comfort he was offering me, even if it was hollow in the end.
“Is that it up there?” Gemma asked, shouting over the howling wind.
I turned in my seat to look at the female marauder, then let my eyes slide over the bow of the skiff to the winding road ahead. I scuttled to the front of the ship, holding onto the mast so I could gaze at the hillside estates. The secluded, peaceful part of the city where I grew up.
The elegant gothic homes that once stood on the hills were reduced to splinters. Pieces of shattered stone tumbled down the hill to create a crude path. Oak trees that once stood proud between the houses were now bare, blackened fingers poking up from a desolate earth.
Sawyer tilted the skiff, pushing us up the hillside and past the first line of
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