Sea Dweller (Birthstone Series) (20 page)

“I’ve saved this for years in
case I ever needed to defend your life with it. I would die fighting for you,
Aylen,” she said softly, rummaging around in the bottom of the trunk.

“Paelor, please don’t,” Dad
said, making his way to her side.

“No, it’s time.” Mom waved
his hands away as he tried to shut the lid. Finally, she pulled out a long,
slender scabbard and from that she withdrew her sword. The sword’s grip was
well worn where her fingers had held it over the years and I wondered how many
battles it had seen. The cross guard had been etched with elegant swirls
trailing behind a golden butterfly. Inside the butterfly’s wings were tiny
jewels. The entire sword was only slightly longer than my arm but looked sturdy
and wickedly sharp.

“As you know, this was mine
on the mainland. I carried it everywhere.” She held it out to me, hilt first.

“Are you giving this to me?”
I asked, wrapping my fingers around the hilt and taking it from her.

“If this is the path you’re
choosing to follow, your father and I will stand beside you. We won’t leave the
island until you do. In the meantime, I want you to have a way to protect
yourself should the need arise.”

“Do you think I’ll have to
protect myself soon?” I asked, pulling my eyes from the tip of the sword to
meet her gaze.

She turned to my father,
questioning him with a look. “We might all be protecting ourselves soon,” he
said. “If Perin and Aluce feel so strongly about you doing this now, it can
only mean they have reason to believe the king is closer to finding us.”

“How will you defend yourself
without this?” I asked my mother, taking the scabbard from her and sliding the
sword into it.

“I have other weapons,” she
whispered, her eyes wandering to the trunk. I wondered how many unused gems
she’d hidden away and I wondered how it would affect her to use them.

My father, his eyes grave and
his smile sad, walked to my mother and placed his arms around her waist. Her
head dropped onto his shoulder and remained there.

I observed in silence,
realizing I was seeing something pass between them I couldn’t understand. Their
pasts, fears, and inner struggles separated me from them. They’d done
everything they could to shelter me from the things they’d seen and fled from.
And I was about to leave that shelter to face it all anyway.

Sensing their need to be
alone, I turned and retreated to my corner of the hut. There, I lay down,
doubting I would ever sleep. Adrenaline and fear shook my very core.

But somehow, my eyes slid
closed and with a sword as a bedmate and two jewels for companions, my weary
mind fled from consciousness.

Chapter 16

I woke with a gasp. Images of
Sai’s lips coming closer to mine and vivid dreams of my parents’ fearful faces
had haunted my sleep all night long. I shook my head, trying to clear my hazy
mind. Glancing around, I took in the dim hut and breathed a sigh of relief.
Everyone else was still asleep.

I forced myself to my feet
and picked up the sword, still nestled in its scabbard. With as little noise as
possible, I fastened it around my body along with the pouch holding my gems.
After tying my hair back, I tiptoed into the main area of the hut. My father’s
snores rumbled behind my parent’s partition and I smiled at the easy
familiarity of the sound. Softly, I picked up the small gray rocks just outside
the door of our home and brought them inside. Placing them in front of the
door, I arranged them in a perfect tight circle. It had always been my way of
telling my parents I would be back soon anytime I needed to leave without their
permission. The smaller the circle, the sooner I would be back. I would still
have to answer for my absence when I returned, but I wasn’t in the mood to
explain first and act later. Time was short.

Finished with my message, I
slipped out into the cool, early morning air, grabbing some fruit from a nearby
tree to munch on the way.  When I had finished, I broke into a run. I raced
through the forest, each step slapping the dewy ground in a steady, urgent
rhythm while the sun rose resolute and slow in contrast to my frenzied pace.

 Later, as the forest grew
thicker, I glanced around for familiar landmarks that would tell me I was going
in the right direction. Aluce had hidden her home well in the depths of the
jungle, but since it had only been days since I’d visited, I hoped I could find
it again. The forest had awakened and I began to grow tired before I finally
glimpsed a gnarled tree with enormous exposed roots. I had nearly tripped over
the same tree during the storm when Sai and I had wandered through the forest.
I was close.

I caught the dry pungent
scent of chimney smoke wafting through the trees and I chased after it knowing
where it would lead. When I arrived, I halted, inches in front of Aluce’s door.
Taking a deep breath, I summoned whatever courage I could gather before pushing
it open.

Aluce sat by her fire,
stoking the coals silently. She didn’t bother to look up at me.

“Come to return my map?” she
asked.

I snorted. “Not likely.”

“It’s rare and I’d like it
back.” She kept her voice even.

“Well, I’ll count it as
payment for stepping up and saving your skin.”

“You haven’t saved anyone’s
skin yet, Aylen,” she said calmly. It bothered me how unruffled she remained.

“You tricked me,” I said. “You
set me up and made me think you were helping me but really, you were only
forcing me into a situation where I would have to help
you
.”

She finally lifted her eyes
and met my angry glare with a maddening expression of serenity. “Do you really
believe that’s what I did?”

“I know it is. And even
though I wanted to know more, I didn’t want to be manipulated into accepting a
life altering responsibility. This could destroy my family.” My hands balled
into tight fists and I took a step forward.

“Oh, don’t be so dramatic,”
Aluce said, waving her fingers as though she could flick my words away. 
Ignoring her, I continued on, undaunted.

 “We mean nothing to you. I
mean nothing. I’m just your means of ending the king’s reign.”

“It’s more than that,” she
said.

“Then tell me.” I shook my
head in frustration. “Why should I trust you? I’m starting to wonder if I can
trust anyone and I can’t do this unless I know there’s someone out there who
will tell me the truth.”

“I’m one of the rebel leaders
from the mainland. It was my job to help you find the necklace.”

I shook my head again,
unwilling to believe her. “But there’s more, isn’t there, Aluce? I won’t help
you until you’re honest with me. This isn’t just to free your land, is it?”

Silence engulfed the room
while Aluce studied me, measuring my determination. I straightened my shoulders
and fiercely matched her gaze until she sighed and returned to poking at the
fire.

“I don’t know what you want
to hear, Aylen. Everybody who joins the rebels does it for some reason or other.
I’m no different.”

“But you could have chosen to
die a long time ago, couldn’t you?” I saw Aluce’s eyebrows twitch just enough
to let me know I was heading down the right path. “But you have a reason to
extend your life with the stones.”

“It’s not unusual. Those of
the Youth Gem tribe all extend our lives for one reason or other.”

“What’s your reason?”

She didn’t speak for several
moments and I clamped down on my tongue to keep myself from talking as I sensed
the words building inside of her. I knew they would come eventually.

Finally, they did.

“Have you ever wanted
revenge, Aylen? Have you ever wanted it so badly, you would do anything to have
it?” she asked, turning to meet my eyes. The darkness burning in her gaze sent
a shiver of unease through my spine. Still, I remained silent.

“Do you ever wonder how the
Youth Gem line was added to yours?”

Quickly, I thought back to
all I had recently learned.

“My great-grandfather married
a woman with the bloodline. She died not long after giving birth to my grandfather.”

“Do you know how she died?”
Aluce’s mouth twisted into a tight, angry grimace.

“He . . . he didn’t say,” I
stammered.

“Her name was Ofaira. She was
my great-granddaughter. The Youth tribe was discovered and invaded when she was
only sixteen. Your age.”

I gave a slight nod of my
head to show I was listening.

“My daughter and Ofaira’s
mother were killed while they tried to defend the tribe. Many others would have
been killed but Ofaira stopped them, knowing what they wanted.”

“A bloodline,” I whispered.

“Yes, of course. For
starters.” Aluce closed her eyes, as if to block the memories. “I warned her. I
told her death would be better, but she thought she could save me. She offered
herself up as a bride to the king. He in return, promised to care for her and
to spare the rest of my posterity.”

“He lied,” I said, sensing
the ending. Aluce nodded affirmatively.

“As soon as he got his male
heir, he destroyed her. But not until he’d tortured her to death for
information. Then he sent his soldiers after the rest of my line, knowing I had
multiple bloodlines like his own, and knowing I had a claim to the son Ofaira
had borne him.”

“Then you and I are related.”

“You’re related to a lot of
people Aylen, but yes. We are directly related.”

“My grandfather is also your
descendant.”

“Yes.” Aluce nodded. “But
he’s nothing like his mother. Ofaira thought she would be able to change
everything if she had a chance to raise the next royal heir. Of course, she was
never given that opportunity.”

“And that’s why you’re here?”
I asked.

Aluce smiled, a dark, twisted
little smile I didn’t like. “You are the king’s and my posterity. He took
Ofaira from her son and destroyed everyone I loved in some way or another. Now,
his son is continuing the same work. And you can stop him. Ofaira’s
great-granddaughter.”

“Then I was right. I’m just
your weapon.”

Aluce snarled in
exasperation. “Don’t you see the perfect justice behind it? It’s meant to be
this way. I’m calling you to what you were born to do.” Aluce clenched her
fists and raised them in the air for a moment, gathering energy with her anger
before dropping them back to her sides. “If Ofaira can sacrifice herself at
sixteen and marry the king, you can do what you must to remove your grandfather
from the throne.”

“Yes, and that turned out
really well for Ofaira, didn’t it?” I regretted the words the moment they left
my lips. Aluce looked for a moment as though I’d struck her but immediately
recovered. Throwing her shoulders back and tossing her thick, black hair, she
became positively regal in the flickering light of her hut fire.

“She did what she thought was
best. She tried to save her family. What are you doing to save yours?”

Her words hurt and annoyed me
all at once. In the last couple of days, I’d had a lifetime of information and
responsibility dropped onto my shoulders. I was trying to accept it, wasn’t I?
And no matter what she said, I wasn’t like Ofaira. I had been sheltered my
entire life. I’d literally been hidden away from the rest of the world. Now, so
much was being asked of me. I opened my mouth to defend myself, but I never got
a chance. Aluce gasped, her eyes looking past me.

I whirled around and
immediately took several steps backwards, nearly tripping over a chair. Filling
the entrance to Aluce’s hut and blocking our only exit was a giant of a man,
covered in heavy metal armor. My eyes quickly took in the sword hanging from
his side and the greasy brown hair falling in his eyes. Panic clawed at my
chest. This mainlander was no shipwreck survivor.

“I came here on a little
exploration trip and struck living stone,” he said, taking a step forward.
Aluce grabbed my arm and yanked me backwards, tucking me behind her. The man
laughed. “That won’t do much for her now, will it?”

“Stay back,” Aluce growled.

“That would defeat the
purpose of our arrival.”

“How long have you been
here?” Aluce spat, her tone demanding a response.

“Long enough to know the king
will be very interested in this place.” He shrugged then. “We got some ships
nearby and a few of us can use Travel Gems to scout out the area. But I think
we’ll be able to skip to just getting you and the girl on the boats and making
our way back to Miranasch.” He stepped closer and slowly pulled his weapon from
its sheath. It was the longest sword I’d ever seen.

In turn, I gripped my own,
trying to process what was happening. I would be very little match for the man,
but I wouldn’t go down without a fight.

“Now, now,” Aluce said,
shaking her head. “It’s fruitless to use force on me. Your kind never detains
me for long.”

“This time will be
different.” He lunged. I cried out in surprise and raised my sword. Before I
could decide what to do next, Aluce shoved me to the side. I stumbled into the
far wall where I landed in a painful heap. Rolling to my feet, I glanced at Aluce
and saw she had jumped to the side opposite me. In her hands was a wicked
looking dagger. Set inside its hilt, a glowing green stone winked at me.

“Which is it going to be, you
filthy crown disciple?” she said, speaking through bared teeth. “The girl? You
know that’s who you really want. Go ahead and take her. But you can bet my
knife will find its mark.” She laughed a little, an almost maniacal sound. I
gripped my sword tighter, realizing I would need to defend myself if the man
moved in my direction.

A second passed with the
approximate speed of a snail but the mainlander never had the chance to make
his decision. From outside the hut, two arrows, one after another, soared into
the room and struck the man in his exposed side and neck. He fell to the floor,
dropping his sword.

Aluce sprang forward and
grabbed his weapon as I scrambled past her for the door in search of the
arrow’s source. In my haste, I nearly barreled over Sai. My first instinct was
to throw my arms around him. Then, I truly looked at him. He dropped to his
knees and covered his face with trembling hands.

“Sai,” I said, kneeling in
front of him.

“I had to. . .” his voice
trailed off and he rubbed at his eyes.

“What happened?” 

Sai’s words were forced,
anguished. “When I woke this morning, I decided I didn’t want you going by
yourself. But I was too late. I had to follow your trail.”

“If you hadn’t come when you
did . . .,” I soothed, my voice thick with gratitude as I pulled him my arms.

“I’ve never shot at someone,”
he said. “I didn’t want to. I didn’t have a choice.”

“No, Sai. You saved my life.”
I pulled away to look at him.

With shaking hands, Sai ran
his fingers through his hair and swiped the back of his hand across his eyes.
Vairda had always been peaceful, inhabited by people who detested violence
against human life. Killing, even in self-defense, was a near betrayal of
island beliefs.

“Stay here,” I told him,
moving to stand on wobbly legs.

Sai shook his head. “No, I’m
coming.” From the waver in his voice, I wondered if he was able but he stood
and walked by my side back into Aluce’s hut.

The man lay in the middle of
Aluce’s floor, writhing in pain.

“Who is he?” I asked,
fighting a surge of nausea.

“Mainlander.” Aluce pointed
the sword at his face.

“Of course he’s a
mainlander!” I yelled. “Where did he come from? Are there more of them?”