Read Online The Farthest Shore (Eden Series Book 3) by Marian Perera - Free Book Online
Authors: Marian Perera
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Miri’s face. Her eyes were fixed on the pouch, but she seemed to become aware of his attention and blinked.
“You’ll want some privacy, Captain.” Her voice was quiet but steady. “I’ll be on the deck.”
What the hell? he thought as she slipped out. Did she have reason to be afraid of a message from Seawatch? Let’s see . He opened the wax-sealed pouch.
The message inside was short, simple and extremely worrying. Alyster read it twice, drew the logbook to him and made some notes, looking up from time to time at the window speckled with raindrops. The silver flashes were bright as a lighthouse’s warning and the thunder louder than the engine as he continued to write.
When he had finished, he burned the message and blew on the logbook’s page to dry the ink. Then he headed up to the deck.
Rain pelted down, cold and sharp as a shower of needles. Miri shivered as she staggered to the side of the ship—no, the gunwale, she corrected herself. The ship rolled. On the slippery deck, she lost her balance and pitched forward. Thankfully the rail was high enough that it simply drove into her belly, and she had nothing left to vomit anyway.
The downpour was so heavy she looked out at the world through a film of water, but she saw a dark triangle flash through the waves before it was gone again. A fin . She trembled again, and not with cold.
The impact of rainfall no longer hurt, though, perhaps because her skin was growing numb, but the rest of her felt quite different. The deluge had shocked her out of both the near-torpor of exhaustion and hunger as well as fear of the unknown message. Her mind woke up for the first time since that afternoon, and she remembered she didn’t have anything dry to wear.
But it was the first real wash she had had in days. She loosened her hair and let the rain run a thousand fingers through it. Fresh water streamed down over her breasts and trickled the length of her spine. She tipped her head back and opened her mouth to taste it, clean and cold on her tongue.
It was strange. On land, she wouldn’t have thought twice about coming in from wild weather, and it would never have occurred to her to stand in the rain. But a ship was different, far more the end of the world than the city she’d grown up in. The edge of what’s known, and I’m looking over that edge . She didn’t feel afraid or sick any longer. The rain had washed that away along with the sweat and dirt on her skin, leaving her chilled and empty but clean as well.
“Miri!” Captain Juell’s voice carried over the millstone-grind of thunder, and she turned as he came up to her—he was much better able to keep his balance on a slick and tilting deck. “Are you all right?”
“Yes.” She was aware of how her clothes clung to her body, but hopefully it was too dark, in the evening and the storm, for him to notice. “You’ll get wet.”
“And you’re not? Besides, the men will want to bathe and a woman’s presence will inhibit them.”
Oh. Miri stepped away from the rail. He offered her his arm, and after a moment’s hesitation, she took it. His arm was solid and steady beneath her hand until she reached the hatch and he let her precede him.
She hesitated again in the doorway of his cabin, aware that she was streaming water, but he strode in, tossed her a towel and beckoned her in with an impatient tilt of his head. Wrapping the towel around her body self-consciously, she sat down and worked her shoes off. Captain Juell disappeared into his bedroom, but was back at once with a blue flannel dressing gown.
“Put that on when you’re dry,” he said, and shrugged out of his coat. Dark hair clung to his brow. He pulled his vest off and blotted his face with it.
Her heart thudded with apprehension, but she had to be sure. “What did the message say?”
“What did you expect it to say?” He pushed his hair back from his forehead and looked down at her, eyes sharp and searching.
“I’ve no idea.” Her
“You’ll want some privacy, Captain.” Her voice was quiet but steady. “I’ll be on the deck.”
What the hell? he thought as she slipped out. Did she have reason to be afraid of a message from Seawatch? Let’s see . He opened the wax-sealed pouch.
The message inside was short, simple and extremely worrying. Alyster read it twice, drew the logbook to him and made some notes, looking up from time to time at the window speckled with raindrops. The silver flashes were bright as a lighthouse’s warning and the thunder louder than the engine as he continued to write.
When he had finished, he burned the message and blew on the logbook’s page to dry the ink. Then he headed up to the deck.
Rain pelted down, cold and sharp as a shower of needles. Miri shivered as she staggered to the side of the ship—no, the gunwale, she corrected herself. The ship rolled. On the slippery deck, she lost her balance and pitched forward. Thankfully the rail was high enough that it simply drove into her belly, and she had nothing left to vomit anyway.
The downpour was so heavy she looked out at the world through a film of water, but she saw a dark triangle flash through the waves before it was gone again. A fin . She trembled again, and not with cold.
The impact of rainfall no longer hurt, though, perhaps because her skin was growing numb, but the rest of her felt quite different. The deluge had shocked her out of both the near-torpor of exhaustion and hunger as well as fear of the unknown message. Her mind woke up for the first time since that afternoon, and she remembered she didn’t have anything dry to wear.
But it was the first real wash she had had in days. She loosened her hair and let the rain run a thousand fingers through it. Fresh water streamed down over her breasts and trickled the length of her spine. She tipped her head back and opened her mouth to taste it, clean and cold on her tongue.
It was strange. On land, she wouldn’t have thought twice about coming in from wild weather, and it would never have occurred to her to stand in the rain. But a ship was different, far more the end of the world than the city she’d grown up in. The edge of what’s known, and I’m looking over that edge . She didn’t feel afraid or sick any longer. The rain had washed that away along with the sweat and dirt on her skin, leaving her chilled and empty but clean as well.
“Miri!” Captain Juell’s voice carried over the millstone-grind of thunder, and she turned as he came up to her—he was much better able to keep his balance on a slick and tilting deck. “Are you all right?”
“Yes.” She was aware of how her clothes clung to her body, but hopefully it was too dark, in the evening and the storm, for him to notice. “You’ll get wet.”
“And you’re not? Besides, the men will want to bathe and a woman’s presence will inhibit them.”
Oh. Miri stepped away from the rail. He offered her his arm, and after a moment’s hesitation, she took it. His arm was solid and steady beneath her hand until she reached the hatch and he let her precede him.
She hesitated again in the doorway of his cabin, aware that she was streaming water, but he strode in, tossed her a towel and beckoned her in with an impatient tilt of his head. Wrapping the towel around her body self-consciously, she sat down and worked her shoes off. Captain Juell disappeared into his bedroom, but was back at once with a blue flannel dressing gown.
“Put that on when you’re dry,” he said, and shrugged out of his coat. Dark hair clung to his brow. He pulled his vest off and blotted his face with it.
Her heart thudded with apprehension, but she had to be sure. “What did the message say?”
“What did you expect it to say?” He pushed his hair back from his forehead and looked down at her, eyes sharp and searching.
“I’ve no idea.” Her
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