Ninnette had never noticed the sensation of her hydrostrinjerie before, at least not in the small-scale detail. Her power had always been a surge from her chest, a wave moving through her body, pulsing out in search of water. She hadn't truly felt it until now when it came weak.

She could compare it to cool liquid. It gently flowed, not like the usual flood she'd always known but in a small trickle that barely reached her fingertips.

Still, the sea answered her command, however faint her strinjerie was. The water rippled at the tail end of the boat, leisurely driving them forward.

"You should rest," Kazi said as he watched her exert whatever was left of her magic.

Ninnette craned her neck to look at the sky that had changed into a dark velvety blue. The storm had already cleared, and the stars glowed bright, causing a smoky and silvery sheen on the dome above.

Navigating with the cosmic lights, she could tell they were still far from land, and with the slow pace of their boat's movement, they wouldn't make port for several more hours.

But did it matter now? It was like she was choosing the location of her death, land or sea.

She had always thought the Sea Mother would claim her when her time was up. And given the choice, she would rather wither away surrounded by the vast expanse of the ocean.

She halted her magic, cutting its connection with the water at her fingertips. The skiff slowed and stopped, only swaying with the soft waves.

Ninnette. She heard the entity call, distracting her from her thoughts of her death. She looked at the horizon, which seemed to glow a deep navy tone brighter than the rest of the sky.

She'd been hearing the call more often in the past couple of hours, making her want to search for it--to dive down into the abyss for the faint light she had seen in her dream.

"It's calling to me again," she said.

"There's nothing you can do about it," Kazi answered.

She looked at him. He sat on one side of the deck opposite to her. "Is that all you have to say?" she asked, annoyed by the hopelessness in his words.

He tilted his head to one side. "What am I supposed to say?"

"I don't know." She shrugged, standing and leaning on the railing. "How am I supposed to do this?"

"Do what?" He raised a brow as if he sensed her irritation.

"Fall in love with you." Her words sounded ridiculous. She never thought she would one day be asking such a question.

Kazi chuckled and leaned back, catching a sheen of starlight on his forehead. "You do know that falling in love isn't something that you do, yes?"

"Yes, you've told me. It's something that happens to me. I know that. So, make it happen," she urged.

"What?"

"Make me fall in love with you," she said.

He palmed his face and groaned. "It's not that simple."

"Just try."

"Do you honestly think I've never tried making my past curse breakers fall in love with me?" he asked, dropping his hands and standing to face her.

He didn't even want to try to save her from the curse. The moment he first appeared on her boat, he had already given up, believing that she was like the rest of them--going to die.

Ninnette took a deep breath, shoving aside her irritation. "Maybe I'm different, Kazi."

He regarded her as if the sound of his name was the key to making him hope.

She pushed off the railing. "Maybe try being nice to me."

Kazi's lips twisted, stifling a laugh. "Are you sure that's your type? A nice guy? I thought you were a troublemaker."

"Opposites attract," she pointed out.

He stared at her for a moment, contemplating. "You're serious." A hint of realization laced his voice.

"Like my life depends on it. Oh, wait, it does." She stepped forward, daring him.

"Alright." He tapped his chin, gazing at her from her head to her feet. Then his dark eyes dragged up to her face. "You have pretty eyes." The way he'd said it lacked enthusiasm.

Ninnetted frowned. "That's it?"

His brows shot up before he schooled his features. Then his eyes excruciatingly grazed her--so slow as if he were trying to drink her in.

She swallowed hard. "Well?"

"I like your legs," he drawled. This time, his tone came with a sudden desire that even when she wore trousers, she felt as if her legs were exposed.

Heat rose to her chest and cheeks.

"Mmh..." He nodded and gave her a devious smile, pleased with her reaction. "Looks like we might get somewhere."

He took two long strides to get to her, leaning on her.

Startled, she stepped away, pushing her back on the railing. But he advanced until there was barely any distance between them.

"What are you doing?" Alarmed, she pressed her palms on his chest to push him, but when she touched his damp shirt, she hesitated. Feeling the heartbeat underneath, her hand stilled.

Kazi inclined his face so his lips came to whisper in her ear. "Nice isn't all you want, little drifter," he said, his warm breath caressing her lobe.

He placed his fingers on her hip, dragging them down to the top of her leg. Despite the clothes between them, she felt the heat of his touch.

She suppressed a shiver on her shoulders. "What do you know about what I want?"

He leaned in closer and lower, his breath at her throat. For a moment, he didn't move like he was breathing in her scent. And then she felt him lick her beating pulse.

Her eyelids fluttered. She gasped--the sound like pleasure.

His fingers continued to tease her, making slow agonizing circles over the pocket of her trousers and causing the skin beneath to burn. "More than you know," he said, retreating from her neck to gaze at her face. His eyes had gone stormy with desire.

She held her breath, anticipating. A little excitement grew in her chest, forcing her to swallow.

Grinning at her, Kazi laughed and stepped back. "I like your spirit. You're brave." Fondness curved the sides of his eyes.

It took a moment before Ninnette gathered her wits, and a moment more before she realized he was complimenting her again.

She felt naked then as if she had just bared herself but rejected once more, her skin still fiery where he had touched and licked her. Yet she didn't want to show him her disappointment.

She glanced at the bangle on her wrist. "It's not working," she said slowly, keeping her voice from trembling.

"I told you--" Kazi stepped away. "It doesn't work that way. You can't just decide to love me, and I can't just make you."

Ninnette blinked at the sound of his words as if he was speaking from experience. And then-- "You tried to love her." It wasn't a question. It was a statement she knew was already true without confirmation.

"I did," he admitted, lifting his chin.

"But you couldn't."

"I couldn't." His voice came with the saddest tone she had ever heard.

For a moment, she was guiltily pleased that he wasn't in love with Queen Jana, but it was short-lived, followed by uncertainty.

"What about the others? Do you think you truly loved any of the ones before me?" she asked, comprehending that her fear of heartbreak might be stronger than her fear of death. She dreaded that he might not love her back after the curse broke.

"I won't be able to tell," he answered, and he looked at her like he knew what she was thinking. "Unless the curse breaks."

She could only nod. She was to survive and live to be an unrequited lover or to die and keep her heart intact.

"Have you ever been in love?" Kazi asked all of a sudden.

Ninnette's gaze snapped up to him, realizing that her eyes had unconsciously drawn to the boat floor.

I don't know, she wanted to say. She'd flirted with a boy or two before when she had lived in the Floating Market. But love? She didn't even know how it felt--how it should feel. And this thing inside her that yearned for Kazi, what was it? If the curse was not broken, did it mean it wasn't love?

She looked out at the ocean. She wanted to close her eyes and focus her senses on the cold night breeze.

Ninnette loved the sea--that, she knew. It was her haven. Its peaceful waves were her comfort, and its chaotic storms were her exhilaration. Its existence was her happiness, and its water was her life.

Hadn't she felt the same way with Kazi? His humanity was her relief, but his demonic attributes were her excitement.

Maybe she already loved him. Maybe the bangle was broken.

"What about your family?" Kazi asked, distracting her from her reverie.

She averted her eyes from the sea and looked at him. "What?"

"Your family. Jeoff mentioned them. Do you love them?" he asked.

It was an uncomfortable question to answer, tricky even. "I suppose--" she thought for a moment "--I did?" She sounded unsure.

Kazi furrowed his brows. "Did?" he noted. "What did they do to deserve that? The debt?" he asked.

"No." She pursed her lips. She hadn't talked to anyone about her past before, like it were a dangerous secret that was buried and forgotten. "I was fourteen when they left me with Jeoff to work. They said they'll come back for me." That last part hit her hard like a kick to her stomach. She swallowed the threatening loathing she thought she had killed years back.

"And they haven't," Kazi continued for her.

She shook her head.

"Do you know where they are now?" he asked, his tone careful.

"I don't know. We're sea drifters. They could be anywhere in the Oestern Ocean. Or they could be dead." She bit the last word as if saying it allowed would make it true.

She wanted to believe her family--her mother and father--had passed away. Maybe then the pain of knowing they had left her and never returned would vanish.

"Do you ever want to look for them?" His voice had gone soft.

"Sometimes," she admitted in a whisper that he could not have heard if not for the cool breeze that carried her voice.

"Why haven't you?"

"They never came looking for me. So, why should I?" For three years, she thought she had already forgotten her hatred toward her family, but at Kazi's prompting, the abhorrence and the ache came like a flood. It seemed that she had already experienced heartbreak after all.

"Love sure is a funny thing, isn't it?" Kazi said, his lips twitching with cruelty. After centuries of suffering a love's death, if anyone knew heartbreak, it would be him.

"I'm sorry," she said.

He raised a brow and smirked. "Aren't I supposed to be the one telling you that?"

She shook her head. "You've suffered more than I have." Saying the words made her feel like she was fortunate to have her heart broken only once. And sharing her past with him lifted a heavy burden from her shoulders.

She wouldn't have divulged any details of her life to anyone, but Kazi had been with her through her worst, even though it was only briefly.

She trusted him.

After what they had been through for the last fifty-eight hours, how could she not trust him?

How could she not love him?

She glanced at the bangle, willing the curse to break, but nothing happened. The artifact seemed to reflect starlight like gold instead of brass. Its ticking gears had become a familiar whirring.

Her gaze was drawn to its clock. The single hand was at its next tick.

She looked up at Kazi, her eyes rounded--a cry for help. "Kazi," she said, calling to him and knowing what he would do.

He reached out before the bangle made another click. "I'm here, love."

🐚

Aleja stared as Amaru lay still on the cot. The small cut on his forehead had already crusted. He hadn't woken since they survived the collapse of the chapel.

Then he stirred.

She turned on her seat beside the cot, leaning to watch as his eyes fluttered open.

"Where am I?" Amaru asked, blinking in the dimness of the cabin.

"You're on a ship, Honorable Priest," she answered. "We're sailing after the bangle."

"What happened?" He pressed a hand to the top of his head. "The chapel--" His eyes widened, remembering.

"The demon destroyed it," she said.

He grunted. "Where are they now?"

"According to the map, they've stopped in the middle of the ocean. We'll be gaining on them in a few more hours." She rubbed her pearl ring, more determined than she had ever been.

This time, she would make sure they got the bangle.