Once everyone had settled in and had something to eat and drink, Florence carefully stood up midship and beckoned to Simber. He moved directly above her to keep his wings from knocking her head clean off, and they held a private meeting far above the others.

“We’re going to need to tell them soon,” Florence said in a soft voice.

Simber stared stonily ahead.

“We have to tell them before we get to Artimé, Simber. Or they’ll wonder where he is, and why he isn’t there to greet them. And then we’ll have chaos. This is at least a semi-controlled environment.”

Simber still said nothing.

“I don’t want somebody saying something accidentally, either, and the longer we wait, the more likely that is to happen,” Florence said.

Silence.

Florence sighed. She tried once more. “I know you’re worried about Alex, but think how they’ll feel if we wait. They’ll feel betrayed. That’s not what Artimé’s about.”

Simber growled low and long. Finally he said, “Alex is the only one who saw it all. They need to know what he went thrrrough. Forrr us.”

Florence bowed her head for a moment, thinking. “Maybe it’s best someone else tells it, then. He’ll be far too modest.” She glanced around when she heard a flurry of activity in the sick bay. Sean and Carina were both awake now and sitting up, and Meghan was describing what had happened to them as they lamented their uselessness in this mission.

“Plus, Lani needs to know about her mother,” Florence whispered. “And we can’t wait for Gunnar to break the news— they’ll certainly hear something from everyone who will be glad to see them when we arrive home again.” She ducked as they passed through a cloud of evening bugs, and spit a few out of her mouth before continuing. “I spoke with Henry about it, and he doesn’t want to tell her. You should have seen the poor boy’s face when I asked him. He’s in agony.”

Simber’s muzzle twitched. “We should wait until she’s in less pain,” he said. “And fewerrr nosy onlookerrrs.”

Florence sighed. “I honestly don’t see that scenario existing right now. It’s going to be messy no matter how it happens.”

Simber’s determined face didn’t falter. “We wait forrr ourrr leaderrr.”

The Long Night

There was no wind, and the pirate ship was moving so slowly it almost seemed to be floating backward at times. It made for a smooth ride, though, and the moon reflecting on the sea was a perfect picture. The water looked like glass.

Simber kept his eyes forward toward home, while Florence watched the sea behind them to make sure the people of Warbler weren’t coming after them. But all was calm.

“All theirrr ships, but no idea what to do with them,” Simber growled. “Is everrrywherrre so dysfunctional?”

It was a rhetorical question.

» » « «

Lani slept. Samheed watched over Alex, growing more anxious the longer his friend’s eyes stayed closed. He teased him, daring him to wake up. “Come on, man,” he said, his voice strained. “You think you hit that tree hard? Try galloping full speed into a glass wall.” Samheed’s nervous smile fell away when Alex didn’t respond. He swallowed hard and tried again. “You got me good, you know. I owe you one. Hey, remember, uh, remember that time in the lounge where . . . ?” He choked on the words and couldn’t finish. Instead he closed his eyes and pressed his fists into his temples, trying to force the watery grit from his eyes.

Samheed shook his head slowly, thinking what a mess he’d turned into over the past weeks. And while the Artiméans moved about the ship busy with chores, or captured a bit of sleep, Samheed couldn’t stop the questions that were driving him crazy. He glanced at Lani sleeping, and drew a finger across her forehead to catch a strand of hair that had fallen over her face. And then he got to his feet and wandered about the ship, trying to work out his inner jumble of emotions. He had so many questions, and no one was talking about important things. Was he just supposed to wait until they felt like explaining themselves? He didn’t think he should have to ask what took them so long, but nobody seemed to feel the need to apologize for the lengthy delay.

Maybe they just didn’t understand how horrible it was on Warbler, Samheed thought. But then he looked at Sky. No. She knew. Her brother knew. Even Meghan had a clue. It hurt. And it made him angry.

Samheed ducked his head as he walked past the muttering captain. He’d met the statue before by accident once, thinking he was going into a dressing room. Boy, was that a mistake. He took a punch to the mouth from the crazy peg-legged statue before he knew what hit him, and ended up with a fat lip. At least the weirdo was useful for something.

He found himself at the bow, straining his eyes in the dark, looking for Artimé. There was a faint glow in the distance, and he thought that must be it. He couldn’t wait to get home. He reached around his neck, forgetting that the thorns were gone, and he felt the indented scars all the way around. And then he remembered the squirrelicorn. He looked around for Rufus, finding him balancing on the railing nearby with a group of others. Samheed wandered over.

“I’m sorry about the soldier you lost because of me,” Samheed said solemnly. “I don’t know how it happened, but I know Alex was really upset about it.”

Rufus and the other squirrelicorns bowed their horned heads at Samheed. “Thank you,” one of them, not Rufus, spoke up. “That was Gremily. She was a terrific soldier and we miss her. But it was not the mage’s fault. He would never do anything to hurt us.”