Page 19 of Avalon Tower

“I can sometimes see things.” She takes one last sip and flips the cup onto the saucer. Then she removes the cup and shoves the saucer across the table toward me. The tea leaves lie on the saucer in dark, damp clusters. “See? The leaves say there’s one patrol ship. It’s far to the north.” She pauses. “Actually, it could also be foretelling a rainy day tomorrow. No, definitely a patrol ship, like I said before.”

“You read the future in tea leaves…to look for patrol ships?”

“It’s not a perfect system.” She sighs. “But I’ve got us out of a few near scrapes.”

A sudden wave rocks the boat, and the nausea crashes over me. I slam through the door, bursting onto the deck, and make it to the rail just in time. Gripping the wood, I unleash my birthday cake into the angry sea.

I hang over the rail, wiping my mouth on the back of my hand. I rest my head for a moment, and then feel a hand on my back.

“Oh, you poor thing, that’s it. Let it all out,” Tana says.

“Oh, gods,” I moan, straightening. I feel slightly better.

“Here.” She hands me tea in a porcelain cup. “It’ll make you feel better.”

I take a sip, closing my eyes. To my surprise, it starts working almost immediately. I take another sip and already feel my stomach calm. I clutch the teacup and look at her. The wind whips her curls.

“You predicted that.” Though I suppose it wasn’t exactly hard to predict.

She nods. “Back in Brocéliende, I used to tell people whether they’d find love in their life.” Her eyes sadden. “Then, suddenly, all I could see in the future was death. Tens of thousands slain, the demi-Fey hounded. I had to get out. So, I did. The cards led me here to train for MI-13. Luckily, I have a skill they need.”

I down the rest of the tea and hand the cup back to her. “Thank you. I think I really am better.”

Only now do I realize we’re sailing west, and I can see the last arc of the molten sun dip beneath the horizon. Already, the moon is out, a curve of silver in the indigo.

She takes the cup from my hand and flips it onto a saucer, just as she did before. As the boat rocks, she examines the pattern of the tea leaves, and her eyes widen. “Oh, Nia,” she says breathlessly. “You don’t even know.”

I swallow. “Know what?”

“How extraordinary,” she whispers.

My eyes widen. “What do you see?”

“We’ll have to do a card reading later,” she says, her voice sharp with excitement. “This is a lot for tea.”

She glances over my shoulder with a smile. I turn to see Raphael approaching.

I marvel at the way he’s able to move so gracefully, like a cat, even on a rocking ship. He looks perfectly in control of himself at all times, a born leader. I have to remind myself of what he did all those years ago.

“There he is,” Tana says, “the captain of our lost vessel.”

“We’re not lost,” Raphael says.

“We’re lost in time,” she murmurs.

He sighs. “Tana, did you see anything?”

“One patrol ship, far to the north.”

He shrugs slowly, sliding his hands into his pockets. “We’ll avoid it. Can you give me a moment alone with Nia?”

With a smile, she glides away.

Raphael leans back against the rail, looking far too casual, given we’re out at sea, evading the Fey army. His gaze cuts to me. It’s dark now, but his eerie pale eyes burn in the gloom. “I talked to Aleina. She says exactly what you said about the veil.”

I flash him a half-smile. “Told you.”

No, I’m not above saying I told you so.