Page 22 of Cursed Crowns
“It’s all right,” said Rose. “I already know Wren is gone.”
Agnes frowned. “Wren? But I’ve come to tell you about Celeste.” To Rose’s horror, the maidservant reached into her pocket and withdrew another note. “This just arrived from Wishbone Bay.”
9
Wren
“I can’tbelieve you followed me,” fumed Wren, as she tried unsuccessfully to roll out of the makeshift hammock for the third time. “Really, Celeste, don’t you have better things to do?”
“Actually,youfollowedme. I left the moment I saw that nighthawk fly past my window,” said Celeste, a hint of smugness in her voice. “I knew you’d try something foolish. All I had to do was wait on the dock for you to show up.” She pointed at Wren’s auburn hair, her crooked teeth. “I’ll admit I was expecting better than this pathetic disguise.”
“It got me this far, didn’t it?”
Celeste folded her arms. “This is where your journey ends, Wren.”
Belowdecks in theSiren’s Secret, the air between them was too close, and it stunk of seaweed. “Celeste, I’m going to Gevra.”
“You’ll end up dead,” said Celeste with unnerving certainty. “And I can’t let that happen.”
“What are you going to do, kidnap me?” Wren grunted as she launched herself free of the hammock, falling to her knees with a hard thud. She stood up, teetering on the floorboards. “I’d like to see you try.”
“I’ll leave the kidnapping to Shen.” Celeste had no trouble keepingher balance, despite the rocking of the ship. “I’ve already sent a note to your sister. If you don’t come with me right now, I’ll cause the biggest scene this port has ever witnessed.”
Wren braced herself on a wooden pillar. “Your sea legs are too good, Celeste. Can’t you tell we’ve already set sail?”
Celeste’s face fell. “He wouldn’t. He sworehe’d wait.”
“Who?”
But Celeste was already stalking away from her.
“Celeste!” Wren yelled as she stumbled after her. The last thing she needed was Celeste ruining her careful ruse. And how had she even managed to get on the bloody ship in the first place? “Stop meddling in my business!”
Celeste ignored her protests as she climbed the rickety steps.
And jostled her way across deck, snapping at any sailor who dared get in her way. She made it all the way to the stern, where the captain was standing at the ship’s wheel.
Wren lunged for Celeste’s cloak, but she was already thundering up the stairs toward him. “MARINO, YOU RUDDY CARP-BRAIN! I TOLD YOU NOT TO SET SAIL YET!”
“Hissing seaweed.” Wren’s jaw fell open as she connected the siblings. The captain of theSiren’s Secretwas Marino Pegasi, Celeste’s older brother. Suddenly, it was obvious—they shared the same strong cheekbones and warm brown eyes. Even now, he didn’t look the least bit ruffled by his sister’s outburst.
“No shouting on the sea, Lessie,” he said calmly. “You know the rules. I don’t like to frighten the dolphins.”
“Turn this ship around right now! I don’t want to go to bloody Gevra!”
Marino shook his head. “There’s a storm blowing in from the east. If we don’t sail now, we’ll never make it out of the bay.” He took out his compass and briefly studied it before adjusting the wheel three notches to the left. “Did you get a chance to speak to my stowaway, by the way? A real firecracker, isn’t she?” He flicked his gaze to Celeste and spotted Wren hovering behind her. “Ah, Tilda! There you are. Have you met my sister? Don’t mind the foul mood. She’s not a morning person.”
Wren flashed her crooked teeth. “Oh, I know. Lessie and I are old friends.”
“Don’tevercall me that again,” warned Celeste.
Marino broke into a pearly grin. “What are the odds of that?”
“Extremely high, you dunderbrain!” Celeste swatted the tricorn off her brother’s head. “That’s the queen of Eana! The one I told you to keep an eye out for!”
Marino turned to stare at Wren. “Have you been on the rum, Lessie?” he said, passing a hand over his stubble. “That is not Rose.”
“It’s the other one,” said Celeste impatiently.