The Deathsinger: Book 1

Ch. 28: Insomnia

Very cozy indeed. The bedspread grazed the bottom of my chin and left the tips of my toes exposed. I spent the entire night alternating between freezing from the top or the bottom. I didn't remember it being so rigid or small when Tievel laid me down on it, but my mind had been occupied with other thoughts then.

Someone breathed deeply across the room. Two hammocks swung from the ceiling and were placed as far apart as possible in the tiny cabin. Remiel hadn't been lying about there being no more cabins, and the captain made two things perfectly clear quickly. He did not care if any of us had anywhere to sleep, and if we forced him to assign the cabin to anyone, it would be the Reaper. Apparently, he'd paid handsomely for this trip, with an offer of more money at the end if he enjoyed his stay.

I suggested staying with Astreia and Yoko. They would happily invite me in, even if it meant giving up their alone time. Of course, there was every chance Astreia would simply invite me into their bed. She was never one to miss an opportunity to tease. None of that mattered because Tievel had dismissed the notion immediately.

"I thought we were beyond this," he said to me on the deck after delivering the captain's news. "I won't risk anything happening to you again."

His concern was touching and misplaced. "I can think of very few places I'd be safer than with Yoko and Astreia. Besides, it will give me more time to train."

"That's unnecessary. Please don't fight me on this. We will figure something out."

The something ended up being our current arrangement. Me in the bed and the prince and the Reaper sleeping in hammocks the crew provided with minimal grumbling after more coins exchanged hands. They'd both refused to take the bed, insisting I should have it since I was a woman, though Remiel did offer to share it with me. Thankfully, he said that when Tievel was out of earshot.

Needing to thaw out my toes, I sat up and tugged the blanket down, glaring at the men while I did so and wondering if their willingness to give up the bed had less to do with being gentlemen and more to do with the fact they both knew this bed was harder than a rock. What I wouldn't give for a pallet in the tent again.

Or for solid ground. The constant rocking of the ship was enough to make everything I ate settle in my throat, always on the verge of coming up. I'd been spared the worst of the seasickness Yoko described, and I refused Tievel's offer of healing. It wasn't worth the wasted energy. Not with the task ahead of us.

I laid down, huffing in irritation, when the short bedspread immediately slipped above my feet. Throwing the covers back, I slid out of the bed. I found my boots and dragged them over my aching feet. Sleep would not be visiting soon.

Tiptoeing out of the room, I dropped a dagger in the top of my boot, snatched a cloak hanging from a hook on the wall, and stepped into the dank corridor. I did not pull on the cloak until I made it up the stairs, but my mistake became clear as a cloud of pine and wood smoke enveloped me, unlocking a memory of the night in Friedesh. Beneath the stench of blood and sweat, these earthy scents had been present and soothing.

But this wasn't the same cloak as before. The Reaper's cloak was a thing of magic, and it would raise too many questions. I drew it tighter around me as a chilly gust of wind whipped across the deck. Remiel had no need of it at the moment since he was enjoying such a sound sleep.

The few men awake and working paid me no attention, or at least they tried to ignore me. I didn't miss the lingering side eye as I walked along the deck, my hand sliding on a railing damp with ocean spray. It had been like this during daylight hours. The few whispers that were not carried away on the wind called "Araphelian" and "witch." For the first time, I appreciated being feared. It made me feel safe.