The Price She Paid: Shadow & Bone (Book 2)

Chapter 9: Power.

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By the time we got back to the ship the sun had long since set. We had tried to find the bodies of the crew who had died but there was nothing left of them to find.

We gathered on the deck, everyone feeling the loss. Sturmhond lost five of his men, two had been Grisha.

I stood next to Mal and Alina watching as Sturmhond turned to address all of us.

"We hold ourselves bound to this mission, to ensure that our fallen crew did not die in vain, and we honor the ultimate sacrifice that they made in our quest to find the Sea Whip."

Would they still be dead if I had just agreed with Sturmhond at the beginning? I wanted the Sea Whip alive, I wanted to catch it. I wanted to right the wrongs of the Stag but maybe Tamar was right, maybe the amplifier had to die.

Had my foolishness cost these men their lives?

"Let us bow our heads for the crew lost today."

I bowed my head, blinking back tears. I hadn't known any of them very well, but they were people and they had helped me. I hoped they were somewhere better, I hoped that I wasn't the reason they had died.

"Let the sea carry them to a safe harbor, and may the saints receive them on a brighter shore."

I watched as Sturmhond brushed his fingers over his mouth and lifted his hand into the air.

"Let the saints receive them," the crew echoed, mimicking the gesture.

I looked down at the scales that rested on the barrel next to Sturmhond. I hadn't been able to bring myself to watch when Tolya had cut them free from the Sea Whip's dead body.

"We're ready if you both are," Sturmhond stated, glancing at Alina and me.

I had only ever seen this done once before and the circumstances hadn't been ideal. What would it be like now that we were bonded? Would I feel the power too?

"Ready?" Alina asked, her voice soft.

I nodded.

"Ready."

Alina stood next to the barrel, the Grisha Durast stood on one side, and I stood on the other. I watched as she picked up a scale. Alina rolled up her sleeve, holding out her bare wrist.

The Durast wasted no time, she placed the scale on Alina's arm and called on her power, melding it into Alina's skin.

I gasped, a jolt of power causing me to step back.

I blinked and I was pulled into the bond. I could see through the Sea Whips eyes as its final moments played out before me. I saw myself. I was standing in the cave, my curls were wet, my clothes soaked. My green eyes shone as I summoned, conjuring up flames that filled my hands. The Sea Whip had recognized my power. It was everywhere, surrounding me like a soft warm glow.

The memory changed and I saw Alina, I saw the sun in her hands. Her brown eyes narrowed, her face pulled in concentration. The same kind of glow surrounded her, almost like a golden aurora.

Mal stepped into the picture, he had an aurora of his own, but this one was red. It was a fiery red, almost like the color of my flames but darker.

"Evelynn?"

I blinked and I was back on the ship, in my own body. Sturmhond was standing there, his fingers warm as they brushed against mine.

"Are you alright?"