The Rise of Isaac, Books 1-3, page 88
Rogan would almost certainly tell her she was being reckless. He'd be so angry if he knew what she was risking, but she had to. Rimori was going to start a war that would put her friends and family in danger. If she could stop it before it got that far, she had to try.
Quinn stood and waded back out of the ocean, the tide trying to draw her back in. She grabbed her clothes, drying herself with a wave of her palm before dressing.
Hector was pointedly not watching her as she approached and dropped down into the shade beside him.
Wordlessly, he passed her a couple of yellow fruits which he had collected from the surrounding trees.
She bit into the soft fruit and juice exploded in her mouth. It was deliciously sweet and refreshing and she quickly devoured it.
The bandage on her wrist had come loose and she carefully tugged it away, revealing the bite mark.
"I guess you can heal that now," Hector mumbled.
She looked up at him with a small nod then looked back at the wound. Lightly running her fingers over the four raised welts, she released a small amount of healing light. She reduced them to scars and took her hand away, admiring the small white lines where the punctures had been. For some reason she wanted to leave the marks there. She glanced at Hector and he shifted his gaze away, clearly uncomfortable that she'd caught him watching her.
He cleared his throat. "I think we're close to a village." He pulled a map from his bag and folded the sheet into a square, showing the large island they were on called Faylin. It was roughly L-shaped and at the corner of the L was a settlement.
"We're here." Hector pointed near to the corner. "I reckon it's about an hour away. I think we should go there to get more supplies. I don't know when we'll get another chance."
"Okay." Quinn nodded, her skin prickling at the idea of being amongst other people. It would be so easy to leave if she wanted to.
***
Hector's estimation was accurate as they arrived at the small village an hour later. It was just a cluster of houses with a fishing and tackle shop. A large boathouse sat on the shore with a pier leading out to it.
Quinn waited on the beach whilst Hector headed up it and along a dirt track, walking towards the shop. They had gathered fruit to trade for water.
Quinn was parched as she gazed out at the ocean. She wondered if she could purify the seawater with magic though it was something she had never tried.
A few minutes later, Hector returned carrying a couple of bottles of water. He passed her one, holding out his other hand to pull her to her feet.
She took it and sprang up.
"I got a few bottles to keep us going." He gestured to his pack. "And the shopkeeper offered us a place to sleep tonight." He gestured to the boathouse.
Quinn frowned. "Do we really need to stay here? Maybe we should keep going."
"Apparently there's a storm blowing in." Hector frowned, looking up at the clear blue sky. "I don't know about the weather here but I'm sure the locals know what they're talking about."
Quinn sipped the cool water, enjoying the refreshment. "Okay, whatever you think."
"We're a few hours from the meeting place but we can walk it in the morning."
Quinn eyed the golden beach that stretched out endlessly on either side of her. "So we get an afternoon here?"
He nodded and she went to take off her top for sunbathing. Hector grabbed the hem and yanked it down.
"Hey-" she protested but he nodded firmly towards the pier.
She glanced over her shoulder, spying two fishermen watching her eagerly.
"Let's not draw unwanted attention to ourselves, alright?" he growled, releasing her top.
Her mouth quirked up at the side. "Alright spoil sport."
He almost broke a smile then turned away. "Let's go to the boathouse, it'll be cooler in there."
Quinn spotted his reddening arms and brushed her fingers subtly against his skin as they walked.
He glanced down at her but before he could protest, the sunburn healed.
"What did you do?" he asked, flinching away from the magic. He eyed his skin as if it might burst into flames.
"I healed you. And now the sun won't burn you anymore." She flicked her hair and picked up her pace.
The wooden pier was burning hot beneath her feet and she hurried into the shade of the boathouse through a narrow door.
Her eyes had to adjust to the dramatic change in light. The dark room had four boats, two strung up in the air and two sitting in the water.
The sea lapped gently against the wooden struts that supported it and the boats in the water rocked back and forth.
Quinn sat at the edge of a walkway, gazing out at the azure sea. A few moments later, Hector joined her. He dropped down by her side and she threw a glance at him.
"Thanks," he muttered.
"You're welcome," she said, satisfaction filling her.
She drew her eyes away from him again before he tried to snare her with a smile.
Hector snorted. "What in Vale did I get myself into with you? I should've picked your damn boyfriend."
"Fiancé," Quinn corrected automatically.
"Whatever," he said with a shrug, taking out his knife and picking at his nails with the tip of the blade. "When's the wedding then?"
"We don't have a date yet."
"I notice you don't wear a ring," Hector gestured to her hand.
Quinn thumbed her ring finger where her engagement ring used to sit. "I took it off before I competed in the challenge back in Aleva. I didn't want to lose it."
He nodded slowly. "So did you, you know, get matched up?" He gestured with his knife as he spoke.
She nodded. "We spent time together growing up then he proposed when we were sixteen."
"Sounds a bit better than Glacio's laws," he mumbled.
"What do you mean?" Quinn asked, intrigued.
"In Glacio you get matched when you're eighteen at an event they hold in the palace. It's based purely on how strong your magic is, you get paired accordingly with someone of a similar status." Hector adjusted his position as if the words made him uncomfortable. "They get married that day in a mass ceremony."
"Did your sisters have to do that?" Quinn asked quietly, curling her lip back in disgust.
Hector watched his hands as he played with the knife, flipping it from palm to palm. "Not yet..."
"I'm sorry," Quinn said with a sad look.
Silence hung between them for a moment and Quinn wasn't sure whether to ask the question on her mind but said it anyway. "If you're a Dud, why do you hate magic?"
Hector breathed out a short puff of air through his nostrils then took a cigarette from his trouser pocket. He put it in the corner of his mouth and retrieved matches from his bag, placing the knife beside him. He lit it and took a deep drag, avoiding Quinn's gaze.
She waited for him to speak again, watching him patiently.
"I don't hate them. I'm wary of them. Mages are taught to fear their magic in Glacio. I grew up in a household full of them. We were made to live on the outskirts of the city. Everyone feared my family. When I was old enough my parents started sending me out to get supplies so they didn't have to face people." Hector grimaced and took a puff of his cigarette. "They hated me almost as much as them. I started hunting so I didn't have to depend on shopkeepers."
"Ah, hence why you're such a people person," Quinn said, her mouth pulling up at the side.
Hector nodded and returned the smile half-heartedly. "At least mages like you get more of a choice in the way you live your life."
"No I don't," Quinn snapped before she could stop herself.
Hector raised his eyebrows at her in surprise.
"I mean, our parents organised our wedding practically from the day we were born. That's no choice."
"Don't you wanna marry him?" Hector asked, eyeing her warily as if unsure whether he should ask the question.
"Rogan's great. But I'll never know if I would've chosen him or not." Quinn gazed out at the sparkling ocean, blinking profusely to clear the tears that had gathered in her eyes.
"Sorry. I shouldn't've asked," Hector said quietly. "It's not my place."
"Your place? As in, your place as my kidnapper?" she asked, laughing.
He joined her hesitantly. "Guess so," he mumbled.
***
Dark clouds soon began to roll across the sky and the sun was blotted out behind them.
Quinn had softened the decking for lying on and was relaxing to the sound of the lapping water.
"Are you hungry?" Hector asked. He had taken up position in one of the boats, lying with one leg hanging over the side.
Quinn sat up and nodded, stretching her arms above her head.
Before she could ask what was for dinner, Hector sprang out of the boat and disappeared through the door.
Raindrops danced across the water, growing to a torrential downpour. A million tiny splashes spread across the surface and thunder cracked through the air.
A shiver ran down Quinn's spine as a bolt of lightning cut the sky in half. She had always loved rainstorms ever since she was a kid. There was something about them that awoke her instincts, sending a trickle of adrenaline into her veins.
Hector returned, slamming the door shut behind him. He was soaked to the bone and left sopping puddles in his wake as he walked towards her.
"I've experienced a thousand snowstorms but this is something else." He dropped down by her side and they huddled back against the wooden wall to watch the storm.
Quinn crept her fingers closer to Hector's clothes, the tips brushing the edge of his shirt. A flash of light left her palm and travelled over his body, drying him in an instant.
He lurched away, glaring at her. "Will you stop doing magic on me, woman?"
She shrugged. "Do you really want to sit here all evening in soaking wet clothes?"
"I would've got changed," he muttered.
"Oh sorry, I forgot some of us have the luxury of a change of clothes."
He rolled his eyes then unfolded something that was wrapped in foil. Steam coiled up from a fish and the smell made Quinn's mouth salivate. "Where'd you get that?"
"I have my ways." He took out a knife and sliced the fish up, holding it out for her to take a piece.
"Wow, I can really feed myself?" she asked, feigning her surprise.
"I can feed you if you want me to, princess. That's if you don't mind getting it down your chin."
She ate a piece and purposely ate it messily. "I don't know what you're talking about."
He laughed at her, clearly caught off guard. She grinned, wiping her chin but continued to eat without much care as she might've once.
They finished eating just as the water swelled. The boats lifted higher and a splash washed over the edge.
They jumped up and Quinn pointed to the platform above them. Hector grabbed his bag, throwing it up onto it then gesturing for her to climb the ladder.
She took hold of the wooden rungs and climbed to the higher level. It was only a few feet wide, running around the walls of the boathouse.
Hector appeared behind her.
The boat hanging close by had a small cabin sheltering it and looked more comfortable than the surrounding area.
Hector hopped over the wide gap, clinging onto one of the ropes that was suspending it. The boat rocked and he bent his legs to counter the swing.
He turned, hooking his arm around the rope and holding his hand out to her. "Coming?" He cocked an eyebrow.
She shrugged and moved to the edge. The gap was a couple of feet and even though she knew she could catch herself with magic, her stomach still flipped over.
She took Hector's hand and hopped across, his arm drawing her into his chest.
Her heart beat faster as she steadied herself against him. She dropped down into the boat and found a couple of steps leading into the cabin. A window at the front gave a view out to the sea.
There was space enough for them to sleep and even a couple of old blankets she could magically transform for comfort.
The sound of the storm was dimmed a little inside the cabin but the boat swung noticeably every time the wind picked up.
Hector took hold of the wheel at the helm. "I always wanted to go on a boat. There's not much use for them in Galice. The closest ocean is a hundred miles or more away. I'd never seen the sea before we came here."
"What do you think of it?" Quinn asked, turning one of the blankets into a squashy mattress and laying it on the floor. She did the same to the other one and dropped it beside the first.
She perched on the seat they had been on.
"It's so open. There's nothing else like it," Hector said.
Thunder clapped overhead and a bright flash illuminated the cabin for a second.
Hector moved away from the wheel and spotted the mattresses. "I suppose you made these with magic?" he asked, looking disgruntled.
"You can sleep on the deck if it makes you feel any better." She shrugged, dropping down onto the mattress below her. It was soft and she sunk into it. She hadn't been on anything so comfortable since her bed back in the palace in Glacio.
Hector grunted and dropped onto the other mattress. Quinn almost made a remark but bit her tongue, not wanting him to change his mind for the sake of his pride.
Despite the storm, the air was still stiflingly warm and there was no need for covers on the makeshift beds.
Hector rummaged through his bag and drew out a battered pack of cards. He turned to Quinn, holding them up. "Have you ever played Ditch?"
"No..." Quinn said, eyeing the cards with interest.
"Wanna learn?"
Quinn glanced out at the storm then back at him. "Sure."
It didn't take long before Quinn had picked up the game and it only took a couple of rounds before she was winning one.
"Ha." She beamed, placing her final card on the pile.
Hector slammed his hand down on it and she gasped.
"Oh no," she groaned.
"You forgot to claim the pile," he said triumphantly. "I win again."
She threw her head back in exasperation. "That's a stupid rule."
"A rule's a rule," Hector said, piling up the cards. "Wanna go again?"
They played a few more rounds and Hector won every time. Quinn fell back onto her bed and Hector laughed.
"You done?"
She nodded, rubbing her eyes.
"It's getting kinda dark anyway," he said, packing up the cards and putting them back in his bag.
"I could fix that." Quinn opened her palm and Hector shifted forward, clamping it shut with both hands.
"Not necessary," he said through clenched teeth.
She sighed then nodded as he released her.
"Seriously? No argument?" he asked in surprise.
"No argument," she confirmed, yawning broadly.
"Hmm." He pulled off his shirt and dropped down onto his bed.
Quinn's mouth went a little dry at the sight and she turned her face away.
The wind howled and the sea crashed against the boathouse. The boat rocked again and Quinn was rolled back to face Hector.
He was gazing up at the blank ceiling, looking lost in thought. She guessed he was thinking about his sisters and a knot tightened in her stomach.
The last of the pale light drained from the world and they were plunged into darkness.
Thunder rumbled through the air and a flutter went through Quinn. Despite not being cold, she shivered.
"This storm's not letting up," Hector said in low tone.
Something about his voice had the same effect on her as the thunder. She nodded even though he couldn't see her, her breath quickening.
She rolled onto her front to get comfortable, shuffling around until she got into a good position.
"You're always fidgeting," Hector said and Quinn laughed.
She shifted again and her hand brushed up his arm.
He cleared his throat.
"Sorry," she said, moving her hand back an inch. She sighed contentedly.
"Settled?" he asked.
"Mhmm," she said brightly.
"Good. Night, princess."
For some reason the term didn't sound like such an insult anymore. "Night, kidnapper."
A small laugh escaped him and a smile pulled at her lips that she was glad he couldn't see.
For some reason, high up in a boat in the midst of a storm, beside a man who had been someone she feared a few days ago, Quinn felt safe.
***
The storm raged through the night and Quinn kept waking to loud claps of thunder. She snapped awake at another boom and a flash of lightning lit up the cabin.
Hector was sleeping soundly, seemingly unaffected by the noise.
The boat was rocking wildly in the wind and she couldn't understand how he was sleeping through it. Tiredness pulled at her and she rested her head back down on the soft mattress, trying to think of a spell that might make her more comfortable.
She could muffle the noise, or maybe find a way to hold the boat in place but any of those things would stop the second she fell asleep. She couldn't cast magic in her dreams. Before she could think of anything else, she drifted off again.
A violent jerk of the boat sent Quinn rolling on top of Hector. He awoke with a start, grabbing her arms as if she might be attacking him.
Her heart did a backflip as she realised what had happened. "Woah. Let go," she said, his hands gripping her so tightly it hurt.
A flash of lightning lit up the space and his face was illuminated beneath her. Her mouth went dry and she pushed away from him. The boat jolted forcefully, making her lurch forward and head butt him.
"Ow," he said flatly and she couldn't fight the laughter that bubbled out of her chest.
He pushed her back onto her mattress and she flopped down onto it in relief. "Sorry," she said. "Maybe this boat wasn't such a good idea."
"Would you rather be sleeping out there?"
"Maybe not," she said thoughtfully as the wind whistled through the gaps in the boathouse. "How are you managing to sleep through it?"
