The Crown of Gilded Bones (Blood and..

“I think some people are just not cut out for sailing,” I
said. “And by some people, I mean me.”
He chuckled. A call came from above—a greeting. His
gaze returned to us. “May I ask a favor of you two?”
“Anything,” Casteel said as he tossed the cloak to me.
Perry dragged his fingers around the rim of his cap.
“Keep an eye on Delano for me,” he said, and I looked up at
him as I started on the row of buttons across the chest of
the cloak. “Sometimes, he’s a little too brave.”
“Delano will return to you,” Casteel said as he slipped
on his cloak, and I nodded.
“Thank you.” He gave us a brief smile. “I will see you
both up there.”
When he was gone, I turned to Casteel. “Are Perry and
Delano together?”
“They have been.” He came over to me, tucking my
braid under the back of my cloak before sliding a cap over
my head. “On and off for the last couple of years, I think.”
I grinned, thinking of them at the helm, smiling and
laughing at whatever the other said. “They’re cute
together.”
“You’re cute.” Casteel tugged on the brim of my cap and
then lifted the hood of the cloak so it draped over the hat.
“Though I prefer to be able to see your face.” He tugged on
his own cap, and somehow, the shadows it created along
the lower half of his face made him appear all the more
mysterious. Once his hood was in place, he said, “We got
this.”
My heart lurched. “I know. We do.”
“You’re ready, then?”
I knew he wasn’t just talking about leaving the ship. “I
am ready to do whatever needs to be done.”
He nodded, and then we left the cabin, leaving our
belongings behind. Perry and his crew would take what we’d
brought with us, including that damn journal, back to