The experience of living through some of their mother’s memories had been amazing, but the drink had been disgusting.
“Sit there,” the Keeper instructed, pointing to a carved stone bench where others were slumped, eyes closed behind their disguises. Some twitched and moaned. All still in the trance of memories.
Alōs complied, settling into the small space as Niya and her sisters crowded around him.
She wondered if Alōs knew what he was in for. How memories could be an extremely overwhelming experience.
Niya drew her brows together, that wiggle of discomfort again that any part of her was beginning to care for any part of him. Her main concern was meant to be about this working; otherwise she was out of options. Her next year aboard his ship as good as solidified.
“Is something supposed to happen?” asked Alōs after a moment.
The Keeper didn’t answer, merely watched from his perch as Alōs suddenly gasped, his eyes rolling back to white. He collapsed against the bench.
“You may wait over there,” the Keeper told Niya and her sisters. “Depending on what he seeks, it may take some time.”
The girls stepped to the side, where others waited for their companions to wake from walking through forgotten memories.
“So tell us,” said Larkyra, drawing close to Niya. “Why are we here? What is it Alōs searches another’s memories for?”
Niya glanced to the unconscious pirate across the way. He was so vulnerable like this, she realized. Tranced, unable to wake until the thoughts he swam through released him.
Something akin to guilt tugged at her chest at the idea of speaking his secrets to her sisters when he was in this state.
Of course, she had no bind not to tell them of the Prism Stone, but . . .
“He searches for an item that was lost,” explained Niya vaguely.
Larkyra huffed a laugh. “Well, of course, isn’t that why all go searching forgotten memories, to look at things lost?”
“What I mean is”—Niya turned back to regard her sisters—“he is trying to find a particular gem that has gone missing.”
“A pirate searching for treasure?” asked Arabessa. “How boring.”
Niya smiled at the sentiment, for she had said something similar herself when first learning of the Prism Stone.
“Yes, boring,” Niya echoed.
Her eldest sister eyed her from beneath her mask. “I have a sense that is not the entire truth,” she accused.
Niya shifted on her feet, her resolve slipping. I have no loyalty to Alōs, she reminded herself, merely a momentary truce. And she was kidding herself that she could ever keep such a secret from her family. Not after she had hidden what Alōs had known of them for so long. That omission was what had gotten her into this whole mess to begin with. And though she hated to ask for help, this time Niya decided she would try leaning on others for a change.
“I can’t get into the details here,” she began in a whisper, forcing her sisters to angle closer. “But it’s a gem that is very important, very powerful,” she added. “It belongs to Esrom and has been lost for some time. And if not found soon, the magic holding the kingdom deep underwater will relinquish, and their world will surface.”
Larkyra and Arabessa were quiet for some time, seeming to take in her words. “What do you mean . . . surface?” asked Arabessa. “As in . . .”
“Esrom will be at the mercy of Aadilor after centuries of hiding away as a sanctuary.”
Both girls drew back.
“By the stars and sea,” breathed Larkyra.
“But why is Alōs seeking it?” asked Arabessa. “To hold it ransom from his old kingdom for payment?”
In an unwanted shock, the accusation against the pirate stung Niya.
While she did not know the exact details regarding Alōs’s first reasons in stealing the stone from his kingdom, she knew it was connected to Ariōn, knew it had helped the young king at the time, helped Alōs’s parents. He had stolen it for them and now was searching to return it for them as well. Of course, her sisters wouldn’t have known any of this, only saw him for the nefarious pirate lord Alōs wanted all to see him as. The heartless man Niya was still trying to believe him to be.
But despite her past convictions, something in Niya was changing, forcing her to open her eyes to the true motives behind all of Alōs’s sins. Her animosity toward the man was dimming, and she wanted her sisters to understand what she was growing to realize herself.
“Alōs,” she began slowly; “he’s not actually as he may seem.”
“What does that mean?” asked Larkyra.
“It’s complicated to explain, but the intentions of his actions are far more similar to our family’s than at first glance.”
Niya watched Arabessa and Larkyra share a look.
“I think you have a lot more to tell us, then, dear sister,” said Arabessa.
“Yes.” Niya nodded. “A lot more, but—”
A gasp burst from behind them, and Niya spun to find Alōs sitting up with a start.
He bent over, wheezing to catch his breath, glancing about with frantic eyes, as if unsure when and where he was.
Niya rushed to his side. “Breathe through your nose,” she advised.
“Niya?” Alōs whispered, unfocused gaze landing on her.
“Yes.” She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, a flutter in her belly at hearing the vulnerability in his voice. “And you are Alōs Ezra, remember? Infamous pirate lord. Captain of the Crying Queen. You are in the Thief Kingdom. You also owe me six silver.”
He sat farther up with a grunt, clarity returning to his features. “Nice try.”
“Every word is true,” she assured, hiding a smile. “It’s the side effect of the drink. Short-term memory loss. You’ll remember the bit about the six silver soon.”
He looked back at her then, his expression growing strangely soft with his amusement.
Something in Niya’s stomach twisted as they regarded one another, and she stepped back. “Did you find anything?”
“I did.” Alōs rose to his feet, raking a hand through his hair.
Niya’s pulse jumped with hope. “And?”
His brows knitted. “I know where the last part is.”
“That’s great!”
“It is and it isn’t.”
She watched him carefully. “Don’t tell me it’s back in the Valley of Giants. I’ll pawn all my precious jewels in Jabari to buy us a portal token before I sail through those storms again.”
“It is not in the valley,” he assured.
“All right, then, what’s worse than that?”
He let out a tired sigh. “Hallowed Island.”
“The land of the cannibals?” asked Larkyra from where she stood behind Niya.
“Giant cannibals,” clarified Arabessa on her other side.
Niya’s shoulders drooped. “Wonderful,” she grumbled.
She should have known better than to ask.
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Alōs needed a drink, and fast. The bitter flavor of the forgotten memory clung to his tongue like needles on a bramble bush. Only a strong whiskey could clear his palate as well as his fogged mind. Stopping at a corner illuminated by a single streetlamp, Alōs took a moment to breathe in the cool caved air. He felt Niya and her sisters at his side, sensed the inquisitive gaze of the fire dancer as she waited for him to elaborate on what he had seen. But he still needed a moment to collect himself.
Being inside the old queen’s memories had not been pleasant. Her thoughts were erratic, distracted, and slow compared to his own. It had felt like an eternity for him to focus on what he had come to search for. A gifted necklace. The old queen, it turned out, had been given many.