Of Werewolves and Curses by Emma Hamm

Chapter 11

Freya watched as Arrow picked his way over the sands. Every now and then he would stop, stare at the sticky grains on his foot, and then shudder. He had forgone clothing this time, certain the salt would destroy his precious and luxurious fabrics. Freya and Eldridge had chosen matching brown linen pants and white shirts that should keep them cool in the hot sun.

Thankfully, Arrow wasn’t complaining. The goblin dog was more likely to do that than breathe, so she was automatically suspicious. Even Eldridge was quiet when he should have been waxing on about wherever they were going.

The cave appeared on the horizon, plunging into the white cliffs and erupting with shadows that stretched out onto the sands. Both Eldridge and Arrow stiffened at the sight.

Freya planted her hands on her hips and stopped walking. “All right then, spit it out. You two know something I don’t know.”

They froze, each looking over their shoulder at her with a guilty expression that would have rivaled her sister’s when she was a child. They thought they could wander through this place without her noticing their fear?

Men.

Freya stomped toward them and pointed severely. “You two are worried about something. Why wouldn’t you warn me we were going into a dangerous place? Here I was thinking it was just a cave, and instead, you’re both planning for a fight!”

If either of them looked at the other one more time for information, she was going to explode. Freya crossed her arms over her chest and glared. They had no right to keep her in the dark on anything.

“Fine,” Eldridge muttered. “I’ll be the one to tell her. You owe me one.”

“I’m aware,” Arrow replied before trotting off into the distance.

Freya waited until Eldridge broke. She would say nothing until he gave her the entire truth. He owed her that much.

“Look, neither of us are certain there will be any danger in there. The Summer Court is relatively safe, but we’re both worried that there might be some creatures in that cave that Leo has placed to keep people away from the boats. That’s all.” He held his hands up in a peace offering. “Since we weren’t sure if there were actually going to be creatures, we thought it was smarter to not worry you.”

“I completely disagree.”

He rubbed the back of his neck and gave her a sheepish grin. “I thought you might say that. Look, I understand your hesitation and that you disagree with me. But can we go into that cave with our wits about us? We can always argue later.”

She stomped past him, shaking her head in disapproval. “We could have walked into a trap and I’d be clueless.”

“I didn’t want to worry you!” he called after her.

Right. Or he didn’t want to be wrong and then look like an idiot when nothing happened. Or when something actually happened, being embarrassed that he hadn’t made a big enough deal about it in the first place. She should strangle him. It would save her trouble in the future.

She’d go in on her own if they insisted on being so ridiculous. Without the two of them, she could focus on taking care of herself. Obviously she had to do that on her own, even though the two of them were supposed to be her dearest and closest friends.

Freya supposed they still were, even if they were a little ridiculous in their methods of taking care of her.

Sighing, she strode to the mouth of the cave where she waited for the two men to catch up to her. Sunblind, she stared into the darkness until it undulated like it had a life of its own.

Freya was used to that happening. The Goblin King’s magic had prepared her to not be scared when the darkness moved. However, she was quite sure that the darkness wasn’t expected to move in this case. Better to be safe than sorry.

By the time Eldridge caught up to her, Freya’s eyes had adjusted. Large stalactites hung from the ceiling and dripped water down onto the stone floor. There was an impressive stairwell leading to a hidden place where the sea snuck underneath the cliff’s edge. The water glowed bright blue with life.

How was this supposed to be scary?

She pursed her lips and waited for Eldridge to look over everything before she decided it was time to rub his fears in. “It’s really terrifying,” she said as she made her way down the steps. “I never would have thought you would be right, but look at all the terrifying creatures just waiting to take a bite out of us.”

He watched her with a grin, letting her get her jabs in. Until he pointed to her right. “Like that creature, you mean?”

Freya turned and saw a giant crab latched onto the wall. Its legs were as long as her arms and spines grew on the sides of its shell. Tiny arms next to its mouth were working hard, picking at something it held clutched in its arms. It shifted, and she realized it was devouring a large meat rabbit that looked so small in the crab’s grasp.

Fear zinged like electricity down her arms and she gasped, falling backward. She would have fallen to the ground if Eldridge hadn’t caught her by the waist. “Careful,” he muttered, staring behind her. “Apparently there’s more of them than I thought.”

She looked over her shoulder and a scream caught in her throat. There was yet another, this one standing on its legs, waiting for her to fall into its outstretched claws. The crab was four feet tall and could tear her apart if she slipped into its clutches.

Arrow carefully stepped next to them, his lips curled in a snarl. “I hate these things. Terrible monsters. Keep on the path you two, I suspect it’s been spelled to protect anyone on it.”

“Why would anyone ever step off this path?” she muttered.

“For those.” Arrow pointed at the wall.

Gemstones were encrusted within the stone. Thousands of them, and likely worth a king’s ransom. Rubies. Emeralds. Even clear chipped diamonds that should never have been able to grow where these were. And yet, here they were.

“Ah.” Freya muttered. “Yes, I suspect many people would be enamored with those.”

Eldridge squeezed her waist a little tighter. “Thieves fall under the spell of riches. Unfortunately for them, these guards are all too happy to pick them apart should they try to steal from the Summer Lord.”

Suddenly, she was very grateful he’d asked her to steal off the Summer Lord’s neck and not something down here. Freya wasn’t so sure she’d have succeeded if he’d wanted her to bring him a gemstone.

They walked through the lines of crab sentries, and Freya tried her best to not anger them even further. By the time they all reached the boats at the bottom of the stairwell, the crabs were clacking their claws angrily. Each one she swore was glaring, threatening the intruders with the sharp edges of their claws.

Steadying herself with a hand on her hip, she looked at the first boat and pointed to it. “I think the one with a sun painted on it looks like good luck. What do you think, boys?”

Eldridge didn’t even respond. He clambered into the wooden vessel and held out his hand to assist her in as well. “I’m not sure we have a lot of time before the spell wears off and those crabs attack. I’d rather be rowing away when that happens, rather than standing here.”

She hopped into the boat. He didn’t have to argue with her about that any farther, and Arrow was quick to leap at her heels. Together, they pushed the boat away from the small dock and out into the glowing waters of the sea.

Eldridge settled himself on the bench where twin ores were notched in the side. He set his hands on them and they flew out of the cave. The opening to the sea was so low they all had to flatten themselves into the body of the small craft, but then the sun struck their faces with a wave of heat that slicked her skin with sweat.

But, oh, the sun was beautiful.

After the nightmarish creatures that lived in that cave, the sight of a cloudless sky was more than welcome. She leaned against the boat’s side and stared down into the crystal clear waters. Tiny shells dotted the sand. Starfish the size of her head drifted across the ocean floor, while brightly colored fish flashed their scales and swam by.

This was the Summer Court she had expected to see. The entire ocean came alive with color and vibrancy that she’d never seen in her life. Compared to the other courts, this one was a veritable wealth of luxury for her eyes. She felt blessed to see any of the creatures here.

Except, of course, those horrible crab things.

Shuddering with the memory, she leaned back into the boat and eyed her companions. “How many other faerie creatures like that are there?”

“Plenty.” Eldridge’s shoulders flexed as he rowed, his arms moving them through the water with powerful strokes. “Wait until we get out into the open sea. I’m sure there are more creatures like that before we reach the isles.”

She hoped not. Freya didn’t want this feeling to be ruined by yet another monster.

Thankfully, they had time before any monsters attacked them again. The sun teased her face with warm kisses. Eldridge removed his shirt so he could row faster and easier. The glistening silver tones of his skin made him even more otherworldly, but still handsome. She’d never seen someone quite so inhuman, but still so tempting.

She wanted to lick every drop of sweat off his chest.

Arrow grumbled and turned away from her. “I can’t stand it when you look at him like that. He’s not a meal, you know.”

“He kind of is.” Freya lifted a brow and watched as Eldridge’s cheeks darkened. “Wouldn’t you say, Eldridge? Nothing wrong with making a meal out of a man.”

“I’m trying to focus, love.” Though his tones were scolding, his eyes burned with passion. “We’ll take up this conversation again soon, but let me get us to the isles. Then we’ll embarrass Arrow even more.”

“I’m certain he doesn’t mind.” Freya had no intention of continuing the conversation, but teasing Arrow was too much fun. “We could continue in whatever way we want.”

“Do you think?” He eyed Arrow as well, clearly understanding that she wanted to poke fun at their small companion. “I’m happy to go over the details of our nights together, however, I think the goblin is turning a little green.”

Arrow burped, and the sound was horribly wet. “I don’t do well on boats.”

“Is that so?” Freya lifted a brow. “How interesting. And yet you do so well on carts.”

“Not really.” Arrow lunged for the side of the boat and threw up into the water. His retching echoed across the waves so loudly she was certain he could be heard from land.

Oh, the poor dear. Freya stopped teasing him and rubbed his back. “It’s all right. I can see the isles! We can’t be that far away from them. You’ll make it.”

Eldridge made eye contact with her and shook his head. Apparently the distance was more than she realized. Freya hadn’t been on the water since she was a little girl, though, so she knew very little about their journey. Her father used to row her around a lake, but that wasn’t the same as the sea.

The waters darkened as they grew deeper. Freya watched the waves get larger and felt her own stomach flip as they continued through foaming swells. Not once did Eldridge hesitate. His arms flexed. His back worked hard. And they didn’t stop even when the waves were concerningly large.

“Eldridge?” she asked, yelling so he could hear her over the crashing water. “Should I be worried, yet?”

“Yes!” he shouted back. “Definitely worry!”

Well, that wasn’t very reassuring. The boat they were in was small and the waves were large. She feared they were going to tip over, and Arrow wasn’t helping the situation. He kept leaning over the edge of the boat, tilting them dangerously close to the water. His retching couldn’t be controlled, but she also didn’t want him toppling into the waves. Freya wasn’t confident they’d ever get him back.

“Arrow,” she said, exasperated. “Get back into the boat.”

“I can’t!” he moaned. “I can’t stop throwing up and I’m afraid what will happen if I’m not near the edge!”

“Oh, you’ll be fine.” Freya picked him up and set him down on the floor of the boat. “Throw up on the floorboards, no one will mind. It’s a boat. We can wash it.”

“But then I can’t see the isles!” He stayed where she put him though, dramatically moaning and holding his head between his paws.

If they could still see the isles, then she would have let him look. But Freya stared up at the waves and realized she had no idea where they were going anymore. The walls of water were so tall, all she could see was the darkness and foam.

The next wave swelled and a flash of teeth came with it. The shadow of the monster was larger than their boat. A sharp tipped fin and angular features warned Freya that this might be a shark. But she’d never seen one so big.

“Eldridge?” she called out again. “Please tell me you saw that!”

“I did,” he said with a grim expression on his face. Eldridge released his hold on the oars and let the boat guide itself. “The best we can do is ignore the monster and hope for the best.”

Right, ignore the giant shark that was in every single wave they rode over. She gulped and looked down, only to make eye contact with a black, soulless gaze.

Two sharks. There were more of the monsters. Lovely.

Freya reached for Eldridge’s hand and gripped it tightly in her own. “If you aren’t rowing the boat, how are we going to get to the isles?”

“I was never really rowing it.” He lifted her hand and pressed a kiss to her knuckles. “It’s magic. It’ll take us to the isles no matter what. I just wanted to impress you in case things went poorly.”

Somehow, even with fear turning her stomach, Eldridge made her laugh. Freya chuckled and pulled him closer, pressing a swift kiss to his lips. “Why? So I could see your bare, sweaty chest?”

“You enjoyed it.”

“I did.” Her heart swelled with the next wave and for a moment, she felt like she wanted to say “I love you”.

Freya opened her mouth to let the words fall from her lips, but never had the chance. Eldridge put his hand on top of her head and shoved her into the deep belly of the ship. Flashing teeth snagged a few strands of her hair, and then the shark sank back into the waves without its prize.

“That was a close one,” she whispered.

“Let’s stay low until the ship makes it, shall we?” He sank down with her and pulled her against his heart. “We’ll make it, Freya. I’m certain of that.”

She wasn’t, but Freya was glad he had faith. She didn’t know how long it took for them to reach their destination. All she could focus on was the horrible sound of gnashing teeth scraping the bow of their boat and the splash of sharp tails striking the surrounding waves.

But eventually, their boat bumped against something that wasn’t a shark’s flesh. It was sand.

Freya was the first to look up and there was the isle. Right in front of her. They’d reached the singular point they needed to go to. And they’d made it alive.